Peppermint Sugar Cookies

I designed this 6X6 recipe card for the December class at The Craft Shack.  I knew I wanted to use bright red & candy canes but that was it.  Then I attended a Dickens event  & found my inspiration!  Below are details on how I made the recipe card & a photo of what inspired me.

Sorry the photo is blurry but the white mat was stamped with Tim Holtz Flurry Stamp in Distress Candied Apple Ink & adhered to the SU Real Red CS base.

The snowflakes from Tim Holtz Reindeer Flight Stamp Set were stamped on the next layer of white with Tim Holtz Embossing Ink & sprinkled with Ranger Clear Embossing Powder then heat embossed.  That was added to the base layers.  Next the title & recipe were matted & added.

The candy canes were cut from Neenah Premium 110 lb Extra Heavy CS on my Cricut with Joys of the Season cartridge.  Once cut, I stamped them at an angle with Tim Holtz Stripes Background Stamp in Candied Apple Distress Ink.  After the ink dried, I applied embossing ink then covered them with Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel & heat embossed.  I repeated this step so it looked very shiny & thick...like a candy cane.  They were crossed & held together with Ranger Glossy Accents. 

Two pine boughs from Tim Holtz Holiday Mini Greens Dies were cut from Tim Holtz Core-dinations 12-x-12-Cardstock.  They were snipped apart, layered & glued together to form a swag.  Tim's Beaded Berries were dipped in Candied Apple Distress Spray Stain & the stems were colored with a Peeled Paint Distress Marker then added with a glue dot.  I used a glue dot to adhere the swag to the candy canes then wrapped red jute twine around the greens & tied 2 silver Tim Holtz Tiny Bells on with the same twine & tied a bow.  I added the candy canes to the recipe card using mini glue dots & Scor-Tape.

Don't you just love my inspiration?  We attended Dickens of a Christmas Celebration in Wellsboro, PA where I purchased this hand made candy cane door decoration in deep red from a street vendor.  I think the candy canes on the recipe card look pretty close...don't you?

Thanks for looking!!

Rusted Watering Can

Time for another technique tag Tim Holtz style at The Craft Shack!  This month I used his "Rusted Grunge" technique which is so realistic & easy!

TECHNIQUE TAG:
The background of the #8 manila tag was inked with old paper distress ink using a blending tool & flicked with water.  It was then stamped using Tim's Classics #1, Classics #3 & Classics #4 in black Archival ink.

Now for the technique...the Movers & Shapers jalopy & arrow were cut from grungeboard then pressed into distress embossing ink, covering the entire surface.  I did miss a few tiny spots but that'll be OK.  Next the die cuts were covered with vintage photo embossing powder & embossed with a heat tool.  After the EP & grungeboard were totally cool, I scratch the surface with my fingernail to remove some of the granules of the EP.  This gave it a little dimension.  Using a blending tool, I went over it with vintage photo ink, pushing the ink into the EP.  Voila!  There you have it...rust!  It's hard to see but I added a little patina.  With a paint brush, I randomly dabbed the arrow with cracked pistachio paint.  I also used the rust technique on a gold 4mm brad which is used to hold the arrow on the tag.  I placed the tag in a page pocket & will keep it in my Tim Holtz Worn Binder Notebook for future reference.

DECORATED TAG:
The #10 manila tag was covered with the wood grain paper from Tim's Christmas Paper Stash.  It wasn't quite long enough but I added a strip of Yuletide Design Tape at the bottom which was a great place to set the watering can.

The watering can was rusted using the technique described above, I die cut Tim's BigZ Watering Can & added the patina. It looks just like one I have in my flower garden!  After the watering can was decorated I used black foam squares to pop it up.

The pine & holly are several dies from Tim's Mini Holiday Greens set & were die cut from various colors of his Core-dinations Shattered Collection, sanded & adhered behind the watering can using glossy accents.

The beaded berries (which I love!) were colored using fired brick stain & a peeled paint marker on the stems.

The poinsettias were done by covering a small piece of white CS with melange tissue wrap using matte collage medium then I die cut 6 small poinsettias using Tim's BigZ Tattered Poinsettia Die.  They were inked with festive berries & adhered together using glossy accents & a mini gold brad then attached with a glue dot.  Oops..I messed up the one at the top so I cut & inked plain white.

In the middle, I tucked a "Holiday Party Invitation" from a pack of festive ephemera.

At the top, 2 pieces of Christmas Jute were intertwined into the SU ribbon (I was out of crinkle ribbon) with 4 of Tim's tiny bells tied to the ends.

What do you think?

Thanks for visiting my blog!!

Advent Calendar

It's finally done!  I  made this for my grandson but it will stay with me until he's an adult with a family of his own.  I started the KaiserCraft advent calendar in October 2016 in class at The Craft Shack.  I love the distressed look so I decided to use paper from Tim Holtz Yuletide 8x8 paper pack.  Although it was time consuming, the best part was choosing the papers & adding all the embellishments.  I finished the drawers & had most of the inside scene finished then I hit a wall...literally.  The wall of the "living room" needed something & I couldn't decide so I put it away & kept looking & thinking.  Then I found it!!

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ASSEMBLING:
Unfortunately I didn't take photos as I assembled the frame & boxes.  The frame is MDF &  painted white before assembling.  You need to be careful not to paint the tabs.  It fits together so tight I didn't have to glue it together & paint on the tabs would have made the fit impossible.  Also it's easier to put the paper in the center before assembling the frame.   I used glossy accents to glue the drawers together, holding with a rubber band until dry then painted them white inside & out.  There are several good YouTube videos available on how to assemble them & I would suggest watching a couple if you're going to put one of these together.

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FRAME:
Strips of paper from Tim Holt Idea-olgy Yuletide 8x8 paper were adhered around the sides of the frame with Matte Mod Podge.  I got paint on the back so I covered it with a red paper from my stash & added things from Tim's Festive Ephemera Pack, Yuletide paper pack. & a piece stamped with Doodle Greetings #2.  After all the paper was on I went over it with frayed burlap distress ink the gave it another coat of Mod Podge to make sure the paper was sealed.

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DRAWERS:
After cutting strips of various papers from Tim's Yuletide, they were wrapped around the drawer & creased so I'd know where to bone fold for a crisp edge.  I held the paper in place & with a pencil drew a line where the half circle was to be cut with a circle punch.  This is where the drawer will be pulled out.

The paper was adhered to the drawers with Mod Podge.  Once it was dry, frayed burlap distress ink was applied to the edges of the paper & the bottom of the drawers with a mini ink blending tool.  I then went over the entire drawer again the the mod podge to seal it.

Below are the drawers before adding the embellishments.  If you notice originally there was another paper in the middle but decided I wanted to go another direction so I changed it to a paper that has a small dot for the appearance of "wallpaper".

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DRAWER EMBELLISHMENTS:
Now the fun part!  I started by numbering the drawers with  KaiserCraft Metallic Gold Number Stickers distressed with mushroom alcohol ink & adhered using glossy accents.  In the beginning I was going to have the drawers in sequential order so I made sure I mixed the papers up.  But in the end I mixed the numbers up so you'd have to search for them.  That took a little time to figure out where to put them so the papers were different!  Drawer #25 doesn't have a slot so I make a lid & added a ribbon to make it look like a gift then attached it with glossy accents.  I listed the embellishments I used at the bottom of the page & most were put on with a crop-a-dile-hole-punch or glossy accent.  I wish I could have used all Tim Holtz embellishments but I just didn't have enough but did have some other cute things in my stash.  Some were painted or inked if they were shinny.  I even added a little gold foil with a glue stick to a few.

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CENTER:
I started with the tin ceiling made from mirrored sheets, embossed with Tim's Damask EF & inked with black soot ink.  I can't get a good photo of the "hardwood" floor & I'm not sure if the paper is Tim's or something I had in my stash.

The "wainscoting" paper is from Tim's Yuletide with Tim's Yuletide Design Tape used as a border. The Christmas tree is the large tree from Woodlands Trees and Wreath Set sprayed with Peeled Paint Stain. While that was drying, I colored pearls with Adirondack alcohol inks - mushroom, aqua, cranberry, purple twilight, sunshine yellow in small cups. By applying mushroom ink first it tones down the bright colors & gives them a vintage look (learned that from Tim). Gold cord was wrapped around the tree then the dyed pearls were added with glossy accents. The toys & gifts under the tree were from my Department 56 village days. The night scene behind the white CS Memory Box Madison Window is inked with Chipped Sapphire then Santa & his reindeer from SU Holiday Home & the trees tops from Tim's Reindeer Flight were stamped in black Archival Ink.

The SU Festive Fireplace was stamped, embossed with white & inked with Fired Brick then die cut & folded to make it 3D.  The mantel & stockings were from the same set, embossed & colored with several of Tim's markers.  The clock was placed on the wall then the swag from Tim's Mini Holiday Greens in his Kraft Core paper was sanded & added above the mantel.  I also added a few tiny red jewels I had in my stash.  The salvaged doll was painted with black soot (shoes), antique linen (skin), fired brick (nightgown) & vintage photo (hair).  She is standing with her "blanket" which is a piece of crinkle ribbon dyed with tumbled glass.  She' was placed in front of the fireplace amazed Santa had been there! 

The pictures on the wall were vintage images, resized to fit into 3 of the Melissa Frances Resin Frames.  I inked with frayed burlap then added lossy accent over the photos so it looked like glass.

All this was done last winter but as I said it needed something....then I found the Tim Holtz Holly, Beaded, Snowflake Garland Strip Die!  A holly swag was cut from Tim's Kraft Core paper in green & red then sanded...just what it needed!!  I also used a couple of the extra bows on the swag & window.

I probably missed something but if you've read this far it probably doesn't really matter because your head is spinning!

Thanks for looking at my project!


DRAWER EMBELLISHMENTS:
Tim Holt Idea-ology - Christmas typed tokens, mirrored stars, mini fasteners brads, yuletide fasteners, star fasteners, antique nickel arrow, hex fasteners, nailheads; long fasteners, jingle brads, ice skates, pine cones, ring fasteners, frozen snowflakes alpha parts, snowflakes; Ranger - vintage shiny gold transfer foil sheets, mini collage glue stick; KaiserCraft - Metallic Gold Number Sticker Sheet, wooden flourish joy pack; Stampin' Up - Christmas trinkets, mini jingle bells, enamel dots ; Memory Makers - birthday charms; Eyelet Outlet - stocking brads, red Christmas hat brads; Unknown - button brads, lock keys on ring, candy cane charm, mittens, snowflake, jewels, clock charm, swirly clip.