My kind of Creating

So after a few weeks of class kit preparation and then 3 days of writing instructions for multiple kits I was READY to do something different for a change.  My first thought was LEAVE the house but it has been pouring rain all week so staying inside seemed the better choice.  So over to the work table...totally inspired by a few orders that came in this week (for class kits) from Ranger and May Arts (7gypsies was already "in the house").   No plan, just fun, no worry about making a kit, just stuff from the order and my stash.  My kind of creating...totally organic.

Here's how I did it:

Start with Broken China and Peeled Paint Distress Stain.

 Paint a 6 x 6" piece of creme cardstock with Broken China.  Can't get enough of this color!

 Dry with a heat gun

 Cut a piece of cardstock 4 x 4" to use as a mask.

 Hold the mask in place and paint on the Peeled Paint Distress Stain on the exposed surface.

 Again, dry the cardstock with the heat gun.

Spray Entire surface with Perfect Pearls Mist - Heirloom Gold. Remember, these are mixatives so you need to shake until you hear the ball moving inside the liquid.

Heat gun again.  

It may look like a lot of spray here but the Perfect Pearls liquid turns to shine when the liquid is dry...just wait.

Here it is dry.

Again, back to the craft sheet for a layer of Blue Smoke.  This time place the mask back over the center.  Hold on to the mask and spray so that the mist stays just on the green portion.  Remove mask and dry with heat gun.

Don't throw your mask away yet.  Place the dry mask back over the center to use as a guide for a thin black line between the colors.  Once you draw one time around, remove the mask and go around the square a few more times freehand.  No worries if it's even, in fact it's better if it's not.

Now it's time to adhere your painted cardstock to the actual book board cover.  Once the cardstock is adhered to the cover, round the two right hand corners.  I used this to do that on the thick book board.  Once your corners are rounded, ink the edges with your favorite Distress Ink.

Punch the Book Board cover with the 7gypsies Binderie Punch...super easy.

 

Time for letters. 

Layer One

I chose the word Beauty using Tim's Grungeboard Alpha.  Love this package of letters because they are all different sizes and fonts...I think there is something like 230 pieces in the package.  Start by coloring the letters with Dusty Concord then (of course) dry with a heat gun.  Again, the stain lightens when it is dry.

Layer Two

Once dry, go over the top with Wild Honey, dry again.

Layer Three

Once dry, spray with Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls Mists, dry one more time.

Set letters aside while you finish the rest of the cover.

Okay, so I got an order from Ranger this week which included a set of Tim's new Grid blocks.  Nine thin gridded acrylic blocks.  The grid is actually etched into the block itself so it's not going to wear off.  Cool right?

 So no matter if you have a large stamp

 or a bunch of small stamps there are plenty of blocks to work with...

but the best part is that they are gridded so you can see exactly where a word or an image is placed.  Super easy to get the word straight on the block. 

So here is the finished journal... I started with a background stamp from Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous called Going Places (love that set), then added the paper scrap and the letters.  Next was the rubbings from 7gypsies and the stamp image, "Organically Grown" from my all time favorite Disclaimer clear stamp set.  Then the big moth from Tim Holtz Crowded Attic Sticker set.  The little ruler is from Collections Elements that I brought home from Australia last year. 

Love the way it looks especially at night when the whole cover shimmers in the light.  

I cut a matching back cover and 10 sheets of cardstock for the inside.  I punched them with the Binderie Punch (you can punch about 7 at a time depending on thickness of the cardstock).  Remember to round the corners of the paper to match the book.

Background stamp - Stamper Anonymous Tim Holtz

Giant Moth - Tim Holtz Salvage Stickers

Organically Grown stamp - 7gypsies

Clock rubbings - 7gypsies

Number rubbings - 7gypsies

paper scrap - Tim Holtz

Ruler - Collections Elements

And one final touch, I added these fabulous jeweled rings from 7gypsies.

So, I thought since you make it through one of my excessively long tutorials that there should be a reward at the end.  So were giving away 5 bottles of Perfect Pearls Mists which includes the two used here today.  Leave a comment and I'll draw a name on Thursday at noon.  

It's gonna be some one's Lucky Day, why not yours?