Inspiration Found

Where I've been:
I've spent the last four days in Las Vegas teaching at the Inspiration Unlimited event. 

I cannot say enough how much I enjoyed teaching!  Most students were open to trying the mixed media techniques and that made me super happy!  You never know how people will respond to your ideas but everyone seemed happy and grateful for the kit and the giveaways that Tim sent.  Also a HUGE Thank You to my two personal assistants Susan and Julie.  They were with me in all three classes and did an amazing job assisting students and moving all my products/kits between classrooms.  It was like a well oiled machine.  THANK YOU to Tim, Advantus, Ranger and Stampers Anonymous for sponsoring my class!  Always, always so generous to the students.

What I'm doing:
Now to play a little catch up with the groceries and laundry (and Project Runway).  Oh, and all the boxes of product that were delivered while I was away....gotta get to opening them up since it is the product for my classes in Waxahachie, TX on Oct 17th and 18th that needs to be kitted sometime in the next week.  Looks like I will be busy, busy, busy.   

What I'm sharing:
Today I have 10 inspiring projects from around the web to share.  I know I get inspired by what others create and each of these projects include a clever idea or technique that I was inspired by.  I hope you will pop by their blogs to see more of what they have created.
carry on,
paula

one.
Barbarayaya
Love the jumbo tag by Barbara!  She created a great background with one of the new layering stencils and texture paste.  I also love that she went with non traditional colors for this tag!  When you see the up close pictures of the tag on her blog, the 25 is so beautifully done in crackle finish.  You may have to hit the translate button to read her blog, but it's worth it.

two.
Jenny Marples
This is one of my favorite fall card projects - so simple but incredibly beautiful.  Love the touch of gold on the clock face and the stunning background.  Jenny created this for the CC3 challenge - on embossing powders so you can guess what she used to create the wood grain background.

three.
Shelly Hickox
No one does Halloween like Shelly does Halloween.  Her Halloween Configurations Book from 2013 is still one of the best Configurations projects I have ever seen.  This Found Relative project is no exception.  From the clock in the background with the subtle spiderweb and orange glittered hands to the bat on a string.  Pure Shelly.  I sure hope there is more to come this month!

four.
Trace Metcalfe for Country View Crafts:
I love the idea of using the new "Occasions" - Found Relatives to create Christmas Cards.  Trace shows all the background details in her post so I hope you will pop over to see the cards up close.  What a great idea!

five.
Anja
This simple birthday card by Anja is wonderful.  Simple and perfect for a birthday!  I love how she cut the birthday cupcake blueprint image into a circle.  One of those "wish I would have thought of that" moments.

six.
Bobbie Smith
Halloween tag - LOVE the background Bobbie created with Distress Ink and Paint and the Shatter Layering Stencil.  WOW.

seven.
Karen Knight
Halloween Tag - This tag just makes me happy - the Corked Vials, the spider and the Clipboard Clip...everything works together to create a great Halloween collage.  Karen has a tutorial showing how she created the tag background too.  Love it.

eight.
Andrea Ockey Parr
I saw this project last week and could not stop thinking about the color that was used here.  I love how Andrea used the picture wheel die on the Worn Cover and then went on to add all the pages inside that represent the colors of Distress products.  Total color inspiration!

nine.
Ashli Oliver
When I saw this journal cover by Ashli I could not figure out how she did it.  Can you?  Check out her blog for the answer.  I will tell you I would have never thought to even try this, so props to Ashli for being so dang clever.  This is definitely something I want to try.

ten.
Hilary Kanwischer
And the last one for the day is this amazing Halloween centerpiece by Hilary.  I shared this on Facebook but I had to share it again here.  I wish I had the time to recreate this for my house this month!!  I love everything about it, from the yellow windows to the little pumpkins, right down to the cobblestone street! AMAZING idea and craftsmanship by Hilary Kanwischer.  Maybe I can start in Jan of 2015 I can get one done by next Oct!

Media Team - Halloween Assemblage Clock

Hi Everyone!  I'm here today with my post for the Tim Holtz Media Team.

I decided I wanted to use the Idea-ology Assemblage Clock to create a new Halloween Decoration (since it IS almost October!).  I've created many clocks in the past year or so, but I've never made one without the glass.  So I'm going to give it a go!  Follow along and I'll show you how it went....

Take apart the Assemblage Clock. You may need needle nose pliers to help the process. 

I like to keep the pieces together just as they are used in the clock so I remember how to put the clock back together.   I also have set of pictures of the inside and outside of the clock on my computer thus giving me a permanent reference in case I need it.  Trust me, I have used them a few times.

 Paint all the pieces with Black Soot Distress Paint.  Let dry for at least 30 minutes.

When the paint is tacky, go back and wipe away some of the paint with a paper towel so the metal shows through.  Set aside to complete the drying process.

I want a really old rusty clock so I'm going to use Distress Embossing Powder - Vintage Photo over the black and silver surface.  To do this, pounce Distress Embossing Ink over the metal surface.
NOTE: I did the clock in two phases, using the holes as markers since the Embossing Ink is clear.

 Pour Distress Embossing Powder over the clock piece.  Slide the excess powder back into the jar.

I want some of the black and silver to show through, so I brushed away some of the powder before drying.  I don't know why, but the entire time I was working on the outside of the clock I kept thinking how much it looked like a graham cracker crust once the butter has soaked in.  The funny things we think about while waiting for Embossing Powder to melt.

Please be very careful with this process, as the metal gets very hot. 

After melting the embossing powder with a heat tool, cool completely. 
Run your fingers over the embossed surface to the loosen the release crystals (that's why it's called Distress Embossing Powder).
NOTE: Because these are release crystals they should go into the trash not back in the jar.

Once all the pieces are done, the clock can be put back together.  I like the way the embossing Powder looks, nice and grungy, perfect for a Halloween clock!
NOTE: Again, I am choosing not to use the glass in this project so I will not be adding it back in.

I need something for the background of the clock.  I decided to use Black Cardstock from Ranger.  Nice and heavyweight like the Manila cardstock I love so much.  I used the back of the clock to trace a circle for the background and cut it out.

Distress Paint works well over paper, so I'm using Dusty Concord, Ripe Persimmon and Chipped Sapphire.  I sprayed water into the paint and then swiped the black cardstock circle through the mix.

 That looks like a nice Halloween sky to me.

Once dry, I sprayed it with one of the new Distress Spray Stain in Brushed Pewter.  Nice and glittery... like a stars.

 Adhere the cardstock to the clock back and trim away the excess.

 Always good to test the fit before moving on.

I'm going to add a Mini Lantern to the background.  I decided to paint the Mini Lantern Brushed Pewter with a black top.  When the Mini Lantern is put into the clock, the top will fade away into the background and the Mini Lantern will not appear as large. 

 You can use Multi Medium or thin Foam Tape to add the Lantern to the clock back.

The wire comes right out the top and connects to the battery pack.  Eventually the battery pack will be secured to the clock with Velcro.

Again, keeping with the spooky Halloween theme, I decided to use cheesecloth to cover the walls of the clock.  I used Multi Medium to adhere the cheesecloth, pulling parts of it forward and over the edge of the clock face.  This part can get a little sticky so have the wet wipes nearby!

While the Multi Medium was drying, I stamped and embossed the cool owl from the Mini Halloween 4 set on the same black cardstock.  Once the image was cooled, I cut away part of the stamped image, leaving just the owl on the branch.

I gave him just a little color using some Alcohol Ink (eventually I added some Mushroom Alcohol Ink to the branch).

 A little Multi Medium on the back and he sticks quite nicely to the back of the clock.

Okay, just a couple more layers...
I adhered 1/2 of a Foil Tape Sheet to a piece of paper.   Then flipped it over, onto the Ironwork Gate Decorative Strip and ran it through the Vagabond machine to create a fence for the background.

A bit of Alcohol Ink so it's not so shiny!

So how do you get a flimsy fence to stand up?  Plastic.
Again, I used the back of the clock as a template.
It might be hard to see in the picture, but the bottom follows the curve of the clock and the top is straight.  I adhered the fence to the plastic with Multi Medium, running it along the straight edge.

I also created a Label Pull for the front of the clock using the Apothecary Remnant Rubs.

 

All right, almost there!  Fence is in and Label Pull is in place.

We need the main characters!  Love these new Occasions Found Relatives!  "Occasions" means there are cards for Halloween, Christmas, 4th of July, Birthdays, Summer and Easter, just to name a few.

I chose these four guys with the pumpkins.

Once they were cut out, I cut the little guy off the left side and moved him to the middle with a little bit of foam tape.  I think he looks like he belongs there!  I also curved the bottom so it fits down into the curve of the clock.

A little bit of Distress Marker color for the pumpkins and the stripe on the beanie and they really come alive.

I cut a small piece of cardstock for support.  The cardstock slipped in perfectly under the fence plastic.

Notice the lantern in this shot?...because the top is painted black it's more like a porch light than a hanging lantern.  Just what I was going for.

CLOCK TOP:
I used the Distress Spray Stain for the ribbon which is something new for me.  I sprayed the Stain directly onto the Crinkle Ribbon using NO WATER at all, which caused some very unique patterns as the stain bled through the weave of the ribbon, almost like Ikat fabric. 

Love the look of this.  It does feel different, a little crunchier or stiffer than if you used water in the coloring process, but I don't mind the feeling and in some projects, having the stiffer ribbon could have an advantage.

I also created some faux cracked glass bottles using Multi Medium, Distress Crackle Paint - rock candy and Alcohol Ink.  Tim explains this technique on page 54 of Compendium of Curiosities Vol III. (seriously, could I have any more Multi Medium dried on my fingertips?)

I added a few colors of Alcohol Ink to some Fragment Charms.

As well as Remnant Rubs from the Apothecary Sheet.  All bits were added to a Swivel Clasp and Wire Pin.

Then into the bow on the clock.

Yep, lots of steps to make the clock, but it came out really cool.  I love the grungy exterior and the Found Relative kids.  The Mini Lantern is easy to add to the background plus it added a lot of interest, almost like the boys are standing on someones doorstep for trick or treating!

Hope you enjoyed today's Media Team tutorial.  I know I had a great time making it!  I also hope that if you have never made an Assemblage Clock that this tutorial might give you some ideas for a fun piece to share with your family in October.

Now carry on,
paula

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