Born, never asked

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "Spritz, Sprays and Stencils". How to explain my entry this week without typing a mini-novel that will bore you to tears? I'll try to make it brief!

I have been a huge fan of multimedia artist Laurie Anderson for over 25 years. I have seen her perform more times than I can remember, I have a signed copy of her career retrospective and she was even the subject of my final degree dissertation back in my college days. I'm sure that many (if not most) of you won't be familar with her work, it's definitely more "arty" than mainstream. She sings on some albums, tells stories on others and is a gifted violinist. Above all she is the queen of digital technology, frequently inventing the instruments she uses in her music. My piece this week is inspired by her track "Born, Never Asked", which I love for her emotive violin playing. If you'd like to give it a listen it can be found here.

I started out by making 2 stencils for this piece - the first was a block of numbers, used in the centre panel in the bottom row. The second was the lyrics of the song that inspired the piece, which are:

It was a large room, full of people. All kinds. And they had all arrived at the same building at more or less the same time. And they were all free. And they were all asking themselves the same question: What is behind that curtain?

I used that stencil in the top-left and centre-right panels. Oh, by the way, while we're talking about making your own stencils, it's an activity that definitely has it's pros and cons! Yes, you have a unique stencil of your own design that is perfectly suited to the project you're working on, and once made, you can use time and again. However, and it's a big "however", be prepared to spend hours picking tiny pieces of plastic out of the stencil and then even longer finding them in your hair, on your clothes, in your mouth and even in your food!

Ok, a quick skip through what I did on each panel, starting top left and working left to right.

• Coloured with blended Distress Inks, stamped with letters stamp and stencilled with text, both brown Distress Ink (I forget which brown). The hand was moulded from paper clay and coloured with Promarkers.
  
• Letter blocks paper from Tim Holtz's Lost and Found stack.
  
• Stamped the hand and coloured it with Promarkers. Edged the tile with brown Distress Ink (same edging on all panels).
  
• Coloured the tile with blue Distress Stain. Splattered blue and red Distress Stain on my craft mat and pressed the tile onto it then stamped the ticket.
  
• Photo from the Lost and Found stack.
  
• Covered the tile with Tissue Tape then painted it with green Claudine Hellmuth paint. Stencilled the text with red C.H. paint.
  
• Background is text blocks from Lost and Found stack. Coloured the base of a grunge block with brown Distress Ink then stamped dates image on it. Coloured the grunge T with black Distress Ink and fixed them both in place.
  
• Coloured tile with blended orange and yellow Distress Ink then stamped numbers grid on it. Stencilled numbers with Aged Mahogany Distress Ink.
  
• Coloured the tile with Peacock Feathers Distress Ink and stamped the dots with Dusty Concord Distress Ink. Used a black Distress Marker to edge the main details on the man stamp then stamped it on Kraft Resist paper. Inked it and stamped again on white card. Cut out the man's face and fixed it to the Kraft Resist image then fixed both onto the tile.
  
• Finally I fixed all the tiles together with the Tiny Attacher and mounted them onto black card.
  

Looking back at it now, it's clear to me that I was also playing around with ideas of scale - big hand/small hand, big numbers/small numbers, big text/small text. I confess that I wasn't aware of it while I was doing it, it must have been subconscious, lol I have a running joke with a friend of mine, any time we look at someone's art, whether it be in a gallery or on a blog, one of us, at some point, will say "Do you see what they're doing? They're playing with ideas of scale!". It's quite possible that that was rattling around somewhere in my head during the making of this piece.

Supplies I used included:

InLinkz.com
Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)

See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "Depths of Distress".   A few days back I was watching news reports about both the Eurozone crisis and the collapse of parts of the banking industry in various places around the world and it started one or two wheels turning in my head, but then I eventually thought no more of it.  When it came time to think about this week's challenge I had this idea of making an updated version of the Japanese proverb of the 3 Wise Monkeys - "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil".  Luckily, in my house mansion, apart from my craft room, an entire wing of my spacious estate is devoted solely to stamps of animals and 3 of the rooms contain my entire collection of monkey stamps in various positions :)

A-n-y-w-a-y... long story short, on my way to my stampatorium I kept getting lost between my golf course and private day spa. Without access to my collection of monkey stamps, I had to abandon the monkey idea completely! That's when I thought back to the banking stuff I had been watching on tv and although they'd used different terminology, it wasn't a huge leap to realise that one thing the interviewed bankers kept implying was that they'd seen no evil, heard no evil and spoken no evil.  So there you have it, three '50s type bankers, complete with stylish modern accessories representing an update to the ancient Japanese proverb!

I spritzed the background card with a little water then dabbed on spots of Distress Stain all over it.  When it was dry I went over it with a few layers of white Distress Stain to soften the colour and stamped the Tim Holtz numbers stamp on top, finally finishing with more white Distress Stain.  I also wiped it with a baby wipe to make it a little more grainy.

I cut out the suits and hats from a sheet of Kraft Resist paper and coloured them with Distress Ink (you could also use Distress Stain but Distress Ink pad and blending tool give a much stronger contrast in the glazed areas of the Kraft Resist).  The shirts and ties were cut freehand with scissors (I didn't even draw them first, I just kept snipping until they looked right.  I know, I know, crafting without a safety net - I live life on the edge!).  The ties were coloured with Barn Door Distress Ink.

I stamped the clowns from the Big Top stamp set and cut out the central face from each image and coloured them with Promarkers.  The accessories were cut from black cardstock and I cut the ipod from black and white card and added twisted wires for the headphones.  I cut a half inch from the bottom of the two background figures so that the added height of the middle figure would make it look like the group was looming threateningly over the viewer.  The two background figures were mounted on black foam to raise them above the background, then the middle figure was further mounted above the duo behind.  I mounted the whole piece onto black card and then onto the front of a white greeting card blank.

So there you have it, a bit of crafting, a bit of Japanese religious history and a bit of topical commentary on society - what more can you want?  lol

Apology:  It has been brought to my attention that some parts of my story in the first two paragraphs are out-and-out lies - specifically in the parts that mention my home.  I've read and re-read it but try as I might I can't find anything wrong.  Still, I'd be failing in my duty, dear reader, if I didn't point it out to you!

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)

Design Team Call!

Simon Says Stamp and Show is looking for a few new team members! I may be biased but I think it's the best team to be on - you've still got about a week left to enter so why not give it a try?  Simon Says Stamp is a great company to work for and a lot of fun!  You can find all the details here:

http://simonsaysstampandshow.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/design-team-call.html

Good luck!! :)

Once seen, never forgotten?

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "a bit of brown".   I spent a few days thinking about this theme before I started work on my tag, and my mind kept coming back, again and again, to old sepia toned photos.  I started thinking about memory too, how some things are vivid in our memories forever and others slowly fade over time.

We keep photos and ephemera to remind us of people and events from the past, but as the name implies, they are ephemeral, objects created with a short life-span built into them.  What happens to our memories once the reminders are no longer with us?  Anyway, all of that was squashed together into this tag! :)

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)

One, two, buckle my shoe...

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "Anything Goes".  Ever since I got this Cavallini and Company numbers tape I've been itching to use it again (I made some cards with it when I first got it).  This week's theme was the perfect excuse to go all numerical! :)

Panels 1, 4, 6 and 8 use the number tape.  2, 3 and 7 are panels from the Lost and Found card stack.  5 and 9 were stamped by yours truly, using distress stains and Tim Holtz stamp sets.

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)

It's all about the texture!

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "Texture".  There are so many ways to introduce texture into your projects, so why not join in with the challenge, there's a great prize!

I introduced texture onto my shadow frame by using a stars embossing folder in my cuttlebug.  I rubbed an aged mahogany distress ink pad over the card to highlight the stars after embossing and filled in the recessed areas with a white pen.

The balloon was stamped onto acetate and then coloured on the reverse side with distress markers.  I used a moist wipe to remove some of the colour to give it a more shaded look.

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)

It's a Guy Thing!

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "One for the Guys", so why not get creative and give this week's challenge a try?

I decided to make a journal cover using Ten Seconds Studio copper-effect metal.  I ran it through the Cuttlebug with the clockworks embossing folder and fixed it to some chipboard.  I then rubbed it with blending solution on an alcohol ink tool to remove the copper glaze from the raised parts, which revealed the silver beneath.  I rubbed on some black paint and then buffed it away in some areas and finally distressed it with a sanding block.

The text plate was created with layered strips of card which were then covered in copper metal and treated the same as the main cover.  Finally I stamped the text, cut it out and fixed it in place.

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)

Beach Hut Bonanza

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "Summer Holiday", so why not get creative and give this week's challenge a try?

My piece this week was inspired by beach huts I remember seeing at the seaside when I was a child.  You can still see them today in some towns, mainly those that were popular seaside resorts in Victorian times.

The 3 background panels were all stamped with versamark ink and then inked over, to give a paler texture where the stamped image was.  The mat behind the panels was taken from the Destinations card stack.

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)

Famous for 15 Minutes

 

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "Anything Goes", so why not get creative and give this week's challenge a try?

My piece this week was inspired to some extent by the work of Andy Warhol, particularly his images in the style of this one of Marilyn Monroe. Needless to say mine is a little more grungy than his very graphic style! :)  Oh, that's also why I paraphrased his quote "in the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes" as the title!

The two panels on the left use tissue tape as background, both taken from the Commute pack.  The lower background was coloured with distress inks applied with an ink blending tool and you can see that the colour is very subtle, tissue tape doesn't hold much colour that way.  The top panel was coloured with a distress marker which was then wiped with a wet wipe and you can see that much more of the colour has stayed visible.

The two panels on the right were stamped with Versamark ink and images from the new Tim Holtz set "Mixed Media".  I dried them with a heat gun and then applied distress inks on top, which is resisted by the Versamark, giving a ghosted image of the stamp.

Moving in a clockwise circle from top left, the men (Wendy Vecchi's stamp "Well Dressed") were coloured as follows:

1. Distress stains, which I didn't dry between colours, so that they would run together.
2. Uncoloured, with added white star brads.
3. Stamped in black then over stamped in red and yellow, offsetting the image each time.
4. Stamped and coloured with promarkers.

I think that of all the pieces I've made in recent weeks this one is by far my favourite - I hope you feel the same way too! :)

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)

Playing Favourites

This weeks theme on the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge is "your favourite stamp".  Tim Holtz's "David" stamp has always been one of my favourites - it's a great size (ie big!) and there are so many things you can do to change it.  I think I was channelling Magnum P.I. when I made this distinctly 70s inspired card! :)  Further down in this post I've added some pics of other times I've used the David stamp.

I stamped him 3 times, once on kraft, once on brown and once on white and then cut parts from the brown and white and stuck them onto the kraft image.  The background was made from slim wedges taken from Tim's Destinations card stack and some lilac card that I stamped with a letters stamp.  The moustache was cut freehand from brown card and then stamped twice with a notepaper stamp.  Add some promarker and Walnut Stain shading and bob's yer uncle! :)

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $50 gift voucher as the prize again this week, just make something for the challenge and you could the winner! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try? At the very least why not head over to the Challenge Blog to see how the other members of the design team have interpreted this weeks theme! :)