TIM HOLTZ INSPIRED CHRISTMAS TAG

Hello friends!  The holiday clock is ticking ... only 15 days left until Christmas Day!

This week at Simon Says Stamp and Show, we are celebrating TIM HOLTZ and the wonderful inspiration he gave all of us with his annual 12 Tags of Christmas!  Here are handy links to all of his tags over the years:


2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011

Our theme for this week's challenge is find some inspiration from Tim's 12 Tags of Christmas and create your own Tim style piece ... a tag, an ATC card, scrapbook page ... whatever inspires YOU!

 I created this #10 size manila tag and combined several Tim Holtz products and "Tim techniques" from his Christmas Tags.

 
I recently purchased Tim's new Stocking Stuffer die cut and wanted to use it for this challenge.  So, using my trusty Vagabond (LOVE IT!), I cut the stocking out of plain Grungeboard and inked it with Evergreen Bough and Festive Berries Distress Ink.

Then I recalled a couple of techniques Tim used in 2010 that I wanted to try again.  First, Tim took a die cut reindeer and embossed it (Tim's Tag from Day 6, 2010). But then, on the next day (Day 7, 2010), he actually inked the texture fade; thus colorizing and embossing a tag at the same time.  I loved both ideas and decided to incorporate them on my stocking.

So ... I inked the harlequin texture fade with embossing ink and ran it through the vagabond.  (I patted the stocking with an X-static pad first to help resist the embossing powder in places that I didn't want it to cling before I ran the stocking through the Vagabond).  

 
Next, I sprinkled Queen's Gold Embossing Ink over the inked pattern and brushed away any excess powder with a small, dry paint brush.  Then I heat set it with my Heat It Craft Tool.  It worked! I distressed the edges of the stocking and the red portions with a Gold Paint Dabber and glued the top, toe and heel in place with Glossy Accents.  

I decided to create a tag that would have the stocking "hanging by the chimney with care".  What better way to create a brick chimney background than to use Tim's Bricked Texture Fade?  Then I inked over it first with Festive Berries followed by Fired Brick Distress Inks.  I added a touch of Gathered Twigs Distress Ink for darker distressed areas.  Then I smeared Rock Candy Distress Stickles over all of the bricks to give them a bit of a gloss and also "grit".  After I added my masked Santa on the top portion of the tag, I lightly embossed some Gold Embossing Powder around all of the edges of the tag.

The masked Santa image, from Tim's Just Believe stamp set, was sort of born out of Tim's Tag from Day 8, 2010.  When I stamped the Santa onto the top of the tag, I inked up the stamp with Fired Brick on Santa's hat and coat and then Black Soot Distress Ink on all of the details of Santa's face and hair.  I also inked the Night Before Christmas text with Black Soot.  Then I created a mask for Santa and laid it over the stamped image.  After that, I was able to ink the background of the top of the tag with Evergreen Bough followed with a little Gathered Twig and Black Soot at the edges.

   
While the mask was still in place, I decided to add some of Tim's Fabulous Flourishes by painting the stamp with a Gold Paint Dabber and then randomly applying it to the tag.  **Wash your stamp off immediately after using paint on it to get it clean!

Then I gold embossed "BELIEVE" from Tim's Mini Holidays stamp set next to Santa's head.

  
So, here is the tag before adding any embellishments.

I added a "mantle" to the chimney by cutting a piece of Grungeboard and using Tim's Scallops On The Edge die cut on one edge.  I then painted the Grungeboard with white Gesso and sprinkled it with Martha Stewart's Crystal Fine Glitter.  When the was dry, I lightly sprayed it with some honey stain spray to "age" the bright white gesso.  Then I added the Santa facet to one of the holes.

When making the Santa facet, I referred to Tim's Tag from Day 4, 2010. On Tim's tag, he alcohol inked the entire facet and then stamped snowflakes with Archival Ink to remove the alcohol ink, leaving the snowflakes.  I did not use a stamped image on my facet; rather a victorian Santa.  But I loved the idea of the facet and alcohol inking all around my image.  So, I alcohol inked the outer edge with Bottle Alcohol Ink followed by dabbing over it with a Gold Paint Dabber.  The I sized a victorian Santa face to fit the facet, glued it in place using Glossy Accents and trimmed off the excess paper.  Finally, I made it a charm by adding a small Bauble and two jump rings and attaching it to the "mantle".

 Mini Poinsettias in various stages of Stickles being added.

Next I created three mini poinsettias from Tim's new Mini Cardinal and Poinsettia Movers and Shapers die cut.  I cut several of them out of sheet music that had been inked with Festive Berries and Evergreen Bough.  I added Platinum Stickles around all of the edges of the leaves, flowers and to the centers of the flowers.

Here is the final placement of the mini poinsettias on the tag.

The stocking dangles freely from the mantle by punching holes through the stocking, the mantle and directly above on the tag.  It is held in place with a piece of Tim's new red Winter Tinsel Twine.  There is also a large Bauble with a chain tassle hanging from a jump ring.  The candy cane (that is part of the stocking die cut) is painted with Claudine Hellmuth's Blank Canvas and Dash of Red Studio Paints.  The green accent stripe is courtesy of a Pine Needles Distress Marker.  I then distressed the edges of the candy cane with Gathered Twigs and Black Soot.  It is glued into place on the backside of the stocking (so that the stocking can move freely) with Glossy Accents.

Finally, the faux porcelain numbers were an amazing technique.  Tim debuted them on his tag from Day 5, 2010.  I used Tim's Mini Numerals and painted them with Blank Canvas.  While they were still wet, I covered them with White UTEE and heat set them.  When they had cooled down (the metal gets VERY HOT), I lightly wiped over them with Gathered Twigs and edged them with Black Soot.

So, this is my Tim Inspired tag...so many techniques and so many elements all coming together to create some nostalgic magic!  I hope this tag inspires you to join our challenge and create your own Tim style piece!  Check out the beautiful ideas my Design Teammates have posted just for you at Simon Says Stamp and Show!

You could be the winner of Simon Says Stamps' 

$50.00 credit voucher!  I bet this close to Christmas ... you could use this gift!  But ... you could also be selected as one of our TOP THREE entries for the week!!!

Merry Christmas to you and yours!!

Here is a list of the products available at Simon Says Stamp that were used in this tag:

InLinkz.com