COMPENDIUM OF CURIOSITIES CHALLENGE 8 ~ FADED LAYERS

Hello Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge lovers!  
It's time for a new challenge!  Check out all of the beautiful art that has been created to inspire you from all of the Curiosity Crew at the lovely Linda Ledbetter's challenge site Here.  

Just in case you are new to the challenge, it is based on the products and techniques found in the Compendium of Curiosities Volume III, written by our favorite Master of Distress and All Things Grunge ... Tim Holtz.  

Have you seen his new summer releases?  If not, you have got to check out his blog! His new Stampers Anonymous Holiday Stamps are very cool for the upcoming Halloween and Christmas season. The new Holiday Sizzix die cuts are also very festive. And my favorite ... his new Merriment Ideaology line! I cannot wait to get my hands on those!  They should be in stores pretty soon so be looking for those!

But for now, back to our challenge! Are you ready?  

Challenge 8 is all about FADED LAYERS.  So turn to page 58 in your Compendium of Curiosities III book and check out Tim's step by step technique.

I created this card to illustrate Tim's Faded Layers technique in my background.  While I won't divulge the "how to" of this technique because that is what your book is for, I will show you as much of the step by step in the creation of this card that I can.

I used Butterscotch, Cooper Mixative and Stream Alcohol Inks to create the colors of my background on Glossy Cardstock.

To create my Faded Layers, I used Tim's Harlequin and Bubble Stencils.  Here you can see the faded images of those two stencils on my card.

I like the sort of "ghosty" images you get from the Faded Layers technique and I didn't really want to cover them up with a lot of stamping.  So I decided to add some pretty metallic die cuts to embellish my card front. 

  

I used an antique bronze metallic sheet and backed it with some kraft cardstock for stability. This eloquent die cut edge is from Spellbinder's A Gilded Life Collection. I added the pearls that were originally white but I transformed their appearance with Caramel Alcohol Inks. I also added some small rhinestones to the centers of the Fleur Dis Les points and also underneath the pearls to dress up this already ornate trim. Along the edge of the trim, I added a piece of Dresden scallop trim using 1/8" Scor Tape.

Alcohol inks are great for transforming the appearance of anything that has a non porous surface. You can color glass, plastics, pearls, rhinestones, metals, non porous papers ... anything that is non porous simply by pouncing the alcohol ink onto the surface using the ink applicator.  Use one or mix a combination of colors at the same time for a marbleized look.

Next, I used some more of my antique bronze metal sheet that was backed with kraft paper and die cut a pretty lacy butterfly and several flowers from Tim Holtz' Tattered Floral Garland die cut.

I also die cut a dainty flower stem.  Then I layered and bent the petals of my tattered flowers using a Long Fastener.  I would later add one of Tim's Ideaology Pen Nibs to the body of my butterfly. Here are most of the elements I used on the front of my card.

The next step was to begin placing them on my card front by gluing them in place. 

The Pen Nib is originally an antique silver color. I altered it's appearance to match my antique bronze metal die cut objects by wiping some Treasure Gold Renaissance Guilding Wax over it.  Then I wrapped some coordinated wire around the nib and brought it up behind the nib, creating the antenna.  I then glued it to my butterfly (using Glossy Accents) once I had placed it on my card front.

Here is a closer look at my butterfly and some of the Tattered Flowers. The butterfly's wings can be lifted to give more dimension to the card front. I love how the metal embellishments look against the colors and the faded layers of my background.

And here is a better look at the dimension that the Tattered Flowers give to the card.

I added a piece of cardstock behind my Faded Layers background to give my card that matted finish. The edge of the cardstock was swiped with Antique Bronze Distress Stain and then I joined the two cardstocks together using 1/4" Scor Tape. I literally made this card in about two hours from start to finish. So it's not a difficult project to do.

I hope that you will join our Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge.  Our prize for this challenge is a $25.00 gift certificate from one of my favorite places ... 

There is also a fabulous prize package given for each challenge that has been generously donated especially for this challenge by Tim and Mario!  So don't miss out on learning this new technique, sharing your art with so many others who love Tim's style and having the chance to win some wonderful prizes!  See the challenge blog for all of the details on how to enter and win.

Good luck!