Is it raining where you are?  It's been raining off and on all week here!

I NEED some SUNSHINE!  But, at least when it's raining outside,

you can be spending time in the craft room and that is exactly what I have done.

Welcome to challenge number THIRTY ONE out of thirty four of the 

Compendium of Curiosities III Challenges hosted by the lovely Linda Ledbetter.  The multi talented Curiosity Crew has once again created an array of very creative pieces to inspire you.

This challenge showcases the products, techniques and style of the one and only 

Tim Holtz. We invite you to join in on the fun and create your own original art and link to our challenge. There are two chances to win with each challenge and you can win some really generous and wonderful prizes!

Speaking of the Compendium of Curiosities III Challenges, have you guys seen the entries to our last challenge using the Faux Cracked Glass technique?  If not, you really need to check them out! There is some seriously fabulous technique and art there!

Back to THIS challenge ... turn to page 47 in your Compendium of Curiosities III books and check out the Layering Stencil: Paint Resist technique. 

Here are my finished art journal pages done with Tim's technique in the background.  While I can't share the actual technique with you ... that is what you need the book for ... I will share with you all of the products I used and the steps leading up to and following the actual Layering Stencil: Paint Resist technique.  I will also share some little tips with you along the way.  

If you follow my blog, you know that I love to create as I go ... nothing pre planned ... just got for it.  I paint more with my fingers and baby wipes than I do a brush. At least for me, when I work this way, I seem to get  more "into" what I'm doing and I "feel" the surfaces and direction my project wants to go much better than when my hands are clean.  I hope that makes sense. 

Okay, let's get started talking about these latest Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge inspired art journal pages.

I really love altering things.  When I have some free time, I've been altering pages in a paperback children's book that was given to me; in effect, creating my own art journal! 

While art journals are nice, with a little imagination, you can pretty much make one out of anything!

The pages measure 8" x 9" each ... plenty of room to play, experiment and create!  I began this art journal spread by covering the pages above with a generous coat of White Gesso, using a palette knife.

Once I spread the Gesso, I let it air dry.  I love using Gesso on top of a substrate because it gives me a totally different surface to work on.  It allows some of the images from the pages below to still show through (depending on how heavy I apply the Gesso) and it provides me with a surface that will accept a lot of different mediums I may chose to work with.

Once the Gesso was dry, I began adding some of Tim's Distress Paint to the surface to soften the stark white background. I used a baby wipe to apply the color.  I began with Scattered Straw, a wonderful soft vintage yellow-ish golden color.

To the Scattered Straw, I added the rich and orange-ish Wild Honey followed by Tim's new luscious green Cracked Pistachio Distress Paints. Again, I was working with a baby wipe to apply the paint to my art journal pages.  Then I heat set them to speed up the drying process.

I love the richness of this background!  The colors dry to a beautiful matte finish.  But, as I was about to discover, to do the Layering Stencil: Paint Resist Technique, Tim's Distress Inks did not want to adhere to my slick new surface.

So, I sealed them with some clear drying Matte Medium.  I used a brush to apply the Matte Medium and gently heat set it to dry.  Then I lightly sanded the pages so that the inks would grab to my modified surface.

Using Tim's Layering Stencil Paint Resist Technique, I went to work.  In the photo above, you can see a closeup of my pages with all of the layers of color and stenciled images.

The resist paint portion of this technique was done using Picket Fence Distress Paint and Tim's Numbered and Splotches Stencils.

To create all of the layers of color on top, I used the following Distress Ink Colors:

Fired Brick, Wild Honey, Peacock Feathers, Gathered Twigs, Ripe Persimmon, Twisted Citron, Mermaid Lagoon

The Tim Holtz Stencils I used to create the layers of images were:  Bubble, Harlequin, Cargo, Bricked and Latticework.  

If you look closely, you can see most of those stenciled images in the photo above.

Remembering that I was working with Distress Inks and that they are water soluable (meaning that they will change or can be removed with water), I decided to spray seal my pages before going forward.  So I chose a clear, matte sealer and lightly sprayed the surface of the pages then gave it a bit of a heavier coat to seal my pages ... for whatever I may decide to add to them next.

And here is a larger picture of the finished Layered Stencil: Paint Resist Technique pages.  I am always amazed at how much depth you can achieve by layers upon layers of color and images.  And you NEVER get the exact same look twice!  (Before I began adding my embellishments to the pages, I used a messy, artsy script stamp from Dina Wakley's Textures stamp set to randomly add touches of black and yet another pattern to the pages.  The black stamping really pops the characters and marbles I was about to add.

My pages were really bright with color and have a very whimsical feeling to me.  So, I decided to add some character from Dyan Reaveley's stamp sets.  They are fun and who doesn't love playing with paper dolls???

So I stamped some of her funky people with mix and match body parts onto some Specialty Stamping Paper using Jet Black Archival Ink. (Heat set the black permanent ink.) I brought them to life using Tim's Detailer Water Brush and various colors of his Distress Inks.  I heat set all of the characters, fussy cut around them, leaving a white border and glued heads to bodies.

Some of the Distress Ink colors I used to paint onto my characters are:  Ripe Persimmon, Squeezed Lemonade, Cracked Pistachio, Mermaid Lagoon, Tumbled Glass, Festive Berries, Gathered Twigs, Picked Raspberry, Peacock Feathers, Tea Dye, Fossilized Amber and Tattered Rose and Scattered Straw when mixed together make a great flesh tone then add Tattered Rose for the cheeks.

These images were mixed and matched from the following Dyan Reavely stamp sets:  Pondering Petunia, Dependable Dotty, Doolally Dorris, Traveling Travis, and Rainbow Ruby (not all pictured above).   I also used two sentiments from Dyan's newest Laugh 'Til You Leak stamp set.  The sentiments were actually what inspired these art journal pages ... "Who left the bag of idiots open?" and "You may not have lost all your marbles but there's definitely a hole in the bag."   

I decided that I would need a bag and also some marbles to go along with my "idiots" I'd just created.  So, I wiped some Distress Paint onto a Non Stick Craft Sheet, spritzed just a bit of water, swiped a Manila Tag through the paint, gently spritzed it again and let the colors run and move on the tag and I gently heat set it.  You can repeat this process until you get the layers and the look you are going for.

Once I was happy with my colors for my "marbles", I punched them out of the tags, using various sizes of circle punches.  I inked the edges in black using my Black Soot Distress Pen and added a white highlight on each one using a Uni Posca pen.

Here is a closeup of the marble bag that I added to the left side of my page ... full of my marbles and "idiots".  I cut the back of this Glassine Bag (measuring 4" x 6 1/2". I also tore a piece out of the bag so that the marbles could "escape" from the bag, as suggested in the sentiment.

Then I began at the bottom, gluing my marbles in place using Glossy Accents on the front of the marbles to stick them to the glassine front of the bag.  I chose a glassine bag so that the marbles and my "idiots" would clearly show through.  I continued this process, stacking the marbles and adding the heads, body and sentiment.

I glued the bag in place and added shading around the bag using a Graphite Pencil, a Detailer Water Brush and my finger to blend in the grey shadowing effect. I love the depth it adds.  Next, I added the character standing to the left and shaded around her as well.  The umbrella and shadowing was added at the top of the page and I began to add the marbles spilling out of the bag. Once they were glued in place with Glossy Accents, I added Glossy Accents to the tops of the marbles and let it air dry, to add a glossy dimension to the marbles.

The characters on the right were glued in place using Glossy Accents.  Then I added the marbles underneath them in the same manner I had done on the opposite page.  I shaded around all of these elements using the Graphite Pencil, water brush and my finger to blend.

Once the sign toting characters were in place and the marbles were dry, I added black sketching lines around the marbles and the characters using a Black Permanent Pen.  I really like the lines as I think they add a bit of fun and whimsy to the pages.

Finally, I added some random white circles that were added using the cap from a bottle of white paint, dipped into the paint and randomly "stamped" onto the pages.  Using my finger, I added some random swipes of black acrylic paint to the edges of pages to sort of frame them and pull everything together. 

So there you have it ... my art journal pages using Tim's Layering Stencil: Paint Resist technique in my background.

I hope you've enjoyed going through the process with me and this has inspired you to join in the fun at the Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge.

Our wonderful sponsor for this challenge are the good folks at 
INSPIRATION EMPORIUM. 

They have generously donated a $50.00 gift certificate for every other challenge and we thank them so much for their participation!

And our other over the top prize packages full of Tim Holtz products have been donated for every challenge by Tim and Mario!  
We thank them so much for their generosity and support!

So what are you waiting for?  You would be one of our lucky winners!

Good luck!

NAUTICAL NONSENSE!!

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.  

Fall has finally arrived and so have the cooler temperatures!  I love it!  

It's a wonderful time to hang out in my art studio and CREATE! 

This week at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, the theme is "Nautical Nonsense".  From mermaids to sea critters or the emerald and aqua blue colors of the ocean; whatever inspires you to join us this week, dive in and join the fun!

Here is my nonsensical nautical art journal page combining all sorts of Distress Inks, some Distress Paints, various stamps, a Texture Fade, Treasure Gold Guilding Wax and even some good old boys from Graphic 45's On the Boardwalk collection decided to swim by and check out the funky mermaid.

Speaking of the funky mermaid, she is a concoction of stamps from Prima's Paper Doll With the Ruffled Dress (head and upper body) and Dyan Reaveley's Doodle Parts (her hair and head dress) and Around the Edge (her seaweed shawl).  

 She (and all of her assembled parts) was stamped onto Specialty Stamping Paper with Jet Black Archival Ink.  Then all of the pieces were cut out after being colored. The seaweed shawl (from Around the Edge) is colored using a Detailer Water Brush and Fresh Lime and Dirty Martini Dylusions Ink Sprays. The headdress (from Doodle Parts) is painted with a Detailer Water Brush and Bubblegum Pink, Calypso Teal, Fresh Lime and Pure Sunshine Dylusions Ink Sprays.  I also added some "bling" and sat it right on top of the Bubblegum Pink headband on the original Paper Doll.  The hair is also from Doodle Parts and is water brushed using Mustard Seed and Wild Honey Distress Inks.  I cut it apart and fashioned it to look like a mermaid's long blonde hair freely flowing in the ocean waves.  The hair on the original paper doll is also colored with Mustard Seed and Wild Honey.  The little bra and the two pearls on the mermaid's upper body are painted using Picked Raspberry Distress Paint (because I needed something more opaque to cover the Specialty Stamping paper and the pearls than the Dylsuions Ink Sprays could provide).  I free handed the belly button, bra and the doodling around it. 

I have to say that I love her scaly tail.  I wanted to create something that had some dimension and an almost realistic scale look yet keep it whimsical.  I think I achieved that with the help of Tim Holtz' Bubbles Texture Fade.   Here is how I made it:

Step 1:  Rub the Evergreen Bough Distress Ink Pad across the front of the Bubble Texture Fade.  Slip a piece of Manila Cardstock in between the Texture Fade and run through a Vagabond or embossing machine. I repeated this process using a Tumbled Glass Distress Ink Pad so that I could get varying shades of scales.

Step 2:  Add shimmer to the scales by adding Perfect Pearls Mists to the embossed Manila Cardstock.  In this case, I used Mint and Turquoise Mists on the Evergreen Bough scales and Sunflower Sparkle on all (including the Mint and Turquoise misted scales).

**Note - Perfect Pearls Mists are not like most mist sprays.  They do not add a lot of color.  They are more about adding iridescent shimmer.

Step 4: Cut the scales into strips, scalloping the bottom edge and using about two rows of bubbles (or "scales") on each strip.  Add Renaissance Treasure Gold Guilding Wax to the scalloped bottom of each strip and then lightly rub the remaining wax on your finger over the "scales".  Then add a strip of 1/4" Scor Tape across the back of each strip.

Step 5: Begin at the bottom and overlap the rows of scales, attaching them to a piece of Manila Cardstock that will serve as the base for the tail.  Alternate the lighter and darker colors of the strips.  Repeat this until you have enough strips to fashion a tail.

Step 6: Lay a piece of paper on top of the Prima Paper Doll and create a mermaid tail that is proportionally correct for the size of the doll's upper body. Cut it out and lay it on the scale strips.  Tape in place and cut out.  Then ink a piece of Manila Cardstock with Evergreen and Tumbled Glass, spray it with Sunflower Sparkle and cut out the fin of the Mermaid Tail onto it.  

Step 7:  Glue the fin underneath the end of the mermaid's tale and distress the edges with the Treasure Gold Guilding Wax.  Gently wipe your finger over the surface of the fin and add touches of Sepia Black Cats Eye Ink Pad on the fin. (I added a piece of gold Dresden trim to the waist of the mermaid's tail right before I snapped the final photos of the art journal page.) 

Step 8:  Glue the mermaid tail onto the upper Prima Paper Doll body that has already been assembled.  

My mermaid needed some friends so I stamped these three little fisheys from  Under the Sea and colored them in the same manner as the mermaid.  The two smaller fish are colored with Pink Bubblegum.  The larger is colored with Mustard Seed and Rusty Hinge Distress Ink fins.  Their eyes are then coated with Glossy Accents.

I actually created the background for this art journal page before I started on the mermaid.  I wanted to create an underwater scene so I sprayed a piece of Bristol paper with Dylusions London Blue, Calypso Teal and Fresh Lime Ink Sprays.  Then I heat set those and added the Sunflower Sparkle Misted chevron pattern from The Crafter's Workshop 12 x 12 Chevron stencil that was laid over the sprayed paper and then lightly misted with Sunflower Sparkle.  

Next I added the white "bubbles" using Picket Fence Distress Paint (because it is more opaque than just a spray).  The bubbles were created by randomly stenciling them into place using The Crafter's Workshop Mini Messy Circles stencil.  

Then I began stamping more images on top of the sprayed paper so that I could add more detail.  Above, you see the leaves from Further Round The Edge.  I am coloring them in with the Detailer Water Brush and Dirty Martini Dylusions Ink Spray.  So easy...and fun!

And at the bottom of the page, I added seaweed and coral that was stamped in place after masking the seawood.  I then colored the seaweed using Dirty Martini and Fresh Lime Dylusions Ink Sprays.  I also added a little Sour Apple Perfect Pearls painted on with the Detailer Water Brush for some extra shimmer.  The coral is painted using Post Box Red Dylusions Ink Spray.

And here is the background right before I started adding all of my elements to make this page turn into nautical nonsense!

As I was thumbing through my Dylusions Stamps for THE PERFECT sentiment for this nonsensical art page, I came across this one ... "Boys will be boys and so will a lot of middle aged men!" Well, THAT got the wheels to turning and I remembered these guys ...

From the Graphic 45's On The Boardwalk 12 x 12 paper pad.  So, I cut them out and popped them into the ocean!  I love them and I think they are perfect for the sentiment and this page!

See what I mean?  

And now ... they will forever be at the bottom of the deep blue sea with my mermaid and ... 

Right next to these characters that I did for an earlier Simon Says Stamp and Show challenge titled "Water".  They look perfect together! Gotta LOVE Dyan Reaveley's stamps and sentiments!

And now it's YOUR turn to do some Nautical Nonsense and join our challenge. You could be the lucky winner of our random weekly of a 

$50.00 gift voucher to shop Simon Says Stamp.  

You might also be selected to be one our top entries of the week in a feature we call

It's a wonderful way to recognize and thank our wonderful entries and inspiration we receive from YOU each week! 

Now GET CRAZY and have some fun with this one!

Here are all of the products available at Simon Say Stamp that were used in creating this Nautical Nonsense art journal page:

*PRE-ORDER Tim Holtz Distress Paint PICKET FENCE Ranger TDD36425	*PRE-ORDER Tim Holtz Distress Paint PICKED RASPBERRY Ranger TDD36418	*Ranger STICKLES STAR DUST Stardust White Clear Glitter Glue	*Ranger Perfect Pearls SOUR APPLE Green Individual Pigment Powder	*Paper Artsy Treasure Gold RENAISSANCE Gilding Wax TGR
*Ranger DYLUSIONS INK SPRAY LONDON BLUE Dyan Reaveley DYC33899	*PRE-ORDER Ranger DYLUSIONS INK SPRAY DIRTY MARTINIS Dyan Reaveley DYC36753	*Ranger DYLUSIONS INK SPRAY BUBBLEGUM PINK Dyan Reaveley DYC33844	*Ranger DYLUSIONS INK SPRAY POSTBOX RED Dyan Reaveley DYC33912	*Ranger DYLUSIONS INK SPRAY FRESH LIME Dyan Reaveley DYC33875
*Ranger DYLUSIONS INK SPRAY PURE SUNSHINE Dyan Reaveley DYC33929	*Ranger DYLUSIONS INK SPRAY CUT GRASS Dyan Reaveley DYC33868	*Ranger Perfect Pearls MIST MINT Glimmer Spray PPM31345	*Ranger PERFECT PEARLS MIST TURQUOISE Blue Green Glimmer Spray	*Ranger PERFECT PEARLS MIST SUNFLOWER SPARKLE Yellow Glimmer Spray
*Melissa Frances WHITE PEARLS GN278 Trims Baubles	The Crafter's Workshop Chevron 12x12	*The Crafter's Workshop MINI MESSY CIRCLES 6 x 6 Template	*Tim Holtz Sizzix BUBBLE & HONEYCOMB Texture Fades Embossing Folders 657846	*Ranger Inkssentials 8.5 x 11 SPECIALTY STAMPING PAPER ISP32908
*Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD SCATTERED STRAW Yellow Ranger	*Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD MUSTARD SEED Yellow Ranger	*Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD RUSTY HINGE Rust Ranger	*Tim Holtz Distress Ink PAD WILD HONEY Yellow Ranger	*Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD EVERGREEN BOUGH Ranger WINTER
*Tim Holtz Distress Ink PAD TATTERED ROSE Pink Ranger	*Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD RIPE PERSIMMON Ranger FALL	*Tim Holtz Distress Ink PAD TUMBLED GLASS Blue Ranger	*Tim Holtz DETAILER WATER BRUSH Ranger Watercoloring TIP33080	*Graphic 45 ON THE BOARDWALK 12 x 12 Paper Pack Vintage Summer Beach
*Dyan Reaveley FURTHER ROUND THE EDGE Stamp Set Dylusions Cling Unmounted Rubber	*Dyan Reaveley UNDER THE SEA Stamp Set Dylusions Cling Unmounted Rubber	*Dyan Reaveley OCEAN BACKGROUNDS Stamp Set Dylusions Cling Unmounted Rubber	*Dyan Reaveley FURTHER ROUND THE EDGE Stamp Set Dylusions Cling Unmounted Rubber	*Dyan Reaveley DOODLE PARTS Stamp Set Dylusions Cling Unmounted Rubber
*Dyan Reaveley SAY WHAT YOU MEAN Stamp Set Dylusions Cling Unmounted Rubber	*Prima Flowers DOLL WITH RUFFLE DRESS Mixed Media Doll Stamp 910143	*Ranger Archival Ink Pad JET BLACK AIP31468	*Ranger Inkssentials GLOSSY ACCENTS Glue Dimensional Adhesive	*Ranger Inkssentials 8.5 X 11 MANILA CARDSTOCK plus Bonus Tag! Surfaces
*Scor-Tape 1/4"" Crafting Tape	*Tim Holtz Sizzix VAGABOND MACHINE Die Cutting Embossing Alterations 656850

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