12 tags of 2013 * january

i am so so so so so excited that there is a 12 tags of 2013! i knew nothing of the 12 tags of christmas (even though it went on for something like 4 years!) and i found out about 12 tags of 2012 a little late -- plus there were a few months in 2012 where unfortunately i wasn't able to get a tag done in time to submit :/ i am making that work up though so i have a full set of tags but i am really really excited about this years tags because 1) i am starting on time and 2) i am going to do them all in time to submit!

so anyway...here is my first tag for 2013:

i used the indie art cricut cartridge for the gears and i cut them with gold and silver papers and then added some homemade shimmer mist cause i am addicted to it!!! i was also happy to use my metal gears and spinners because it is not often that i have the same supplies as tim. i like to make do with what i have -- i think this is an important part of crafting because it challenges me to be more creative -- but sometimes it is nice to have the same / similar items...especially when i really like the tag he has created!

hope you all like! and make sure you check out tim's january tag here! :)

12 tags of 2012 august & september

really bummed that i didn't get the august tag done in time to submit it for a chance to win :( but there was no way i could start on the september tag until the august one was done! since i am submitting the september one on time i will show that one first:

when i saw tim's tag i was sooooo excited to try the "metal" theme.

i do not have the same self adhesive metallic paper as tim but i do have metallic cardstock and it worked really well. i also only have a few bright alcohol inks which i considered using but i wanted this to have a darker feel so i smeared black and brown staz-on ink all over and buffed it with my craft towel. then i scraped it all up with a wire brush. some of the embellishments include an old zipper that came off one of my bf's shirts and also some little black beads that i glued onto some of the "rivets".

i also love the film strip ribbon and the little pocket watch. these were both things i found on a spontaneous trip to spokane. i tied the top with black tulle and called it good!

check out tim's september tag here

 

~AUGUST TAG~

i knew what i wanted to make for my version of this tag but just didn't get it done in time. too bad because it is one of my favorites.

the big thing with this one was a silhouette and a frame which i conventiently had in a halloween stack. i dry embossed the tag all around the frame and even though the image itself was already raised  i colored in the silhouette with an embossing marker and covered it with clear powder to heat set it. this made it look less smooth and 'perfect' which is perfect for what i wanted!

i colored some strips of paper with distress ink to match the spiral flowers and added some metal studs and a real stick. to finish everything off i stapled some halloween-ish ribbon to the top.

check out tim's august tag here

project # 17

made with love {and paper} design team
august 1, 2012
theme: opposites attract
requirements: contrasting colors, circles & squares

this is also my submission for the Cards Galore Scrapbook Challenge with a theme of "anything goes" check it out here: http://cardsgalorescrapbookchallenge.blogspot.com/2012/07/scrapbooking-challenge-july-anything.html?showComment=1344900215178#c2410790065447440507

ok, so i was out of town for the last 10 days of july and was not sure i would even participate in this project. i was glad to find some free time and be able to create! then just a day before the due date i heard about the cards galore scrapbook challenge and thought i would give it a try...with no time to create something new i thought i would just use this piece.

because this was a random picture i did not have any journaling to do so instead i added a quote. "the power of a glance has been so much abused in love stories that it has come to be disbelieved in. few people dare now to say that two being have fallen in love because they have looked at each other. yet, it is in this way that love begins, and in this way only." -victor hugo ~ les mise'rables. i think this sums us up!

happy wedding!

our 20 day vacation just ended last week (booo!) and i am already looking forward to our next one! this year we headed off to cali for my boyfriends sister's wedding. here is the card i made for the new couple!

the blue layer is embossed with a swirl pattern. the "s" is covered in a mix of gold, silver, blue, and white glitter, and is attached to the tulle with my homemade stickpin.

the inside of the card reads: as you join hands this day, exchanging words and rings of love, may the heavens truly bless you both. {from "just the right words" by judith wibberley}.

i also created a card for the bridal shower...thinking i was so clever - i cut up and used the pieces from the shower invitation to make the card.

of course, i did not take a picture of the invitation first {doh!} so i am bummed that you cannot see a before-and-after :( but this was a really fun idea that i will do it again in the future!

and finally before that ^ i created an engagement card when i found out there was going to be a wedding!!! the little birds were cut from the create-a-critter cart and i believe the branch was too {it was a while ago!}. the card base is green with tan layering and green inking around the edges.

the inside of the card features some layering with hearts and hand lettering {which i love to do!} i hope that the happy couple loved all of their cards and that you did too! <3

project #16

made with love {and paper} design team
july 1, 2012
theme: happy birthday
requirements: none

with things getting so busy with the end of school and summer beginning i thought it would be a nice time to have a simple, easily translatable project. for this month's project we were to make a *happy birthday* item. i went pretty simple with this one but it was a lot of fun.

i used a sizzix die for the flower and a stamp for the sentiment. the flowers on the inside are from a small punch. this card was quick and easy! hope you like! thanks for taking a look :)

12 tags of 2012 ~ july

i really loved the technique tim used for this month's inspiration...he dripped some alcohol ink onto glossy paper and, with a blast of air, made some beautiful splatter effects! my challenge was to figure out how i could make these same effects without alcohol inks because i do not have any nor do i have a store near that sells them. i also had to decide what theme i wanted my tag to be since tim's was 4th of july and it was well after the holiday when i got started on my re-creation.

i wanted to use my umbrella man stamp since i love it but had never used it. with this i thought a background of different blues would look best and to achieve the same splatter effect i went with watered down acrylic paint and homemade glimmer mist.

i matted the glossy paper on kraft paper and then some white paper with a blue core (which i sanded and distressed). i really wanted to find a quote that i thought would work well with this tag.....

.....this same day was when i found out that lennox, a dog in northern ireland, had been killed after his family battled for his release for 2 years. i wanted this tag to remind me of lennox. i wanted it to remind me that things are not always fair, life can be hard, but it is important to have hope. it is important to live life to the fullest, accept others for who they are, to be thankful for what you have, and help those who are in need. yes, rain will fall, but the sun will also shine!!! lennox was sunshine...he was kind and gentle until the day he died - regardless of the injustices done to him. this tag will hang in my craft room and forever remind me of him and all the other *lennox's* of the world.

project #15

i am finally getting caught up with posting my design team projects! we will be starting #17 soon so i am not too far behind :) hope you like!

made with love (and paper) design team
june 1, 2012
theme: independence day
requirements: red, white, blue, stars, stripes, glitter

i made a 2 page layout featuring our 4th of july get-together. we had it at my mom and stepdad's house with my sister and her family and my dad and stepmom. it was a really fun time!

for the bbq i made red, white, and blue devilied eggs and some yummy yellow cupcakes with strawberries, blueberries, and cool-whip! sooooo yummy! the pics below are of my bf and brother-in-law getting the grill started and everyone enjoying all the great food!

then i added pics from the fireworks show {which i attended even though i hate fireworks!} there is my stepdad, my brother-in-law and niece, and my bf and me. on the tag i wrote out the very beginning and ending of the declaration of independence. i also got to use my 4th of july stamp and embossed it with 2 different colors...that was fun!

i also had a really great time using my distress inks and distress tool as well as mixing some patterned papers. here's to hoping this summer is as fun as last year's!

12 tags of 2012 ~ june

i have really been enjoying creating the 12 tags of 2012! so far these 2 tags (the original by tim & my re-creation) are my absolute favorites. there were a few techniques that i have never seen or done before & i was really excited to give them a try. the first was coloring a photo with distress ink - this was really fun! & while i do not have the nifty lil rubber nibs i found that a q-tip worked really well! i also took on the task of creating my own swirly flowers. this was something that i saw in my last issue of cardmaker magazine & had to give them a try! they were definitely a trial & error but in the end i came up with a few that i really liked & i only cursed a little :\

my boyfriend & i will be together for 4 years coming up in september so i wanted to base this tag on that occassion. i used one of the first photos we ever took {& still, to this day, one of my favorites} & colored it with worn lipstick, weathered wood, & peeled paint distress inks. i embossed *08* in the corner for our year & then added some pretty embellishments.

 

meet charli! after only living here a week she loves crafting - jumping onto my table as i am working, sitting on my shouldet to check things out, & of course, supervising the die cutting area.