These little tags.....

I can't believe how quick these little tags came together. Two colours and some Kraft. Luckily I found some ribbon and beads to match.

Just before I go.....

I thought I better send my Inkurable Challenge before I chill out in Culburra. The challenge this month was Vanilla, Strawberry and Chocolate, or for those non foodies amongst us Beige, Pink and Brown. I hope I have put in enough Strawberry!

A happy Accident

There's no such thing as a mistake. Just a happy accident. This is one of the times when you know whats in your head but it just doesn't materialize. Anyhoo here is the result.

What happened here was first off I gesso-ed the tag in white and coated it in a thin layer of texture paste, got my Tim Holtz stamp and pressed down hoping to make an indentation of the trees. Well that didn't work! Der! Waste not want not, so I whacked a bit of paint on, a couple of red pearly studs and a little bit of Santa Snow. Finally I got my red ink pad and sponged lightly around the edges. Sorta worked out don't ya think?

Feeling a little blue

This tag was first painted with black gesso. Stamped with Tim Holtz and Stampin Up! stamps in Versamark and heat embossed. I then painted over with a pretty blue colour that I have presently forgotten the colour of. Get a damp rag and gently rub to expose the black stamped area. Sponge lightly with some iridescent ink and add a little bling.

Tag Candy

This tag was spread over with gel medium first and then painted with white gesso. When this dried I painted over with iridescent ink. Using Tim Holtz stamps I stamped reindeer/stag?? in versamark and embossed with bronze embossing powder. I used the swirly stamp from the same set and stamped in black. Cut out above said reindeer/stag?? and attach to tag, add the obligitory bling and your done. I have actually forgotten how I achieved the background on this tag but its one of my favorites.

I remember it involved a spray bottle, red ink and a lotta water. I remember it being very wet and hitting it hard with the heat gun, well not actually hitting it, heating it I mean. The result was like a crackle effect. I grunged it up a little with a little Raw umber paint sponged onto it and gave it a sand to reveal some of the white underneath. I used Stampin Up! stamp in black. You can't see it but the gorgeous little birdy is painted white and then with Jo Sonja Opal Dust which gives it a sparkly effect. A little bit of his tail fell off, can you tell? The star is a brad.

Blogging from Afar

I'm thinking that perhaps you are getting a mite bored with the travel scene. Am I right?? I love technology, it means that while I'm here in VietNam I can still communicate with you from my trusty laptop. Darling husband is snoring in bed after an exhausting day touring/shopping. He is getting quite the reputation here in Hoi An. The local shop keepers all want him to buy because for some strange reason they think he is a "happy Buddha"and will bring them good luck, don't know how they come to that conclusion! So I am looking amongst some photos and came across a tag that I don't think I have posted yet so here tis. Oh and I forgot to tell you, we are going to cooking school tomorrow!!!!

A quick post.

I can't help myself. I just have to post another photo of a tag I did for the Matisse Derivan open day on Saturday. Every year a few of us girls in the group go down to the Matisse factory and show off a few samples of what we have created using their incredible products. Matisse is a family owned Australian paint manufacturing business who are still small enough to be concerned about their 'peeps'. A very generous company in the way that each year they open their factory for tours, feeding us for free with a sausage sizzle, lucky door prizes and workshops. Its a great way for artists of all types to come together and show off what they do. I always come away inspired! This time I checked out Diana Brandt doing magnificant things with her credit card, no not in a spending spree way, but applying paint to make beautiful papers to cover journals. Another stand out was the calligraphers who used the inks to produce gorgeous works of art. One lady even showed you how you can dye your socks, darn (hehehe!) I missed that workshop. I don't know about you but I find it quite satisfying being able to share, in a small way, some of the knowledge of creating, to people who are genuinely interested. I think this is why I love this idea of blogging (even though I only have two followers :-( which happens to be my daughter and her friend) Eveyone's welcome at Rossy's! Any hoo as promised, a picture!

The instructions for this little label is easy peasy. Paint tag with black gesso. Load Tim Holtz reindeer stamp with Versamark and stamp onto tag. Emboss with clear embossing powder. When cooled down paint over with Matisse Unbleached Titanium. Dry with the heat gun. Gently rub back paint from reindeer to expose. Give a little (dis) stress and add little rusty star.

Another little thing to tickle your fancy.

I've got to admit, a photographer I'm not! These little tags are a lot nicer in real life. This red tag was started by gesso -ing (is that a real word??) wooden tag in white, stamp flowers and words with versamark and clear embossing. Stamps are Stampin Up! Sponge all over with Matisse Deep Red Ink and while its still wet gently wipe off ink from the embossed areas to expose. Sponge Sepia Ink around edges. Add a little bling to the centre of the flowers. I didn't think to take a photo of the back of this tag but it came out quite nice as well. I used the same sponging method and sepia around the edges but added a spray of Matisse iridescent ink over the top which gave a lovely affect.

Sneak Peek

No I haven't been curled up in the foetal position pining for my boy. Even though we have had a couple of distress calls from a lonely, hungry and slightly panicky son. I keep reminding myself that its all about allowing your offspring to grow and learn to fend for themselves. So I have immersed myself in a little bit of creativity ready for our trek down to Matisse for their open day. Would you like a little sneak peek??? Do I hear a yes? OK, here is a little sample of the wooden tags, eight in total, that were done using Matisse inks only for the back grounds. Over the next few weeks I'll post one here and there just so I can tease you a little.

This one started off with just a black background. I then stamped and embossed the trees and celebrate with silver and used a versamark pen to add touches of glitter to the tips of the trees. You probably can't see this in the photo. I then sprayed iridescent ink and water over and dried with heat gun. Give it a little rub back with a sanding block. Again its a little difficult to see the iridescent in the photo. Add a little bling and a rusty star and you're done.