Experimental Halloween Tags

Once a week I spend my lunch hour playing with the dies, inks, stains, paints, etc. in the art room at work. It is definitely one of the perks to working at a crafting company.

I have been experimenting with painting and inking a lot of tags and decided to use a couple of them to create some Halloween projects.

The Happy Halloween tag began with lots of Distress Paints and Stains in a variety of layers and techniques. Once I was happy with the look of the tag I used a thin sheet of scrap cardstock and die cut the word "Boo" using the Gothic Boo die by Sizzix. I sprayed the back lightly with adhesive to temporarily hold it in place on the tag. Next, I sprayed Perfect Pearls Heirloom Gold using the die cut shape as a stencil.

I wanted to experiment with Tim Holtz's new Framelits and Stamps so I used the Retro Halloween Set {the Owl} and Cobweb Blueprint Set {words "Happy Halloween"}. My only suggestion would be to use very dark ink if you are going to stamp on colored paper. Other than that these were super fun and easy.

Other shapes I used include the Bird Branch {I trimmed off the bird} and the Mini Owl and Crescent Moon {Moon only}. I adhered everything to the tag and love how the subtle shimmer of the Perfect Pearls makes it look like moon beams.

My next tag is a Pumpkin tag which began with a thick layer of Distress Paint so there would be brush strokes visible once it dried. I used Distress Stains and Distress Inks in a variety of Autumn colors and techniques on top of the paint. The darker colors made the texture stand out nicely.

I also splattered water to create droplets which is my favorite Tim Holtz technique.

After I was satisfied with the colors and textures of the tag I die cut the eyes using only the triangle eyes from the Sizzix Mini Scary Jack-o-Lantern Set and using the Base Tray.

The next part was an experiment that happily worked out as I had hoped. I cut the mouth by using the same Mini Scary Jack-o-Lantern die and Tray but instead of using a regular Cutting Pad, I used the Embossing Diffuser Set #2 so that I could control exactly where the die would cut.

I began with a regular Cutting Pad on the bottom, then the Base Tray with the Jack-o-Lantern mouth die only, next I placed my tag and finally an Embossing Diffuser insert piece placed over the upper part of the mouth die. I ran this through the Big Shot so that it only cut where the Embossing Diffuser insert piece was and this created a single jagged mouth cut across my tag.

To reassemble the two pieces, I tilted the bottom piece and stapled them together on one side.

As a final detail, I used Distress Inks to age a piece of green ribbon to use as a stem for my Pumpkin Tag.

This is linked to:
504 Main, Common Ground, Homework, Just Us Four, Kathe With an E, Ladybug Blessings, Mad in Crafts, Sew Much Ado, Simply Designing, Tatertots and Jello, The Crafty Blog Stalker, The DIY Dreamer and Whipperberry

Easy Halloween Lanterns

This is always a very busy time of year at work so I don't usually spend time decorating my workspace. But this year I thrifted a decorative lantern string with the perfect, quick and easy project in mind.

I began by die cutting cobweb strips using the Tim Holtz Cobwebs Decorative Strip by Sizzix. There are a ton of little pieces to punch out but the final effect is awesome.

Recycled Crow

Sometimes a creative thrifter has a vision of an object's potential that only they can see. Such is the case with my Recycled Crow.

I am working on my Halloween display and added my recycled crow. I first found the tattered crow at Goodwill back in March. The original photo below shows that it was kind of sad looking. The wings looked really bad and it was missing its tail but it had Halloween potential.

Haunted Country Cottage

Recently I was talking to the oh-so-talented designer Brenda Walton which got me thinking about her sweet and beautiful Sizzix dies. Brenda's style is very delicate and feminine with lots of pretty colors but with Halloween just around the corner I started thinking about how I could use her dies in a different way.

What could be better than using her beautiful Country Cottage, 3-D die to create a distressed Haunted Cottage. I began by cutting out the house shapes from a regular manila folder.

Next I used Distress Inks and Distress Stains to add colors to the various pieces. I wanted the walls to look like they were old and mossy.

I cut the roof shingles out of very fine sand paper which gave it a wonderful texture. I added a little Distress Ink to highlight the edges.

I cut the shutters out of a used corrugated coffee cup sleeve/holder. I seem to repurpose or recycle everything. Because this is a haunted house I didn't put shutters on all of the windows so that it would look unkept.

To give the Cottage a little more haunted feel, I die cut a couple of Ghosts using the clear plastic die packaging and glued them floating out of the top and front of the Cottage. I also added some Cobwebs under the eaves.

The final accent was some thrifted Spanish Moss around the base and an electric tea light for added character.

It was fun to turn Brenda's sweet and feminine Country Cottage into something creepy enough for Halloween.

Things are getting a little creepy around here.

I am honored to be Featured at:

This is linked to:

Create With Joy, Flamingo Toes, Lamberts Lately, Momnivore's Dilemma, Nifty Thrifty Things, Sew Can Do, Someday Crafts and Under the Table and Dreaming

Designers Craft Connection Blog Hop - October

Welcome to the Designers Craft Connection Blog Hop for the month of October. This month's theme is  Hallowed Homes {Decorating the home for Halloween}.

Living in Southern California, there isn't a big seasonal change in the weather so it is hard to think of Autumn festivities when it is 94 degrees outside. But thanks to this blog hop I threw myself into the Autumn decorating spirit so here is my Halloween cupboard reveal.

I began by covering the back of my antique cupboard with old atlas pages, dictionary pages and music sheets. I did this to give everything a lighter background.

On the top shelf I have my favorite vignette with an old antler and pharmacy bottle.

On the second shelf I have two portraits that I bought several years ago. These were some of the first lenticular haunted portraits I had ever seen. More closeup photos to follow. I also have my paper mache pumpkin displayed with some old laboratory bottles.

The bottom shelf has my glove molds, another laboratory bottle, skeleton keys, vintage plastic pumpkins and my black cat teapot.

Here are closer images of the haunted portraits. They "decompose" right before your eyes. They are the scariest part of my Halloween display.

I hope you enjoyed my Halloween inspired cupboard. Please continue forward or backwards through the blog hop using the blue DCC button on the right column. There are so many inspiring ideas from the many creative designers in this group. 

Designers Craft Blog Connection - Halloween

Welcome to the Designers Craft Blog Connection for the month of October. The theme this month is Halloween which is just so much fun.

My project for this month is really several projects that I combined to create an entire table centerpiece.

Starting from the right; my favorite project is the Halloween Putz House. I had never heard of Putz Houses until recently. They are an old Pennsylvania Dutch custom of tiny, glittery houses, collected to make entire Winter villages. I decided that I wanted to make a Halloween version using Sizzix dies.

Here is a detailed photo and a description of the dies used.

The house was created using the House, 3D by Eileen Hull. I used black matboard and lightly brushed on some white acrylic paint then adhered glitter with Mod Podge. To make it appear more spooky, I tore the door off and glued it on at an angle. I also glued the two front window frames at an angle as well. For the curved window at the top and the windows at the side, I used the Tim Holtz, Mini Openings Movers and Shapers Set. I took a piece of aluminum foil and glued it to the inside back wall of the house so that it would reflect the flameless tea light inside. Along the back of the house is a fence created using the Iron Gate die.

I added the tiny Halloween decorations that I found at an estate sale. I also added a doll's arm coming out of the "ground" so that the scene was a bit more spooky. I had found two disjointed doll arms in a box of toys from an estate sale a while back and wanted to do something with them for Halloween. The raven perched on the hand was just another bit of Halloween humor.

I also added a witch and a flurry of bats flying over the house. These are glued onto wire in the same manner as I did in this other project.

The next project is a collection of handmade, fabric pumpkins. You can see more details here.

The large spiderweb on the table is actually a Sizzix die that I designed. I wanted them large so that you can create a spiderweb table runner.

The final piece is very near and dear to my heart. It is my plastic Halloween pumpkin from when I was a child. I painted a candle holder black and placed my pumpkin on top of it. If you pop out the green stem there is a light bulb and a place to insert a battery.

To view many more Halloween ideas, click on the Designer Crafts Blog Connection button on the right and continue through the blog hop. Boo!

This is linked to:
A Little Knick Knack, Between Naps on the Porch, Blue Cricket Designs,  Cherished Treasures, Coastal Charm, Creating a House of Grace, Homemaker on a Dime, I'm Topsy Turvy, Keeping it Simple, Life Made Lovely, Making the World Cuter, Marvelously Messy, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Not So Simple Housewife, Passionately Artistic, Rook No. 17,  Running With Glitter, Savvy Southern Style, Sew Much Ado, Sumo's Sweet Stuff, The 36th Avenue, The DIY Home Sweet Home Project, The DIY Showoff, The Girl Creative, The Southern Institute, The Trendy Treehouse, Type A, Very Merry Vintage Style and Vintage Wannabee

Halloween Tea Light Party Favor

Today I Created | A Halloween Tea Light Party Favor

I admit that I love using the Tim Holtz, Paper Rosette die. It tends to give everything a party feel.

I first printed and die cut the owl that I found from the Graphics Fairy using the center shape from the Paper Rosette die. Next, I cut and assembled the Paper Rosette. I used a brayer and white acrylic paint to highlight the edges. Then I inked the edges of the Owl center and glued that to the front of the Rosette.

While all of that was drying, I used Alcohol Inks in Sunset Orange, Terra Cotta and Purple Twilight to add some color to a clear glass tea light holder. Finally, I wrapped the glass with a piece of ribbon by The Paper Company Studio.

Spooky Halloween Banner

Today I Created | A Spooky Halloween Banner

I am in the Halloween spirit and wanted to create a Halloween decoration. I found some wonderful skeleton images from the GraphicsFairy.

First I printed the skeletons on cardstock. I trimmed them to size along with pieces of plain orange cardstock. For the skeleton banners, I sprayed them with Periwinkle Glimmer Mist and while they were still wet, I sprinkled copper Perfect Pearls to make them appears rusted.

Next I ran the orange banners through the Cobwebs Texture Fades. I edged everything with black Distress Inks. I then sewed all of the banners onto a piece of ribbon.

I created the black and orange Paper Rosettes and attached them to the front of the orange banners. Finally, I attached the bit of bling to the bottom of the skeleton banners just to add a bit of sparkle.

Halloween spirit

Today I Created | A decorated frame in the Halloween spirit.

This project began with an oak frame. I rubbed the oak with steel wool and painted it black using acrylic paint.

I used an orange piece of paper embossed with the Texture Fades, Pumpkin Patch pattern. I sprayed it with brown, red and olive green Glimmer Mist and sprinkled salt on it while it was drying. The salt created the "stars" in the top corner near the moon. After the paper dried I rubbed black ink to make the pumpkins stand out.

I used a Tim Holtz Scaredy Cat die cut that I first applied Picket Fence Crackle Paint and then rubbed black ink to create a rough texture.

The fence is the On the Fence, On the Edge die that I inked and sprayed.

The moon is cut from Glow in the Dark paper using a circle punch.

To assemble the piece, I glued the fence and cat to the front of the picture glass. I glued the moon to the background paper and applied foam spacers along the edge of the paper to add some dimension behind the glass.

The last thing I did was to add the blood splatter. I used my glue gun with the intention of making it look like a spider's web in the corner but the glue fell as droplets. This gave me the idea to color them red with alcohol inks and turn them into blood droplets instead. A happy accident.

Halloween Tag

Today I created | An embossed Halloween tag.

I'm not a big "tag maker". I've never made a tag before.

This tag was cut using the eclips shape cutter. I embossed the spider web using one of the new Tim Holtz Texture Fades. Next I inked and painted and added Perfect Pearls and inked some more until it looked pretty distressed. I stamped the words "Happy Halloween" on adhesive-backed, cotton tape from cutetape.com. The hole reinforcer is also from cutetape.com.

The key might be a real skeleton key that I had in my stash. I curled some wire and used it to attach the key. I tied it off with some green velvet ribbon.

Lots of work for one tag. But since the purpose of this Blog is to stretch my creative wings and try new things then this all made sense. Tags are perfect little "canvases" for art to be created and then given away.