Flight of the Painted Butterfly... March #12tags2015 Viva Las VegaStamps! Style

Welcome to Viva Las Vegastamps! Susan here today to share with you some inky, painted stamped goodness... inspiration courtesy of T!m's 12 Tags of 2015 for March. I've created my version of this month's tag using loads of Viva Las VegaStamps! images to set my butterfly aflight in a rainbow painted sky.

This wouldn't be entirely VLVS! style if I used my store-bought tissue tape... so I've made my own with some of my fav VLVS! stamps – it's so quick and easy! Grab a sheet of recycled tissue paper and stamp repeatedly with a variety of stamps using Jet Black StazOn Ink, filling up sheet {see below for links to all stamps used}.

Turn tissue over, line with strips of 3/4" Miracle Tape across sheet and burnish down.

Then gently tear strips apart to give a nice distressed edge. Easy-peasy!

Here's my homemade VLVS! tissue tape – it looks just as pretty as the readymade, right!

Next I applied torn sections of my various tapes to my blank tag.

Now time for the marbelized painted background using Ranger Distress Paint.

I substituted a few colors for the colors I have in my stash.

Dried background after heat setting ready for stamping!

Using Versafine Pigment Ink, I stamped the "Butterfly Striped Large" #9506, then embossed with VLVS! Ultra High Gloss Embossing Powder – which when heat set, really made the black butterfly POP off the painted tag. If I hadn't embossed it, the black stamped image would have looked dull and melted into the background. I repeated process adding the "Small Bee" #19012. I stamped each off onto removable stickyback paper to make masks and fussy cut to prepare for the gilding to come.

Since I wanted to use stamps for the gilded parts, I skipped the steps using stencil with dimensional paste. I have a secret weapon to get a real dense embossing with embossing powder that looks pretty amazing. I apply Globecraft & Piccolo Embossing Powder Adhesive {comes in a dauber top bottle} which is a nice, thick fluid that grabs a lot of embossing powder. I stamped the "Cracked Background" #16208 and "Chicken Wire" #5757 over the masked images and applied gold embossing powder... then heatset to reveal the beautiful gold gilded goodness, careful not to overheat and melt the embossed butterfly and bee. Just gorgeous!!!

Now for the finishing touches... some sari ribbon and fibers to tie off the top and a Tim Holtz Idea-ology metal word band phrase rubbed with metallic distress paints; a pen nib for the butterfly's body {seemed out of place floating in the background}; and a punched distressed painted metal foil paper butterfly using a Sizzix movers and shapers die accented with bronze gems for the body. 

"Flight of the Painted Butterfly"

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From Viva Las VegaStamps:

"Butterfly Striped Large" #9506

"Small Bee" #19012

"Cracked Background" #16208

"Chicken Wire" #5757

"Pretty Lady Stamp/Cancellation" #17538

"Paris Address" #17539

"Grunge 1787 Writing Background" #17545

"Dictionary Page" #19015

"Patent" #1687

3/4" Miracle Tape

Jet Black StazOn Ink

Ultra High Gloss Embossing Powder

Other Supplies: handmade cardstock #12 size tag; scrap of distressed aluminum tape paper; rainbow and metallic colors of Ranger Distress Paints; Globecraft & Piccolo Embossing Powder Adhesive; Clearsnap Gold Embossing Powder; Versafine Black Pigment Ink; Sizzix Movers and Shapers Mini Butterflies; Tim Holtz Idea-ology metal word band; bronze adhesive backed gems; pen nib; sari ribbon and decorative fiber.

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Thanks so much for dropping by! Ready for Spring??! I hope you will join us and play along with the March inspiration challenge {CLICK HERE for details}. Just make a creation using the inspiration above and your stash of VLVS! stamps... you could win more RUBBER! Take some time to browse around the blog here and the amazing creations from the entire VLVS! Team... there's so much amazing inky inspiration to see!

If you would like to see more of my creations please visit my blog, sbartist : painting in the dark HERE. Hope you have a fabulous day!!  Sb

Old-Fashioned Christmas Ornament

Hello my darlings!

Aimee here... so good to see you!

I have to tell you, the VLVS Design Team is so awesome. 

We have the best fearless leader EVAH!

This month we were invited to play with Creative Paperclay. 

Check it out HERE.

Have you tried it before?

If not, ya have to!

Yes you can mold stuff and sculpt stuff, but it dries with out having to bake it.

FAB-U-LOUS!

Since Christmas is almost here, and I've been in a Christmas crafting mood,

 and I try to make ornaments for my family members each year (remember my post from last month?),

 I decided to make an ornament for this month's project.

Now, I got to thinking about this- you could also use this piece on a card front

 or in a scrapbook because this is VERY thin and VERY light weight.

Ok, on with the show!

Supplies:

Creative Paperclay

Spellbinder's die

Acrylic paints- red, gold, black

Paint brushes

Cloth and mini mister with water

Heat Gun

Bling

Stamp

Here's the finished project.

What I was going for was the look of an old, grungy, but sweet ornament you might have found in your grandmother's Christmas decorations...Did I get it? What do you think?

Ok, now grab a ball of Paperclay, and roll it out with a rubber brayer.

I lay a transparency sheet (or parchment paper would work) on my non-stick craft sheet to work on.

I rolled this out as close to paper-thin as I could manage. I'd say it's the thickness of thin chipboard.

Press your unlinked stamp into the paper clay.

Remove the stamp.

Press your Spellbinder's die into the clay, cutting side down.

It's not going to cut through, but you've given yourself a cutting pattern!

Remove the die, and use a craft knife to cut out around the outline.

It's best to use a short, almost stabbing motion to cut the Paperclay. 

If you drag your knife through it, you'll just distort your image. No fun!

Here it is cut out with the craft knife.

Now, set it aside to dry. 

 Once it's dry, gently sand the rough edges.

I use my pink Basic Grey file.

 Once your edges are nice and smooth, base coat with red acrylic paint.

Let it dry, or be like me and heat gun that baby!!

Once your red paint is dry, add gold paint all over, being sure to get it into

 the recesses of the stamped image.

Let it sit a minute (till it's nearly dry), and use a damp cloth to rub off most of the gold paint.

Leave the gold paint in the stamped image and in random spots.

 Kinda like this.

 Now add black acrylic paint in a messy fashion, being sure to get it into the stamped image.

Let sit a minute and rub off with wet cloth.

 Make sure you add a little black paint on the edges, too.

 Add some bling.

If you want an ornament, take some sheer ribbon and dirty it up 

with black and gold acrylic.

Dry.

Glue onto the back of the ornament.

If you'd rather use it on a card or scrapbook page, simply adhere it to your paper 

with your favorite adhesive.

  Here's your wiener!

My now two year old Sammy boy when he was a brand new baby, about 4 weeks old.

Ah, I could smoosh that little face!