Tag Team 2

In my last blog I said how much I had enjoyed working within the tag format again, I also said that I might create another one in a different style, well, that's exactly what I did as soon as I finished blogging.... Couldn't help myself!

I wanted to go for a rusty look, but not the full on industrial rusty which is a bit too extreme for some folks. There are so many ways of using inks, paints, stains and powders to create surface effects and textures including many types of corroded and tarnished metal finishes as well as weathered stone and wood, some of which we will look at in the coming months.

I love these techniques because they transform die cuts and embossed surfaces into something previously unimagined and make you look at them in a different light opening up new creative possibilities at the same time. I am always amazed and inspired by the ingenuity of the papercrafting projects that I've seen at shows, trade fares, online and in blogs it really is food for the creative soul.

For today's blog I used the Movers & Shapers Tag and Bookplates die, the Tattered Garland and Spring Greenery Decorative strip dies and the Trellis Frameworks die as well as the embossing folder from the new Big Shot starter kit. All the dies are designed by none other than Mr Tim Holtz.

I started by die cutting all the elements that I needed from smooth ivory card, I cut more flowers than I thought I might need just in case! Next I stamped the Mustard Seed distress ink pad onto my craft sheet before spritzing with water and passing the die cuts through the wet ink and drying with my heat tool. Next, I attached part of the trellis die cut to the tag and stamped over the surface with a clear embossing ink pad and sprinkled on a pinch of Fired Brick and Vintage Photo distress embossing powder before fixing with my heat tool. this adds a lovely texture to the tag.

Rusty metal isn't just about oranges, reds and browns so I added some blue and green distress ink before going in with the orange followed by the Vintage Photo ink. To help blend and mottle the colours I lightly spritzed with water and dried with my heat tool.

The next step is to emboss the lower half of the tag and gently rubbing with the Vintage Photo ink pad to bring out the detail. I gave the bookplate, leaves and flowers the same treatment and layered some of the flowers together curling and twisting the petals where necessary to create extra dimension. In the centre of the bookplate I added a printed strip of card bearing the legend 'Treasure' attached with a stapler. Now all that is left to do is to mount the various bits and pieces onto my tag.

And here is the final tag, the ribbon and the string were stained using some of the same colours I hope you like it, I've really had fun with these tags, Maybe I will return to them at some point but next week we will look at a great die which is part of the quilting/appliqué range which all you papercrafters may not have seen, Why should the textile fraternity have all the fun?