Happy Valentine's Day, Happy Birthday Arizona, Happy Tuesday

I had planned to post a vintage Valentine's Day and a souvenir Arizona postcard in honor of...Valentine's Day and Arizona's Centennial which both  are on February 14th,  to celebrate the days occasions. Instead I'm going to share the Valentine card  my Tucson sister made and sent to me. It combined both celebrations... 

  For those of you not familiar with the Arizona State flag there is a  copper color star in the center of the flag...for Valentine's Day TS replaced it with a heart...very clever!

Distres Ink, Goodwill and Collections

My obsession with Tim Holtz Distress Ink started out simply enough...
I remember my first color... Old Paper. 

I was working on a Heritage Album and needed to give the pages an aged look.  Then I got braver  and added two more Distress Inks, Tattered Rose and Frayed Burlap ...once you have three of something it becomes a COLLECTION!

Gradually I was adding more and more inks to my COLLECTION.  When I started teaching the Heirloom Tag Class it gave me the licenses to really add to the COLLECTION.

Not only had I become a Distress Ink HOARDER, but how was I going to store all these ink pad?  I needed  easy access because I ink everything and I needed them organized because from the side and bottom they all look the same! Looking for just the right container became an ongoing search.  

Until the day I spotted the perfect storage container across the aisles at Goodwill!

There is sat just waiting for me to grab it...an index card file drawer. I grabbed it up and walked quickly to the check out...IT WAS MINE!

I printed out labels and adhered them to the sides of the ink pads....

And organized the inks by colors in to the two drawers...with plenty of room to add many more!

The file drawer sits next to my work table...I pull out a drawer and can find the exact color I need. A nice neat COLLECTION!

I think it's time for Tim to come out with some new colors!

Here comes another one!

Here we are two and a half weeks into the New Year and it's already time for another holiday... we have 27 days until VALENTINE'S DAY. True, it's not as big a deal as Christmas...but one that needs your attention anyway. Cards, candy, flowers, and decorations.

In honor of VALENTINE'S DAY I created three tags to teach at Scrapbook Barn. I have never gone for the traditional red and white color scheme...these tags are  a bit on the wild side.

I like the vintage look of the  Frances Brundage harlequin children images. The background of the tag is a collage created of different rubber stamps.

I have wanted to design a tag using a cup cake for a while now. Valentines Day was the perfect occasion. I asked my friend Wendy, and her husband Bill, owners of Leaky Shed Studios if they would create a chipboard die cut of a cup cake that could be covered with festive patterned paper  and embellishments. I used the Ranger Liquid Pearls in White Opal to frost the top of the cup cake and finished if off with a  large red heart rhinestone.

THANK YOU WENDY AND BILL!

The background of this Cupid tag was done using a Sizzix Embossing Folder and a mixture of 

Perfect Pearls and Distress ink re-inker...very shimmery. The Cupid was embellished with Stickles and hot pink rhinestones.

Let's face it...LIFE IS ONE DARN HOLIDAY AFTER ANOTHER!

Happy New Year

Merry Christmas

Tinsel Hanging on the Christmas Tree

We got a great new embellishment in at Scrapbook Barn, It's a tinted tape by Vintage Street Market. The tinted tape is a easy way to add a fun layer to you scrapbook layout, card or ATC. 

I designed a layout using the "linen" look tape. It has the appearance of an age Scotch tape that you may find in a vintage family photo album:

 I used a few retro looking patterned papers and a 1950's Christmas photo edged with the tinted tape.

 The text border was made by pressing the linen tinted tape onto vintage book paper, and gently peeling it back up, lifting the book paper onto the tape.

Check out all the tinsel hanging on the tree...do they even make that anymore?

Christmas Tags, Tim Holtz and Toy Envy

Tim Holtz  started his 12 tags of Christmas this week. He is creating and sharing some

wonderful treasures over at his blog. 

While Tim is just getting started on his tags, I have been teaching my tags the last few weeks at

Scrapbook Barn.  Tim will be making 12 tags (hence the name "12 tags of Christmas") 

I designed and have been teaching 3 tags. 

Tim has always been an over achiever...but I do envy all those wonderful 

toys he has to create with.

These tags are fun to design, they can be used to decorate a tree or a grape vine wreath,

tie them onto a ribbon to create a banner, add one to a package or a gift bag, trade in a “tag swap”, 

mail a tag instead of  a Christmas Card 

or you can design these tags for yourself... just collect and enjoy them.

I will be teaching 2 more  tag classes at Scrapbook Barn, 

December 5th, 5-6:30 pm and December 6th, 1:30-3 pm.