Moments...

I'm finally back!!!  Wow, that was a crazy Christmas season.  As hard as I tried to get into my craft space it just wasn't happening.  So, last night and today, I am not answering phones or doors and I'm getting creative.  :)

I found some great deals on chipboard albums at Michael's so I got a few.  I've never done a chipboard album before so this is something new for me!  :)   This chipboard album is going to be a life inspiration album.  I'm taking the Brene' Brown life lessons online courses and I am going to use this chipboard as part of my classes.  I'm getting a head start on a few pages though.  :) 

I've decided to start using up product that I haven't looked at in a long time, some things years.  So, this will be a great opportunity to use some new and some old.  :)  Exciting. 

The first page will be my cover page for the book and I titled it Moments, because I sometimes find it hard to live in the moment and to appreciate the positives that surround me.  With it having been such a hard 2013 for me on a personal level, I found myself sinking into a hole of loneliness and focusing so much on all that was going wrong that I didn't see all that was going right.  This course I am taking and this chipboard album will be my therapy to bring focus to 2014 in a much more positive way.  I hope you like my work in progress.  I will post as I get pages done.  :)

I have a huge range of different designers and products that I have used for my first two pages.  :)  And I like it! 

This is the paper pack I have used.  I bought this eons ago but haven't done anything but tags for some time now and I haven't even looked at most of my paper.  This pack is so beautiful I had to use it to start. 

 

 

 

I got so into starting that I totally forgot to take photos as I went so this is going to be a bit wonky.  LOL  Oops, sorry.   The letters were Tim Holtz grunge board letters that I colored with Distress paint fired brick.  I inked around the edges with black soot.  Then used Viva Inka Gold in brown/gold with my finger and smudged randomly over the letters to give it a metallic mottled look.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next, I cut out some matting in 4x6 and the outside matte is a 1/2" larger so there would be a 1/4" border around.  I took some of the dark paper and cut a vertical strip for a side panel to the right.  Then, I glued down a wide grosgrain ribbon down the center of the paper strip.  I wanted to achieve a zipper effect signifying the movement, opening/closing of moments thru out our lives.  For the zipper part, I used a stencil and the Viva Gold cream in the same brown/gold and did a raised textured effect.  In the middle I used a Prima embellishment, it found these cute zipper pulls with sentiments on them.  The one I used says Moments.  I rumbled thru my stash and found a thinner textured ribbon and glued it down the edges of either side of the zipper.  The color wasn't what I really wanted so I took the Viva Cream again and finger rubbed some onto the ribbon to tie the metallic look together.  I worked perfect. 

 

 

 

 

With the side panel done, I placed and glued the matting down where I wanted it.  Next, I wanted to use the Inka Gold again as a texture paste and a stencil.  I used my Crafter's Workshop clocks stencils.  I am in LOVE with these Inka Gold creams.  They are so versatile, you can rub it on and burnish it, tap it on for a textured effect, use it with stencils as a texture paste for dimension... endless uses. 

 

 

 

I just bought Tim Holtz's big pocket watch to do the January tag and I used that tag inspiration for the watch.  I cut out the die on foiled cardstock and embossed the center with the clocks embossing folder.  I used Distress paints in vintage photo and tarnished brass for the recessed parts.  First I applied the vintage photo and let it dry.  Then I added the tarnished brass overtop and let it dry a bit then rubbed it off of the raised parts.  Because the paint had dried some it didn't rub off easily so I took the sanding block and sanded the raised metal parts which distressed the look a bit more too.  :)  For the outer part of the pocket watch I used the Viva cream again and tapped it roughly onto the surface and let it dry.  This stuff dries extremely fast so there isn't a long wait period.  I like that!  A lot!  Once dry I also roughed it up a bit with the sanding block to distress the edges too.   I finished the center by adding some of Tim's elements for the time hands, and a metal element from Prima, Vintage trinkets.  I sooooo loved the Prima metal clock face.  It just adds a whole other dimension to the pocket watch.  :)  I adhered all the pieces down.

 

 

 

 

 

I love how the pocket watch turned out.  Very rustic looking.  Last thing left is a few of the banners cut from the Alterations dies with some sentiments glued on. 

 

 

And the cover page is done.  Here is the whole thing put together.  :)

 

 

A sneak peak of my last shopping adventure.  Oops...  Honestly, I'm not a hoarder!  Well, maybe a little bit...but somehow I just can't help myself.  And with Cha2014 just around the corner... it could get dangerous.  Can't wait to land myself the new stencils.  :)  

 

 



I'm going to work on my next page's post and I'll see you back here in a short bit!  :)