A Steampunk Style Book Mark for Summer Books

One of our challenges with Imagine for the month of August is to create something with the word “Motion”in mind. I have created a book mark for several reasons. I love the ocean and the constant motion that can be found there, not only with the movement of the water but all the creatures in the sea that seem to be always on the move. The Dog Days of August make me want to head down to the beach with a good, old fashioned paperback novel, for which I need a book mark. This book mark is made with Graphic 45 paper that is called “Voyage Beneath the Sea”; it has a distinctive Steampunk flair to it. There’s a lot of inky goodness on the front of the tag and a surprise appearance of a mermaid on the back. Enjoy your summer reading!

Time: 1 hour

Directions:

Step 1:

Create a master board on Bristol paper that will be the water like background. To make sure that the Glaze doesn’t soak into the paper, apply a thin coat of gesso to the water color paper before beginning.  Make sure the gesso is dry. This master board was created with StazOn Studio Glaze applied with a Smudgees Sponge Mitt and a little water to blend the colors, first Emerald City, then Bahama Blue and then Gold. Each color was applied through a stencil and heat dried in between to set the color.

Cut off the desired portion for the marker.  This one measures 8 ¾” by 3 ¼”. Save the rest of the master board for another project.

Step 2:

Choose a stamp that looks like something under the sea and stamp an image with StazOn Midnight Blue ink at the bottom of the marker.

  

Step 3:

Cut a piece of paper for backing out of sea themed paper, this one is from Graphic 45. This panel measures 3 ½” by 9 ½”. Cut another snippet of paper to glue on the bottom. The seahorse is a die cut from Sizzix that has been colored in with Memento Markers. The stickers match the paper collection.

Step 4:

Adhere the panel to the backing paper; glue some sequins to look like bubbles. Tiny glass beads mimic sand at the bottom of the ocean, On Point Glue is perfect for adhering tiny details like this.

Here is the front side of the finished tag with a tiny bit of glass glitter added to the sand area.

The back is pretty too.

Supply list

Imagine Supplies

Ink- StazOn Midnight Blue

StazOn Studio Glaze-Emerald City, Bahama Blue, Gold

Memento Markers-Tangelo, Dandelion, Tuxedo Black

Tear It! Tape

On Point Glue

Palette knife

Craft mat

Smudgees sponge mitt

Other Supplies

Bristol water color paper

Gesso

Stencil by Artistcellar

Graphic 45 “Voyage to Beneath the Sea” paper collection and stickers

Finnabair Glass Beads-White Gold, Copper, Platinum

Prima Glass Glitter

Sequins

Sizzix Die Cut-Sand and Sea (seahorse)

Spray bottle of water

Paper cutter

Thanks for stopping by!  Hugs ~ Renee

Craft Stamper Challenge Reminder::Embossed Resist

Ever since I started working with the embossed resist technique last week I haven't been able to stop making things!  I used this technique many years ago when I first started making cards but it has been one of those things that I set aside and neglected for a long time now.  Every once in a while when teaching someone who hasn't seen it before I remember what it felt like to see that embossing powder melt for the first time!  I see the look of wonder in their eyes and know that, like me, they're hooked forever.  So for today here is another book mark using the technique but  with a twist.  Read on for the short tutorial.

I wanted a strong surface to work on so I chose 140# water color paper.  I started with spraying the paper with three colors of Dylusions Spray inks.  I sprayed Bubblegum pink, Vibrant Turquoise and Fresh Lime.

The colors may seem a little bright but I will be toning them down later.  Next I used VersaMark embossing ink with an old brayer type stamp for my pattern.  After applying the design I sprinkled Clear Embossing Powder over it and then tapped off the excess.

Wow!  Cool pattern!!  Watch what happens when I heat it with the heat gun to melt the powder.

Gone.......but not for long.  Using Black Gelatos is like magic.  I applied just this much and it was way too much.  No problem, bring on the baby wipes and watch what happens.

Now we have our pattern back.  I felt it was still too dark for me so I continued to wipe it down with the baby wipes until it looked like this.

At this point I started cutting the book marks to measure 3" by 8".  You can pick and choose the color combos that you want on your project at this point.  After I had cut several of the markers I wanted to dress them up a little more, add more texture.  I used Dina Wakley's word stencil for this and some modeling paste, carefully applying the paste with a small paint brush.  If any of the words get smeared just wipe them off and come back later when it is dry and reapply the words as necessary.

Now mat the colorful panel onto a piece of black card stock that measures a quarter of an inch larger all the way around the tag.  It was still crying out for more decoration so I pulled some ribbon out of my stash and a K & Co button with a bird's nest on it to put at the top of the mark.   Just enough to make it look like a very special book mark!  Now to find a new book to read.

Thanks for stopping by today.  I hope you'll try your hand at this technique and share your results with us at the Craft Stamper Take It Make It Challenge.  Talk to you soon ~ Renee  xxx

AIRs Challenge::Themed Project

Today my AIRs (Artists in Residence) challenge for Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko is to take my spring colored products and make something original and interesting out of them using the theme of "Self Portrait".  I had to think of a project that represented me and my personality.  One thing I know about myself is that I LOVE to read.  I also LOVE to give gifts to others, though they might be small gifts, all through the year.  I don't believe in waiting necessarily for a particular day or occasion to show someone that I love them or that I just happened to be thinking of them.

 When I think of a project that would reflect my personality but would be a useful item to others I think of a book marker.  Summer is right around the corner, summer reading goes along with that.  What better thing to make than a book marker?Personally I love to read historical books, which makes me think of historical figures that were larger than life and that inspired me to think of Marie-Antoinette as being the person that I would like to put on my book markers.    In a way I have multiple themes going on here......items that reflect my personality, Spring Colors, Marie-Antoinette and book markers.  Here is what I came up with.

Did I hear someone scream "group photo"?  All of these images are by Alpha Stamps and are from their digital art collection called "Young Marie".  I will show you a tutorial for the pink one but the same techniques apply to all of the book markers just using different colors.
To start I cut a piece of 140# Strathmore water color paper into strips that measure 2" by 9".  You can cut the strips shorter if you like or change the width, it depends on the measurements of the book you are creating it for.  After cutting the strips I used a large stamp by Magenta, you can use whatever stamps you have on hand,.  I covered the stamp with IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko Memento Luxe Wedding Dress ink which is a lovely shade of white, then covered the stamping with embossing powder.  I heated the embossing powder and then allowed it to cool.

I love the IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko VersaMagic Chalk Pigment Ink in the Pink Petunia color so I started applying that all over the marker, right over the embossed areas.

One of my all time favorite products to use for blending inks and removing inks are baby wipes and this project is no exception.  I coated it with the Pink Petunia ink first and then sprayed the ink covered book marker with IMAGINE Crafts Fireworks! Craft Spray in the Angel Pink color.  I let it run down the marker and then wiped the entire marker down with the baby wipe.

I could continue to add more color if I wanted to at this point and just keep removing portions with the baby wipe until it is just the color I had in mind.  Next I edged the book marker with IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko Memento Dye Ink in  Espresso Truffle to distress it a little.

Now it it ready to decorate.  I emptied my stash of trim on the table to see what would work with this project.  I know I can change the color of trims with ink pads and Fireworks! sprays so they match the inks I've chosen.

I had some white seam binding that could be dyed and crumpled for that old world look so I used IMAGINE Crafts Fireworks! Craft Spray in Angel Pink color with a tiny bit of Dandelion Fireworks!  too.  You can keep adjusting the color by spraying some water on the ribbon, wrapping it in a paper towel and drying it with the heat gun.  Just crumple it up while you do that if you want it to look aged.

I decided to use a large tattered lacy flower and give it the same treatment with a touch of IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko VersaMagic Chalk Pigment ink in the Aloe Vera green to mimic a leaf and the Angel Pink Fireworks! spray for the pink petals.

I attached the flower and ribbon with a strong adhesive and a light green brad in the center of the flower.  Now I just add Marie to the mix.

I trimmed out the image and adhered it to the back of the marker.  You could also cover the entire back with plain paper at this point in the event that you want it to look finished and also have an area to write book notes on.  I made several of these book markers since they are easy and pretty.  Every one has a different stamp design, is a different color and has a different image of Marie-Antoinette attached to the top.




IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko VersaMagic Chalk Pigment Ink in Pink Petunia

IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko VersaMagic Chalk Pigment Ink in Mango Madness and Imagine Crafts Fireworks! Craft Spray in Angel Pink edged with IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko Memento Dye Ink in Peanut Brittle color

IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko VersaMagic Chalk Pigment Ink in Spring Pansy and IMAGINE Crafts Fireworks! Craft Spray in Lulu Lavender edged with IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko StazOn Solvent Ink in Royal Purple color

IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko VersaMagic Chalk Pigment Ink in Mango Madness and IMAGINE Crafts Fireworks! Craft Spray in Bahama Blue edged with IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko StazOn Solvent Ink in Azure and Teal Blue colors

These are great gifts to give with a summer read.  I personally use a Kindle when I read at night but for some reason on a plane or a beach I prefer a real book so a book marker is always a handy way to mark the pages.  Imagine one of these with a Romance novel......hmmmm, love that idea.

Here's a list of all the products and tools that I used on this project.

Products

Strips of 140# Strathmore Water color paper
Miscellanious flowers, ribbons and trims
IMAGINE Crafts Embossing Powder
IMAGINE Crafts Fireworks! Craft Spray Inks in Dandelion, Angel Pink, Lulu Lavender, Summer Sky and Bahama Blue colors
IMAGINE Crafts InkBlushers
IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko Memento Dye Ink in Peanut Brittle and Espresso Truffle Colors
IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko StazOn Solvent Inks in Royal Purple, Teal Blue and Azure
IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko VersaMagic Chalk Pigment Ink in Dewdrop size pads:  Pink Petunia, Spring Pansy, Mango Madness
IMAGINE Crafts/Tsukineko Memento Luxe Mixed Media Pigment Ink in Wedding Dress White
adhesive
self adhesive rhinestone
Digital clip art from Alpha Stamps
baby wipes


Tools

Heat Gun
Paper trimmer
Water spray bottle
scissors
Stamps

Thanks for taking the time to stop by for a visit today, I really appreciate it.  I also appreciate any comments that you might have the time to leave.  Have a great day, I will talk to you soon!



Purple Haze

I still have so many partially finished purple, pink and black things that I made for the challenge.  I entered the tag but do like this little book mark.

I painted purple acrylic paint onto some watercolor paper, then put it through the crimper to give it some ridges.  The torn edge is on the bottom with a piece of plastic over it.  The stamped image is "the girl with the heart purse" by Stampotique using Black StazOn Ink.  I glued the panel onto a piece of black card stock and tied a satin light purple ribbon at the top.  Then I added the star burst in Grungeboard with a little sparkle on it.  Now all she needs is a new home in a really good book!