I'm travelling into a new way of working, a new country, a new language, and a new hobby which I'm passionate about. Come with me for some of the journey...

Friday 22 February 2013

Dragon Butterflies

Hello all, and a warm welcome to Words and Pictures on this chilly (where I am, at any rate) February day.  After yesterday's Tin Can Insect Tag, I've got some more insects to share with you today.

I'm here to share two unintentional, accidental tags with you today...  As most of you know, there's been a lot going on here this February.  You've been loyally supporting me through all of it, and I'm so grateful, especially as I've been getting a bit behind with my own visiting - sorry! 

And we're not done with the month yet, so I really wasn't planning on any extra-curricular activity outside of my DT and GDT duties (pleasures, really).

But then the DragonsDream Tag It On recipe bobbed up - Orange, Purple, Butterflies - and I couldn't resist it.  Okay, they're not my usual colours, but I did have a brief but passionate fling with the Fall Distress colours when they got released as full members of the Distress palette, so it was a real pleasure to rekindle an old flame - Seedless Preserves and Ripe Persimmon (and sunglasses) at the ready.

The other requirements are that the project be a tag, and that you use at least one real stamp.


Well, I'm afraid I ended up with two tags by mistake, partners in crime and colour (this happened before when I used these colours in my Companion Piece - odd that they seem to travel in pairs!). And my stamping is subtle, but I promise you it's there...



I always had the plan for a layered tag, on which I would use the Movers and Shapers butterflies to cut apertures through from tag A to tag B.


So I started with some wrinkle-free distress technique à la M. Holtz eemself...  Seedless Preserves and Ripe Persimmon on the craft mat, along with a couple of spritzes of Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist in Flower Power.


The first tag ended up with pretty full on colour and, after a spritz of water onto the mat, I used the second tag to mop up the rest creating a much lighter version.  I knew that from the Companion Piece and was ready for it.













The accidental second tag arose when I realised that the butterflies cut from the pale tag A really looked best against dark tag B, but that's not what they would be sitting on.


Really, I needed a new tag C for them to perch on... but then if you make a new dark tag C, you'll also end up with a lighter tag D once you've mopped up your inks, so why not do another whole layered tag with the reverse colour-way?


That way you'd get light and dark butterflies, light and dark foreground tags AND light and dark background tags... and therefore two projects.  Clear as mud, eh?!  Well, that's where I ended up in any case.



I also, at some point in the wrinkle-free process, used both a book page and a piece of white corrugated card to mop up some of the ink - they were both sitting there within reach.

And then I thought, well - why not create some extra butterflies with those too?!







The original dark tag was done on a piece of paper cut from Tim's Vintage Shabby paper stash, so it had a flourish built into it.

But my new light tag D needed one as well so I stamped Tim's lovely flourish on in a mixture of the two DIs.







I also stamped it onto the main bodies of my butterflies, front and back.  To further highlight the flourishes throughout the two pieces, I added some doodling with the Inkssentials white pen.















I layered up the card butterflies with the bookpage versions and used the tiny stapler to attach them.















They're glued onto the tags with Glossy Accents and some patience!




The corrugated card obviously only got ink on its ridges when I used it to mop up, so I spritzed it with the Glimmer Mist to get some orange down into the valleys - makes them nice and sparkly as a happy side effect.

I could really have done with some sunshine to show you the full effect...






I had some problems with filling the butterfly apertures...  Initially, I handwrote some words using the white pen, and doodled an inner frame to echo the butterfly shape.

But I decided I didn't like the look of the writing.  So I used some white acrylic paint to fill in the butterfly shape I'd drawn, thinking that would link in with the white highlighting elsewhere.















However, it picked up colour from the tag beneath, creating two new pastel shades of purple and orange, which ended up completely delighting me.  I'd never have thought of doing it myself!















I used the Hero Arts alphabet to stamp my words - fly high, fly free - rather than risk the writing again, and added a couple more doodled flourishes to the wings.


As I was layering the tags up, I found I couldn't really see enough of my background tags (B and D, were they?  I don't know, I've lost count).

I think you'll see why I didn't want to lose sight of them completely...










I contemplated tearing the edges - that would be my usual go-to method but, hey, we're in a whole new colour world, let's go for a whole new way of trimming a tag.












So I used the X-Cut edge punch I got at The Range at Christmas.









I had some trouble negotiating the corners - my inner perfectionist has had to obey TH and "embrace imperfection".








I'll just have to deal with the fact that not all the corners are as neat as they might be!









Anyway, with a bit of tweaking, there's a lovely extra view of the tags underneath, and some more dimensionality to the structure, which I always enjoy.






I used the same DIs and mist to dye some bits of seam binding so that I could have co-ordinating ribbons to top the tags off.














They're tied, of course, in bows to give just a hint of a couple of extra butterflies.







So, I hope you've been able to cope with this abrupt departure from my usual colours... Don't worry - normal service will be resumed shortly!

Thanks so much for stopping by - it's an honour to have your company, and a delight to read your comments - every single one is greatly appreciated.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend with plenty of time for whatever makes you happy!

I'm entering this in the DragonsDream Tag It On challenge recipe: Orange, Purple, Butterflies




Butterflies are not insects,' Captain John Sterling said soberly. 'They are self-propelled flowers.
From The Cat Who Walks Through Walls by Robert A. Heinlein

A fallen blossom
returning to the bough, I thought --
But no, a butterfly.
Arakida Moritake

In my world, everyone's a pony and they all eat rainbows and poop butterflies!
Dr. Seuss

48 comments:

Amanda said...

Beautiful Alison, love the colour and as usual all the detail that you put into your work
Love
Amanda x

Helen said...

Wow, Alison you have gone above and beyond the call of duty on these tags - they are beautiful! I love your backgrounds, and extra touches. Thanks so much for dreaming with us at TIO. Hope you'll find time to do so again.

Bärbel said...

Eine wunderbare Farbgebung und Gestaltung, liebe Alison!
Ein schönes Wochenende und liebe Grüße.

Dagmar said...

wow - a great job - just fantastically beautiful tags

Terry said...

Beautiful accidents! Oh how I love the inky perfection on both of these butterfly tags! Hope you have a great weekend and just maybe a little warmer weather! Hugs!

Anonymous said...

Wonderful dimension and as I mentioned to Silvia, I never would have guessed that this colour combination could be so pretty.
Wishes
Lynne
P.S. Alison, I hope you received the e-mail I sent thanking you for the wonderful card you gifted to me.

Dorthe said...

Your inking in those different colours are just gorgeous, dear Alison, such fantastic colours, I too think the background tags are not seen enough,- but your A_B_C_D_ all together became two beautiful and most amazing tags.
Wish you too a wonderful weekend.
xo,Dorthe

Craft Addicts - Tracy Evans said...

Beautifully coordinated tags, the colours are fantastic, I live ripe persimmon and you have used it beautifully here. Love how you have incorporated the butterflies Alson and as always I love the texture, I love texture. Enjoy your weekend. Tracy x

Anjas-Artefaktotum said...

Both arw magnificent tags, love design ans the specially effects, great art work.
Wish you a nice weekend
Hugs Anja

Pia said...

wow so beautiful, lovely colours
hugs Pia

froebelsternchen said...

such clever and artsy fartsy artwork... wow!
LOOKS FABULOUS!
Have a nice weekend Alsion!

Redanne said...

Beautiful colours together Alison, two more stunning makes...... A x

Anonymous said...

totally gorgeous! I love all of the dimensionality!!!

Chris said...

They're beautiful Alison and you did make me laugh with your accidental second tag :D. I think your butterflies and layering up are superb,love the delicate edging too. x

Bonnie Irvine said...

Oh my word, you had me laughing out loud reading this post. I thought you might have to keep making until you ran out of tags...so funny. They turned out beautiful. I love the peeks at the tags underneath through the apertures and the pretty borders. The doodling is a sweet detail and the seam binding is so lovely. I say add this colour combination to your repertoire...it's definitely you.

Keren Tamir said...

Oh wow Alison these are fantastic!! I love butterflies just as much as you do

May said...

Stunning work Alison... You have rocked the Recipe... WOW.. Two tags Full of wonderful textures & colours..Love the butterflies, Thank you for Dreaming with us at Dragons Dream... Hugs May x x x

mytawnyinspirations said...

Fantastic tags, Alison. WoW! What a process! Loved your explanation of how they came about. Beautiful Haiku poem... one of my favourites. Have a GREAT weekend. Cheers, Di

Sue said...

Wow Alison your tags are fantastic, (though I hope there isn't a test on how they were created - is tag A with B,C or D lol). Brilliant idea to use the punch to show a little mor of the underneath tag, and your dyed binding is the perfect finishing touch. Thanks so much for joining us at Dragons Dream TIO, and have an inky weekend. Sue xx

Connie said...

These are so beautiful . . . but then again your work is always so special. It is easy to see that you put love into every thing you do. I haven't visited for sometime now, but wanted to invited you over to put your name in the hat for my current Give-Away. I follow many blogs, but I must say that yours is a delightful inspiration :)
Have a marvelous weekend.
Your blogging sister, Connie :)

Kate Yetter said...

Gorgeous, Alison! Sorry it has taken me so long to get around to your blog. I can't keep up with your output...you must craft non-stop, girl. Well, these are awesome tags. The colors are so fun and bright. And I love butterflies!
Kate

chrissie said...

Amazing! Yet more new ideas to inspire and delight. It is a joy to visit your blog and I do like the sound of the book that you took one of your quotes from today.

Have a wonderful day

Love Chrissie xx

Brenda Brown said...

A gorgeous colour palette and the aperture idea worked perfectly.
Have a great weekend.
Hugs Brenda xxx

Neet said...

Not exactly my colours either but you have made them look so good together. I think now I could give them a go.
Love how you used the butterflies to decorate - as always a terrific piece of artwork.
Hugs, Neet xx

Laurart said...

I love that you have dipped into another colour palette here! Of course I started with these two colours so they bring back fond memories of our stamping day and I love them! The layering is gorgeous - Very beautiful tags. See you on Sunday YAY!!! Can't wait! Love from Laura xxxxx

Alie Hoogenboezem-de Vries said...

The colours togethe are so amazing, as well as the layering Alison!!!
Gorgeous tags, great style...

Have a nice weekend, Alie :-)

Mandy's Crafts said...

Beautiful colours Alison. Love this project. As always stunning.

Annie said...

what fabulous backgrounds Alison and I love the double tag. The butterflies are amazing too ! They look great with the layers.

Absolutely stunning xx

Linda Coughlin, the funkie junkie said...

Super colors and I love the double layered tag with the aperture made with the butterfly dies. The punched edges are lovely. A perfect pair!

Have a terrific weekend.

Hugs,
Linda

Ephemera said...

Absolutely stunning tags, love the butterfly theme and luscious pink tones. XX

Sandy said...

Beautifully done Alison!!! I so appreciate all your tutorials --I think I will be a beginner all of my life and life is grand!
Sandy

Jenny Marples said...

Hope you enjoyed Stamperama. Love your layered tags. These colours are not obvious companions but you've made them work beautifully. Hugs, Jenny x

Kjersti said...

Wow! These tags are absolutely stunning, gorgeous colours and amazing creative work - love them!
Have a nice Sunday!
Hugs Kjersti:)

Nan G said...

You should experiment with color more often! You do it so well! These are fab tags, Alison. Such depth to your colors!

House of Bears said...

We're entering this challenge too as it's such a great theme, one which you've done wonderfully. We love the diversion into new colours, they really suit your butterflies. We also love the way a second tag managed to elbow its way into this project, it's like we start crafting and it takes over. Sometimes we look down and get a shock to see what has been created!!

cathylynn said...

Alison your tags are beautiful. I love those shades of pink and the butterflies are delightful!
Hugs, Cathy-Lynn

Dianne said...

Wow okay wait have to pick my jaw up off my desk,your work is so ORIGINAL its truly awesome to see thanks so much for sharing it all with us....

Sue in AK said...

This is beautiful!!!!!

Unknown said...

These are simply beautiful Alison, love them. Chris xx

Janny Jager said...

Wowwwwwwwwwwww Alisom this is amazing .
So much to see and the colors are great
Greetings Janny

Anita Houston The Artful Maven said...

Your flutterers are fabulous! Love the cutouts and color!

Marjie Kemper said...

Fantabulous! Love the colors and different textures on the butterflies... just gorgeous, Alison!

ElizabethR said...

I am loving both of your tags, but the star for me is the corrugated butterfly it's gorgeous! Thanks for sharing with us at Dragons Dream TIO. Elizabeth x

Faye said...

Your fantastic tags are in the top ten favorite of all times tags for me. They are way past gorgeous.

Monique's art said...

Wow this is a brilliant idea. This is so awesome. Love it
Thanks for sharing at tio

Silvia(Barnie) said...

HOw cool, such a fabulous tag, love the dimensional look. Thanks for joining us at Dragons Dream Tag It On.

Nicecrane Designs said...

OMG, Alison , I love these all so fascianting die cuts,,,,,,really love it....very well done.

Kezzy said...

Wow amazing tags. I wish I had seen this challenge as I love these colours. I always read what and how you make your creation but I have to admit, half way through I have got lost lol, not sure how many tags there is lol. I so love the punching in the middle, and have wanted to try this but never have, I really should invest in some Tim Holtz movers dies. Hugs Kezzy :-) xxx