Scary Edgar Allan Poe Raven Inspired Canvas September Inspiration Board entry for Scraps of Elegance/Darkness on Facebook

With Halloween just around the corner I finally decided to put this on my blog even though I have been holding it back.  However I decided to publish it now because next month will be all scary, ghouly and witchy LOL!!!

Scraps of Elegance Scraps of Darkness Scrapbook Store has an amazing owner in Melinda and this month her Inspiration Board was perfect for this so it's going to be my second entry for this month on Facebook!! 

I absolutely adore the concept of Inspiration Boards because I really don't think that I am very good at doing layouts according to Sketches but I love making pieces like this.

The Supplies I Used
I don't remember everything that I used but here is some that I do.

Canvas 8" x 8"
Tim Holtz Bigz Die Boo 31
Tim Holtz Bigz Raven and Scaredy Cat
Tim Holtz Bats Mover and Shapers
Black Gesso and Black Paint
Hot Glue and Hot Glue Gun
Heavy Mixed Medium Gel Liquitex or Golden
Tim Holtz Grungeboard
Tim Holtz Grungepaper
Tim Holtz Mirrored Sheets
8" x 8" Piece of Diamante Trim from a local Drapery
Finnabair Prima Mechanicals including Metal Caps/Metal Brads/Metal Washers/Gears/Vintage Setters/Metal Flowers/Mechanical Roses/Clock Face/Roman Numerals/Mechanical Flowers etc
Tim Holtz Idea'ology Arrows/Nature Adornments/Brads/Alpha Chips/Monocle Findings/Crossbones/Mirrored Stars/Wishbones/Enameled Tags/Buttons/Knobs etc
Prima Junkyard Findings Zippers/Nuts and Boltz/Lamp post/Street Signs/Jeans Plates etc
Wood Buttons
Wood Embellishments
Ranger Crackle Accents
Lindy Stamp Gang Magicals and Sprays in Time Travel Teal, Red Hot Poker Orange, Autumn Maple Crimson, Scramin' Banshee Black, Witch's Potion Purple, Hag's Wart Orange, Cowabunga Copper, Gag Me With A Spoon Gray,  Whale Watch Blue, Tweedle Dee Denim, Queen of Hearts Red,  Cheshire Cat Cherry, Salt Water Taffy, Hydrangea Blue, Azure Sea Asters, Sea Mint Green, Tea Pot Purple, Sweet Violet Purple Teal, Bougainvillea Fuchsia, Jazzy Jivin Purple, Danny Zuko Denim, Delphinium Turquoise, A bit o'Bubbly, Creme Brulee Cream.
Light Lutradur
Prima Flowers With Long Stems
Tim Holtz Sanding Tool
Tim Holtz Distress Paint Brushed Pewter

 If you look under the number and bats that there is a studded texture that I used as the base of my piece.  I started by painting the entire canvas in Black Paint and then placed the studded lattice cloth and glued it to the entire canvas with gel medium and then when it was dry I painted it all in black again.  When it was dry, I started adhering a Prima Vine Flower to the left and then pulled the vine around and off the canvas and that became the level of dimension that I wanted. 

 It is a little difficult to see from the angle of this photo but if you look to the upper left you can see a bat that has the tips of it's wings almost touching and what you can't tell is that the bat is glued on the raised vine. 

I worked almost exclusively after this using the hot glue gun and then when I glued all the different findings to the canvas I then used lots of hot glue to look like webbing and cobwebs and gave it a real spooky feel to it.  With thicker hot glue 'vines' I gave the impression of old overgrown and dark vines almot like it was forgotten.

 I used Grungepaper to die cut the Bats and Grungeboard to die cut the Raven painted them black and when dry apply crackle and let everything dry naturally to the Raven and I did not apply crackle accents to all of the bats

For the Boo and the No. 31 I used the Mirrored Sheets and I feel you should run it through your Big Shot (by far the best manual and versatile die-cutting machine) and remember to remove the clear plastic covering off and sanded it down to mute the shine in order to keep the overall theme of it.

Once I was happy with everything, I started applying all the different Magicals wetted with a gel medium and just built up the colour until I was happy with the overall look then I  pulled strands of lutradur apart and then built up the grey white colour of the cobwebs and that was it really.  I really enjoyed the process and I am happy with how it came out altogether.

Let me know what you think and tell me on Facebook or here what you are doing to celebrate Halloween.

Hugs

Celina

Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2014 July

 Excerpt from Edgar Allan Poe poem

The Raven

(Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
`'Tis some visitor,' I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.' .....

.....
But the raven still beguiling all my sad soul into smiling,
Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door;
Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking
Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore -
What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore
Meant in croaking `Nevermore.')

This is Tim Holtz Tag for July if you just follow the link

                                        

This was a tough technique for me today because I thought my lovely Big Shot Pro machine was going to break trying to emboss construction acetate (I didn't have Shrink film to hand)!!! Honestly I don't know why it didn't break!!

I have been trying to do his tag techniques in a way that makes my own appear pretty.  That's why I loved his June Tag so much.  But, I didn't do all the steps since I only wanted to do what would make something appealing. 

That is my comfort zone.  And I need to be pushed out of it.  Pretty is what I love, however, I think that's making me far too rigid in my arty expressions so I'm going to push my boundaries creatively and enjoy learning and executing new instructions.

So this time I was much more careful to follow each of the steps.
 
  









I am subscribed to Melinda Kelly's Scraps of Elegance and Scraps of Darkness scrapbooking kits, and her SOE kit for July is all about Marion Smith Designs, Mad Tea Party.  That is when I thought about the Mad Hatter's question from Alice in Wonderland "Why is a raven like a writing desk? That thought led me to the raven from Edgar Allen Poe and the word "Nevermore" and I knew what I wanted my tag to have.



That one word "Nevermore" scared the holy moley outta  me when I was really young and I'd come across poem.  I am aware now that it is about loss and the depression felt by those left behind and I believe for different reason why this poem is still able to scare me.

Supplies
TH Writing Desk Bigz Die
TH Raven And Scaredy Cat Bigz Die
TH Cobweb Decorative Strip
TH Movers and Shapers Die - Mini Bat and Skull Set
Graphic 45 Nevermore (Steampunk Spells)
TH Distress Paint Seedless Preserves, Black Soot, Tea Dye, Walnut Stain, Faded Jeans, Old paper, Dusty Concord,
TH Distress Stain Faded Jeans, Seedless Preserves,
TH Distress Ink-pads, Tea Dye, Walnut Stain, Black Soot, Picket Fence, Old Paper
TH Distress Pen Seedless Preserves, Black Soot, Faded Jeans
TH Spritzer
TH Grungeboard
TH Cracked Embossing Folder
TH Word Band
Clear UTEE
Adirondack Red embossing powder
Glossy Accents
Distress Glitter Rusty Hinge, Seedless Preserves
Construction Acetate
Size 12 Manilla Tag
Eerie Graphic 45 Cardstock
Black Ribbon
Crackle Accents
TH Staples/stapler
Golden Gold imit paint
Black Cardstock

Well I hope you like it and tell me what you think.

Hugs

Celina