Tim Holtz

CHA day 2....

2008-07-19T21:24:40-07:00

hey bloggers.... well day 2 is done and it's been a blast so far. i wanted to do a quick post to share with you my latest releases from ranger.
first up...NEW metallic and white distress crackle paints. the white (called picket fence) is a pure white crackle paint - sure to please many requests from some of you. the 3 metallic crackle paints are so incredible and are slightly different than the regular distress crackle formulation. these metallics create a "crazing" effect that look like vintage shattered glass. you have to see them to believe them...

next up...NEW distress stickles! stickles you say? yes stickles! but these aren't your ordinary stickles (of course), this formulation combines a pearlized glitter instead of metallic glitter and composed of carious particle sizes. pair that with the popular color palette of distress and you have a very vintage (almost mica looking) distress glitter glue. the texture is amazing, the colors are amazing and the results...still pure distress.
be sure to check out ranger's website for more information. have a great night....t!m

CHA so far...

2008-07-18T22:34:35-07:00

hey bloggers! been busy getting ready for the big weekend here at CHA! spent thursday teaching workshops and setting up the trade show booths, setting everything up and getting ready to kick off the first day today! well what a great day - it's good to see the excitement and buzz in the industry, seeing friends, and meeting new ones. i wanted to share the new additions to my idea-ology line. lots of great NEW stuff, plus a few additions to some of your favorite products lines. i am releasing some new grungeboard sets including nature (with butterflies, flowers, dragonflies, and a cool ransom alphabet), seasonal (with everything from christmas, to halloween, easter, and valentines, plus a vintage looking alphabet), iconic (filled with travel signs, icons, and a license plate alphabet), and get this....grungebooks! yes - grungebooks are made entirely from grungeboard with extra thick grungeboard for covers and 6 grungeboard pages. great surface to alter and embellish with even more grungeboard!
then there are the fragments - these have been so popular i wanted to add more shapes, so now there are 2 new packs. circles and ovals (multiples sizes just like the classic square and rectangle fragments), and a charm set (oh the possibilities of these! various tag shapes with holes already in them for embellishing and jewelry). i also added some metal embellishments to go with all of my other treasures including keyholes, snaps, metal stencil type, and washers which are flat metal discs you use with long fasteners to create a faux rivet.
but to start off i wanted to share with you my most exciting new product release in idea-ology for me....masks! yes, you read right....masks! my good friend heidi swapp invited me into her world of masks asking me to create my own line of them (since they are by far my most favorite crafting tool) she is a genius with these. so now, i have my own mask designs! very excited about this can't you tell??? if you've never tried masks, they are die cut plastic stencil-type templates with a repositionable adhesive on the back that you can ink, paint, or spray over them to create a masked background design! i'll definitely be posting a technique challenge using these in the months to come!
so there you have it bloggers - day one of CHA. i'll be sharing all of my ranger releases with you tonight when i get back from day 2 of the show. i'm also working on another video to recap all of the CHA excitement, show you some samples, and a few more surprises....enjoy your day - make it a creative one....t!m

new stamp images...

2008-07-11T23:33:47-07:00

i'm here in california and just finished setting up the amazing stampers anonymous booth for this weekend's "Original Rubber Stamp Convention" in carson, california. the variety of vendors looks very inspiring and i can't wait to start demoing with my new images tomorrow. new images you say??? well in addition to all of the ranger products and just about every idea-ology product in my line, stampers anonymous is pre-releasing my new images this weekend. their "official" debut is at the CHA show next weekend. so here they are - definitely different, and quite possibly, my most favorite release in the line - and get this, i have now hit 50 sets in the line - pretty amazing huh? anyways, hope to see you sometime on saturday at the stamp show, if not, be sure to check your local or online store by the end of this month for the new stamp images to start hitting a store near you - thanks for looking....t!m

california here i come...

2008-07-08T12:39:17-07:00

that's right! i'm headed to california this weekend to demo at The Original Rubber Stamp Convention in carson, california. the show is on saturday and sunday july 12-13. i'll be demonstrating all day from 9:00am-5:00pm on SATURDAY ONLY showing all of the latest techniques using ranger products, my idea-ology embellishment line, grungeboard, and of course my stamps from stampers anonymous.

...and get this - MY NEW IMAGES will be available for sale this weekend during the show. that's right, all 7 of my new stamp sets will be for sale in the stampers anonymous booth (before we even show that at CHA - crazy huh?). i am so excited and am loving creating samples with the new images. they are quite the eclectic mix of collage images, nature, and even a couple of seasonal sets including christmas, and (by numerous requests) a halloween set! okay - so i hope to see you there. here's a link for more details...t!m (*i will be posting the new images on my blog saturday morning so if you know someone who know's someone who is going...i'm just saying.)

and we have a winner....

2008-07-08T08:18:59-07:00

thanks for all of the comments bloggers! it's been fun to once again see everyone's excitement for the technique challenges - now just be sure to take some time to try it. the winner of the finished tags and stamps is:
Sharon~ (funny she thought she missed it, but it was confusing with the extra post)
please email me your contact information and i'll get this out right away! stay tuned for another post later today about my weekend plans ...t!m

Once again, really neat. And since as a chemist I developed a serious sensitivity to chlorine(which means all bleach products are a no-no to me), I'm really happy to see this demo. Not to mention I love the colors. Sorry, I missed the contest, but I was in transit...sigh...Still enjoyed seeing the stuff and I think it is so cool that the sprockets work with the clock stamp. I love good engineers/artists (another person who is both left and right brained along with such historical notables as William Blake and Loren Eisley and others). Keep on rocking.

Posted by: Sharon | July 07, 2008 at 07:59 PM

scrapbook attack cancellation...

2008-07-07T09:46:36-07:00

i want to extend my sincere apologies to those of you who have signed up for my upcoming classes at scrapbook attack in oregon. due to a personal scheduling conflict, i have had to cancel my visit scheduled for July 25-26, 2008 and i am unable to reschedule. i am sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused...t!m

july technique challenge...

2008-07-06T22:07:42-07:00

hey bloggers! i hope you enjoyed your holiday weekend - i sure did! i had great food (bbq ribs) at home, mojitos to drink, a little antique shopping in downtown prescott, and of course studio time! this was certainly a long time coming for me. it was so nice to get back into the swing of things being creative. i've been busy making samples for the upcoming CHA trade show, working on new designs, and as promised, this month's technique challenge. i've always liked the look of stamping with bleach, but let's face it - what a mess (not to mention the smell)! so i came up with this technique that really captures the look of bleached imagery using your favorite stamps. are you ready for some "faux bleaching"? let's get to it...

supplies: non-stick craft sheet, adirondack color wash, big & bossy pad, clear embossing powder, heat tool, jet black archival ink (ranger); stamps (stampers anonymous); craft iron (clover); #8 tag (american tag); plain newsprint; embellishments (tim holtz idea-ology)

step 1: stamp various images on tag with big & bossy clear embossing ink and emboss with clear embossing powder. *tip: i prefer using bolder images for this technique.

step 2: spray various colors of adirondack color wash over embossed tag. use as many colors as you like and blend by misting water over colors if necessary. *tip: adirondack color wash works great for this technique because it is a sprayable textile dye and the colors remain vibrant!

step 3: place wet tag between plain newsprint and iron with a craft iron on the highest heat setting. continue ironing over the newsprint until your stamped image appears in the newsprint. this step is re-melting the embossing powder and and absorbing it into the newsprint. *tip: a craft iron is about twice the temperature of a normal household iron and can re-melt the embossing powder - you can use a household iron but you might have to iron a bit longer, and be sure not to use it on clothes again....as if.

step 4: while paper is still very hot, CAREFULLY start removing the top layer of newsprint from the tag. if paper sticks, simply reheat the area with the iron until it easily peels back.

step 5: when your finished ironing, all of the embossing powder should be removed from the images leaving them flat and matte. if you still see embossing powder, place a clean piece of newsprint of the tag and iron again remelting the remaining powders and absorbing them into the clean newsprint. *tip: check out how cool the newsprint you ironed on is???

step 6: stamp various images on to solid colored areas of the tag using jet black archival ink. you want to be sure to stamp with a very dark permanent black ink for the best contrast from your "faux bleached" images.

step 7: embellish tags using your favorite embellishments. (pinch me now, i'm in heaven with my idea-ology stuff!) *tip: use the sprocket gears and game spinners over the clock parts - coincidence they fit? i think not.

step 8: here's another variation of this technique using some nature themed images. (hey wait a minute...are those some of my new stamps???)

okay, so there you have it - something different to try with pretty cool results. i use adirondack color wash on natural fabrics too including silk, cotton, etc. remember it's very intense stuff! this technique is also great to use just about any theme of stamp so go crazy! and speaking of crazy, i thought i might as well give these 2 tags away along with a few of my "component" stamps from stampers anonymous. just post a comment on today's blog post - anything, just let me know you're reading the blog and hopefully enjoying the challenges...the winner will be chosen on tuesday morning - good luck...t!m