12 Tags of 2012- Feb & March

Over on his blog, Tim Holtz has introduced a new adventure for crafters -- the 12 Tags of 2012.  In the past, he did the 12 Tags of Christmas and made one tag a day for 12 days in December.  I just found out about it last year and didn't participate fully because that time of year is sooo crazy.  This new idea is to create one tag a month and I'm super excited.  It means that I'll have enough time to really think through each of the tags and buy some new materials if I need them.

You can view Tim's Tag Here.

And here is my version:

 My tags are a different size than Tim uses (smaller) because I had a ton of them leftover from a different project and I couldn't justify buying different tags when I had a thousand (literally) at home.  For the February tag, I decided to use an arrow instead of a large Cupid.  But I incorporated Cupid in two other ways by using small Valentines from Tim's Seasonal Paper Stash.  I didn't have any honeycomb paper, and after 3 unsuccessful attempts to make my own, I just used a bunch of tissue paper hearts stacked on top of one another and then fluffed up for my heart.  I used some vintage lace that I found in my Great-Great Aunt May's old sewing box (fear not, there is still a ton of it left for other projects!) for the bottom and the trimmings.

You can view Tim's March Tag, Here.

 And here is my take on the March Tag:

 

I used the checkerboard embossing folder for my background because I don't have a wood-grain stamp (it's on my wish list) and the woodgrain embossing folder just didn't turn out right when I tried it.  I thought the checkers went with the tiles in my mosaic pieces.  I used a Martha Stewart Butterfly punch for the butterfly and Sizzlits for the shoe and frame.  The caption is stamped twice on a piece of leftover acetate with green and black Stayz-On ink.  The trimming is cut from a piece of fabric scraps.

Tim hasn't done a January Tag yet, since he only decided to start this project in February.  So in the meantime... Here is a tag that I created myself this January:

 I used a Tim Holtz embossing folder for the trees and a technique that I learned from his 12 tags of Christmas where you put ink onto the folder before embossing to create the background.  Then I used all different kinds of embossing powders and inks to build up a lot of color and texture.  The entire background area has a layer of clear UTEE mixed with fine blue glitter on it. It kinda looks like a thin layer of glass.  The green and brown on the trees was created with several different chalk inks.  The snow was created by using a Zig glue pen to draw the snow and then covering it with white embossing powder.  The trimming is green tulle that I dyed a few years and ago and try to use as much as possible now, since I know I'll NEVER get rid of it all, haha.  This tag doesn't have anything glued onto it or any sentiment because I wanted it to be relatively flat so that it can be used as a bookmark all during the winter months.  I made similar versions of this tag for my Christmas gifts this year.

Hmmm...  Might as well share another tag while I'm at it!

Here is a St. Patty's Day Tag that 

I made for my mother-in-law to use as a bookmark:

 I used my printer to put the Blessing right onto the tag.  I set it up in Microsoft Word and then printed it on regular copy paper.  Then I used masking tape and taped the tag down on the paper using a lamp to line up the words on the tag.  Then I ran the paper with the tag taped on it through my printer.  I used chalk inks and a stamp to create the border around the tag.  I bought a bunch of those shamrocks that are on the trimming from oriental trading company for a dollar a few months ago as part of a children's craft kit.  I stamped the word love onto the wooden shamrock with Stayz-On Ink.  For the back of the tag, I traced the outline of the tag onto green cardstock, then used an embossing folder to emboss it.  Then I used some black soot distress ink to bring out the pattern and go around the edges.  To finish, I glued the front and back together and used a hole punch to make the hole go through the back sheet.  Then I threaded more of that green tulle through the hole to trim the tag.

Well, there you have it!  4 fun tags!