Carey Burns

This little number is almost complete and I just want to shrink myself down so I can live in it! There was a lot of trial and error, but I think it is turning out great and I've learned a few things along the journey. There aren't a lot of "in-progress" photos because my hands were pretty inky while making it and I didn't want to ruin my camera or phone. Here's the low-down so far: Supplies: ***All of the supplies for this project so far are Tim Holtz except for the LED lights and acrylic paints*** Vignette Tray (large) Vignette Box Vignette Frame Vignette Hardware Tiny Vials Corked Vials Bouquet Skulls Baroque Frame Mini Pocket Watches Lantern Boneyard Halloween Paper Stash (2017 and 2018) Alcohol Inks in Gunmetal, Watermelon, Jet Black, Terra Cotta Distress Stain in Walnut Stain Distress Ink in Aged Mahogany, Candied Apple, Black Soot, Walnut Stain Distress Collage Medium in Vintage Perfect Pearls Gold Scraps of cardboard packaging ...

A while back, I was given some unwanted laminate samples and I took them, not knowing what I'd make with them. They were in my junk bin and when I was purging items this summer, they made it to a zipper bag for the "free pile" of our upcoming yard sale. The other day, I thought "Hey, use them to make a more durable tag!" So this little taglet was born. In total, I made seven different ones and had six larger tags left. This tag is inspired by the taglet. New project on left, inspiration taglet on right Inspiration taglet Supplies: 1 laminate sample or paper tag Tim Holtz Ancestors Paper Doll: Witches Tim Holtz Botanical Tissue Paper Distress Collage Medium (matte) Tim Holtz Clippings and Big Chat stickers Distress Crayons: Twisted Citron, Picket Fence, Squeezed Lemonade, Tumbled Glass Distress Ink: Black Soot, Aged Mahogany Distress Marker: Black Soot Glossy Accents Tim Holtz Baroque Frame (rusted with Sophisticated Finishes) Tim Holtz ...

This project was on my mind all summer but I finally finished her! When I look at the finished piece, I can't believe I actually created it. It started with an antique brass match holder from Sweden I found at a junk store. It took me a year (not kidding) to decide which side to use. They're both fantastic! I had the head of a blinking doll that I had removed the hair from in my junk bin and one day I saw the two pieces together and had an a-ha moment. I started researching Aztec gods and goddesses and discovered Chalchiuhtlicue. As I learned about her being the 'lady of the jade skirts,' I decided to eventually add some jade tones. Playing around with other pieces from the junk bin, I settled on a skeletal torso and skeleton hands to crown the piece. I rusted them and dry brushed them in white, a golden yellow, and a lightened thalo green. The piece cried out for colorful flowers so I colored Tim Holt's Heirloom Roses in alcohol ink shades...

So this piece is 'done' but I'm just not in love with the nails on the top. I think they should be rusty and taller. Might be rooting through the nail jar this weekend... Wrath started with the vintage Japanese bisque doll. I thought the little fella was holding two machetes in front of him (honest mistake!) so he became my Wrath. After researching the figure, he's holding an airplane, which is funny, because I had selected the war planes to be in my background. Maybe my subconscious mind knew it was really a plane? Speaking of planes, I found these plastic toys at an antique shop and snatched them up. I knew they'd look great with a coat of rust and some paint. The antique cheese box was painted red and had some great staining so I cleaned it up and cleaned the planes too. Once the planes were nice and rusty, I glued them to the back of the box. They're odd sizes so it was a bit of a dance to get them to fit. When I added the doll, ...