Saturday 10 May 2014

How to write a letter...

Hello all, Alison (butterfly) here with a romantic tag for you.  I've loved the Jean-Jacques Rousseau quote about how to write a love letter for years, so I was delighted when it appeared amongst the new Tim Holtz releases.  And who else but the Gibson Girls could possibly fit so well with those words?!


I started by adding Grunge Paste to a large tag through the Tim Holtz doily stencil.


Once that was dry, I painted over the whole tag and texture with gesso.


I hadn't at that point planned what I'd be stamping, so it was pure luck that the two women and the quote all fitted (just!) between the textured areas!


I have some Gibson Girls masks ready cut (from the very first time I used them) and stored with the stamp set so I grabbed those and my go-to stencil at the moment, the TH Latticework.  In the first image, she seems to be struggling slightly to free her mind to just write... maybe she's falling out of love?


I used Stormy Sky, Faded Jeans and Chipped Sapphire Distress Inks.  Because they're going over gesso, all the colours end up quite muted, but that was fine for me with this tag.  In this second image, I think she's just reading a love letter she's received, and is pausing to let the thoughts sink in... good or bad news?


I added postage accents using Carte Postale by Katy Leitch (formerly Katy Fox).  There are the stamps and postmarks...


... stamped in Cobalt Archival and mounted on padded tape.


And the lovely Carte Postale stamp itself...


... as well as these fabulous postal ephemera labels.


I altered an Idea-ology Muse Token with some paint and White Fire Treasure Gold.


And then there's the quote itself, in such delicate handwriting.


And I've got some blotches from Katy Leitch's Messy Art, stamped in Pumice Stone.  Ink blots, or perhaps tear drops?

There's a shimmer of White Fire across the doily texture and on the edges of all the embellishments.


I couldn't do a tag all about letter-writing without adding a couple of pen nibs, also gilded with the White Fire.


And the whole thing is topped off with some very feminine lacy ribbon tied with delicate twine.


I don't know.... I must have been having a girly day!


Thanks so much for stopping by.  Do come and play along with this month's challenge In the Garden.  We'd love to see you there.  Happy Crafting all!


Ingredients:
Artistic Stamper stamps:  The Gibson Girls Plate #1; Katy Leitch sets - Carte Postale, Messy Art
Stampers Anonymous stamps: Random Quotes
Distress Inks: Stormy Sky, Faded Jeans, Chipped Sapphire, Pumice Stone
Archival Inks: Coffee, Cobalt
Tim Holtz Layering Stencils: Doily
Idea-ology Muse Token
Grunge Paste
Gesso
Twine
Size #10 Manila Tag
From my stash: Treasure Gold, lacy ribbon

31 comments:

massofhair said...

Beautiful quote, can see why you like it so much...

Not much of a Gibson Girls fan but love what you have done with them

The colour palette seems French Vintage with its stunning combination, so yes a very romantic card.

Enjoying all the layers and textures, brings your ArT to life :-) x

ria gall said...

Alison this a truly beautiful piece of art. I love everything about it. The whole thing is romantic, tender and warm. Stunning.
Ria xxxxxx

Marci said...

A beautiful tag! The stamping and texture are fantastic!

Marci said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Nan G said...

A fab quote made even more so with your Gibson girls. Love the stories you weave as you create. A wonderfully romantic tag, Alison!

Helen said...

oh wow, what a fabulous tag!! love the quote, love the embossing, love it all...

Dagmar said...

Oh yes - it's verry romantic and so lovely! I wish you a fantastic weekend, Dagmar. XX

sally said...

Oh! Quite delightful :-)

Sally

Jenny Marples said...

You're right, these stamps combine beautifully Alison and you've shown them off to their best advantage here between the stencilling and paste. Utterly beautiful. Jenny x

Willy said...

Beautiful tag, great details and thank you for the little tutorial!!

Unknown said...

A beautiful and artistic tag Alison. Great combination of the text stamp and imagery combined with the subtle texturing from the stencils. Chris xxx

Almo said...

A beautiful tag Astrid - Love it. Mo x

Annie said...

Awesome tag layout and fabulous details/textures

TFS Annie x

Cocofolies said...

Wonderful tag by Alison, really romantic indeed!! The stamps, colours and texture is fabulous. Coco xx

Redanne said...

I love the stenciling with the paste and ink, the beautiful Gibson girls and the lovely quote but I really love that little note about postage!

mamablitger said...

Wow.... Such a great tag you created. Really love the way you fitted the stamped girls in. And the texture you created using stencils and embossing paste. You are very talented.
Thanks a lot for sharing your art.
Hugs from SPAIN

Dorthe said...

Oh, everything fits together so beautifully, dear Alison, ... love the texture pasted pattern and the colours you chose to compliment the browns . The little notes are wonderful too added here and there, to give attension to every corner !
Hugs,Dorthe

Deborah said...

Love the paste through the doily stencil, love it ALL!

Anonymous said...

Fabulous tag Alison, gorgeous muted colours and what a great sentiment! Sue C x

craftytrog said...

Beautiful! Carrying on the Gibson Girl theme?! ;o) xxx

Ana K. said...

Another superb tag Alison! You always create such a beautiful texture!

Astrid Maclean said...

Gorgeous Alison and beautiful layering of all the stamped elements!!

pearshapedcrafting said...

The romantic words so beautifully echoed in your tag - fabulous! Chrisx

Jools Robertson said...

Incredible beautiful, love the contrast in the levels of materials and the colours are wow! Especially the blue highlights

Jools x

Anonymous said...

Beautiful, elegant & very classy work of art.

May said...

Gorgeous tag Alison, The texture & colours are so beautiful...the stamping & text is perfect... Great tutorial as always... Hugs May x x

cathylynn said...

All perfectly combined to make a delightful tag. Fabulous colors and textures. The lace and twine ribbon is a fantastic touch!
Hugs, Cathy-Lynn

Titbelsoeur, mixed-media addict said...

Alison, this is such a great tag !!

Dianne said...

Perfection that's what this is Miss Alison, you have created such a gorgeous background for those beauty's and the letter is fabulous, another brilliant creation, thanks for sharing...

Unknown said...

I love that when I see something in blogland I immediately know it's yours Alison. You have such a unique style and this tag is really a treasure. It's too bad that most communication comes via email or text these days and your tag is a sweet reminder of the written word. I love everything about it and the texture on it makes me want to touch it lol. Beautiful inspiration! xx

Kezzy said...

Wow truly stunning beautiful tag, te images are wonderful and I love the soft muted colours :-) Kezzy xxx