Compendium of Curiosities III

Finally, I am challenging myself to take this challenge, Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge, a challenge dedicated to using the techniques in the book Compendium of Curiosities III.  I have this book and its two sisters Compendium of Curiosities I & II and I have flipped through them countless times.  I also have quite a bit of "Tim Holtz stash" but just like what Tim Holtz said in the 12 tags of 2014 - May that some of us just cherish the fact that we have those embellishments and findings rather than using them, I have a hard time using my Tim Holtz stash (and my stash in general!).  I have mentioned many times on my blog that I have a disease that I have difficulty cutting pretty paper, not because I lack a pair of sharp scissors or a good paper trimmer, but because I am worried that the paper will not be as pretty after I cut it to pieces.  My bigger concern is that I would cut the paper in the wrong direction or size.  My other disease, is of course, having a difficult time to use the trinkets, findings and embellishments of all kinds.  It is so difficult to part with these tiny little things!

However, I really want to practice those techniques and put my stash to use.  I am playing along the 12 tags of 2014 this year but the accumulation of my stash grows faster than the rate of use.  Argh.  Here comes another opportunity - the Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge.  Yay!

This first challenge is asking us to do paint marbling as shown on page 43 of the book.  This is one of the most manageable techniques (due to my clumsiness and limited skills) and I'm more than happy to try something new with it.  As I was going through the inspiration pieces by the design team members, I noticed that it is not "a must" to use multiple colors.  Right.  Why did I even think that I need to use many colors for this technique?  Previously I liked to do paint marbling with a combo of bright colors but this time, I'm using just one color - Shaded Lilac:

Shaded Lilac is one of my favorite colors (I have been using it non-stop these days) but what you see may seem a bit darker than what you think Shaded Lilac should be, that's right because I've added a bit of Dusty Concord and Seedless Preserves Distress Ink on top.  I like how it turned out!  Looks like this technique works perfectly great with just one color and I'm going to try it with others! :)

Do you like this awesome sketch from Sketchbook Saturday #121?  I always love Iwona's sketches and appreciate how she places various elements on her cards, this one is no exception.  These days I have not been crafting as much as before but once I saw this sketch I jumped on it immediately!  Check her sketches out and I'm sure you'll like them.

I used my newly acquired stamp set Make a Wish from Mama Elephant for the sentiment (how many firsts are there on this card? ) and I like its big bold sentiments that are very popular these days.  The flower and the leaves come from a retiring Stampin Up! set.  The flower was colored with distress markers while the leaves are cut from two shades of green cardstock. I added a thin strip of Gypsy cardstock and a Ivy Lane paper panel to finish it up.

I'm also linking up my card to the following:
Pause Dream Enjoy - Flowers
Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes
Crafting by Designs - Anything Goes
Sister Act Card Challenge - Anything Goes
Through the Craft Room Door - Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by!