Tim Holtz

happy halloween...

 
happy halloween bloggers!...t!m

genius...

michael jackson was just that...pure genius!  it's a late night post bloggers because tonight we went to see "this is it", and with all the artistic adjectives, witty words, or clever comments i could come up with for this blog post, just one word comes to my mind...genius.  i grew up listening to michael jackson - yes, i was one of those kids that owned every michael jackson album, poster, pin, pepsi can, wallet, anything with his name on it - hey, i even owned the "thriller" jacket and danced the thriller dance in my living room, so yes i was a fan...and still am today.  i remember the the first time i saw michael moon walk on the grammys - seriously i was in awe of the talent he not only owned, but openly shared with the world.  i feel beyond inspired right now, so pumped, so excited, and so ready to pour my creative soul into my work because bloggers, i have been working on my new idea book that will be released in january at cha with my idea-ology line.  this book will be filled with every tip, trick, idea, technique, and inspiration i can throw at you using idea-ology, ranger, stamps, and a few surprises too so be ready!  whether you yourself were or are a michael jackson fan, one thing that is undeniably fact is that he was an icon of talent unlike anything we have ever seen in the world.  so if you want to feel inspired, get a glimpse into his perfection, endless talent, and share the passion of his art, go and see "this is it" - i'm thankful i did, and so creatively charged words can no longer express it.  so thank you michael jackson, for not only sharing all of the talent you had to give, but to inspire others to do the same, the world will be forever changed and touched by your genius...t!m

it's so good to laugh...

morning bloggers!  nothing like a smile on your face to brighten your day.  okay so this is a little weird, even for me, and you know from following my blog, i don't normally do this sort of thing, or ask of my bloggers, but here goes...  a friend of mine shared this link about a friend of hers who's trying to win this talent blog thing because she is so funny and upbeat.  so she sent me a link to her friend's blog, told me all i needed to do was click a link there to click "vote" for her, no signing in, giving up private info, just click - so i did...  of course by now you're probably as confused as i was, but stay with me here... i started reading this friend's blog and have spent the last hour this morning reading, smiling, and laughing - her name is kayla aimee and she is beyond funny.  have you ever come across those blogs that just reading them makes you smile, chuckle, sometimes even laugh out loud?  the kind of blog where people have a way with words and can paint a picture in your head with a few clicks of the keyboard?  well this is one of those blogs...  so please bloggers, i'm asking you for a favor, to spend a few moments (maybe even an hour) and check out kayla's blog, read it, laugh when you do, but most importantly vote for her to win a good mood gig blog contest, because i'm sure you'll agree she's got a way with putting people in a good mood...t!m

seriously?...

that's right bloggers - it snowed today!  you see, up here in the mountains of northern arizona we get some weird weather, but what i love the most about it is that we get all four seasons - that's the ultimate in my opinion.  it started snowing this afternoon and it quickly stuck to the ground - not to worry though, because the kind of snow we get is what i like to call "decorative" snow.  the kind where it looks as if someone quickly shook the snow-globe and flurries are all around for a few moments, and then, just like that, it's gone.  so yes, now as i'm typing this, the sun is shining, the skies are bright blue, and not a trace of that beautiful white stuff to be seen.  the thrill, however, was still there as a sign of things to come...t!m

a great day...

well today is one of those crisp fall days here in northern arizona.  the leaves have turned (which for us just means brown and on the ground), there is a cool breeze outside, and the need for a warm blanket at night is just the ticket!  it also means that mojito season for me is coming to an end - my poor mint is barely hanging on.  let me just say it feels good to be home for a while.  my teaching trips for the year are all finished up, i have one more scheduled event to demo at the carson stamp show next month, but other than that, it's studio time.  sure there is still tons of work to do to get everything ready for next year's cha product launches, but being home to do it is a beautiful thing.  so now i'll have time to create, time to explore, and time to share some pretty cool things with my bloggers - and that's all i'm saying for now.  enjoy today...t!m

japan - the video blog...

hey bloggers!  well i seem to be finally catching up with my video blogs.  here's the long overdue video blog of our travels to cku-japan - it was sure fun to relive it.  again a special thanks to naoya, megumi, reiko, ayako, and the rest of my new friends from cku-japan, i am truly blessed for the chance to experience such amazing lifetime adventures!  enjoy...t!m

artful voyage - the video...and the projects!

well bloggers - i'm home!  what an amazing voyage it was - thank you to everyone who helped make the artful voyage all that it was.  of course i couldn't do this without the help of my friends mario, michele, keychain, rick, and team scrapmap plus all of the generous sponsors!  a special thank you to wendy vecchi for teaching on this voyage with me, you were wonderful!  i also want to give a shout out to all of my new friends who shared this artful adventure - what a great time we had.  the ship was incredible, the teaching venue on board the ship was amazing, the 193 boxes of supplies all arrived (whew!), the weather was hot, the ports were beautiful, and best of all the creativity was flowing!   so after months of planning, prepping, kitting, and shipping, it seemed to be all over in the blink of an eye.  everything turned out just as i had wished it would, and i can only hope the students that shared in this artful voyage would agree.  the plans have already been set for our next cruise in 2010 to canada/new england so let the fun start all over again - (i know it's almost sold out so thank you to many of you who have already signed up to join the fun again next year.)  here's a video of our artful voyage - enjoy the journey...t!m

the artful voyage...

bon voyage bloggers!  we are heading to the ship this morning to set sail on our artful voyage to mexico with scrapmap.  the boxes are loaded, the projects are created, and we are ready to go.  i'll be teaching with my friend wendy vecchi and joined by my assistants mario, michele, keychain, and wendy's husband rick along with team scrapmap.  we have quite the crew ready to embark on this creative journey and with all of the travel i've been doing, it's nice to know that at least someone will be enjoying my house while i'm away - as i have friends coming up to stay for the week to enjoy the fall weather in the mountains, and have their own getaway - how cool is that?  there is so much involved in getting ready for a cruise - especially if you're teaching on one, with the hopes that every last detail is taken care of and nothing forgotten.  of course as i've said before and i'll say it again - i couldn't do this alone.  in addition to all of the help with the kits and shipping, i want to extend a sincere and very grateful thank you to the following companies who have sponsored this voyage and provided us with the best and most innovative paper craft products this industry has to offer - thank you so much for being a part of the artful voyage!  i'll be sure to capture the moments however i can and take more video (which make 2 travel videos i need to finish when i return).  until then bloggers, be inspired, be creative, and be sure to take some time for you this week - be back soon...t!m

tricks & treats...

hey bloggers!  halloween is still a few weeks away so i wanted to share these ghoulish ideas for creating some spooktacular stampings using my 2 halloween stamp sets from stampers anonymous, my favorite ranger products, and of course all things idea-ology.  i know i've been on the go since july with cha-summer, then cku, creative escape, teaching at a couple of stores, a trip to japan, a trade show in texas, and of course all while getting ready for the cruise which leaves on sunday.  that's a load of work, but never too much work to deprive myself of some studio time!  i just love halloween and all of the fun elements that go with it - pumpkins, bats, skeletons, cobwebs, and let's not forget the candy!  so what i've decided to do was create some halloween tags using some "tricks" i've already shared with you on my video demos - that's right, you know this stuff if you're a blog follower - if not, no worries, just check out the video demos on my website and you're ready to go!  these are just ideas to get you started - there are no step by step directions for these since once you know the technique, the rest is all about following your creative muse!

so check out the creepy, colorful, and oh so distressed halloween ideas and try them out in the next few weeks - you still have plenty of time so no excuses! happy halloween everyone...t!m

"sparkly skellington" - created using the distress crackle resist technique.
supplies: craft sheet, distress inks, distress crackle paint, distress stickles, ink blending tool, mini mister, glossy accents, grungeboard seasonal, tiny attacher, stamps/trick or treat set, paper distresser, scissors, tag, wire, ribbon
*trick: check out the barbed wire i made form twisting wire and securing it with the tiny attacher to the tag!

"poisonous minds" - created using the wrinkle-free distress technique.
supplies: craft sheet, distress inks, ink blending tool, mini mister,  tiny attacher, stamps/trick or treat set/spooky stuff set, film strip ribbon, type charms, trinket pins, mini pins,  paper distresser, scissors, heat tool, tag, bottle, ribbon
*trick: use film strip ribbon to isolate areas of a background!  also create custom charms using the type charms!

"scaredy cat" - created using the paint dabber resist technique.
supplies: craft sheet, distress inks, distress stickles, ink blending tool, mini mister, glossy accents, paint dabber, grungeboard seasonal,  stamps/trick or treat set/spooky stuff set, paper distresser, scissors, tag, ribbon, mica
*trick: that paint resist makes for a great background and the shimmer of distress stickles is perfect for this halloween tag, plus check out the mica i used in the grungeboard lantern - it looks illuminated!

"the moonlight" - created using the alcohol ink splatter technique.
supplies: craft sheet, adirondack alcohol inks, blending solution, metallic mixatives, archival ink, glossy cardstock, philosophy tags, mini pins, stamps/trick or treat set/spooky stuff set, regal findings set, paper distresser, scissors, tag, ribbon, canned air
*trick: don't forget you can use mixatives with the air splatter, just be sure to use blending solution first to get that translucent sheen!

"the raven" - created using distress embossing powders technique.
supplies: craft sheet, distress inks, distress embossing powder, distress embossing ink, ink blending tool, mini mister,  tiny attacher, keyholes, word keys, stamps/trick or treat set/spooky stuff set, trinket pins, mini pins,  paper distresser, scissors, heat tool, tag, bling, ribbon
*trick: the texture of distress embossing powders create the perfect "flocked" looking raven with all of the texture and grunge you'd expect from the distress line.

"twilight dusk" - created using the masks & perfect pearls mist technique.
supplies: craft sheet, distress inks, distress stickles, ink blending tool, mini mister, perfect pearls, glossy accents, grungeboard seasonal, paint dabber, masks, numerals, sprocket gears, game spinners, stamps/trick or treat set/spooky stuff set, paper distresser, scissors, tag, ribbon
*trick: i covered the numerals with dictionary paper by gluing it with glossy accents, letting it dry, and then sanding the excess off - what a great embellishment!

"the syrum" - created with rock candy distress stickles.
supplies: craft sheet, distress inks, distress stickles, ink blending tool, glossy accents, trinket pins, type charms, stamps/spooky stuff set
*trick: stamp the poison label and wrap it around a bottle for a cool halloween decor idea or fill it with candy for a party favor!

a fun kind of busy...

well FINALLY bloggers!  i am back in my studio creating, playing, and getting very inky - i love it!~  so here's a sneak at what i'll be sharing on the blog tomorrow - halloween ideas!  i'm busy working away to share some spooky project ideas with all of you.  okay, just wanted you to know i haven't forgotten about you so check back tomorrow for some tricks and maybe even a few treats...t!m

today's the day...

well bloggers - today was the day!  the day the big truck came to the studio to pick up everything for the cruise!  all 7 pallets, 960 class kits, supplies, and much more were wrapped up and ready to make their way to the dock in los angeles to be loaded on the ship on sunday.  i'm so looking forward to this artful voyage and even happier now that everything is on it's way!  a huge shout out to our truck driver jim brown for going above and beyond to help us load, wrap, and shuffle pallets around to get everything loaded on the truck - and yes, he did it all with a smile on his face.  now that's what i call great service!  his boss mike ross from air support was also incredibly patient with all of our questions, requests, and specific time-lines doing everything he could to make sure all of these goods will be delivered to the forwarder in time to make it on the ship - whew!  what a task.  so thanks once again to these guys, and of course mario & michele just rocked it getting all of the kits finished in time and loaded on the final pallets to make the deadline - couldn't have done this without you guys.  thank you, thank you, thank you...  so now it's a few more things to finish up this week, stuff to share on the blog, some samples to complete, and then we're off.  so it's back to work for me tonight - i'll check in again tomorrow...t!m

 

crazy busy...

hey bloggers!  it's been a while but i must say that things have been crazy busy around here since returning from japan.  i just landed in phoenix about an hour ago and in the car heading home from a rep show in texas.  i taught 4 workshops, make & take, and helped write orders for the trade day this weekend - it was a busy time...and now, it's cruise time!  that's right, my  "artful voyage" to mexico kicks off on sunday with guest instructor wendy vecchi, team scrapmap, my wonderful assistants, and 160 of  our closest creative friends.  as you can imagine, planning and prepping 6 workshops, giveaways, and making sure every last supply is taken care of (since the students don't have to bring a single supply with them) for 160 students is a major undertaking that we've all been working on for months getting ready for this adventure.  we have been kitting, packing, and ready to send out the shipment to the cruise ship in just a couple of days.  wendy & rick have finished her kits and sent them out to us, the companies sponsoring some of the workshops have sent their products to be kitted, keychain & kim have pitched in to help prep some of the projects, and mario and michele have been working away this weekend to get all the kits finished up and packed, wrapped, and labeled...all 7 pallets ready to go out - talk about team work!  thanks everyone...

so i'll be busy this week finishing up my japan video for the blog as well as share some cool halloween project ideas so stay tuned....t!m