Sunday, March 25, 2012

Creative Chemistry (And A Few Observations)

I completed all three tags for Lesson 5 in Tim Holtz's wonderful online class, Creative Chemistry, on Friday, but honestly, I wasn't too thrilled with any of them.  I had time this morning for a do over, and I have a few observations that might help anyone else who has been less than happy with their results.

OBSERVATION #1
ALL MANILA TAGS ARE NOT CREATED EQUAL

I have LOTS of tags.  Some are from Ranger, some from the office supply store, and many are from unknown sources.  There IS a difference.  The two tags I did Friday I now see were done on lighter weight manila, and I really don't like the way they reacted with the inks and stains.  The paper seemed to "pill," and I wasn't happy with the blending either.  Here's an example.  My original tag is on the left, and the new and (I think) improved one, done on Ranger's tag, is on the right:

I don't know how much it shows up, but the first attempt seems blotchy to me, and you can see how much more the first one curls up.  The one done on the higher quality manila has remained pretty flat even with all the liquid layered upon it.  Oh, and by the way, this was the marbled stains technique.  Note:  I do not work for Ranger and I'm not looking to make anyone spend more money than they want to.  I just think that for techniques that involve a lot of liquid, the higher the quality of the tag, the better. 


OBSERVATIONS #2 and #3
I REALLY DIDN'T KNOW THE CORRECT WAY TO RE-INK A PAD
and
IT REALLY IS IMPORTANT TO COMPLETELY DRY YOUR WORK BETWEEN APPLICATIONS OF WET MEDIA

I thought I did, but not until I watched Tim's video earlier in the week, did I find out otherwise.  I had actually re-inked my black archival pad a week ago (but not the right way), and I wasn't getting good impressions when I stamped.  This morning I followed Tim's instructions and you can see the difference in the two tags below:



The other thing I didn't like about my first tag for the stamping with stains technique is that the background stamp, stamped with white, barely shows up.  I believe I didn't dry the tag enough when I stamped.  I made sure the second tag was totally dry, and you can certainly see the white background now.


OBSERVATIONS #4 and #5
NOT EVERY PAPER IS RIGHT FOR A TECHNIQUE
and
NOT EVERY STAMP IS THE BEST CHOICE FOR A TECHNIQUE

For the stained kraft resist technique I chose a piece of Tim's kraft resist paper that didn't have a whole lot of open space, and I corrected that with my second tag.  I also think the stamp I chose had too much open space.  Add to that, it was done before I correctly reinked the archival ink pad.  I chose another piece of kraft paper, a better stamp for the technique, and worked with a properly re-inked pad, and am waaaay happier with the end result.


I actually don't dislike the first tag; I think it's kind of interesting, but not the greatest example of the technique.

I'm all wound up for tomorrow and the start of week 2 of Creative Chemistry.  Have you joined in the fun yet?  










21 comments:

Pam said...

I do believe you are right about the tags. Haven't tried the Ranger tags, have been using bulk tags, and have not been real happy with the results, especially with stains. Thanks for posting your keen observations!

Sherry Goodloe said...

Hi Eileen, I've joined, but haven't started yet. Thank you for sharing your "observations"! xo

Anita Houston The Artful Maven said...

Very well said, and I totally dig you doing a whole tag to show us and please yourself! Kudos to you and thank you so much for the tips! Happy creative Sunday!

Jennifer Rogers said...

Hi, there And a thanks for sharing from a fellow CC101 participant in Johannesburg, South Africa. Great tags, great explanations! "see" ya in class next week!

KathyK said...

Thanks for the insights. I for one find them very helpful! Looking to more fun next week!

Helen said...

Thanks for some great tips - I don't have Ranger tags either and some of the ones I use have poorer results too. I do have a pack of Ranger ones though so will experiment! BTW I love your tags!

SusanK said...

Thank you for sharing your observations! They're very helpful when trying to figure out what went wrong. Why doesn't mine look like the example? Ill be less likely to throw in the towel now that I've had some insight. Not taking the classes :( but maybe one day...

Siv said...

So cool that you share your observations! I'm in the class too, but haven't really gotten started creating yet (just day 1 so far).
It's good to learn from your mistakes, but even better to learn from someone else's.. lol! So thanks for sharing, I'll make sure to keep your advice in mind!!
Have fun with the rest of CC101!
XO from Norway

KAT said...

I enjoyed reaping the benefits of learning experience. I have signed up and have not year watched a single video - BUT I am going to remedy that right now! I just love Tim and his teaching style - can't wait to see how he is with an online class....

Vic said...

TFS Your tags are great!

Lezlei Ann Young said...

Thanks Eileen! I think I will try a couple of my tags again on Ranger tags! I will be in your city in a couple of weeks...too excited to see the big apple for the first time! Lezlei

Barb said...

Cheers to you too :>) Not being a tag person I appreciate your explanation of the difference, thank you. Very nice effects you've achieved. More learning & fun tomorrow. Smiles, Barb

Kathy Eddy said...

Love your tags and Ialso had the pilling effect going on. I ended up flipping my tag over as the stain went through to the other side and used that side but my tag was literally falling apart; little balls of paper fuzz on it all over.

Mary from Maine said...

Totally love your tags and the fact that you are sharing both successes and the not so successful ones. I agree that Ranger tags are very nice to work with and do seem to hold up under lots of layering. And the thing I am learning from this class - well I love school especially when Tim is the teacher. Thanks for sharing

Bearcrazyman said...

Great info. Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh GREAT Tags Eileen...I especially LOVE the last set!!! GORGEOUS!!!

Winnie said...

Love your tags! Having fun with them..I found the tag thing true also as my first try with water had it worn a hole in the tag! It was just paper, not manila it turned out. ugh. I got a supply of Ranger and continued on. Love all your backgrounds. I thank you for sharing as it is part of the fun to share and learn from each other.

Sue McRae said...

Your observations are spot on especially about the quality of shipping tags. I've been using Avery tags and some of the techniques were just not working, the paper pilled and the colours were washed out. I switched to using watercolor paper for some of the techniques and have found much better results with them.

Elena said...

Thanks for the tips Eileen. I hope to start on mine this weekend.

Lori said...

Very informative post, and I totally concur with everything you've mentioned. lol. Sometimes you think you're saving a penny here and there, but in the end, it's not really worth it. I've finally realized that after how many years. Yep, Tim's class is very informative, just when a person thought they knew everything! lol!

Tracy said...

Arghhhh so it wasn't just me with not having any joy with the Avery tags? (thanks for that Sue!) . Thanks for the tests Eileen. You can really see the difference between the tags can't you? I have also tried some SU! White and cream card stock with the same results as the tags i am using. I love all the tags you have done. Isn't the class great! Keep up the good work. TFS ;)