A high tech use for one of my makes!

How cool is this?!!!



I recently had an email from a guy in Utah in the US who had seen my times tables tags on the net. He had made an iPhone application for learning times table for his children, but was in need of a nice graphic for the kids "totals page". So he kindly asked if he could use the picture of my tags. :)

I love the fact that something that i made to help my children, is being used somewhere else in the world, albeit in a very small way, to make a childs learning more attractive.

A big thank you to John for letting me have this example pic of what the application looks like, i'm just glad it came in handy! :)

A mathamatical labour of love.

Hi all :)

As i type this i am literally dropping on my feet from tiredness. All my girls have been saying since i picked them up from school today is, "You look very tired Daddy".

That would be due to my latest project for them below, a times table tag board.....don't forget to click on the image for a larger view......

I have been working on this for a few days, my girls wanted something to help them with their tables, so i thought about putting some tags on book rings which they could flick through.

Then came the idea of doing a whole set.....1's to 12's, all 12 tables in each set.

So i started, and what followed was the most tiring project i have ever done! Not because it was difficult, it was the repetitiveness of everything. More about that later though. I'm really pleased with how it turned out.....



The board is just MDF, covered with a couple of bits of Wassail paper. The lace was layed around the edges and also across the board so it sectioned it into squares. This was handy as the tags fitted into each one nicely.

A bit of fibre on each book ring went nicely, and a Prima bloom behind the brass hooks looks gorgeous. I made a little wooden sign for the top too :)

Finished off nicely with some brass filigree corners, and there you have it......one full set of times tables for the kids to learn with.



Now as i said at the start, this was a labour of love. "Labour" being the operative word!

Just to give you an idea of what i did, in case you were thinking of giving it a go.....

1. Cut 144 tags on the Big Shot.
2. Stamp flourishes on all 144 tags.
3. Blend all 144 tags with Distress Inks.
4. Then edge all 144 tags with another colour. (I was tired at this point!)
5. Write the times tables on every tag.
6. Round the corners of every tag. Two corners on each.....288 corners!
7. Laminate each tag.
8. Hand cut round every laminated tag. (I'm wondering why i started this now!)
9. Crop-A-Dile punch all 144 tags.
10. Eyelet all 144 tags.
11. Book ring and add fibres to them.
12. Spend a day making the board.

The only reason i kept going was because my eldest learnt her tables so quickly with the one set i did the other day, i knew it would be worth it in the end. The look on thier little faces was a picture when they saw it. :)

I do however seem to have aged 10 years!

I would love to make these for the girls primary school, but i think it will be a while before that happens! :)

Distressed luggage tag.

Distressing techniques are great for someone like me. As i tell my kids, with distressing, you just can't make a mistake that makes it look imperfect, because thats the general idea!

Tonight during yet another sleepless night turned crafty session, i made this very basic tag and gave it an old and weathered leathery look.



A very easy look to achieve, heres how i did it....

1. I covered a mountboard tag diecut with a plain white cardstock tag diecut. I do this because the mountboard backing tag gives it the sturdyness (bit more Calv proof) and the cardstock gives me a better colour and texture effect when distressed.

2. Next stamp any stamp image you want on the tag in black ink, i used a journey stamp as it's a luggage tag, and i used black StazOn ink.

3. Next i got a piece of one of my favourite, if not THE fave distressing tools i have, some medium grade sandpaper. Yep, the sort you sand wood with. Give your tag a good old rough sand around the edges, and a few scuffs over the surface of the tag. Don't forget, don't worry if you think you're ruining your tag, you're distressing it......and most likely making it look better!

4. Using a clear Versamark pad, i stamped a destination stamp on the tag, sprinkled red embossing powder on, shook of the excess powder before using a heat gun to set it.

5. Then i took an "Antique Linen Tim Holtz Distress ink pad" and gave the whole tag a good colouring with it. You'll see the areas that you scuffed with sandpaper, give a darker colour and a more weathered and "worn" effect.

6. The hole re-enforcer is just a circle punched out, and hole made with a Crop A Dile. This has been sanded and coloured the same way.

7. I used a tiny bit of walnut stain distress embossing powder on the edges for texture, and a tiny brush of charcoal pigment ink pad here and there. Gives an old, dirty look to the tag. To get a few black "scratch" effects, i just lightly touched the very edge of a black StazOn pad on various irregular points of the tag, it makes a very fine thin black line across it.

8. Another brush of antique linen ink here and there, and a good rub with my finger......and theres your tag. I love using my finger on distress inks, it can really blend in and wear down the initial strong colours of an ink. Just smudge away until you get the desired effect.

So thats it, an easy tag with an old look. :)

Calv's safety tip: Should your tag begin to smoke whilst using your heat gun, theres a pretty good chance you have it too close! I use a tile or a heat mat underneath whatever i'm heating. Always know where your nearest fire extinguisher is!

Now for that sleep!