A "Chunky Tag"

Here is my take on "Chunky Tag" art. So what do you think? I have to confess that I didn't come up with this idea. I saw it here on Sherry Cheever's blog and knew I had to try my hand at one. The base of this beauty is a 2x4 scrap of wood. I cut panels from pages of an old book. This one happened to be an old medical dictionary. A bit of color with distressed inks, a blending tool and then some stamping. The base was now ready to alter, which for me is the fun part.

Most of the metal embellishments are from Tim Holtz. If you find it hard to alter- start by collecting some of his products and I guarantee it will just happen. His line of products are made to alter anything and I mean anything. The sky and your imagination are the limits.

The picture on the front is a picture of my mother, my grandmother and me when we arrived from Spain in 1961. My father was in the Air Force and I was born in Madrid. This was my first trip to the U.S. and the first time my grandmother got to hold me. The little picture above was one of my first passport pictures. I guess I was getting a bit bored with the whole process. This grandmother is my father's mother and she died when I was only two, so this project holds a very special place in my heart. It also represents an accumulation of several firsts.

This is the top which I thought was going to look fabulous with a crystal knob on top, but when I tried the one I had it just didn't look right. Once I put the black one on, it was a perfect fit and tied in with all the stamping.

Last year I took several old family photos and had them copied onto good quality paper. I had several copies made and put them in a drawer where I store my clip art images. Now when I do my altering I can use family photos instead of people I don't have a clue who they are. It gives my project a more personal and meaningful touch. I rubbed a bit of distress ink on the image and then I cut an oval to fit the Ornate Plate opening. Remember how I don't throw anything out? Well the oval was cut out of the plastic packaging from an embossing folder and then I used Ranger's Glossy Accents to adhere the picture to the plastic. How is that for being resourceful! I purposely didn't add any brads to the holes on the plate. I liked the look and thought it would lay flatter without them.

I plan on making a few more of these this weekend. My DH cut several pieces (10 to be exact) of wood for me from scraps he had. Some are 4 inches tall and a few are 6. He also cut several pieces of fancy trim that he had down in his work shop and I painted them all black. They will look like little shelves on the tag when it is finished. I can't wait to get started.

Have fun and enjoy!