New Delicious Darkness Challenge #1!

I'm very excited to announce that the very first Challenge at The Delicious Darkness Challenge Blog is now LIVE and I am on the team!!!  Our first theme is ATG, (as long as it's DARK or alternative) and you needn't even use a Delicious Darkness stamp. It runs from the 13th of every month to the 10th of the next so there's plenty of time to play.  I've created a wall hanging which started out as a fairly simple project but just grew and grew.  And so did this post, so grab a cuppa, you're gonna be here awhile.

This inspiration came first from one of Teri's newer stamps, Disturbia, with it's giant pile of creepy characters.  A good portion of the DD team also resides in the dungeon with me at HDH (imagine that!) so this reminded me of them.  xx I printed this stamp 5 times so I could fussy cut the crew and add the dimension I so love. (Better pic of that later.) Fortunately, there was minimal coloring to do, just my usual fave combo of WG! and G21 for Zombie flesh, some more warm grays for shadowing, and a couple of other greens for the lovely snakes slithering about.  After distressing the edges, I chose one of the digi papers from the Beastly Paper Pack (a total "must have").

When I saw this sentiment from Ginger's House I couldn't believe the luck! We're a tight knit bunch and this really fit the bill.  Cut and matted with Spellbinders Labels One and inked with Distress.  OOOH, notice the google eye?  They're splattered throughout.

However, the hanging was a bit lob sided now with that large sentiment, so I looked to the papers of balance it out a bit.  Ah yes, Teri's Pentagram did quite nicely.

This weekend, I went to the Scrapbook Expo in Santa Clara hoping to score, among other things, some more of the Melissa Frances hangers I so love.  However, much to my dismay, they no longer make them in black.  Bummer!  Not that I can't paint the, but...  Anyway, I bought a number of them and tried a few and this, a new style for me, looked the coolest.  However, it needed something to darken it up a bit (besides a bit of Distress Ink).  So on with the Ram's Skully (also from the DP).  WooHoo!

But, of course, I just could leave it flat.  Printed 5 times and fussy cut, here's the dimensional shot.  By the end of this project my hand was in spasms!

And finally, the dimensional shot of my bunch of crazies.  I considered naming them but didn't want to cause any more chaos. (But I'm the one middle left with her mouth open, big surprise.)  Thanks for hanging in there with my longer than long post, but, as you can tell, I really, really, REALLY love this project.

So, if you haven't visited the new Delicious Darkness Challenge Blog, you're in for a treat.  Go meet the team and check out the fabby makes and by all means, come play along.

I'll be adding it to the following dark themed blogs:  Left of Center ATG, PYG August ATG Challenge, A Step in the Dark ATG.  And the mainstream Oldie but Goodie Black and White Plus One (Green and my oldies are the google eye's that are so old, some of them have turned a bit cloudy.), All Crafts Anything but a Card Aug/Sept, and Anything But a Card Repeating Motifs. 

Showcasing Christian Count Drac for Simply Steampunk

It's my pleasure today to introduce the irresistible Christian Count Drac from the fabulous Steampunk A Robert's Halloween release by artist Abigail Larson, available only at SBS.  I've done a Halloween wall hanging in the Steampunk Style using a number of dies from Spellbinders and Tim Holtz for Sizzix.  the DP's come from the Graphic 45 Steampunk Spells 8x8 pad. 

This handsome guy was colored with Copics in traditional Halloween colors.  I know some of you find these detailed images intimidating (trust me, I know, I collected them for a year before ever taking the plunge) but once you start, they become addictive and so very much fun!  I've rubbed the clock face (Sizzix) and wings (from a Cuttlebug Emboss Plus folder) with several colors of Gilder's paste to highlight the embossing and give a metallic sheen.

The sentiment was computer generated, cut with Nesties and inked with Distress.  I wanted to crush the clock face a bit with a hammer, but it wouldn't crack so I cut the surface with my craft knife and rubbed on black paste (and buffed the surface) to bring out the cracks.  The tiny black border is done with peel offs and I couldn't help but add more of the Tim Holtz mini gears.

The layers are popped for dimension which not only adds interest, but also strength to the hanging.  And speaking of Layers, that's the current challenge on the Simply Steampunk Blog, running through October 3rd.  SBS stamps are no longer required to win, but do keep your project in the Steampunk style.

I'm also entering this at Left of Center using the LOC theme, Tuesday Throwdown #165 Things with Wings, the All Crafts Aug/Sept Anything but a Card Challenge, Artistic Inspirations Anything Goes or Frame It,  Crafty Cardmakerss Winged Things, Lady Anne's Must Have Wings Challenge, and Desert Island Crafter's using #1,4,5 and 7.