Wednesday 26 March 2014

A Zany Tag!

Hello from Magpieheaven! Things have been all aflutter in the nest and consequently a little quiet on the blogging front. I've had a close friend from overseas staying, new students to tutor and several projects to catch up with on my washing-machine work-desk! Now it's time for a new challenge at the Dragons' Dream TIO and I think things might just be back to normal. Please click here to see the fabulous 'Dragons' Dream' inspiration from my team-mates this week! The recipe is chosen by the highly imaginative and creative Sylvia this time and it's to use the letter 'Z'; at least one real, stamped image on your tag - and the twist - a face! Here is my take on Sylvia's challenge.
I must admit I scratched my head a bit over this one! I have quite a few faces in my stamp collection, but I wanted to feature a word beginning with 'Z' and connect it with that face. Then it came to me: zany! In Renaissance, Italian comedy the 'Zannies' were clownish 'fools', there to mimic the other characters in the improvised Commedia dell'arte ! Humour changes so with time that I wonder if we would find their antics funny today? Now, of course, we've taken the word into the English language to mean any quirky or eccentric kind of humour. I collaged my own Zany character, using Lynne Perrella's Collection 003 for the hat and 013 for the face: these are both PaperArtsy stamps.
For my background I sponged with Fresco paints in Mermaid, Bora Bora and South Pacific. I then stenciled with a Prima stencil in Beach Hut. I edged my tag with some dry brushed Chocolate Pudding and French Roast. I then coloured some Grunge Paste with Spanish Mulberry and pushed it through a Crafters' Workshop harlequin stencil. I highlighted my diamonds with some Limited Edition Treasure Gold of a similar shade to the Spanish Mulberry and stamped the script from LPC0028 in Versafine Vintage Sepia randomly without a block. Now it was time for some zaniness.
I painted some card with Spanish Mulberry and stenciled using the flourish stencil and some Mermaid Fresco before stamping the LP hat on it. What could be more bizarre than a hat tilted up to reveal tiny shrink plastic leaves with faces floating up from the clown's empty head? I cut the SP using a Tim Holtz Tattered Leaves die, painted them with a thin wash of Guacamole and then stamped with Black Onyx Versafine. The image is from LPC0028. I rather liked the way the leaf at the top comes to a point and makes the image appear as if she too is wearing a clown's hat! I finished off with some text, painted with Mermaid Fresco and punched out into a lacy pattern.
And it is quite outlandish to encounter a butterfly with wings covered in script! This giant butterfly was cut with a Sizzix die, a blend of Vanilla and Yellow Submarine Fresco. The script is from a PaperArtsy Mini stamp. I used the Tim Holtz Worn Alphabet to stamp my word onto a curled paper banner. The ribbon is dyed seam-binding stamped with a Lynne Perrella sun. The clown looks as if he or she might just break into a smile, or is he or she about to sing 'Give me sunshine in your smile'?  I can't wait to see your takes on the recipe this time. The tags that you link are always such an inspiration and the last challenge included a great variety of styles.  Wherever you are and whatever you're doing though, whether it be quirky, unconventional or fairly normal, I wish you sunshine - singing in the rain if you prefer that - and lots of smiles! 

17 comments:

  1. Great tag and my fave stencil. My friends think I'm quirky and eccentric, can't think why lol. Elizabethx

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  2. Fabulous tag...the background is amazing...Love the face & Z word.. Brilliant take on the recipe... Love it... Hugs May x x x

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  3. Great tag, love your leaf and fab choice of word - zany is so suitable - hehehehe!!

    Sam xxx

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  4. Do like the concept of leaves floating up Julie Ann. It's good to puzzle a challenge and be able to tell an informative story too. Really love your seam binding not just coloured but stamped. Whole finish is just perfectly zany. Sunny smiles to you too! Xx

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  5. This is brilliant, julie Ann. I love your idea taken from the definition of the word zany, now, a clown with an empty head, were you thinking of anyone you have met this week, I wonder!

    Lucy x

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  6. That is a gorgeous zany tag - you know so much, Julie Ann, I always learn a lot here.

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  7. Educational as well as inspirational. Love this tag. Very Zany

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  8. Hello Miss Julia Ann I have been waiting patiently for today, my claws have been clicking :O). I agree with Miss May, this is a BRILLIANT take on the recipe,what you have created is so imaginative, you should write stories or something :), the background is so luscious, that clown with your signature piece is SUPERB, it's your attention to detail the conveys your story, it describes zany perfectly with the vision, amazing, thanks for all this inspiration, I will have to put my thinking cap on for Z, this will be quit a challenge, can't wait. I have to get to my desk while the sun is shining on it, I'll be flying around the world later visiting desks, have a wonderful day, it's been wonderful visiting your nest, I've miss ya Cuz, ((( BIG HUGS ))).

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  9. Wonderful!!!! I think I will start creating on my washing machine. Julia Ann - you do have a wonderful vision!
    sandy xx

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  10. So cool, that's a amazing tag and a great take on the "Z", never heard of Zannies before.

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  11. This is brilliant Julie Ann! I always learn something new when I read your posts and today it's about the 'zannies'! Add the extra curricular education to the fantastic inspiration and it's a winner all round for me. Wonderful tag and I love the tiny SP leaves floating from under the tipped hat.

    Hugs
    Lesley Xx

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  12. Really great blog post always so interesting. Loving your tag especially combining two stamps to create something totally new. Also great colour combo xxx

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  13. Beautiful colour combo, great word origin information and i like how your Tag has elements that hang off the sides.

    Fabulous work as always Julie Ann:-) xxx

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  14. A wonderful tag! I love all of it, stamping the images on to the leaves was a great idea.

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  15. Great post again Julie Ann and thank you for the history lesson!! lol. You tag is indeed very quirky and brilliant at the same time!!x

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  16. Wow wow wow truly gorgeous unique zany tag. I really love the purples and blues and the stamps you used are awesome, especially the clown hat which is one of my favourites. The leaf with the face coming out of the head is really quirky and I love the butterfly. Hugs Kezzy:-) xxxxx

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  17. Zany and absolutely delightful - I love the leaf popping out from under the hat, and the texty butterfly, and the pink harlequin texture is fab! I first encountered a Zany in Eleanor Farjeon's genius reworking of the Cinderella story, The Glass Slipper. I bet you've read it, but if not, seek it out immediately!!
    Alison xx

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