Saturday 13 July 2013

Italy At Tag Tuesday . . . . . . Or Even Saturday!

I'm a late with my tag this week for Tag Tuesday. House hunting is taking up lots of my time and just when we think we've found our dream home, something crops up and we start the process all over again!

The theme this week at Tag Tuesday is Italy. We have a really free hand to interpret the challenge in any way we please so I decided to make my tag background inspired by the colours of the many historic marble, stone and painted treasures I saw last year in Rome. I wanted to make a little pocket on the tag for some of the many, many photos I took.

Here's my tag and I should warn you that there a number of photos to illustrate the steps taken to make the tag:

The tag has a mixture of mediums used to help illustrate some of the things that inspired me during my visit.
A calico tag shape and another in thick card were cut and glued together. The calico layer was coated with DecoArt gesso and dried.
Two shades of DecoArt Traditions paint were applied to the calico fairly randomly and dried.
The same shades of paint were used through a script stencil again, in a random manner. Some gold coloured acrylic was applied through a leaf stencil. The gold represents the many sumptuous gold gilded treasures seen in the Vatican during our visit.
A pocket was cut using an On The Edge die and some of the waste was saved. Both layers were masked and painted with DecoArt Americana acrylics in the colours of the Italian flag.
Some DecoArt Modelling paste was mixed with DecoArt Traditions and Golden iridescent bronze. The mix was used through the script stencil used earlier. In real life, the modelling paste has a lovely golden brown hue.
Close up to show the stencilled modelling paste.
Scrap card was painted with the iridescent bronze, dried, then stamped with stazon using a Tim Holtz architectural stamp.
Letters were die cut from the painted, stamped card and applied to a label made from more scrap card. 
The random stamping on the card allows the stencilled background to show through the design.
An eyelet was attached to the label along with some beads on a jump ring (charity shop find) and some coiled rusty wire.
The word label was painted with the DecoArt Traditions shades used earlier. The edges were inked with distress to give a framed effect.
The waste card from the die cutting was used as bunting across the top of the flag, again in the colours of the Italian flag.
The top of the tag was finished using jute string and some rusty wire.
Just a handful of the photos taken on our visit to Rome last year.

Thanks for reading this far! Why not pop over to Tag Tuesday and see what the other artists have produced for their Italian tag? 









23 comments:

  1. Beautiful tag, and you are not too late! Valerie

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  2. Gorgeous, Julia - I love your calico base, and fab Roman letters on the Italianate crown - brilliant to create the photo pocket too. Love the bunting!
    Alison x

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  3. Fantastic tag and I love how you explained each step and the Italian inspirations!

    Wishing you the best of luck with your house hunting!

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  4. I'm squealing loudly just looking at your photos so you can imagine the reaction your beautiful tag got!!! Love that you have used stamped card for the letters and that tag base is gorgeous. Hugs, Jenny x

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  5. Fabulous Julia I love the contrast of the base colours with the flag colours. Gorgeous. Great minds think alike, I have been working on a tag using muslin adhered to it. What fun we have don't we? Good luck with the house hunting I hope you fund the one you really love soon.
    Happy Sunday.
    hugs {brenda} x0x

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  6. Wow Julia, this is a stunner! Love the calico base and your step by steps are always so interesting to read. Love the photos too. Hope the house-hunting goes well. Hugs, Anne x

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  7. Oh..Wow ! SO many techniques on this wonderful Tag !! Thanks a lot for sharing the steps..!

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  8. Stunning tag and wonderful that you explained how it was made and all the products used.

    Hope you have some luck with the house hunting

    Chrissie x

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  9. Gorgeous tag sweetie, I LOVE the detailed walk-through of the fab techniques you have used, thank-you. What a brilliant way to store your lovely pics, it's an amazing place, one I would like to go back and see as an adult (I went on a school trip at 16!!), the vatican and sistine chapel blew me away!! Good luck with the house hunting my lovely, tis never easy!!
    Huge huggles x x x x

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  10. Fabulous tag Julia.
    Great details.
    Greetings Janny

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  11. you need to study this to appreciate all the gorgeous detail you've put into your tag Julia. lots of techniques - just lovely.

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  12. What a fabulous tag...love seeing your process too!

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  13. fab tag Julia - love all the steps for making it too - brilliant work xx

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  14. A gorgeous tag, fabulous Italy feeling.

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  15. So many processes & layers to create this beautiful tag Julia. thank you for sharing how you did it :0)

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  16. A wonderful tag on Italy !!! And thank you for all the close ups and design notes. Ciao Julia ! :) Coco x

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  17. Great tutorial Mo! Love what you have done with the modelling paste!

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  18. Fabulous tag Julia! Great photos too!
    Alison xx

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  19. Oh I need to make some Italian stuff...thanks for the inspiration! Love the colors, and the background is fabulous!

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  20. Julia the tag is fantastic, love how you made the flag and bunting, love the stencilling, the bobbles with the rust fabulous, looooove seeing the process being made, your photos are wonderful thanks for sharing and have a wonderful day..

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  21. A background extraordinnaire and so many beautiful details again ... thanks for sharing the how-to. I so love this TAG, you put so much thought into it. Gorgeous make. Hugs, Suzanne xx

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  22. Fantastic tag, Julia. Love all of the layers and textures you used. Thank you for your step-by-step information. Inspirational. Beautiful photos. Haver a great weekend. Cheers, Di

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  23. What a super tag to keep your photos in, great memento. BJ

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Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. Juliax