2015 #9 Layers of Meaning {by Alison Bomber}

2015 Theme 9: Words

Hello everyone, Alison here from Words and Pictures.  Obviously I didn't want to miss out on the Words challenge here at PaperArtsy!  One of the joys of words for me is in the layers of meaning and resonance any given word or phrase can trigger in the mind, so I've created a pair of tags with lots of layers, including stamps from the Ink & the Dog Words series for good measure.

I started by giving the tags a coat of Snowflake Fresco paint and then stencilling over it with a sponge.  I used a range of the newer blue shades - from China, Blue Glass and Southern Skies through to Blueberry as the darkest tone.

The next layer was some Distress Inking in greens and turquoises with a spritz and flick of water...

And then a wash of Beach Hut mixed with Snowflake and plenty of water to soften it a bit...

... before adding some alphabet stamping in Snowflake with a hint of Mermaid using Words Plate #2.  I also did another layer with the same stamp, and this time I embossed it with some Seafoam White.

Words Plate #2.

Next up was the ruled alphabet from Words Plate #5, stamped in Aquamarine Archival and clear embossed for gloss and dimension.

Words Plate #5

I mixed some Blueberry paint into Grunge Paste on my craft mat and applied that through my word stencil (by Red Lead) to each tag.

Once it was dry, I added layers of Treasure Gold, rubbing it on with the pad of my finger - Aquamarine, Florentine and White Fire are all layered in there.  I applied strong heat to get the letters to bubble just a little, adding some cool extra texture.

I added Treasure Gold around the edges of the tags too - I love how it caught the tiny alphabet in places, raised by the clear-embossing and ready to shine even more in the sunlight now.

I dyed my ribbons with some of the same paints and inks as I'd used for the layered backgrounds, and secured them with some notepad wires which happily were already in the perfect shade of gold to complement the gilded lettering.

So there they are - two mixed media tags layered with stamped words and textured words and reflecting the layers of meaning created when language and words are used with love, care and attention.  Used well, words should provide inspiration and illumination - I hope my gleaming gilded lettering and layers can live up to that.

Thanks so much for stopping by.  Given my whole blog is dedicated to both Words and Pictures and how each can inspire the other, I'm looking forward to seeing what visuals the Words theme inspires in all of you!
Alison xx 

Great tags Alison, beautiful combination of colour, texture, words and a bit of bling, giving them fabulous impact.  I agree that words can be hugely inspiring and should always be chosen with care. 

We would love you to join in with challenge #9: Words If you are inspired by any of our guests who blog with us over the fortnight, then please join in and link up your creativity HERE. 

All links go in the draw to win a voucher to spend on products of your choice from the PaperArtsy online store. The Words link will close 17:00 (London Time) Sunday, May 24th, winner will be announced 2 hours later at 19:00.