Hi everyone! Today I am sharing a project I created for the Tim Holtz Sizzix Chapter 3 Halloween Facebook release.
I've created this Spooky Web Vignette tray using the new Spider Web, Alphanumeric Shadow Uppercase Thinlit sets, plus older Funky Foliage Thinlits set and Star Trim Impresslit die. The webs aren't very visible, until...
.....you turn on the string of mini lights. I'm going to show you how I created this muted shadowy effect with the webs.
I first die-cut my webs with black adhesive backed cardstock. This web die is designed so you can use 1/4, 1/2, even 3 quarters of the die and have a solid edge to it. I then adhered the webs to a piece of frosty acrylic cut to the same width as your vignette box(this is piece from retired Tim Holtz Frosted Acrylic TH93048). This piece was shorter in length, but I used another piece for the word Spooky. Could you use a piece of clear acrylic? Yes you could, but it won't be as muted, so you could use a double layer of Collage tissue paper? If anyone has any ideas, please share! 
Next I drilled a small hole in a large Vignette Tray (6 x 12) and pulled through a set of Tiny Lights(TH994019). I used a hot glue gun to adhere the lights evenly.
I covered the back of the vignette tray with the Abandoned Mini Paper Stash.
Adhere the acrylic piece to the tray. I just want to mention, you might want to try different glues to see what the acrylic adheres to. I find that this frosted acrylic doesn't stick well with some glues, I believe I used a hot glue gun (used very sparely!) The bottom will be open for now, as my acrylic piece wasn't long enough. I added an extra piece when I did the word section.
This is what it looks like with the lights on.
I took a piece of plain Collage Paper (TH93708) slightly larger than my whole tray and stamped with Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous stamp, Rosette & Floret CMS279 and Distress Ink in Hickory Smoke (I think). I wanted it to be very random, so I pressed harder in some areas and very lightly in others. Also, where my larger web is, I didn't want the stamped area too dark. 
Here's my stamped piece glued to the top of my Vignette tray (even the open area where there is no acrylic). I trimmed the excess paper around the edges after my glue (Collage Medium) had dried.
Now for the 'Spooky' word! Just warning you, the letters in this word barely fit across my tray, I trimmed the ends off after I had my word paper piece finished. Using the new Alphanumeric Shadow Uppercase and paper from Tim Holtz Halloween Worn Wallpaper, (last years, but I believe it's in this year's package too) I placed my chosen letters on a strip of Sticky Grid. This sticky grid paper holds your dies in place and the grid lines gives you perfect alignment. Place your paper on top and die-cut your word. For this floral paper, I used the negative piece. Die-cut the letters in adhesive-backed black cardstock again. Adhere your negative floral piece to a piece of acrylic and then adhere your black letters. My word piece is approx. a little bigger in height than the size that was left open on the bottom. This is adhered on top of the stamped collage paper, giving a very light pattern to the clear part of the letters. Die-cut two pieces of the Star Trim Impresslit (it embosses and die-cuts at the same time) with black cardstock, lightly sand the top and adhere to the top and bottom of your word piece.
Using Mixed Media cardstock that was coloured with Distress Oxide Sprays and Inks, I die-cut foliage from the Funky Foliage Thinlits set. This is one of my favourite sets to use for Halloween foliage! I adhered these pieces to the edges, trying not to cover too much of the areas where the webs are revealed. I also added a couple of spiders(black cardstock) from the Spider Web Thinlits set It looks like a rather plain piece without the lights on, but with them on, all is revealed!
Here is another look at my finished piece when it is lite up!
I have a few more pieces that I will be sharing in the coming weeks, sorry I'm very behind with posts and haven't even been creating.
This year has been very trying for me, my mom became quite ill in May. She had been in lockdown in her apartment for two months, so nobody had seen her, just talked to her daily. What we thought was just a case of depression, her not eating properly, which caused very low sodium, creating hallucinations and dementia like behaviour, was much more than that. I won't go into it, but it was extremely difficult, because of Covid, with her hospitalization, her seniors residence, etc., it is so sad how the elderly are being treated. We decided to bring her here to stay so we could look after her and just when she started to improve, she took a turn for the worse. It was discovered she had cancer, which was quite aggressive and had spread everywhere, so we brought her home from the hospital instead of going into hospice. They were only allowing two designated visitors in the hospital and one in the hospice. It's so sad to see patients with nobody there to be with them in the hospital, I can't imagine how hard that must be for families. Mom passed away last month with all her family beside her. She even got to meet her great-grandson who was born on my dad's birthday, the week before. Unfortunately my sons and daughter don't live here and unable to travel because of restrictions, so at least we got to FaceTime with them. I like to think that mom's last days were filled with laughter, love, and her family spending time with her. When I hear people complaining about wearing masks, it just infuriates me. It is so little to ask of all us, when so many are suffering, not just from the virus itself, but with the restrictions, isolation, job loss, etc.
I think I have caught up on sleep and my mind has calmed down a bit, so I hope to start creating again. I was trying to create these pieces for the Sizzix Chapter 3 release when Mom was here, and she enjoyed watching me create. Especially the poinsettia pillow, which, if it had been in her favourite colours (turquoise and pink) it probably wouldn't have made it in my parcel to Tim! I think I even bribed her to eat more, with a promise to make her one in her colours. I think I might just have to make one anyways.
Hope all of you are coping with this Coronavirus, it is hard on all of us. Hug your family if you can, and if you can't be with them, phone, phone, phone! I taped my mom quite a few times, talking to her grandchildren, sending them messages of love, and now they have that forever.
Take care, and thanks for visiting,
Jan
