* I ended up making the cards in a sort of 'poop or get off the pot' mood - I just did 'em after ages of agonising and thinking about 'em. You heard about that. Sorry. I cannot say they benefitted from this approach, but they were done. Just in time.
*This morning we launched ourselves at them and concluded that one of the reasons I'm not great on the overall style is that it's so messy! I know - I get the irony, it's coming at me in shovel loads.
*I'm also, it turns out, a bit impatient with sponging and layering of colours. I think in terms of card making, I'm a simple soul and I don't really get it.
*And that impatience only seems to occur with this style; for that's the other thing - it all takes too long!
So, if you're chuckling over my Holtzian inadequacies, don't worry, I'm alright with it - after all, you can't say I don't love it - I just don't seem to be able to do it. And if you should happen to be Tim Holtz and you're reading this (!) - don't worry chum, you're job and reputation are as safe as the safest thing in my box! It's a big old box, and before I put the lid on it, I'll rummage around and see if there's anything else for me to try.
Hi Julia
ReplyDeletepmsl@u hun, fabulous post, sorry i did chuckle, i can't wait to see your creation. Wish Sir Time would read this post, lol, have good eve hun, sue,xx
I don't make cards like that Julia mainly 'cos the people I make cards for wouldn't appreciate them, but I love to use those techniques when I'm playing and doing something where I can experiment, then it doesn't matter how long it takes. There's nowt wrong with simple cards ;-)
ReplyDeleteAnne xx
Blasphemy coming up - I can honestly say I have yet to look at a grunged card and think - 'oh I'd love to receive that'. I do admire the odd piece of altered art along the notebook, frame of box lines. But I like neater, cleaner styles for cards. That's me.
ReplyDeleteI have felt 'inadequate' over it; 'unadventurous', even a 'failure' but, act-oo-allee, what I think WE really are is 'comfortable in our own skins' Julia.
Each to their own is what I say... I love the style and would love to receive it too... But oriental is my absolute fav if everybody had fheir own!!!
ReplyDeleteFrankie
xx
Your post made me chuckle as I must admit I struggle with the grunge style too, though I LOVE all the stuff that Tim brings out and have collected a fair few inkpads and alcohol inks and stamps and...you get the gist! I've settled on just bringing in a little bit of the techniques now and again to whatever I'm doing - the best of both worlds I say! x
ReplyDeleteI had to smile reading your post and comments - especially SDCrafts for exactly how she describes grunge is exactly how I am over pretty and perfect. For ages I felt inadequate and rubbish because I couldn't do it, no matter how hard I tried. Then I just started getting messy. And it all clicked. I suppose no matter what we do we always feel like we should be able to do it ALL. When really it's OK to do what we do and just be able to admire what other people do.
ReplyDeletep.s - I am discovering the trick with the patience thing is to have various things on the go all at various stages of drying ;)
Oh but I feel for you Julia, I too love all that is Sir Tim but cannot replicate it... what someone else does appears funky and when I do it... mud pies!! :( I have had fabby peeps explain the techniques... to no avail!!
ReplyDeleteLol! I can totally see where you're coming from. Altho actually I do, now, 'get' the grunge thing. It's something I do without any plan - because as you pointed out it takes ages. But I do like to meander around trying out different techniques, on various bits of card, so now I use tags/ATCs/pre-cut gothic arches for my splodginess, and when I've got a downloaded image/bit of scrap paper/new stamp lying around I add them to one of the splodged bits and off I go!
ReplyDeleteAs for the 'receiving a grungy card' thing, I think that's right up to a point. You can do a sort of refined grunge which is acceptable, but the rough stuff is, I feel, best kept for one's own arty archives! :D
At the risk of being stoned by the Sir Tim fans, I have to say I don't get it either. I like clean, simple & bright things on my cards. There
ReplyDelete, I've said it. I've just confessed my guilty secret. Actually, I do feel better for saying it. Ahhh.
Do show us soon Julia, could do with a giggle ;-)
Ciara
Xx
I'm dying to see your "poop or get off the pot" mood cards... that should be something else!!
ReplyDeleteI say... each to their own choice .... I don't do cute but I can appreciate the skills put into cards in this style and see that they are "cute" and pretty and appealing to many.
The messier I get my mitts the happier I am and I always get the badge for the inkiest hands at all the shows. These hands have been photographed for posterity by many and one I saw them featured on a Dutch blog.!
joZarty x BTW make sure to sign up for my celebratory blog candy!
hee-hee!! Great post :)
ReplyDeleteYep, I'm with you and the other comenters here - it's just to much mess and hassle, although I do admire the results
ReplyDeleteI really wonder what those cards of yours will be like! Can't wait to see them! I like the TH style but I must admit I am far from being able to do it! I think the main thing is that you enjoy what you do! I look at all these blogs everyday and I am just amazed at the artistic potential of these people! No it doesn't matter wether you are TH or someone else it is all lovely and I think we shouldn't think less of ourselves if we can't do TH!
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Cardarian
OK, I love grunge. I love rust. I love making messy backgrounds. I DON'T love TH, though.
ReplyDeleteFirst, if you want to make things in the TH vein, you have to spend a fortune on the products. It costs a fortune to get started with enough products to make one of his techniques. Second, I am not a fan of tags, something everyone seems to want to make when following that style. Third, I don't think the TH style of grunge and my style of grunge are the same. Fourth, when you work in the TH style, everyone's art looks the same. Individuality goes out the door. It's not creative, it's copying. Fifth, even if you make one project, it is time consuming with many, many steps. Since time is usually of the essence, unless you are doing assembly like art, it's way too time consuming.
Sixth, I am sure I am on a lot of "poop" lists right now for saying how I feel. However (and I purposely didn't read the next post prior to reading and writing about this one), I simply KNOW Jul!a Holtz's style will be none of the above reasons I'm not in like with T!M.