In Pace Requiescat - Tim Holtz Idea-ology

 The Tim Holtz Idea-ology Release 2021 is perhaps one of my favorite Idea-ology releases ever. I wanted to just keep making with it. 

Halloween makes are a bit different for me., and what some may see as a bit morbid, I see as a world view. I look at October and Halloween time as my Month of Mortality. This came about after touring many Puritan cemeteries in Boston years ago. I really appreciated their ability to be realistic and open about our mortality...they believed that since all of our lives are going to come to an end at some point, not only should we be reminded of that, but it should shape the way we live. So my thanks to the Puritans for that view point because it is the basis for many of my makes, whether I mention it or not.

This particular make was inspired by the a tour I took of the Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia with my sister, the Edgar Allan Poe short story The Cask of Amontillado, and a bit of the Haunted Mansion thrown in.

There is just so very much to this project that I have to share with you all that I am not doing a formal tutorial on it. It was a make that I just poured myself into and thoroughly enjoyed the creative process. But that means that I didn't take step out photos and didn't plan a tutorial. So I hope the walk through video above will help to tell the story of this piece and that it will answer a bunch of your questions.

The base is a large Vignette Tray, and I used a  #8 Etcetera Tombstone, the mini Etcetera Tombstone, a large and two medium-large Vignette boxes, and two of the Baseboard Windows.

I added texture to them with the Grave and Crypt Texture Pastes through the mini Layering stencils Brick from THMST003, Slate and Cobblestone from THMST028. Both are linked below.

I do need to say that some of the textures I was painting over, so I used plain texture and grit paste in those instances because I didn't want to waste "the good stuff!"

Here are the parts all textured and sitting in place. You can see the vignette tray is sitting on a set of Vignette Foundations (corner feet.)

This is the #8 tombstone, with the medium-large Vignette Box, the Baseboard window and a set of older Halloween Remnant Rubs. Remember, use what you have, even the old stuff! I have them linked below if you want to grab them.

I put the slate texture on the middle Small Etcetera tombstone and then on some black cardstock for inside of the medium-large vignette box, and on a small piece that I put behind the top of the Baseboard Window arch. It's a little wonky but that's ok. Everything doesn't have to be perfect...it adds to the old, aged falling apart stuff.  I was so happy that the Gothic Gates fit perfectly within this arch.

The last tomb is a Large Vignette box. I put Grave Texture Paste through the mini Brick layering stencil just on the sides of the box. Then I put some on a piece of chipboard that I covered the front of the box with. Then I added the base of the #8 tombstone on the bottom and the punched out leftover bit of the small tombstone top and the #8 tombstone top to make the top of this tomb.

I added some cobblestones on the front and sides of the Vignette Tray by putting Crypt Grit Paste through the mini cobblestone layering stencil. Then I added the Vignette Foundations (metal feet).

 

The title for this one is an older Sizzix Thin Strip called Spooktacular. It is long retired, but if you have it, remember, use your stuff! Just because it's older, doesn't mean it isn't still cool!

Here is a quick view of the back side so you can see how I attached the tombstones on the back of the tray.

I started adding some of the Crypt Paste to each of the tombs to add more texture and color. This multi-tomb was inspired by the older Remnant Rubs...

... and this area of the Haunted Mansion queue.

Then I added a boatload of grit paste to the top of the Vignette tray. This can be opaque or transparent. It really doesn't matter. You care going to be adding paint and Distress Crayon over it. It's quite simple to make actually. Just pile up some grit paste in the middle of the vignette tray leaving a depression in the center and more "dirt" piled around the sides. Then press the bones and skull into the paste and let it dry overnight or for a few hours.

The unearthed grave was inspired by this archaeology magazine photo above that I mistakenly thought was an epic sneak peek from Zoe Hillman or Vicki Evans. They are masters of grunge. When I thought about adding it to this piece, it also reminded me of a time I encountered a groundhog living under the mausoleums at the Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia. I had this strange fear as I watched him peek out of his hole, that he was going to dig up a grave or topple a mausoleum.  So I took those two things as inspiration for this unearthed grave.

The little pillars are just square blocks of wood you get at the hobby store. Then put grit paste through the cobblestone stencil on each side. The trick to this is to do one side on each square, then let it dry, do another side, let it dry, and so on. You age them with Distress Paints and Distress Crayons in greys, greens, browns and black soot.

Here you can see I am just adding layers of color with the watered down paints and Distress Crayons. I just touch a brick or stone with a little color and let it dry and then keep layering.

The crown is just a metal Regal Adornment covered in layers of grit paste, paint and Distress Crayon. 

And the name Xavier is from one of my favorite Disney Imagineers Xavier "X" Atencio. He worked on Pirates and the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland and penned most of the narration and the two main songs for both of those attractions. This is also cut from the Spooktacular font.

I'm just trying to show how adding layers of color from paint and Distress Crayons really starts to change the look.

Here you can see that I used a craft knife and cut away a few of the bricks with an opening into the box behind it. Remember I put texture paste through the brick layering stencil onto chipboard just so I could do this.

It was a last minute idea to add the metal Numeric numbers for the year that the Cask of Amontillado was published since it was my inspiration for this tomb, and it is also where I got the title for this piece. It's one of my favorite Edgar Allan Poe short stories. Montressor is the narrator and he was insulted many times by Fortunato. So to exact his revenge, he lures him down into his family catacombs and tricks him to one of the little tombs with the promise of a rare cask of Amontillado wine. When before he realizes it, Montressor has him chained to the wall where he bricks up the front of the tomb and leaves. 

If you are unfamiliar with the story and would like to see my favorite short film rendition from 1995 starring John Heard and Rene Aberjonois, you can see it here although the quality is lacking, their acting is still masterful...and lets face it, it's probably copied from a 1995 VHS tape. hahaha

There was also a mausoleum in the Laurel Hill Cemetery that reminded me of Cask of Amontillado, so I took this picture of it.

I worked on this center tomb in two pieces. This back piece was like the base.

Then added the front piece with the gates attached. the chain is from the Ideaology Hook Clasps and the end jump rings on the chain were attached to the lock.

I love the dimension of the piece when you look from afar. the brick behind the gates, the unearthed grave, the pilllars and urns....

A late addition to this tomb was the Vignette Adornment at the top. I again added layers of grit paste and paint to try and make it look like sculpted rock.

The new tombstone are so cool, I left one plain because often in old cemeteries you can no longer even read the names. On the second I added just the skull from the skull and crossbones. This is a nod to the Puritan headstones in cemeteries all over New England. The skull, sometimes with wings, were not to be morbid , but to be a reminder of our mortality. That is why I often add skulls and bones to many makes. It's part of my Month of Mortality.

I wish I had come up with this idea on my own, but one of my package of urns had a broken one in it, and I thought that it would be just the perfect touch for a decrepit old cemetery.

Going along with the groundhog cemetery destruction, I made a bone collector wheel barrow out of a small Vignette Box, a small pulley wheel and two Mini Foundations for the back legs. I added a handle from the Mini Hardware set, and covered it all in more grit paste and paint.

To get the old rusted look on these pieces, you pounce grit paste on them with your finger in various areas where you think grungy rust would start to appear. Let the grit paste dry. Then paint with Black Soot Distress Paint. Let it dry. Then run over the high points with a Rusty Hinge and/or Vintage Photo Distress Crayon. I rub it off lightly just enough to soften the crayon so it doesn't look like crayon.

Here is an overall view of the left side of this piece. I added some moss from the Hobby Store floral department that I sprayed with Forest Moss Distress Stain. It can be put here and there since you often see moss growing in lots of places at a cemetery, as you see below.

If you look closely you can see missing bricks, plants and moss growing on these mausoleums at the Laurel Hill Cemetery that I used for my inspiration.

I wanted to give you this side view so you could see that I paid attention to the back of the tombstones, the sides of all the crypts, and the sides of the Vignette Tray. Details are important.

Here is the other end, including a few of the bricks that fell out of the crypt. That is a detail you really need to look at to notice.

I added some moss to the bottoms of the metal gates that make the fence.

I even added grit paste, paint and Distress Crayons to the metal Vignette Foundations. I wanted them to mimic stone as well.

If you look carefully, you can see some of the Sizzix Funky Nature dies cut out of the black Kraftstock and creeping up the back of the center crypt. It is great to pair these with a bit of moss to add to the neglected air of the cemetery and to cover any unsightly areas or mistakes. It's always good to have those things that help disguise the mistakes we make right?

Here is how the top of the end crypt looks finished. The layers of grit paste, paint and Distress Crayons really work wonders. You couldn't even guess that those numbers and skull were metal. They look like stone. Again Note the tiny bits of moss.

Lastly, a quick note about the dead plants. For the last couple of years I have added these to my makes. It is the end of a broomstick. I remove the handle, crumple up the stringy bits, spray them with Forest Moss Distress Stain and then trim the ends all over to add different lengths and texture. Then stick them in an urn or a corner of a piece and voila! Dead plant.

Wow! This was a really long one for not being a tutorial. Hahahaha! Thank you for sticking with me if you got this far. I hope you found something in this post that sparked an idea or inspired you to make something. Either something like this or something from your own experiences and imagination.

Tami

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