Use It or Lose It - Volume 1, Issue 4-Metal

This month we are using metal items in our challenge. If you are coming here from Judy Faye's blog, then you are on the right track! Metal is one of my favorite things to work with.  From found hardware, embellishments and sheets there are worlds of things you can do with it.

I have so much fun playing with sheets of metal.  In this layout, I embossed the sheets with the Cuttle Bug embossing folders, then sanded the top to reveal the pattern.  I needed a more distressed look on the gears, so after sanding I rubbed them very lightly with some alcohol ink and got just the look I was after!! The centers of my gears are actually plain brads I covered with scraps from the gears.  For fun I threw on some really old metal numbers from the stash and a ribbon slide.  One of my other favorite techniques that I used on this layout is the fussy cut gears and scallops.  Take a second piece of identical paper, cut out the pattern you want to accent then adhere it to the layout with pop-dots.  I also cut the balloon from a different sheet from this line and pop dotted it over the balloon image on the original piece of paper.....

Thanks for stopping by...now continue on to Tabbi's blog and see what great ideas she has in store for you.

Contributors to this layout:
Pattern Paper - Quick Quotes Tin Type
Ribbon:  Quick Quotes  (Do you see a trend here?)
Chipboard gears:  Quick Quotes
Metal Sheets:  Ten Second Studios
Cuttle Bug Embossing folders
Alcohol Ink:  Ranger
Twine, Metal numbers, ribbon slide from the stash.