Mystery Tag Swap

Where to begin...


Well, the Circle of Friends have done it again. This time (May) A.L. hosted and she came up with the idea of a Mystery Tag. The Mystery was a stamp from 100 Proff Press, she gave each of us one to keep! and to make our tag with. The tags could be any size and boy did these ladies come up with some fabulous Tags.


Okay starting with N.P's

you can see more of N.P's work HERE


Her Mystery stamp is the bird featured in the center of the tag on the angled rectangle. The bird is colored and the bottom button of his vest is highlighted with shimmery paint. She added glitter to the background decorative paper, a green ribbon up the right hand side and the word stylin (I really need one of those machines...I love the look). To finish it all off she attached a brown and pink ribbon. Also, the edges of the diagonal square and the tag have been highlighted with dark ink and rubbed a little ruffly to add some texture.




S.M. our group coordinator, as always put together a charming piece.

I believe her mystery stamp is the little Casper looking ghost. But what I like the most about S.M.'s tag is the shape. Instead of leaving the bottom square she cut it along the moon's shape really making it interesting.


The tag was originally one of those that you can buy that is yellowish. She used some kind of ink/paint and colored it the purple tone and then stamped her images.

There are white/silver marks randomly all in the sky that I think she made using a pen. She accented the edges with the ink color she used to stamp the images and added wonderfully textured yarns and ribbons. I really like the one that looks like it has blobs on a thin ribbon... I know bad description...any better ideas?

And I'm sure she added the Rhinestone just for me LOL...it is a very pale pink...I love Rhinestones they make me happy!



Okay for the second month in a row I think that my favorite is S.O.'s Something about they way she has combined her mystery stamp with this fabulous background paper really draws my eye.

Her mystery stamp is the bunny in the lower right corner. She colored, cut and added glitter and diamond glaze (I think) to her bunny.

The Words "Got Carrots?" Were printed out on computer paper and then highlighted with orange ink before cut and mounted onto the tag.

The bird in the tree are stamped using black ink.

I believe the butterfly at the top in the orangish pinkish ink is also stamped and she finished it off with some blue and purple yarns.

Isn't it amazing how little stamping there is and how fabulously it came together. I wish I could look at background paper (that I don't make) and be able to build on top of it like this. To me this is what a collage artist does.

Fabulous piece S.O. it makes me smile every time I look at it.



This is E.O.'s second piece ever for our group and it is just so much fun!

You can see more of E.O.'s work HERE



The mystery stamp she received is the dog (not 100% sure what kind, I think it is a bulldog)

I have about a billion questions for E.O. Did you cut out the red paper or did it come die cut. I have never used die cuts before so I don't really know anything about them. If you did cut out all the red you go girl...you have one steady hand and you had to make 8! WOW...


Everything on E.O's tag goes together so well...and I love the fact that she did not use a standard shape (rectangle) for her base the fire hydrant shape is just to perfect for her mystery stamp. I'm sure some of us wish that we had been so lucky...but then again it was the luck of the postage stickers.







I think H.S received the largest mystery stamp. it is an ostrich (which she thought before stamping was a peacock...)


H.S. appealed to my every sparkly sense. The background of her tag is painted using sparkeling H2O's and see the Rhinestones...her and S.M. must have been in league together...

She stamped the ostrich image on velum and colored it...I think with markers.

I am assuming that the words "stepping out in style" were part of the stamp but if they were/are not then she printed them out on the velum perfectly spaced so she could stamp her image...or she stamped and scanned the entire thing and then printed it out on velum either way the spacing is perfect...


To finish it all off she attached a turquoise and white colored yarn. The turquoise is a perfect match to the colors she used on the parasol and hat.







J. R.'s tag is intriguing...mainly because she used beeswax and the more I see it used the more I want to try it myself...


Her mystery stamp was a bow which she explains on the back of the tag "rather than use it as a focal point, I used it to create the background for some doodling."


it took me forever to figure out what she meant but I finally got it. She stamped the bow using white or light grey on black mat board (not sure about the tags make up) on top of that she stamped the white flower (I think)

It appears everything else is hand drawn and I'm not sure what she used to draw it with. On top of the "doodling" she added the beeswax. The letter "c" (which I suspect is on mine b/c that is my first name) is outlined with white and the dragonfly is an embellishment.

she finished it all off with a black ribbon.


I can't stop looking at this one and trying to figure out when she did what. Did the doodling or the wax come first? I wonder if it doesn't matter kinda like a chicken or the egg question...




The simplicity of M. D.'s tag makes me envious. I don't think I have ever come up with such a wonderfully simple and yet perfect design in my life.



M.D.'s mystery stamp is the cute little pig which she stamped on a mini tag using black ink. Aged the edges with a coral colored ink and attached a ribbon to.

Than she created a tag to hold her mini tag using fabulous decorative papers. The back paper is a very soft pink stripe and behind the mini tag (I wish I had scanned this) she wrote "Oink Oink" and she has lovely lighthearted handwriting which makes you smile when you see it. The edges of her tag are also rubbed with the same coral ink.

She finished her main tag off with a brown ribbon. Babe would be jealous if he saw this piece...and I'm not sharing :)

This is the smallest tag that was made making it even better...after all aren't pigs suppose to be cute and cuddly (in our imaginations at least)




And here is our fabulous hostesses A.L.

I think her mystery stamp is the hand holding the money inside the fortune tellers ball.


She to found a perfect decorative paper to build her tag on. Everything is stamped in brown, the face, the swirls, the money amount, the fortune tellers ball the hand holding the money and the word "fortune" I believe she then went back and stamped over the words and money amount with orange ink giving it a great depth without actually making it 3D.


Part of the fortune tellers ball is colored and it is all highlighted with a shimmery ink or powder...fabulous...


The best part is on the back (not better than the artwork though) A.L. attached a real lottery ticket to the back...some of us have rubber there's and won, me, I'm a chicken and I think that I am never going to. After all it is part of the art and I kinda feel like I would be ruining it.

She finished off her fabulous tag (the largest tag made) with a lovely copper ribbon.

Thanks for coming up with such a fabulous idea A.L. I really enjoyed this swap.



this is our newest member A.P.'s contribution...


you can see more of her work HERE


A's mystery stamp I think is the mail man but to be honest I have no idea because it could also be the postage paid emblem above the mail man...guess I should ask her.


A.P. let us all know that she made the tags on white paper but her daughter (who is I think 5) told her they looked to bright so she dusted them with brown...then she didn't like them thinking they looked "dirty" I laughed so hard when I heard this...after all I make everything "dirty" I think they are fabulous just the way they are.


But A.P. didn't stop there. She asked each of us (8 participants in total) where we were from or what our favorite place we ever lived was. I spent a few years when I was a child in Spain and loved it...have great memories and would jump at the opportunity to go back so I told her Spain.


On the backs of each of the tags (this one is mine so the others are all different) she placed postage stamps having to do with Spain. They are just so fabulous!


She attached her two tags together with a really neat thread I think one of them is a multi colored DMC floss.


Great Job A.P. talk about hitting this one out of the park!














Last but not least, here is mine. I was really excited when I opened my envelope and found the golf player. The idea jumped into my head instantly but I am a little disappointed with the outcome. I wanted it to have the look and feel of an old timy magazine advertisement.

I made the paper using Tim Holtz distressing ink Weathered Wood and then stamped the "Foster Hose Supporter" image using black ink. The woman playing golf I stamped repeatedly and painted in the three colors shown. I think trimmed as closely as possible and layered them onto the tag.

Oh, of course i painted them using sparkeling H2O's.

To finish it off I attached coordinating ribbons and edged the tag with blue.


I like it but it is far from my best piece.


I hope you enjoy May's Circle of Friends project.


I'm hosting next month, "All things _________ Shaped." you fill in the blank with the shape of your choice. I have already received one entry and I am almost done with mine...