Design Team Throwdown with SMEARED INK - August 2013

Welcome to the August Design Team Throwdown!
This is Lady Brayton here to show off my project, but first here is a little info about the Design Team Throwdown.

I'm not sure how many bloggers on design teams have heard of the Design Team Throwdown (DTTD), but the DTTD is a monthly, friendly competition between other design teams to see who reigns supreme.  

 The DTTD challenge had its start on the Smeared and Smudged Forum, but has recently been moved to a blog in hopes of getting more design teams and crafters involved.  The more participants, the greater the fun!  The DTTD challenge and information can now be found here.

Why not join in the fun?  Have your design team play along or at the very least stop by and see all of the creative projects and vote on your favorite team :)  Voting starts Weds. August 28th at noon and ends Friday August 30th at midnight.  In case of a tie, there will be a tie-breaker vote on Saturday August 31st until 5pm.  All times are Eastern time.  Click here to vote for your favorite team on Wednesday.  

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Quoth the Raven was the winning team last month so they picked the theme for this month's challenge.  The DTTD challenge theme for August is 

"Old and Grey"

I am playing on Smeared Ink's DT this month.  Our team consists of Shell, Terra and myself.  I will warn you now that my post is very picture heavy.

My project started with this Mickey Mouse "pinball" machine that I found at an antique store several years ago.  Please don't tell me it would be worth thousands of dollars because then I would probably cry for altering it.

(click images to enlarge)

I figured this game fit the "Old" portion of the theme since it is super old and severely worn.  Here is what I made with the game:

This is the backing of the game.  

I took a picture without the top on as the plastic is worn, scratched, and hazy in some areas and I wanted the images to show clearly. 

I used various Smeared Ink rubber including images from As Death, Prints and Morte (Morte was drawn by Rick St. Dennis).  All sets are available exclusively as past club offerings through

 Smeared Ink's rubber Club.

I also used images from some retired Smeared Ink rubber: Lonely Boy and Puff (scream and scary sentiments), Carnies (not for the timid and don't be afraid sentiments), Inky Dreams (ink splatters) and Killer Bo Peep (the spiders).  Killer Bo Peep can be purchased in digi form here or you can get the spider as a single here.

Here is a pic of all the rubber sets that I used:

Here is my project assembled.  I don't know if it is the outside light or the plastic cover that makes the color seem different.  I added the shooting plunger, the marbles and the plastic cover after trying every trick I know to buff out the scratches.  Amazingly, the game still works and the scratches did diminish a quite a bit!

Here are some detail pictures.  I do hope I'm not boring you to death.  At the end I will have 2 short videos of the game in action.  It takes 27 seconds watch each video so if you have an extra minute check them out.

Below is a close-up of the top of the game.

Next comes the middle of the game.  You get the idea.

The bottom.

If you are not ready to stab your own eyes out yet, here are some more pics:

From the "Morte" set in rubber.

The skulls are from  Morte.  The numbered splats are from Inky Dreams

The bottles are from the Morte set.  The ink splats are from Inky Dreams.  

The skull is from the Morte set.  The ink splat is  from Inky Dreams.  

Skulls from the Morte set.  Spider from the Killer Bo Peep set.  

This image is from the As Death rubber set.

This image is from the Morte rubber set.

Now the videos before I blab about how I made my project.

Forgive the shaky bit.  I had my hubs demonstrate while I attempted to film with my mobile phone.  In the second video I am holding my mobile phone myself and recording while playing.  Note to self...get a tripod!  BTW, watch the videos on full screen or you won't really see anything :/

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To make my project, I used the glossy side of poster board and outlined the shape of the pinball game.  I reinforced the back with heavy card.  I stamped all images with Black Staz-on ink.  Man!  I love the way that ink smells!  Please tell me I'm not the only one that does.  Validate me so I feel normal.  LOL.  Anyway, stamping on a glossy surface is not easy.  The poster board was a slippery sucker to work with, but the dull side soaked up ink like a sponge and spread everywhere.  Yep...this was my second attempt.  It's a good thing I bought the large size!

After the ink dried, I colored the images with distress inks.  The next morning the non-gray colors looked too dull so I colored over those areas with my copic markers being careful not to touch the black staz-on edging too much.  I forgot to mention that the blood smears and splatters were stamped with Staz-on in red and brown mixed together.  Why is it that the red and brown don't smell like the black?  Bummer.  

I went back to my distress inks in weathered wood, pumice stone, and black soot and distressed the hell out of the background to achieve both the "old" and "grey" aspects of the challenge.  Some of my red ink smeared a bit, leaving a pink or lavender appearance in some areas.  Also, the brown rubbed off of the blood leaving the red looking pink.  I took my cardinal red copic marker and colored over the blood splats, splotches and smeared finger prints.

The numbered splats at the bottom are point values.  The outline was stamped with the "Inky Dreams" set and colored with Sharpie oil-based paint markers in silver, gold, and red.  When dry, I used a copic pigment pen to write in the numbers.  

Be sure to check out the work from my teamies Shell and Terra.

Don't forget to check out the other entries as well and make your vote count on Wednesday the 28th.

Thanks for stopping by my blog.  I do hope you've enjoyed my project and I apologize for my novelette.  If you've developed a headache I have aspirin, acetaminophen and ibuprofen on hand to mend your aches.

Cheers!

~ Lady Brayton representing Smeared Ink ~

CHALLENGES I WOULD LIKE TO ENTER:

• Craft-room challenge: Use something new.  My Morte rubber stamps are new and this is the first time I inked them up :D
• The Design Team Throwdown: Monthly challenge between DTs.  Themes vary.  This month's theme is "Old and Grey"
• Creative Craft Challenges:#17 Not a Square:  My pinball game is not square in shape.  It's more of a tombstone shape :)
• Party Time Tuesdays: Anything goes!
• Through the Craft Room Door: Always Anything Goes!
• Created with Love Challenges: Anything goes!
• Make it Monday: Anything goes!
• Ink it Pink: Halloween - I think skulls work for Halloween :)
• Make my Monday: Anything but a card.  I altered a pinball game.
• Tammy's Scrapin Corner: Anything goes!