This year we were able to celebrate Tim Holtz “12 Tags” in a whole new way.  I have to admit, now that December is here, it’s bittersweet.  I loved seeing Tim’s new tag each at the beginning of every month of 2012.  Having a whole month to share and recreate projects based on each month’s tag inspiration had a certain amount of consistency and depth of enjoyment. 

But these 12 days of December, I miss the late nights from years past when I would stay awake until 2am and my heart leaped with excitement the moment Tim revealed each day’s tag on his blog.  The buzz began early each day with Mario showing sneak peeks of Behind The Scenes.  Live Twitter and Facebook conversations kept me connected with friends from around the world.  The blog commenting would begin the instant Tim posted his tag live.  Reading the pages and pages of responses from people all around the world created a sense of community.  Scurrying each day to get our interpretation of the tag complete before another tag went live kept us all bustling with excitment.  Do you know what I mean?  I’ll never forget the year there were twins! – 2 tags in one day! 

To me, this year is all about savoring the 12 Tags.  Taking time to enjoy the artistic process.  Opening my mind to ideas and creative risks.  Feeling no pressure to meet a deadline.  What do you think?  It does feel good.  What’s it been like for you this year?

Tim posted the below video on his blog recently.  Be sure to visit Tim’s blog for a delightful step by step tutorial with pictures on how he created the tag card above.  I learned some cool tips and tricks for working with distress stains.  Truth be told, my 5 year old son sat on my lap and watched this video right along with me.  He loves to spray inks, and distress stains are no exception.  I’ll show you what we made together today once the mess is cleaned up and I can get some cool pics.  For now, he’s putting his finishing touches on the snowflakes and getting very glittery. 

One of my favorite things about Tim’s tag shown here is that he used a jumbo tag and folded it in half to create a card.  The suits me, and my son, perfectly for this holiday season of giving from the heart.

Thank you so much to Tim Holtz for the fabulous idea of 12 Tags and allowing us all in on your journey every step of the way.   You have gone above and beyond to share, inspire, educate, and connect people from around the world .  From taking pictures of each part of the process, creating videos for us to see things come to life, driving far and wide to reach internet access through snow and storms, for the never ending flow of ideas and inspiration, and so, so much more.

Wishing you a happy holiday season filled with creative charm and surrounded by family, ….and lots of stamping!

Heidi