Tim Holtz

At this level, mentioning Tim Holtz will certainly have no effect on you. You probably know his well-known Distress inks, or his collection of steampunk style papers, but deep down, who really is Tim Holtz?
Tim Holtz seems to be a strange parishioner in the world of scrapbook design, monopolized mostly by women. Tim Holtz is therefore one of the first to develop his particular creativity in a woman's world, and he managed to open doors and minds.

Scrapbooking according to Tim Holtz

But in addition to breaking these clichés, Tim Holtz is also one of the first to enter the world of scrapbooking with a much less naive and pink style like the one we usually know. He is responsible for introducing dark and retro tones into paper collections, decorative elements with a touch of steampunk, in short, a slightly more manly style. And, frankly, the change from "pink to black" was well appreciated and very useful to make a photo album for darker events, such as Halloween or even original invitation cards.

You will know Tim as the designer of the famous Ranger company, with whom he created his most famous products, but he also participates in other collections with other brands such as Advantus, Stampers Anonymous, Sizzix, Tonic Studios and Core Dinations.

Tim Holtz's Embellishments

For 17 years, Tim devoted himself to artistic themes, working in a craft shop in Arizona. At the time, he was a representative of the famous CHA fair - the fair many of us would kill to attend - after a first visit, Tim contacted manufacturers and suppliers and began to take an interest in stamping. That's why, when he went to the AMP, he always took some samples of his own work with him and finally showed them to the Ranger representatives. Finally, in 2003, his dream came true and the brand invited him to present some of his creations at the fair that same year. From then on, Tim Holtz's name began to resonate through his very personal style that filled an obvious void in this area.

Tim Holtz's Inks

His popularity has remained on the rise since then, and you certainly have at least one product he would have designed on your desk. One of the most famous products is Tim Holtz distress inks, this little wonder that makes it possible to age any project. Presented in different colours, these water-based inks react to contact with water to age scrapbook pages, but also create degraded, oxidized and customized background effects. If you want to age a photo, that's what you need! Simply apply the ink in circular movements until the desired effect is achieved. One wonders how this ink can achieve such purposes so effectively!

Thanks to the success of the first colours of Distress ink (the original range had ochre tones), the range of colours has expanded to more than 60 today. These inks are so famous that the same colours are included in the Distress Stain, Distress Spray, Distress markers and embossing powders ranges.
Another of its flagship products are stencils with this eternal vintage style that defines it so much. With its geometric and damask shapes, they are ideal for creating Mixed Media backgrounds and projects by combining them with pencils, pastels, chalk or acrylic paint.

Tim Holtz's Templates

Another classic: the cutting dies he created for the Sizzix brand: retro butterflies, feathers, alphabets under full of different styles, gears... Always with his particular style and unique in the world!

Die-Cutting with Tim Holtz

Tim certainly provokes a lot of comments because his creations with these decorative elements give us a retro look that pleases us a lot. Who hasn't fallen in love with these mini gears on our LayOuts, or these keys to decorate a diary? There is so much diversity on these products that it is very easy to include them in any project.