Handsome Men Challenge - Soot/Smoke Technique

June's ATC challenge on Art For The Creative Mind is Handsome Men - Soot/Smoke Technique. This is a new one for me, in fact, I never heard of this technique until I joined the group. I don't remember exactly which lovely lady posted about it but I was intrigued.

Not really knowing what I was doing or where I was going with it, I decided to create my cards first. Afterall, that I can do. So I rubbed distressed ink onto watercolor paper to create an aged but solid background and then began adding my elements. I used clear sticker borders, ArtChix ephemera, a rub on and a clock embellishment from SkyBluPink, brads, and ribbon.

Now at this point I am really pleased with my pieces but I know I have to dirty them up with soot and/or smoke so down to the kitchen I go. I lit a candle and holding a spoon over the flame (I read that somewhere) created some smoke. Well, that didn't really turn out the way I thought it would! There was really no visible smoke on my pieces and my spoon was charred black! 

Hmmm, what to do, what to do? This will not defeat me.....I got it! 

I took that smarty pants black spoon and rubbed it on my pieces, transferring the soot to the paper. Wallah!

Now I am not sure this was the intention or what they are supposed to look like (shh, TG, I hear you saying "there is no supposed to") but this is what I came up with. In the end I like my Handsome Men!