Metal mania for the holidays

I have a thing about metal...especially if its old, rusted and has that "to die for" patina...

When I rounded up my materials for holiday inspiration, I knew that these antique tart tins would satisfy my junk metal addiction for festive décor...

I decided that the interior would be the perfect space to create a mini art collage...using found objects and vintage ephemera...and since I've been wanting to experiment with resin, I had my idea and was ready to go...

First I cut out circles from an old dictionary to fit in the bottom of each tin...finding an interesting list of consecutive words was a bit of a challenge...

Next up was gluing each circle to the tin with matte medium...this also ensured that the paper was sealed so that the resin wouldn't saturate the paper and blur the type...

Now the fun part...gathering up all sorts of found objects and assembling the most interesting combination of elements...

Once I had the elements selected for each tin, I lightly glued each object in place so that it wouldn't shift when I poured the resin...

The resin I used is a two part epoxy that I purchased at Lowe's...it is lower grade than the ICE resin used for jewelry but is more economical...and since I wasn't creating high end images, it was perfect for this use.  You want to make sure that you are ready...and have no distractions...because once you mix the resin, there's not a lot of time before it starts to harden.  I used popsicle sticks for stirrers and the straw comes in handy to dissipate bubbles that form on the surface...

With some of the tins, I added a few more elements after the first layer of resin was completely set...it gave a nice 3-D effect to the composition.

After letting the resin cure for a week, I punched a hole in the outer rim of each tin and fashioned a hook from a piece of wire...





























Ready to be hung from my bare branch holiday "tree"...

Want one of these tins for your own?  or to give as a special present?  I'm having a Holiday Sale over at my etsy shop...There are 9 tart tins for sale...each tin to be personally gift wrapped by me with vintage paper and ribbon...and delivered to you via free 2-day priority shipping...get all the details HERE

Linking up to the Christmas Junk Party over at Funky Junk Interiors...and Knick of Time Vintage Inspiration Party...
I'm not the only one with metal mania for the holidays...

a hint of what's to come...

the holidays are approaching...

preparations are underway...supplies are being gathered...

a theme emerges...

at work in the studio...

A collection of the heart

I've been finishing up several collage art pieces in prep for the Fresh Paint Festival of Artists show in mid-August.  The kernel of inspiration for this creation was germinated with the maps I received from Dave of Clearer Reflections...along with additional found objects that I had collected for a time...all coming together to tell this story...

I started with the title, A collection of the heart, and worked backwards (one usually titles a piece last, after it is completed).  I felt that this title guided my direction and gave reference to the story I wanted to tell...

The old perfume bottle and the broken string of pearls were rescued from the detritus of an estate sale...the needlepoint home has been hanging on my studio bulletin board for 8 years, just waiting for its time...the locket flips open to reveal an silent sigh, my own editorial input...

A Sucrets box from my outside rusting area is easily transformed into "secrets", with a key kept safely inside...foreign stamps and vintage pen nibs convey thoughts written...but never sent...or perhaps they were set free...on a wing of a bird...

A collection of the heart...

see it firsthand at the Fresh Paint Art Show, August 18 & 19...for show details, click here...

Junk is a term of endearment

"Junk" is the basis for many of my projects - and by "Junk", I mean this as a term of endearment.  Taking the bits and pieces (and sometimes even bigger pieces) of junk that people are throwing away and making it into something that is either useful / beautiful / functional / amusing is the crux of my work.  Giving new life to remnants of the past has been the tagline of my business since its inception.  This idea of finding a useful life for the remnants that others have tossed is also the basis for The Salvage Studio, of which I was a founding partner.  Our book, The Salvage Studio, Sustainable Home Comforts to Organize, Entertain, and Inspire is a compilation of 35 projects that one can make using readily available items from the dumpster, the local yard sale or the community thrift store.  Beth & Lisa are still continuing The Salvage Studio business - and in fact they have a great blog themselves - see the link under my favorite blogs and websites.

One useful approach in working with cast-offs and items of unknown origin is to look at an item for what it can be, not what it was.  Turning an item upside down often initiates  "eureka!"  and then I am off to my studio.  Here's a recent project that demonstrates what can done with minimal effort and a modicum of creativity, giving maximum results.

These are three glass coasters that either came from Goodwill or out of a "free Box" at a yard sale.  The two square coasters were hefty and had a substantial lip on them, the round coaster was heavy as well...paperweights came to mind.
If the square coasters were turned upside down, there was an open cavity that could be space for a 3-D collage.  I started to collect what I might use in my collage...

 a stash of old keys...

a mixture of orphaned buttons...





the ubiquitous collection of stamps...
combined with some leftover wrapping paper, a few stray feathers and a snippet of ribbon...

the end result!

close-up of the first square paperweight with stamp, button and feather as the design elements.

close-up of the second square paperweight with stamp, feather, old key as design elements.  I added a sealing wax impression for some extra color.

close-up of the round paperweight.  This one I did not turn upside down to use the hollow space for a 3-D collage but kept it as a coaster - making a 2-D collage under the glass with wrapping paper, dictionary definition snippet and a very light feather.  The idea of having it be a paperweight with using the coaster indent to hold paperclips or magnets or whatever else you stash on your desk appealed to me.

All three paperweights are for sale at my space at Faded Elegance.  Since I use original elements in the design, these three are unique and can never be exactly replicated again.  Start your own collection of stray items- tear off the stamps of letters you receive, clip the buttons of a worn shirt before it is tossed, cut out interesting photos from that magazine before it is recycled - you might be surprised at what you can make from this junk!