Bright and Breezy Box

Hello! Today I'm sharing a box I altered to store some of my inkpads. The style is a little different for me but I think it's rather jolly and is certainly an improvement from a boring brown box! I used mainly DecoArt products to transform it - list of materials at the end of the steps.

I need to thank Erica Evans and Debs Wainwright for inspiring me to get this little project done - thanks girls! Thanks also to Sue Roddis for the box!

Here's how I made it:

I forgot to take a picture of the blank box - doh! But it was ugly brown wood. I started with a coat of Everlasting Chalky Finish by DecoArt - look at that coverage onto varnished wood!

I then added tissue paper all over with DecoArt Decou-page Matte. When dry I covered the whole thing with DecoArt Translucent White to tone down the tissue design.

Using a dabbing motion, apply patches of Green Gold and Cobalt Teal Hue Media paints (I do have other colours - honest!!!). 

Add stencilling with a couple of Andy Skinner stencils (Halftone and Creativity) using the same colours of paint (I mixed the Teal with Tinting Base to make a tint). Add tone-on-tone stamping using various stamps (Stampers Anon and Carabelle) and toning ink colours. Make sure you use permanent ink.

Add circle stamps (Seth Apter) in darker blue ink. Stamp some numbers (Rubber Dance) in white gesso.

Use black gesso and a stencil brush to cover the box with circles (this is a Donna Downey Studios stencil).

When dry hand draw hearts with permanent marker. Stamp some inspirational words here and there. Colour the hearts with pink paint created by mixing Pyrrole Red with Tinting Base. I also sponged more blue paint to the edges to define them. Finish the box with a coat of varnish (I went for Soft Touch which has a satin finish).

Thanks for popping by!
Katy x

Products used:
DecoArt Media: Gesso - White, Gesso - Black, Tinting Base, Soft Touch Varnish
DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics: Cobalt Teal Hue, Green Gold, Pyrrole Red
DecoArt Chalky Finish: Everlasting
DecoArt Decou-page: Matte
DecoArt Andy Skinner Stencils: Halftone, Creativity
Donna Downey Stencil: Dandelion Pods
Tissue paper
Various stamps
Permanent inkpads in blue and green

Paperbabe Blog Hop!

Hello and welcome to the Paperbabe blog hop! It's Paperbabe Stamps third Anniversary month and we are here today to share the NEW Paperbabe Stamps JULY 2016 release with you! I loved working with these adorable stamps and I placed my characters right into their own story with my altered book project - more details and pics follow the hop information.

Four new mini stamp sets and three new substrate kits will be available to purchase on July 30th. You will find all the new products HERE once they go live. 

To add extra fun to our blog hop...Paperbabe are offering up some fantastic prizes! 

Not one but TWO prizes:

The Paperbabe Stamps entire July's release and

a £25 gift to choose what you like in the Paperbabe Stamps online store.

Here are the details:

• Two winners will be chosen at RANDOM from any of the designer's blogs and the PaperbabeStamps Blog to win.
• Just leave a comment on any of the designer's blogs listed below or the Paperbabe stamps blog for your chance to win! (you do not need to comment on all blogs to qualify but it increases your chances of winning.)
• Deadline: You have until midnight on Sunday, 31st July to leave a comment.
• Please check the Paperbabe Stamps blog on Monday, 1st August to see if you are one of our lucky winners.

Here are the great designers Kim asked to join in our birthday hop...

Chris

Delphine

Terri

Kerrie

Keren

Aimes

Katy - YOU ARE HERE

Trish

Kim

Kath

Paperbabe Stamps

I hope you enjoy our fun hop!

For my piece I cut a niche in an old book before gluing the pages together (you can glue them all in one go by applying a generous coat of gel medium to the edges and clamping them together). The book has a wash of cream paint to knock back the text and some green stencilled detail. 

I used the laser cut substrates to make my little critters - I loved using these and the end result is fab, with so much more dimension than cut out stamped images. I undercoated them with chalk paint and used a variety of Archival inkpads to build up the stamping. I added details with coloured pencil, a white gel pen and a black fineline pen.

My tree die cut is sprayed with Distress Spray Stains and has little leaves and flowers added. I stamped the quote and freehand cut it into a speech bubble to add to the whimsical effect.

Finally I added some detail to the facing page with stamped fox and painted MDF word, also from Paperbabe.

LOVE these new products and I hope you do too. Good luck in the giveaway and enjoy the rest of today's hop.

Katy x

Antiqued Frame with DecoArt

I thought I'd share something a bit different today, in the form of a home decor/upcycling project. I created this altered frame for the DecoArt Blogger Outreach programme with some of a fantastic goodies they kindly sent me to try.

Creating faux metallic and aged effects is a favourite of mine and I thought the ornate style of this car boot find was asking to be transformed into an antique gilt frame, tarnished and worn by time.

I used the following DecoArt products:
- Media Black Gesso
- Dazzing Metallics Emperor's Gold
- Metallic Lustre Gold Rush
- Media Antiquing Cream Carbon Black

1 Like an idiot I forgot to take a pic of the frame before I started (*face palm*). Suffice to say it was a pretty ugly cheap resin frame I got at a car boot sale. To prime the frame, give it a coat of DecoArt Media black gesso. Use a hogs hair brush (not a smooth brush) if you can as it helps get the paint into the nooks and crannies.

2 Add a coat of Dazzling Metallics Emperor's Gold - I found one coat to be sufficient.

3 Once the metallic paint is dry, add a coat of Carbon Black Antiquing Cream (at which juncture my husband said, 'what was the point of that? You've just painted it black again', to which I replied 'wait for the magic')!

4 Even when fully dry the Antiquing Cream remains reactive. After it is fully dry (and you can speed it with a heat tool if required), wipe it back with a baby wipe or damp cloth. You can see the cream stays in the recesses giving a cool aged effect.

5 Having added shadows in the recesses, I now want to highlight the raised areas so I applied some Gold Rush Metallic Lustre with my finger. This product is like a gilding wax.

6 Finally, if any of your highlights are too bright or (like me) you got a bit too gung-ho with the lustre in places, dry brush some black gesso over to further antique the finish. As the Antiquing Cream isn't permanent. at this stage you will want to varnish your piece. The cream is water-reactive, so I'd recommend a spray varnish so you don't have to use a brush which could move the cream around as you work.

I haven't decided what to do with my frame yet, but as I recently started doing my family history I think it might end up being the home to some vintage photographs.

Hope you liked my tutorial today. Thanks for popping by.

Katy x

It's ColourArte Day!

This time I've gone and bit Steampunk and have been creating with gorgeous iridescent colours... sneaky peeky below. Full deets and tutorial over on the ColourArte blog today.

Katy xxx

Spooky Spells

I LOVE Halloween but I haven't had a lot of time for Halloween makes this year. I have however found the time somehow to make this fun altered book box for the DecoArt Haunts Challenge!

Now, seeing as the judge is Mr Andy Skinner I obviously won't be in line to win! But still, having joined the fantabulous Helping Artist Programme at DecoArt, I wanted to take some time to experiment more with the DecoArt range of products and this seemed like an ideal opportunity for a good old play.

The box is covered with lightly scrunched tissue paper to give it a creased leathery look then coated with DecoArt Media Black Gesso - ONE coat my friends - this product is awesomeness in a pot. I then added some stringy fabric I got in the Halloween section at Wilko's and added more gesso over the top. I followed that with a light smearing of DecoArt Metallic Lustre in Silver Spark then Champagne Ice to bring out the textures of the tissue and string. The webs are die cut (Tim Holtz for Sizzix) in white card and given a wash of Payne's Grey paint from the Media line. I blended the edges of the webs into the background with more black gesso before highlighting some areas again with the Metallic Lustre in Silver Spark. My spiders are plastic kiddies ones given a coat of black gesso then a touch of Quin Gold Media paint.

Behind the aperture I added some book page covered in strips of mummy's bandage! The bandage is created with torn pieces of calico dyed with Distress Sprays in Antique Linen, Hickory Smoke and Tea Dye, then glued down in rows onto the book page. I love this!!!

My MDF skull (The MDF Man - he does the NEC show amongst others) is painted with white gesso to undercoat it before I slapped on a great load of DecoArt Media Crackle Paste with a palette knife. I varied the thickness to get an uneven crackle - the thicker paste gives bigger cracks. Cool or what? Only thing I don't like about this crackle is I need patience with it (patience I do not have in spades!) as this took a good 8 hours to dry properly (it was VERY thick). Worth it though, heh? When dry I covered the whole thing with DecoArt Antiquing Cream in grey. I didn't actually let it dry as per the instructions because I wanted the skull to have plenty of white remaining, so I wiped it straight back with a baby wipe so mostly it was left in the cracks. I then added black Antiquing Cream around the edges and under the eye sockets - again I didn't let it fully dry before removing the excess as I didn't want it too dark (I also didn't want to scrub too hard at the crackle as it can come off if you are very heavy-handed).

Finally (did you get this far? Well done!!!) I did some faux metal effects on this die cut bookplate and also on the metal corners and keyplate. This is black gesso, then DecoArt Sand Texture Paste, then DecoArt Metallic Gold paint, then more black gesso then Quin Gold - the latter two just applied in places with my finger. On the metal items, I used Metallic Lustre instead, adding it last after the Quin Gold rather than before. The brads are bashed with a hammer and then brushed with black gesso. Hard to see here but the insert in the bookplate is also distressed with Distress Sprays - same colours as used for the bandages.

Phew! Sorry that might be information overload!!

Thanks for visiting today! And if you want to learn more about DecoArt stuff I have just started out doing workshops in Bromsgrove (England) - info on my Facebook page.

Katy x

Sardine Shrine

I've been at the upcycling again today - inspired by a project I saw years ago by Gail Milburn (Efemera) which was made from a sardine tin. Advice suggests we feed our new doggie oily fish from time-to-time to make his coat shiny, so recently we've had sardine tins in the house - something we don't normally have because I think they are disgusting!!!

My make is a shrine to an inspirational woman and artist - the amazing Frida Kahlo. The stamp of Frida is by Stampotique - isn't she lovely? While conceiving this project I noticed that the current challenge at Our Creative Corner is Mexico Moods - so I used their moodboard, along with Frida's paintings, to inspire my colours.

I am entering lovely Frida into some challenges:

Our Creative Corner: Mexico Moods

Frilly and Funkie: Raise It Up (because the inside is layered with pieces of chipboard and it's literally raised up on a plinth!)

Simon Say Stamp Monday Challenge: Anything Goes

Here's a bit more info on how I made my piece for you.

My sardine tin is gessoed, then lightly coated with Viva Decor Terra Paste. Once dry I painted it a terracotta colour - reminiscent of Mexican pottery.

Inside the back of my shrine is a stamped skull (Tim Holtz) - linked to Frida's fascination with death. On top of this I built up a layer of stamped leaves and butterflies (Rubber Dance).

Frida Kahlo (Stampotique) is coloured with Distress Markers (her skin is darker on the piece - the light has bleached the colour a bit here). She has flowers in her hair (sprayed with Picked Raspberry Distress Spray), gemstone earrings and a butterfly and skull at her neck.

The stand is made of a cotton reel and a wood circle painted with DecoArt Metallic Paint in Gold (this paint is AMAZING - one coat and this coverage!) and aged with DecoArt Antiquing Cream in Black. The muse word is stamped onto card painted with the same Gold paint. The whole piece is finished with beads,

Finally a view of the side where you can see that I used the same method as for the base to create the golden wings and glued them to the back of the tin. I ran a length of lace all around the tin and added gold paint highlights with a dry brush. Frida is mounted inside on some layers of chipboard to bring her towards the front of the shrine.

I hope that my shrine is deserving of Frida - thanks for looking - I hope you like her.

Hope to see you soon,

Katy x

This isn't a DT make but my fave RD stamps still get a plug! I used these Rubber Dance stamps:

Twiggy Leaves

Antique Botanicals

You've Got Mail!

A really quick, simple project today - and there's that Stampotique bee again!!!

I got this post box from Dunelm in the sale and gently altered it for my craft space. It was white already and as my scheme is green, white and wood I kept it the original colour, simply covering the existing writing on the front with a die cut label adorned with a bee.

All the edges are inked with Archival Watering Can ink which worked so well! I officially LOVE Wendy's inks.

It's happily sitting behind my desk now, keeping my Crop-a-Dile and big scissors safe :).

K xxx

Take Flight

When I saw that this week's Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge was 'Anything Goes' I decided to have a look through my recent purchases for my entry. I got this MDF pocket watch from Pink Tulip Creations and it's FAB so I decided to make a random little piece of craft room decor. She'll hang from my shelves.

Been playing with my lurvely Moon Girl stamp from Stampotique again and I added some inspirational words to my piece so am also entering this for the Stampotique SDC152 Sentimental Challenge.

Another birdie

OK who stole the weekend?

Another little birdy today. I actually made this ages ago (October last year in fact, for the Artisan show) but only recently rediscovered it in a box and hung it in my craft room :).

The stamps are PaperArtsy, the background is inked, stamped over with a map image in Distress Ink and then misted to bleed it into what looks like a fine crackle. The overstamped postmarks and splatters are PaperArtsy too. The whole thing is painted with Rock Candy for a subtle crackle (which further bleeds the Distress Ink too).

The flowers are cheap white Prima's - I always buy the white ones and just colour them to suit with sprays.

Looking like my next stamp set will be out in the next week or so - literally waiting for sign off and we are hopefully good to go. This one is my fave yet, it's lush if I do say so myself :).

Watch the birdie

This little bird hanging started out life as a class by Kirsty Wiseman but my version turned out a little different (as per)...

The birds are inked, covered in Rock Candy paint and then inked again with brown ink over the top to get the distressed look. The flowers are pounced with Distress Ink then sprayed with Perfect Pearl Mist to wick the ink out.

It presently resides on the back of my living room door :)

Thanks for popping over :)

More Artsycrafts

Determined to get more things off my 'to do' pile, I've finished a second project from the Artsycrafts event I attended last year (the third has been consigned to the bin as I really didn't like my version of it but two out of three ain't bad).

This one I actually like (wonders will never cease!) and I have insisted it spends at least a few days on the mantelpiece where I can enjoy it before it is relegated to the craft room (does every crafter have an OH who just doesn't get it???).

My project is largely the same as taught in class on the front, but inside I decided to add a more personal touch. At the workshop the niche inside the book contained a lovely owl image stamped onto metal, but I do like my projects to have meaning (one reason I enjoy scrapbooking I think) and so I chose to add a photo and journaling block to the inside of my folder instead.The photo is of a beautiful place in New England called Bash Bish falls. We loved it there and I felt the photo fit the theme 'sanctuary' really well as it was such a tranquil and peaceful place.

Hope you like - thanks for popping over :)

Gingersnaps - Notions challenge

Gingersnaps challenge this week is 'Notions' and here is my contribution. It's an altered tin to keep my 'special' buttons in - all the lovely vintage ones that are really too nice to use!

Here's what I did:

1) My tin was silver so I first coloured the areas which would be seen with gold Krylon pen.

2) I then used gel medium to adhere a torn scrap of old yellowed sewing pattern tissue to the lid.

3) I stamped the Hero Arts stamp (Simple Handmade set), trimmed, tearing one edge, and sponged with Antique Linen.

4) I stamped the dress form and label (7 Gypsies) onto Basic Grey Basics paper, cut out and added. I coloured the base of the dress form in pencil to match.

5) I embellished the tin with buttons tied with Stampin' Up linen thread, crochet trim, a tape measure cut from Cosmo Cricket paper (thank you Nix!) and MM letter stickers.

I hope you like my example and will play along with our challenge. Thanks for stopping by :)

Katy xxx