Valentine Treasure Box

Hi there - Teresa here bringing you a Valentine's day project with an old world vintage feel to it.

I wanted to design something that could hang on a wall year round, and something that wasn't necessarily girly.  This is what I came up with:

Read on for step by step instructions:

The Shadow Box can be found here : Shadow Box

Step 1
Paint any areas of the Twiddleybitz shadow box you don't intend to cover with paper. I have used a deliciously vintage purple colour of Fresco Finish acrylic called Squid Ink here, and applied with with a sponge:

Step 2
Cover the front frame of the shadow box with paper. I have used Paper Artsy's Thorndon Hall paper pack:

 

Step 3

To give the frame more texture, I mixed some of the Squid Ink with Grunge Paste and applied it through a Brocade stencil:

Step 4
Once dry, I applied some Treasure Gold and buffed with a soft cloth:

Step 5
I used the Brocade stencil again to sponge some gold ink onto the backboard of the shadow box. I just did the edges because that's all that will be visible when complete:

Step 6
It's then a matter of stacking some papers to create dimension. I have mixed some Squid Ink paint with water in a Mini Mister to create my own spray, and used this to alter some of the papers:

 

Here I have used some heart shaped Spellbinders dies and some gauze to create a central focus:

Then I added a key cut from some of the patterned paper in the pack with ribbons tied around it, and then added some gold tassel trim:

Step 7
The finishing touches included:

A flourish cut from chipboard with a Sizzix die and some chicken wire coloured with Butterscotch alcohol ink, and some sticker alphabet stickers:

A couple of little corked bottles and a rolled up 'letter':

and lastly a tattered flower made from the sprayed patterned paper:

I hope you've enjoyed my vintage love project!

Password Journal

Hello Everyone from Joan 

This is very simple bookbinding that was prompted by my different passwords for so many things.  I was sick of resetting them, so I have been meaning to do make one of these for ages.

All the products used in this project can be found here:

www.crafterscupboard.com.au

Journal

Firstly, I decided what sort of size I needed for this password book.  I found an easy template to use that would be not too big – about A5 so I could print off the template for the middle pages in A4 and then fold in half. Thanks to http://serialcrafting.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/password-organizer.html for the template.

I then trimmed the pages down to fit my desired size – approx. 2cm off both ends and 1cm off both sides.

I decided that the easiest way to bind the cover and pages together would be to do a simple 5 hole pamphlet stitch.  You can check this link out http://www.designsponge.com/2013/03/bookbinding-101-five-hole-pamphlet-stitch.html

I measured up 5 holes evenly across the cover using a paper ruler and then lined it up on the pages from the inside. 

I then pushed an awl through the hole lot (5 times).  I threaded some crochet cotton double and I entered from the centre – I wanted some beads on the outside. If you want the knot not to show on the outside, start from the inside. I secured the knot at the end making sure that the stitches were firm but not tight.

Cover.

I just couldn’t help myself (they were burning a hole) so I had to use the Paper Artsy Eclectica stamps (Darcy series 1).   I sprayed some Dylusions dyes (bubblegum pink, white linen, sunshine & black marble). I coloured in the leaves around the heart and the zipper tag with Wink of Stella pens. Because I had to use the zippered heart I then fancied a stencil skeleton as they go together anatomically (TCW), and then I scraped through some black glitter paste.

I layered the heart as it became lost behind the skeleton, cut along and curled the “torn” line.  I then layered and mounted this to the Password Journal. 

 I now just need to fill it in all the pages with my passwords.Hope you all enjoy this project as much as I did!

Until next time,

Joan

Fun with Glitter Paste

Happy New Year to all! Teresa here with some ideas on what to do with a fantastic product called GlitzCraft Glitter Paste.

The first thing you need to know about it is that is by far and away the CLEANEST way to have glitter end up on your project! It's a paste (as you can tell from the name), which means it doesn't end up all over your workspace, in your hair, clothes and all over your face. It's also fast drying - fantastic for impatient crafters like me!

Being a paste, it is wonderfully easy to apply through a stencil.  Here is the Silver Glitter Paste on black cardstock using a palette knife through the Silhouette Script stencil:

You can see it goes on lovely and thick to give an opaque finish. The edges are also sharp and neat.

  

The next project is a tag:

I applied Dusty Pink Glitter Paste through the Circle Explosion stencil in the background. I then used a thin paint brush to apply Coral Glitter Paste on the spaces in the letters of this Darkroom Door Journey stamp.

I then grabbed a chipboard flower and applied glitter paste leaving a rough 'heaped' look:

The last thing I did to this tag was rub some Glitter Paste onto some cotton lace. It adhered really well, and dried with some flexibility so it didn't flake off when I stitched the lace to the card on my sewing machine:

I wanted to see how this product performed on acetate - I must say I was impressed! Here's a card with an acetate front:

I applied the Glitter Paste through the Fancy Feathers stencil, and not only did it adhere well, I was impressed at the sharpness of the images:

This product is fantastic:

- easy and neat to apply
- easy to clean up (it all washes out in water before it's dry)
- gives sharp images though stencils
- can be used in a variety of ways
- dries quickly (I'm talking two minutes! Even faster with a heat gun!)
- comes in a wide variety of colours

You can see Crafters Cupboard's full range here. This product is a wonderful addition to your mixed media arsenal.

Thanks for dropping by today!

Mixed Media Mini Book Workshop

Hi Folks

Just a quick note to tell you about an exciting new workshop series we have coming up later in February, which will take place over 2 consecutive weekends (Saturday 22nd Feb and Saturday 1st March) in Berwick.

You'll learn new techniques, including how to make card look like leather,  using texture and mixed media (fabric, metal, paper, to name a few) to create a double mini book with a nature theme. You'll be making your own embellishments, including the use of some natural materials - I've already seen the book made up and it's an absolute treasure ! I'm itching to make one myself  as this project has a real twist to it, and the techniques can be applied to bigger projects once you've learnt the basics.

The cost includes materials, so just bring along yourself, your lunch and your tool kit and be prepared for a busy day !

As there is a lot to this project, the two workshops will run from 9.30 am through to approx 4.30 pm. Pop along to the website and book quickly as places are limited - you will be delighted with the mini book that you make, you'll get to meet a new & talented Tutor who has joined our team in 2014, and as well as having fun, you'll learn a lot !! Go here  to book your place !!

Here's some photos to give you a sneak peek of what's to come

See you soon. ...

Jennifer

How to make a Grunge Flower using Paper Artsy Dies & Metal Card

Hello Everyone from Joan

I love nature and in particular flowers, so when I saw these dies and the matching stamp I just had to have them.  The grunge flowers are easy to make and can be made out of design paper, card or metal shim.  The metal backing card makes the flower more flexible and helps to hold it's shape.

 Requirements - all found on the  Crafters Cupboard website.

• Paper Artsy grunge flower die 1, 2 & 3, found here:  Paper Artsy Grunge Flower Dies
• Ink, found here:  Ink choices
• Paper Artsy Metal on Card sheet, found here:  Metal Card
• Paper Artsy stamp HPXT02EZ, found here: Paper Artsy Hot Pick Flower Stamp HP T02 on Ezimount

1.   Mark an arrow (if not already done) at 1 o’clock on reverse of the ezymount on the back of the Hot Picks Flower Stamps so you can line up the die and the stamp later.  

2.   Glue the piece of metal on card to the paper or card that you are going to use.   Use a substantial amount of glue as you don’t want the layers to split, however you don’t want glue squeezed out onto your Big Shot when you run the dies through it.

3.   Place dies onto top (face down) of paper.  Secure with tape if necessary.  You need to cut one of each size (Dies 1,2,& 3)

4.   Run through Big Shot twice

5.   The die has a tiny notch that you need to align with the stamp.  Put a pencil mark at the notch BEFORE you remove the die.  It is really hard to line this up after, believe me.

6.   Line up the stamp with the arrow to the pencil line and stamp.  You don’t need to stamp at all and I have stamped the top and bottom only.

7.   Cut the smallest top petals about 0.5cm towards the centre.  The middle and largest bottom petals cut 1.5cm towards the centre.

8.   Manipulate the petals by folding them up towards the centre and squeezing them together.  They don’t roll like roses!

9. Layer the flowers, using foam dots or silicon.

10.  Add an embellishment to the centre.  These are some that I have made. 

     The blue and orange one is made using Paper Artsy paint.  These are fabulous embellishments for many projects and you can make them out of so many different mediums from Design Paper to Card to Canvas. Well worth a try and with a bit of practice you will be making fabulous flowers to decorate your many different projects, or even to embellish a beautifully wrapped gift for somebody. Give it a try !!

Until next time, Happy Crafting from

Joan