A Lacy Canvas

I have been on Pinterest quite a bit lately. One of the things that keeps popping up is lace and vintage neutral fabrics made into books, banners and mixed-media art.

I wanted to play with this style myself, but not wanting to get out the sewing machine, I thought I would try it with canvas.

I started by adhering pieces of cheesecloth, eyelet and lace to the canvas with Prima’s Heavy Body Gel. This is a great medium for adhering heavy and difficult-to-adhere items. I put on a layer of the gel, then the lace, and then another layer of the gel. It worked well, except I noticed it can easily build up inside the pieces of lace. I also didn’t like the sort of plastic look it gave when dry — even though I did not get the glossy, it still has too much shine for me.

I also used a stencil and texture paste to add a bit more texture and design. This didn’t work too well on the bumpy lace, but you would never know if you don’t try.

I wanted to add a little color, so I spritzed it with Dylusions spray. Again, not the best solution, but it did add a bit of color here and there. One problem was that when I went to glue anything on top of it, because it is water soluble, I got a bit of rose ink on my canvas. NOTE: Use permanent or archival product instead!

Next I used Archival Ink and an ink applicator to color the lace. I added a photo of my husband’s grandmother (a favorite of mine) and then I went to work adhering flowers, gems and other embellishments.

I used chipboard letters and the same Archival Ink to create the title … 

Many of the objects I added were leftovers from other projects or the last one of something I have been carrying around for years. The buttons sewed onto tulle was something new I purchased at the Great Lakes Mega Meet. The key is also new from Tim Holtz. The fragment (square clock face) had been made years ago for another project and was never used. I finally put it to good use!

The metal stars and flowers are new from Prima. The bird charm I made by trimming a piece of art from Craft Fantastic to fit an old bezel I had from Hobby Lobby. I then coated the entire thing with a layer of Globecraft UV Resin (which I haven’t used in years. Globecraft is now part of Sweet Stamps.) and let it sit in the sun for a few minutes to cure. I forgot how much fun that stuff was!

I love how my canvas turned out, although I do need to find a different medium to adhere the lace next time. Have you tried any of these techniques?

Texture Paste Resist Canvas

When Tammy Tutterow posted the Transparent Texture Paste Resist on Fabric technique on the Ranger Blog, I knew I had to try it. I’ve included the link here, so you can follow her instructions and see the beautiful project she created.

But, I also wanted to show you my take on her technique.

Use Archival Ink and a stencil to create the background on a canvas. Use washi tape to hold the stencil in place while working.

Use another stencil and apply Transparent Glossy Texture Paste.

 

Once dry, spray with Dylusions ink. Randomly blot and dry until you get the result you want.

Add ribbon with Scor-Tape (or similar). Adhere charm, wires and flowers with Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive.

Use the Crop-A-Dile to create holes in the top and add to hang.

Happy Birthday, Bianca

This month’s challenge at Scrap It Girl is a color challenge. The rules are simple. create something using navy, red, cream and kraft paper.

Since my cousin’s birthday is coming up, I thought I would make her a card in the Americana color scheme.

I used one of the doll stamps from Prima (Becky), but I only kept her bottom half. I love the way she looks hanging around in the top corner of the card. I colored her with Copic markers and then attached her with dimensional foam adhesive.

The paper is from Authentique.

I cut out the words, “Happy Birthday”, with an Elizabeth Craft Designs die.

As a final touch, I added some Glitter Flowers and Glitter Dots from Elizabeth Craft Designs.

Please join me in wishing Bianca a very happy birthday!

Now it’s your turn … grab some supplies and create a project using navy, red, cream and kraft paper and share it on Scrap It Girl. You could win an amazing array of prizes!

Willis Family Photos

The challenge for Mosaic Moments this time was to be inspired by Pride and Prejudice.

Here is how my page turned out …

To see my inspiration and how I created this page, visit Journella, here.

Docked

During a working trip to Ludington, Matt & I took a few hours to do a bit of sightseeing. This was the first weekend in April and although Lake Michigan was beginning to thaw, there were still lots of chunks of ice floating around.

The Badger was in dock, with its sister ship, The Spartan. I have always wanted to ride the car ferry over to Wisconsin, but have never had the opportunity. I have been on car ferries before, but they were nowhere near the size of these boats. I was surprised at just how massive these boats were! I was so intrigued by them, Matt took me back to see them the next morning when the lighting was better.

Showing size and scale in a photo is always a challenge. I had Matt stand directly behind an old lifeboat to try to show how large they were. I kept the newer lifeboats hanging on the boat in the photo so you could compare the size. Because there is so much going on in the photo, I used a metal porthole frame from Prima to highlight Matt.

I was also amazed at the size of the chains anchoring the boat. I tried to take photos to show the scale, but they didn’t work at all.

I did add a bit of ribbon chain, from Hobby Lobby, to go on the page, in memory of that chain.

I used Mosaic Moments Grid Paper in Pewter on this page. I also used Paper Tiles in black, white and Scarlet, along with corners in black and white. The letters are Thickers from American Crafts. I accented the pages with more metal embellishments from Prima. These are available in my store …  I used Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear adhesive to attach all of the metal pieces.

I also took a few pictures of the icebergs floating around and used those as smaller photos to connect the page together. What do you think?

Pretty in Pink

The May challenge at Scrap It Girl is to “Mother or Mother Nature”. I opted to show the beautiful relationship between my cousin and her baby.

My cousin is constantly taking photos of Layla in all sorts of adorable outfits and posting them on Facebook for me to enjoy. I keep threatening to steal the photos so I can do a scrapbook page. When she posted photos taken by Danielle Franklin, I could not hold back any longer.

Of course, this time I got permission, from both the photographer and my cousin, to reprint the photos and to share them with you …

I knew I wanted the photos to really shine and I wanted to play up the fabrics and textures in Layla’s outfit. So, I opted for a sheet of pink cardstock and added some elegant trims to the top and bottom.

Some of the items I wanted to use, like this lace from Prima, were too white. To tone down the color a bit, I used a bit of Antique Linen Distress Ink.

On the Maya Road flower (lace with the pearl in the middle), I used Ranger Perfect Pearls Mists to alter the color a bit.

Then I just layered a variety of trims, flowers, gems and even some of my chicken’s feathers to the page.

The title is made with gold Thickers.

So that is my project for Scrap It Girl for May … Now it is your turn. Create a project based on the mother theme and post it at Scrap It Girl before the end of May. You could win some fabulous prizes!!

Love at First Sight

I am excited to share this page. Inspired by “Letters to Juliet,” it is one of my all-time favorite pages.

Click here to read about my inspiration and get step-by-step directions for creating this type of Mosaic Moments page.

Bottle of Angels

The challenge this month on Scrap It Girl is Angels or Arrows. For me, angels was much more challenging, so of course I had to choose angels.

I selected paper from KaiserCraft’s new baby boy line and cut out the banner, title and cherubs.

 

After I cut them out, I used Vintage Photo Distress Ink to color the edges. This helps to soften the edges, covers up the harsh white line around the paper and helps to cover up any cutting errors. Notice the difference in this photo with the cherubs on the left, uninked, and the one on the right, inked.

Then I coated the cherubs and the banner with a thick coat of Glastique. This will make the paper cut outs look like epoxy. It will also make them durable, so the piece can be dusted without tearing the paper. And, it will allow me to mold the images to add a bit of dimension. (If your store doesn’t carry it, you can get it online by clicking the Globecraft & Piccolo Shop Here link on the side of my page).

While that was drying, I grabbed an old bottle I had.

 

Prima sold these little milk jug bottles, several years ago, filled with tiny paper flowers. While I have used most of the flowers, I kept all of the jars for a future project — like this one.

I used Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive to attach everything to the bottle. It dries quickly and holds well. I wrapped the jar in papers, ribbon (May Arts) and lace (Webster’s Pages). Then I added feathers, the cut outs, flowers (KaiserCraft) and Dew Drops (Robin’s Nest).

For the lid, I wrapped some twine and added a bit of paper to the top.

You can click on the pictures for a larger view.

so that is my angel project. It is now your turn … you can create anything: altered art, a card, a mini album, a scrapbook layout or anything else you want and submit it to Scrap It Girl this month. There is a HUGE prize package for the winner and I hope it goes to you!

Click here for details.

 

 

 

 

Technique Thursday: Liquid Pearls

Time completely got away from me this week … I pulled something in my back, spent time with my daughter, helped out at Capture A Memory, taught a class, wrote a few articles for Michigan Scrapbooker magazine, planted flowers, and helped my husband build a chicken coop for meat chickens and a couple of turkeys. I have to pause here and show you the turkeys because they are so cute …

They remind me of little ostriches.

This is the little turkey showing off and declaring dominance against my husband. He never does it to me, but every time my husband comes by, those feathers come out and he struts about. Hilarious!

Needless to say, there has not been a lot of time for crafting projects that could be placed online. So, I have decided to give in and let Father Time have this past week and I will start fresh this week with an early peek at Technique Thursday — LIQUID PEARLS.

Liquid Pearls are made by Ranger and they come in a little bottle like Stickles. They are a dimensional paint with a pearl finish and are a great economical way to make pearl gems on a page. They can be used on just about any surface, including fabric.

Here is a bottle I altered … it was from IKEA and was filled with some sort of berry juice my husband loves. I liked the shape, so I kept it. I attached an image from Crafty Secrets and then created a design around the bottle with dots of Liquid Pearls. I let it dry between sections so I wouldn’t accidentally ruin something I had already finished (trust me, I do this a lot and it is not pretty). Then, I added a few flowers from KaiserCraft and Prima to finish it off.

Here’s a close-up of the pattern at the bottom …

The lid had a code on it, so I used Liquid Pearls and a paint brush to make a rippled effect on the cap …

Next, I made this card with Basic Grey paper, flowers from KaiserCraft, and a Tim Holtz Die Cut flower.

I love using Liquid Pearls as flower centers.

For the giant center flower, I painted a thin coat of Liquid Pearls onto the cardstock die cut. When dry, I traced the edge with another color and added a bunch of dots to make the flower center.

You can also use Liquid Pearls on fabric …

This is just a piece of muslin. I used a paintbrush to apply Liquid Pearls to a rubber stamp and stamped the flowers on the fabric. Then, I added flower centers, leaves and a little pattern with different colors of Liquid Pearls. Imagine how cute something like this could be on the pocket of an apron or at the top of a baby’s onesie!?!

Come into Capture A Memory on Thursday from 2-6 p.m. and try out Liquid Pearls for yourself.  I know you will love them.

By the way, Capture A Memory is hiring, so if you are looking for a part-time job in the scrapbooking industry, or you know someone who is, please have them call or stop by.

Fairy Altered Book

Sometimes the greatest ideas come in those wee hours just before falling asleep.

This is one of those …

I have been wanting to make an altered book for many years — decades, actually — but I never had the courage to try. But, when I moved, I “found” an old copy of Alice in Wonderland. The book had purple on the edges of the pages and was such a nice copy that I couldn’t get rid of it — even though my daughter had written on many of the pages. And, with the perfect book in hand, I knew it was time to attempt to make an altered book.

It took me awhile because I wanted to allow plenty of dry time and I had to carefully think everything through, but it wasn’t difficult.

To start, I covered the inside of the cover in paper. Then, I cut out a few pages at the beginning (to get to pages filled with text). Next, I rolled a few pages and glued them down in the middle of the open book. Once that was dry (I was afraid of messing things up, so I did a little bit each day, allowing for plenty of dry time) I used Ranger’s Glue ‘n Seal to paint the edges of the pages on the right side so they would become one solid block.

Next, I traced the interior piece of one of the Globecraft Memories frames and began cutting an oval out of the book. I used my Fisker’s craft knife and continued to cut in sections until I made it all the way to the bottom of the book. I then coated the inside of the oval with Glue ‘n Seal and added some paper and ribbon.

Then, I covered the exterior of the book in the same paper and added a tassel and metal plate that I’ve been carrying around for years …

Back on the inside, I decided I wanted to soften the white pages a bit, so I added some Distress Ink and discovered an awesome technique …

The Distress Ink doesn’t show where the Glue ‘n Seal was. Doesn’t it make for a great look?!?

Next, I wanted to make a place for my fairy to sit, so I used some paper, Glue ‘n Seal, Clearly For Art (by Wendy Vecchi, Studio 490) and a Tim Holtz/Sizzix die to make some flowers. I also pulled out some leftover Prima flowers in a variety of colors and sprayed them all with Adirondack Color Wash in Butterscotch and then a thin coating of Perfect Pearls Mists in Heirloom Gold. The flowers were a variety of green, pink and purple and I love how different they all became with the same treatment. Here’s the inside with the fairy (I used Glue Dots to attach her.

Next came the Globecraft Memories frame … I covered them with paper and paint and attached them together. I still needed a bit of space between the plastic globe and the fairy, so I added a couple layers of dimensional foam.

Then it was just a matter of embellishing … I added some ribbon, some more handmade flowers (some made out of the pages of the book I took out), some more Prima flowers that I dyed and a couple of metal embellishments. I also made a butterfly the same way I made the flowers (paper, Glue ‘n Seal, Tim Holtz/Sizzix die & Clearly For Art) and added some wire antennae. Finally, for some added girly charm, I glued on several Dew Drops from Robin’s Nest.

I love the depth inside the globe. Isn’t this the perfect addition to any girly room?!