Showing posts with label Altered Art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Altered Art. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 23, 2017

What Good Are (Altered) Wings Wall Art


I teased these when I shared my last project: Another Altered Cabinet Door. I might need to change my blog name to something w/ "altered" in it . 


I saw these wood wings earlier in the year at Michaels when they first came in and went back and forth on them mostly because they had a whole selection of different wings and I couldn't decide. That became easier when after procrastinating, there were fewer to choose from but the ones that remained were 70% off. Score! I mean they were originally only $19.99 but I got them for $5.99. Deal. 

Supplies: 
  • Wooden Wings
  • Acrylic Paint
  • White Glue
  • Leafing Glue
  • Silver Leaf
  • Vinyl Quote
  • Misc. Embellishments 
I had all of the other supplies in my stash which Mr. Chocolate calls "The Michaels Annex".


Paint with your basecoat color of choice. I used Craftsmart gray. Since I'm partial to a chippy / shabby / crackled look, I didn't care about complete coverage. 


If you prefer a more opaque look, go over w/ another coat. 

Did a combination of my fave white glue crackle and dry brushing over the grey using white acrylic paint. While the paint was drying, I laid out my quote in my Silhouette software and cut w/ my Cameo. The quote is by the poet Atticus: 

This is the same font I used for my vinyl ( it's called Ambrosia) and of course now I don't remember where I downloaded it from!  

I cut out my quote using black matte vinyl and since I'm easily frustrated w/ vinyl projects and inevitably muck something up that results in swear words , I trimmed the words into individual pieces to minimize the muck up opportunity. 


This also made it easier to lay out the words. Once I was happy with where I wanted them, I applied them to the wings. 


Never content to leave anything alone ( what fun is that?!) I decided to add some silver leaf to the tips of the wings and pulled out this pair of plaster wings I had in my stash, along w/ some adhesive rhinestone swirls. 

Metallic leafing is such a rich accent. I love adding bits and pieces of it to things. You need a good leafing glue ( called size) and I like the Mona Lisa brand. Basically paint where you want your leafing to go using the glue, wait 20-30 min (weather conditions matter so if hot, shorter time) until tacky and then apply your leafing. You can find many tutorials on how to use metal leafing on Pinterest and You Tube so won't go into that here. 



It hangs in our entryway which I pass everyday on my way to my office and it's a great reminder to me to be fearless, try new things, challenge myself. 

Monday, August 14, 2017

Another Altered Cabinet Door: NEST Sign


I mentioned in an earlier post how I love using cabinet doors for projects. I usually find mine at a local architectural salvage place and got this one along with a previous one for a donation of $5 ( for both) to Habitat for Humanity. 

We have a lot of blank wall space which I don't actually mind, but it's also great for when an idea does hit because  I haven't had to take something else down. This will hang in our TV watching area where we end up spending a fair amount of our time .  This is where I find out all of the latest intrigue on "Game of Thrones", say goodbye to my Sestras on "Orphan Black", see who's up to what on "Scandal" and "How to Get Away With Murder" and Netflix and chill.

We also read here when the TV's not on. We're homebodies so the them of "Nest" seemed appropriate.

Supplies: 
  • Salvaged Cabinet Door
  • Acrylic Paints
  • White School Glue
  • Printed Tissue Paper (Recollections)
  • Mod Podge
  • Adhesive Foil (I used Cricut Gold Metallic)
  • Scrabbook Paper (C'oredinations Cream and Black) 
  • Misc Embellishments
  • Die Cut and/or Electronic Cutting Machine (Silhouette and Cuttlebug)


The wooden wings will be part of another post but I took a pic of the unfinished cabinet door with them so more on that later in the week. 




I painted the "frame" of the door with black acrylic paint (I used Craftsmart). Taped off the edges and then painted the interior with cream acrylic paint. 


I didn't worry about complete coverage of the interior because I knew I'd be putting the tissue paper here.  Cut the tissue paper to size and then apply using Mod Podge. 

Measured out my tissue paper before I painted
Using my favorite white glue technique, I crackled the frame of the door. Basically paint a layer of glue ; let dry until tacky but not completely dry ; paint over w/ contrasting color. 

Tip: You want to use long even strokes and go in one direction, not up and down. Back to School is the perfect time to stock up on cheap, white, glue! 


While that was drying, I laid out my design on my Silhouette Cameo, then cut the images and lettering using Cricut Gold Foil. 

Enter frustration. When I applied the foil pieces, the transfer tape pulled up the Mod Podged tissue paper in some spots. The nice thing about working w/ the tissue paper was that it was easy to tear some "matching" pieces and just repair those spots with a little more Mod Podge. 


I don't think you can really tell where I had to patch. I used my Cuttlebug to cut the flowers ( Tim Holtz Tattered Florals) rolled the edges and added rolled roses in the center. I rummaged around in my mismatched embellishment stash and found some swirly things ( technical term) that I painted to match and put on the nest image and the corners of the door. 



Monday, December 8, 2014

Altered Vintage Grater Christmas Decor

Altered Grater

While walking through an antique store looking for a pair of ice skates ( no joy) I stumbled upon this old grater. Along with the ice skates I was actually looking for a box grater ( also no joy).  I had no idea what I was going to do with it (it’s not like I knew what I was going to do with the box grater either) but I knew I’d regret not getting it.

Dimensional Mod Podge Charms

The focal for this is actually the “25” charm which is what I’ll show you how to make.

For this you will need:
  • Dimensional Mod Podge ( I used silver glitter)
  • Mod Podge Matte
  • Jewelry bezels (Michaels)
  • Scap of scrapbook paper
  • Punch (my 1” punch fit the bezels perfectly)
This is one of those easiest projects ever that people will think is a lot harder than it is. Let them. Also, you can use one of the pendants for actual jewelry!

Mod Podge Charms 1

Here’s how difficult this is:
  • Punch circles from paper
  • Adhere circle to bezel w/ Mod Podge Matte
  • Flood bezel with Dimensional Mod Podge, let dry
25 Charm

For the grater itself? Easy peasy. Wrap the grater with a scrap of dropcloth or fabric scrap. Make a pinwheel from more paper scraps. Add a star and the “25” charm. I added another charm I made from microscope slides. Finish with a strip of washi tape and a button.  Mine sits in my kitchen because it’s a grater and even though I alter them with all kinds of non-kitchen stuff….duh!

Altered Grater 1

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Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Coffee Can Snowman Hat

Coffee Can Snowman Hat

I am convinced that Frosty the Snowman drinks a lot of coffee ( iced of course) in order to keep up with everything during the holidays. He left me an empty can to prove it so in his honor, I decided to make a hat out of it to add to my Christmas décor.

I’m also excited that this project is my first as a Guest Designer for DCWV (Diecuts With A View)! I have loved their papers and products for years and to get to design with them? Priceless!



For this project you will need:
  • Empty Coffee Can
  • Chipboard or cardboard for brim
  • Craft Paint
  • DCWV Candy Cane Lane Stack
  • DCWV Glitzy Glitter Stack
  • Embellishments
DCWV Candy Cane Lane

The Candy Cane Lane stack is so much fun filled with black and white ( my fave!) and bright red papers.

Coffee Can Snowman Hat Prep

Step 1:
Prep your can. You could paint the whole thing but I just painted the edges and then cut plain black paper to fit around the can. I did the same with the bottom of the can which became the top of my hat. Apply paper with strong double sided tape or glue.

Coffee Can Snowman Hat Prep 1

Step 2:
Cut a circle larger than your can. This will be the brim. I used chipboard and painted it black. Once your “brim” is dry hot glue your can ( bottom side up) to the brim. Now comes the fun part. Now comes the fun part! Decorate!

DCWV Holiday Glitzy Glitter

Step 3:
One thing I love about the DCCWV products is that the colors of the different stacks and papers often coordinate so you can use papers from different collecttions together. To decorate my hat, I punched circles from the Holiday Glitzy Glitter Stack using a red and silver glittered candy cane striped paper.  Apply these with strong tape or glue ( I broke my Xyron…Santa?)

DCWV Candy Cane Lane Tags

Step 4:
Back to the Candy Cane Lane Stack, I chose a sheet of tags and cut a couple of them to use for my hat. I mounted these on scrap chipboard and embellished with sequins and glitter glue .


At this point I was having fun with my hat and didn’t take pictures ooops!  I grabbed some ribbons from my stash and wrapped around the brim as shown ( so don’t worry if you have glue showing...use a wide ribbon and no one will know).

I had some pompom and silver ribbon that I hot glued around the top of the brim. I added some metallic pipe cleaners, a snow shovel, and large jingle bells, and gave the top of my hat a dusting of snow using glue and large glitter flakes.

Coffee Can Snowman Hat Top

DCWV Holiday Glitzy Glitter Circle

DCWV papers are available at JoAnn's and Michaels. I was provided with materials used in this project. Project idea and opinions are my own.  For other great DCWV ideas, please stop by the DCWV blog !

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Monday, November 18, 2013

Necessity Is The Mother of Color Combinations: Altered Cookie Tin

Altered Cookie Tin

This will be the second year that College Boy won’t be home for Thanksgiving. It’s all good. He would have to travel late on Wednesday and Sunday, the busiest and most expensive travel days of the year and he is fortunate to have multiple invitations to Thanksgiving dinners.


Still, I wanted to send him some goodies from home which presented a reason , excuse, opportunity to alter something. Oh darn!

My  problem was, the only tin I had was not exactly a Thanksgiving color (bright blue) and I didn’t feel like painting the rim. Then it dawned on me that College Boy’s school colors are orange and blue so I thought orange = pumpkin = I have scrapbook paper in a color that will work!

For this project you will need:
  • Empty tin ( forgot to take pictures…this one was from those long rolled filled wafer cookies)
  • Scrapbook paper ( I used a harlequin and polka dot pattern in matching colors. Paper from Oriental Trading Company)
  • Decoupage Medium ( I used Martha Stewart Matte finish)
  • Coordinating Ribbon, button, beads
Altered Cookie Tin Pumpkin and Blue

Measured the harlequin paper to fit the tin and applied with the decoupage medium. Using the lid as a guide, traced a circle on the same paper, cut out and applied to the lid, leaving the rim bare. When I alter tins with lids I like to leave the top of the tin itself and the rim of the lid bare so there isn’t any issue with fit.
Altered Cookie Tin Top

I decided to keep the rest simple ( OK simple for me) and happened to have some coordinating glitter ribbon in my stash which I applied to the top and bottom of the tin.
Using the coordinating polka dot paper, I made a medallion for the center of the tin ( 3x12 with 1/2 inch pleats). Hot glued this to the tin and finished with a coordinating button tied with plain twine and leaf shaped beads.
Inside the tin are chocolate butter cookies that he loves. I only make these once a year during December, but this year I made an exception !

Altered Cookie Tin Pinwheel


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Monday, May 6, 2013

Blogiversary Giveaway #2: Cigar Box Full of Goodies to Alter It With

Anniversary Banner-001

Don't forget I have a giveaway from My Memories Suite going here.  

This giveaway is sponsored by : ME. My readers know that I love to alter things. I'm also really lucky to have a husband who gets that, and does things like bring  home cigar boxes for me to play with. I have seen them for sale at up to 10 times what he's gotten them for. SO ...I want to give one away to one lucky reader. 

I think I read somewhere( or just made up in my head) that it's bad luck to give away an empty box. What fun would it be to have a cigar box to alter without anything to alter it with anyway?  One reader will get a box filled with some of my favorite goodies to play with. Want to see? 


There are rub-ons and embellishments and washi tape oh my! Couldn't resist including a mini paper mache dress form too. 


Here's the top of the box (some places I've found cigar boxes rip off the lid but this lid is fully in tact which makes this a great place to store bits and pieces) You can use as is, cover it, or incorporate the design into your altered vision. 


And the box itself is a nice cedar ( I think ..but it's some kind of wood!). So in keeping with my history of "craftsplaining" um no, I don't smoke cigars but I sure do love the boxes they come in! Who wants it? (Gonna have to limit this to US only because ....postage)


The Answer Is Chocolate
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Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Beachy and Botanical Altered Cigar Box

Altered Beach and Floral Cigar Box

I wanted something special to hold the earring and bracelet sets I shared in my previous post.

Not long ago, Mr. Chocolate came home with several empty cigar boxes for me ( and came home with MORE again this week!)  I grabbed one of them and got to work.

For this project you will need:
  • Cigar or wood box to alter
  • Paint ( I used Ceramcoat Paradise and Martha Stewart Wedding Cake)
  • Decorative papers (I used a piece of scrapbook paper and some washi paper I collect but rarely ever use)
  • Embellishments (I used botanical rub ons by K&Co, postage themed tag stickers, self adhesive copper frame, and coordinating washi tape)
  • Mod Podge
  • Clear drying dimensional glue

Altered Beach Box

I started by painting the edges of my box with the beachy blue ( Paradise). I didn't sand or remove any of the paper that's on top of the wood. I liked the texture. Just painted right over it.

Altered Beach Box Dry Brush

After that was dry, I dry brushed it with the white paint. I was going for a weathered beachy feel.

Altered Beach Box Cover

I measured my scrapbook paper ( top, bottom, and inside lid) and the washi paper ( sides) and then applied them to the box with Mod Podge. Added scraps of the washi paper to the corners of the top and then added the postal tag stickers and botanical rub-ons.

Altered Beach Box K&Co Frame

For the focal point of my box, I used the brochure from the hotel owned by the recipients. Placed an adhesive copper frame over the section I wanted to feature and added some super glue to get it really good and stuck. Trimmed using an XActo knife and filled with clear dimensional adhesive to give it a 3-D  look.

Altered Beach Box Dimensional Glue

Ooops I got a bubble in there but oh well. If you catch those before your glue is dry, you can pop them with a pin. Once the glue was dry, I superglued it to the top of the box.

Altered Beach Box Inside Lid

I finished up the box by applying the same scrapbook paper to the inside of the lid, added more washi tape and a couple more of the rub ons.

The owners of the hotel are avid gardeners so I thought beachy and  botanical worked out.

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