Showing posts with label Christmas Gift Idea. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas Gift Idea. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Marker Pen and Alcohol Tiles


I had some creative time this weekend, and filled it with what may be my new obsession: making "Alcohol Ink" coasters. They aren't a new idea but I came across them on Pinterest last year and they were on my list to try so they were new to me. It's art and chemistry in one and I love that no two will be the same. 

Supplies Needed: 
  • Hardware Store Ceramic Tiles ( mine were like $.16 each )
  • Sharpie or Alcohol Ink Pens ( I used Sharpie, Prismacolor, and Spectrum Noir)
  • Rubbing Alcohol
  • Eye Dropper
  • Sealant ( I used Rustoleum Clear Laquer Spray)
  • Aluminum Tape (optional) 
  • Paper Towel or something to protect your work surface. I liked paper towel because of the absorbency. 


Clean the tiles with a little of the alcohol just to get any residual dust etc. off of them. That's it on the prep! You'll want to use the "shiny" tiles...ones that are not porous. 

The tiles are so cheap ( not inexpensive, these are downright CHEAP...16 cents each) and if you mess up guess what? Before you seal you can clean off the ink with more alcohol and start over!

Decide which colors you want to use and then scribble all over your tiles. You can cover as much or as little as you want depending on the effect you're going for. If you have alcohol inks in your stash you can use them too and just drip them directly onto the tiles. 


For this one went all over just randomly covering with bright colors. This one is all Sharpie.  Once you're happy , then grab your eye dropper and start dripping your alcohol randomly and watch the magic happen! (This is where I wish I had video'd the process because it's fascinating to watch the alcohol and inks interact)



Don't overdo it on the alcohol. It's a judgement call and in some cases you might want to add more where it doesn't spread. I also observed that as the alcohol dries, it continues to interact with the marker and continues to change until it's completely dry. 


As I was doing these and lamenting that I didn't have some colors in my Sharpie collection, I wondered if other pens would work since all the ones I'd seen on Pinterest used Sharpies . 

Guess what? They do! I grabbed some of my Prismacolor and Spectrum Noir pens since they're basically alcohol based and found that they interact equally as well with the alcohol and are a little more fluid than the Sharpies. I did some with just Sharpie, some with just the other pens, and some combining them all. This was truly just playing around to see what happened. 


Once dry, you'll want to seal them. I used Rustoleum Clear Laquer and lightly sprayed about three coats. To finish, I had some aluminum tape ( I think this is from the electrics section at the HW store...I bought mine at an art fair but I think that's where the booth owner said it came from) and then put self adhesive felt dots on the bottoms. 


This one's for me to keep and use for my iced mochas! It reminds me of the milk and foam from a coffee drink. 


Mr. Chocolate called dibs on this one because it reminds him of the outdoors. 

The rest are actually a birthday gift for my son's BFF who loves to host cocktail parties. I figured he could always use some additional coasters! 

Never to early to start thinking about handmade holiday gifts! I am going to get some larger tiles and make some trivets as Hannukah and Christmas gifts! 






Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Christmas In July Workshop Wednesday Blog Hop: Paris In A Box

Paris box


Welcome to a fun blog hop called Workshop Wednesday and a special welcome to any new visitors who came over from visiting Kara at Mine For The Making!

Michele over at The Scrap Shoppe had the genius idea to get several of us together to get a jump start on holiday ideas. I know what you're thinking:  it's July. There's plenty of time. That's what I tell myself every year and then I get a big old Emeril "BAM" wake up call. 

I always joke with a friend about running away to Paris. I can’t actually give that to her, so I came up with the next best thing. Paris in a box. Or at least the essence ( to continue my Emeril references)  of Paris in a box.

For this project you will need:
Darice Box
  • Plain wooden box you can get at Michaels, JoAnns, etc. (which if you post a project using, you remember to take a picture of before you start!)
  • Scrapbook paper of choice; I used K and Company black and ivory coordinated papers
  • Mod Podge
  • Acrylic craft paint
  • Embellishments
Start by painting the edges of your box ( the parts that won’t be covered w/paper). Cut paper to fit the top and bottom and inside lids of your box.

Paris Box Inside

Apply Mod Podge to surface, lay your paper down, smooth, let dry. Once dry, you can lightly sand off any excess paper on the edges and then seal with another coat of Mod Podge. If you’ve never podged, visit the Queen, Amy Anderson for getting started tips here.

I then went around my box with this fun “Crafting Tape” from Recollections at Michaels. LOVE this stuff which is their version of  washi tape!

Recollections Crafting Tape

Time to embellish! I cut an Eiffel Tower image from black vinyl using my appropriately named Silhouette Cameo "CoCo". As in Chanel ( ok and chocolate) .  Then went stash shopping for embellishments…self adhesive rhinestones, die cuts, buttons, and one of a couple of little frames I picked up along the way:

Frame

I popped out the plastic “glass” and popped off the back and then painted the frame with cream acrylic craft paint and dabbed on a little silver Rub n Buff.  Mod podged an oval diecut onto the lid and glued my frame and butons on :

Paris Box

Added black rhinestones here and there and Voila! I’m filling the box with some handmade tags tied with black and white baker’s twine for mon amie. 

Paris Box wTags

I’m terrible at doing cost estimates because I have a lot of stuff on hand and always have a Michaels or JoAnn’s coupon around. If you had to buy the main materials, your total cost would still be around $10. a.) some of this stuff is always on sale  b.) there’s always a coupon and c.) much less than a plane ticket!


Hope you enjoyed this and it’s given you an idea for a plan ahead gift for a friend. Think of the fun you could have with places you and a friend have wanted to run away to. Hawaii? Italy? London? All of the above? Yes please!

Remember, this is a blog hop where you can find some more head start holiday inspiration so next stop is to visit Michele at The Scrap Shoppe! We'll be hopping every Wednesday in July.

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