Another mambi Monday - Dimensional Friendship Layout

 

Another mambi Monday...on Tuesday! Ha! Well, at least the page was done on Monday. :) So let's not waste any time. This week I made a 12 x 12 layout highlighting a picture of me with some of my beautiful BFFs from high school. I really love this picture. I wanted to create a pretty, soft layout.

 

 

I knew I wanted to use aqua (no big surprise), and when I saw the orange patterned paper from the mambi Mixed Media Sheets I thought it really complimented the blue perfectly. I also used a large chipboard circle that was in one of the mambi kits. I had been thinking about spring and butterflies. I knew they would look gorgeous fluttering around the circle.

 

 

I punched out tons of butterflies from various aqua, orange, and kraft paper in my mambi stash. I also punched some butterflies from some polka dot vellum. I LOVE how vellum adds such softness to a project. I use it all the time. I also used it under that fabulous sticker & the picture layers. I used the negative from the vellum along the bottom to add some more texture.

 

To give the butterflies some movement I folded them slightly in the middle of each and used hot glue to attach them to the chipboard circle.

 

Once the cute butterflies were put together I layered some adorable paper under my picture. I absolutely loved the sparkling white flowers on the kraft from the new CARDS in an INSTANT. SO CUTE! I tucked them in the back and they looked perfect. Just a bit of sparkle. I liked them so much that I punched some butterflies too. :)

 

 

I added some black splatters, a doily, some stickers, and put it all together. I REALLY love how it turned. I like the dimension that the wings give to the page too. I can't wait to dig into more goodies and get busy creating.

 

 

I've known these beautiful girls for over 25 years. I think I'll have to dig into some old pictures and bust out some fun material for more projects. I am sure I have some darling 80s shots! :)

 

Happy Creating!!

Washi Tape Altered Tag

Today I wanted to share a tag I created with some fun washi tape. I was inspired by the technique that Sharon Laakkonen used for the Creative Jump Start Summit hosted by Nat Kalbach. Have you joined along?? I love it. Each morning in January I have received a wonderful creative video in my inbox to get my creative juices flowing. I love being introduced to new artists, teachers, and techniques. If you haven't checked CJS 2013 out, you should click right here and join!

Washi tape is so fun to use and there are so many different ways to utilize all the colorful patterns. Right!? I think I need to add a Washi Tape board to my Pinterest, so I can gather all the various ideas I see. :) In Sharon's video she covered her entire manilla tag with washi tape which created a fabulous texture for the background. So I started there! Look!! Super fab!

After covering the entire tag with coordinating washi colors, I laid down a layer of gesso to prepare for some painting and stamping.

I really love this circle stamp I found at Michael's in the clearance section. I love the size! It was only $1.99, so how could I pass it up?

I decided that I would make a tag also inspired by my daughter and spring. I had some paper butterflies in my stash that I wanted to use. I painted the butterfly with blue acrylic paint for contrast. 

I looked through my billions of letters to find the letter M. (OK. Slight exaggeration. Maybe not a billion, but I am addicted to letters. Could it be the teacher in me? I do not know. I found a package of these chipboard letters from K&Company at the dollar store. Score!)

I added all my little goodies and also punched a butterfly directly into the tag. I have seen this done by quite a few people, but had never tried it before. All you do is punch or cut out a shape, then add patterned paper to the back so it shows through. It is a great way to add visual interest and texture. You can see where I did it with that little white butterfly. Some of the white paper hangs below the bottom of the tag. I cut it with a pair of scalloped craft scissors. (Technique also shown in Sharon's video)

Here is the finished tag. Super cute and girlie. I added some turquoise ribbon through holes in the letter M. On the right side of letter I glued some chipboard flowers that came in the letter package and added a little bling. Along the bottom I attached some cream colored lace. I love this lace because it has adhesive on the back. SO easy. Peel and stick! :)

Hope you are having a lovely Tuesday!

Fall Tag Tutorial

I am so thankful that Fall is upon us (and Christmas right around the corner-Yikes!) and today I thought I would share a mixed media Fall themed tag tutorial. Whoa, that's a mouthful! Lol. Anyways, this is the Make N Take tag that I lead last weekend. I thought it was quick, easy, fun, and the perfect thing to share. If you need a little fall pizazz for your table, tag for a gift, or a quick autumn decoration - here you go. :)

First get your tag (or anything really) and cover it with gesso by scraping the surface with an old credit card or gift card. I made some with plain white acrylic too and it worked just fine. The whole surface does not have to be covered.

1) Next, use the same card to spread some more fall colored paint over the card. Here I used Bronze Yellow from Liquitex and Cadmium Yellow from Americana. Move the card in all different directions to get a layered look. If you want to tone down the colors go back with some white.

2 & 3) After the tag dries, use a stencil to make some circles in Burnt Umber (also Americana). I made this stencil using an old manilla folder and a 1 inch circle punch. SO cheap and easy. I applied the paint using a make up sponge.

4) Use 3 torn pieces from an old book and place them in various spots around the tag. Glue them down using a glue stick or matte medium.

After securing the book pages down, cover each randomly with paint to help blend them into the background. Your fingers work best!

Type up, print out, and cut some fall themed words. Then use a permanent ink pad like StazOn and ink around the edges of each word. Set aside to dry. I used Timber Brown.

Use that same pad and stamp your butterfly. I love butterflies! They pop up everywhere...even in fall! :) I stamped one out completely and then stamped a few that hung off the sides. Some of the tags I left as is, while others I used white acrylic over the butterfly (once dry) to mute it a bit. Next, attach your words.

Finally, add some interest and doodles with a white Gelly Roll pen and black Pentel pen. I added some definition around each word, added white here & there, and doodled away. 

That's it! Quick, easy, festive, and fun!

I hope you enjoyed this tag tutorial!

Happy Creating!

An Up-cycled Puzzle Box Art Canvas

 Happy Weekend!

I am am super excited to share this little project with you today. Super excited. (Cheesy grin) I have another canvas to show you made from something that would have otherwise ended up in our recycle bin. In the past I have transformed shoes boxes into pieces of art to hang on our walls, but today I used an old dollar store puzzle box. Yipppeee! Since everything in the store cost a buck this little bit of happiness was practically free. I don't know about you, BUT I love finding good deals on home decor and this is a steal. It is so super easy!  Even if you have never painted before - you can do this!

So let's get started...

Wait. Hold on. Before I start...I was a bit confused about Recycling vs. Up-cycling. The concept of up-cycling is not a new one, but the term is. Now I am NO expert but basically up-cycling is taking something headed for some land fill and creating something with equal or greater value/purpose. For example; glass bottles into a chandelier, cheese grater into earring holder (seriously), old tires into planters, etc. You get the picture. Recycling is when an item is taken and through chemical process changed back into it's initial form or something with sometimes lesser value. For example; plastics into sleeping bag filling, cardboard boxes into recycled paper, aluminum cans into new cans, etc. See the slight difference. Like I mentioned, "up-cycling" is a fairly new term. But artists, renovators, and crafters have been doing it 

for a long time!

OK. Now, let's get started! :)

First, find any box you want to save from the recycle bin.

 Use old book pages to cover the surface.

Glue down the pages using matte medium or Mod Podge. I used Mod Podge for this one. To avoid bubbles try using an old credit card or something flat to burnish it to the surface. The paper not only creates fab texture for the background, but it also reinforcing the box to make it more sturdy. It did come from a dollar store...so it's not the strongest. :)

Don't forget the edges!

 

Here it is just waiting for some gesso.

I covered the surface with Liquitex gesso. I put down a pretty think layer in places so I could doodle and mark into it. I love the added texture that it creates.

 

Now, choose a color palette. Hmmmm, I think I see some turquoise. Lol. It is still my absolute favorite. 

Add some color using your fingers and an occasional paintbrush. :) I can't tell you how much I love painting with my fingers. The placement of the color can be so random and plus it is just way too much fun! Welcome back to Kindergarten. 

I painted some butterfly chipboard pieces I had in my stash using a contrasting color to make them pop. After they dried, I attached them using some foam adhesive squares from Recollections. I knew I wanted some dimension and these worked perfectly. 

I doodled some more with a white Gelly Roll and added some white rub-ons.

There you have it! 

I love how this little puzzle box turned out. It will look perfect on my wall and I can't beat the one dollar price tag. So, the next time you are about to throw something out...take a second look at it. Maybe it is just waiting to be turned into something fabulous! :)

Linking up with Paint Party Friday and Studio JRU.