Prayer Books

Hello Everybody,

A while back I realized that I when I prayed for people I would forget a few folks here and there.  So if I thought about someone's mom on the way to the grocery store-I would go ahead and say my prayer in transit.  However, I wanted everyone corralled together.  So I thought of a prayer book.  Just a little notebook that would have people I wanted to prayer for in one place.  And when their situation was resolved I would put a little check by their name.

So I was at Staples when I found these books for a $1!  Then as I was looking at them at the store I decided to buy 10 of them-one for each member of my Bible study and an extra or 2.

So then I was inspired by the challenge at Lessology.  The challenge is to incorporate a book and either a recycled or upcycled item.  Either these $1 books are upcycled and the old dictionary paper is the book part or I am upcycling the old dictionary pages and the notebooks are the book part.  ;)  Also, I looked up images on the Silhouette regarding prayer.  I fell in love with this little praying angel lady.  :)  And here is how these books got made...

Here is one notebook.  The cover is plastic.

I did some online research and saw something like this could work.  It's what I had.  Also, Golden gel medium would work (which I did not have).  I tried gloss gel medium and that was not successful.  The trick is to put a lot of this glue down on the cover.  Also that is old dictionary paper that has already started turning old paper color-LOL!

Here are the finished prayer books.

I used vintage photo distress ink around the edges of all of the boos.  On a couple I added Dusty Concord (purple), Broken China, and Gathered Twigs.  For the halo I used Krylon 18K gold leafing pen.

Here's a closeup using vintage photo distress ink and broken china.

Here's one with just the vintage photo ink.

Dusty Concorde...

The background pages came from this old Encyclopedia of Dictionaries.  It makes me giddy thinking that this big o' book is a 2 in 1! ;)  

Thanks for stopping by!  Until next time my friends....ahhh I love the smell of old books! :)

A Little Cabin

Hello Everybody!

***This project was the winner at Lessology.  Thank you!

It is my turn at Unique Laser Designs Blog and have I got a fun project for you today!  This little cabin....

Here is the 360 tour.

Here is a side view and you can see the flower box on each side.

Here is the back.  This is behind the scenes!

This is the other side.

Here is the cabin with the light on.  

Here are my pieces-one of the small polaroid frames, ATCs (all 4), and one the wooden tags.

Here is the roof glued together.  I used fabri-tac but it took a while to dry.  But is is a solid hold.

To make the shingles on the roof I used this punch I bought a looong time ago!  I think it was to make little punch people.  I for whatever reason just bought this shape and didn't realize that you needed all of these other punches.  So this punch is good for roof tiles and gum drops.  ;)  I adhered them using modge podge.  The paper is from Making Memories.

I used fiber paste on the walls (ATC cards-2).  Then I pushed in the brick stencil which is opposite of what you normally do with a stencil.  

Here is the painted brick and mortar in progress.

I used aluminum foil to make the tree.  I folded it and figured out how tall I wanted it and then I rolled it up.

I embossed a piece of brown cardstock with the tree embossing folder from Tim Holtz.  Later I used a dark brown ink from Staz On to highlight the tree trunk.

Here is the paper wrapped around the aluminum.  

 For the leaves I used Tim Holtz's Garden Green die cut.  I used different green papers to give the tree a littel variety (and to use some scraps).

I started the tree top this way.  I used hot glue to put them on there.  Be careful not to burn yourself.

I was cleaning and found this thin cardboard.  Perfect for the space around my window.  (I'm sorry I don't have a picture of that.)  So I trimmed the cardboard and then did the same brick wall treatment.  Except this go around I used thinner fiber paste so it would dry sooner.

I did a little upcycling with this old material that I have had forever! 

I used Worn Lipstick Distress Stain to make it pink.  :)  Happy!  Then I used a straw a the "curtain rod."  I put fabric tac on the material and glue it to itself with the straw through the middle.  You can open the curtains or close them.

Here is the tag.  I painted it green with distress paints shabby shutters and olive.  Once it dried I blotted some mowed grass from the ink pad on there.  I hot glued the tree where the fibers usually go.

This foam is the flower box.  Do you know where it is from?  It is the foam that comes in Tim Holtz embossing folders.  It's at the bottom.  I recycle the container but have to throw this away.  (Our company does not recycle foam).  But I saved this piece in case of something.  In case I needed a small flower box!  I cut it it to make it smaller.  I used walnut stain and scattered straw to paint it.  Then I added some little Kaiser flowers to it.

I put a tea light in the little cabin.  It looks so cool!  I also added some random little grass blades.

Here is the cabin at night.  :)

If you made it to the end of this post-Woo Hoo!  ;)  There was just so much to talk about!

I would like to enter this cabin into the challenge going on at Lessology:  #36 Use a Window and Upcycled Item

**Upcycled material for curtain and foam from packaging for flower box

Thank you so much for stopping by!  Until next time my friends...have a great day! :)

What am I Known For?

Hello Everybody!

Over at Simon Says Stamp and Show the challenge is "What are you known for?"  This is a really great question, right?  So there are 2 sides of this-my side, like what I think I am (or should be known for LOL) and then there is the perception of everybody else.  So I conducted a study :)  I asked my friends on Facebook what they thought I was known for.  I got some great answers back like: always smiling, honest, fun to be with, hilarious, my laugh (which I tried to change one time but was unsuccessful), and positive.  Yeah!  I was super impressed.  No one tried to be funny or smart alecky either!

So using my friends words I made this mixed media "canvas."

So the inspiration for doing this embroidery hoop canvas came from YouTube.  I was searching for a different technique and ran across this video.  She uses canvas, and I didn't have canvas but I had muslin.  So that is, what I used for the base and I covered it in gesso.  Side note-put a plastic bag or something under your material.  Thankfully I was using my craft mat but if I wasn't-yikes!

I am also linking up to the Lessology Challenge-You are My Sweetheart-using Hearts and my upcycled item is my embroidery hoop.

Here is a picture of the main materials I used to create the background.

Close to My Heart makes a base paint that is pearl.  They make it so that you can add their re-inkers to it and create matching paint colors to their stamp pads.  So I used a yellow with it and painted the embroidery hoop.  The color on the hoop is this shimmery yellow goldish color.  I had a little extra so I put in on the gesso.

Then I used some Faber-Castell Gelatos-green.  I added water to it and used it like paint.  Then I took regular white acrylic paint and added Lawn Distress Re-Inker (like a drop or 2 it's very concentrated) and a couple of drops of yellow CTMH re-inker.  It came out fabulous!  I used bubble wrap and made spots and used foam letters (old and never been used before!) to spell out some of the words.  I used a rub-on for "sweet" from Prima.

I used a page from the dictionary for positive.  With my green and yellow paint I added the gel medium.  This allowed the paint to become translucent.  How cool is that!  So you can read the words because of the gel medium-awesome!!

This is fabric that I ironed Pellon to (a fabric stiffener) and then colored with worn lipstick Distress Stain.  I painted the chipboard pieces pink and then painted Rock Candy Crackle over them.

Here's a close up of the top.  These are chipboard hearts that I covered with musical scrapbook paper and distressed with barn red.  The scissors are on there because my friend Mynnette said I must have them-and she is right!  I used pop dots on the big heart so the scissors would hang properly.

The center of the happy flowers are those little letter beads that kids would make bracelets with.  I got those at a garage sale-score! ;)

This is a recent picture of me-I got a hair cut-Yay! :) I love this light bulb (TH).  I dyed it with yellow alcohol ink and added yellow stickles.  I added the crown because my friend Melissa said I was the Queen of Scrapbooking-LOL :)  I don't know if I am-I don't have my own paper line yet but I am definitely a Princess!  LOL ;)  That's a Tim Holtz crown that I used alcohol inks-white picket fence and red to make pink.  That beautiful flower is a Prima flower.

I hope you like my mixed media canvas and learning a little bit more about me!  :)  Until next time my friends...have a great weekend!

Mirror Mirror-Who is the Steampunkish of All?

Hello Everybody!

I know I am not the most Steampunkish of all but it doesn't make me love it any less!  Gears, clocks, keys, oh my!  This is one of my first all out projects using a Steampunk theme.  So let me show you, and I will tell you more about it as you scroll down! :)

I am entering this piece into the following challenges:

LESSology: Challenge: #19 Mirror, Mirror on the Wall--upcycled mirror

Simon Says Stamp and Show: Just Add Pearl--Perfect Pearl Mist and Pearls on the Butterfiles

So here is my mirror.  Eek!  I am so happy at how it turned out.  The mirror itself is 14 inches long plus the frame around it.  I upcycled the mirror.  I bought it at Goodwill for $4-Score!! :)  There is a mix of pictures taken from inside and outside.  Experiments with lighting-what can I say?  :)

Here's another picture of the mirror. :)

Here are the gears that go up both sides of the mirror.  They are from Tim Holtz die cut.  I painted them with gold dabber and then rubbed black stamp ink on them.  Some have a little bronze distress stain.

Here is the right side.  That pocket watch is Jolee's.  Rubons are from 7 Gypsies and well as the hooks you will see.  There's a lot of Tim Holtz Ideaology on here also. :)

I put a few butterflies to bring in a feminine element.  For the butterflies I used music paper cardstock, Martha Stewart punch, Want2Scrap pearls, distress inks, Perfect Pearls mixed with water.

The hooks are from 7 Gypsies, the gear is from Bead Landing (the ones my husband bought me in my last post), and Tim Holtz philosophy :)

Here are more of those cool gears mixed in with Ideaology and a butterfly.

Here is the top of the mirror.  The 3 men are one of Tim Holtz's stamp.  I used black embossing powder than spray them with blue Dylusions spray.  Then I sprayed Perfect Pearls Mist gold on them for some shimmer.  They were very blue-so I added some bronze distress stain and some Perfect Pearls powder and water (gold and silver).  Then I inked the edges so they would stand out.  I used 3 pop dot squares stacked on top of each other (2 times) to adhere them to the mirror.  

I air balloon is from Hampton Art.  I stamped it on dictionary paper then mounted it on black cardstock.  I sprayed silver Perfect Pearls Mist on it.  The gears in the corner are rub-ons from 7 Gypsies.

Here is the bottom of the frame.  The little light bulbs are actually burned out light bulbs from the microwave. The first time my husband changed the bulb, I said can I have that?  It's really cute!  It looks like he had to change it again, because when I found them there were 2! :)  So they are recycled!

Here is the original mirror-taped off-ready for a new look.

Here are my original supplies.

Here is the mirror painted white.  I did a second layer but you could still see the old color come through.  At first I wanted the mirror to be shabby chic and girly.  But I couldn't get an even white all the way around and I am a bit impatient.  I saw a Steampunk blog hop and I had my gears so I changed the theme of my mirror.  Then I painted it with the Gold Dabber by Ranger/Tim Holtz.  I took the top off and painted it with a paintbrush.  

So here is another picture of my mirror (and me!).  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time my friends...like what you see! :)