Cabinet of Curiosities

Hello friends,

After many requests, I have added the instructions to my Etsy shop, for the "Cabinet of Curiosities" class I taught at the Simon Says Stamp Create Event earlier this month. 

The instructions include -
- 5 page PDF of color step-out photos - these can be viewed on a computer/ipad or printed
- Written Instructions + additional notes

- Complete supply list of product used: idea-ology, Ranger, and other items

(click on photo to enlarge)

I created a list of products used in the project that Simon Says Stamp sells. I thought I would link to them since they hosted the class and brought in all the products needed. Obviously, check your stash - you may just have everything you need on hand!

Now carry on, Paula

Lucky Vignette

Hello friends,

I'm happy to be here today sharing an idea-ology project with a March theme! My substrate is a square Vignette box that is 5.5 x 5.5".  An easy size to work with - it will take you a day to make, not a week! I wanted to use the word Lucky and it just happened to be the perfect size to reach across the 5.5" front! This project looks great with the lights on, but just as cute with the lights off. I think the velum gives a nice contrast to the gold Mini Stencil Chips! Well, enough talking, let's get started.

Again, I'm starting with the largest square Vignette Box as my base.

I will need a shelf for my idea to work, so I cut a piece of foam core to fit the Vignette. It should be flush with the depth of the box and fit snugly across (approximately 1 1/4 x 5 1/8"). I used a rotary cutter to cut the foam core, but you could also use a metal ruler and a cutting knife.

Set the foam core to the side while you add paper to the outside of the box.

Cut three, 1 1/2" strips of paper from the Worn Wallpaper Scraps for the sides of the box. Save the 1/2" strip for the back of the box.

Cut the strips to length, saving the excess.

Add the strips to three sides with Collage Medium. The last side was covered with the three pieces that were excess. No once will ever see this side because it will become the bottom of the box. Add a thin layer of Collage Medium over the top of the Worn Wallpaper to seal.

Add Design Tape Trims to the lip edge with Collage Medium.

Once the Collage Medium is dry, add Walnut Stain Distress Crayon to age the paper. Use a wet wipe to mottle the finish.

Before we add the shelf, we need to make the word strip from Mini Stencil Chips. Tape the word together, then add velum to the back. I'm going to add Tiny Lights to the compartment so the velum will help to diffuse the light.

Now it's time to add the "shelf". I just added Collage Medium to three sides of the foam core and slipped it into place. Make sure the self is level.

You could use a ruler to measure the compartment...

But the easiest way is to use the Stencil Chip word as your guide. The Stencil Chips will hide the edge of the shelf. For now, add the shelf with Collage Medium and let it dry for at least 30 minutes. 

NOTE: Do not add the Stencil Chip word till after the Tiny Lights are in place.

I wanted a "green" theme so I used Large Collage Strips for the background and the top of the shelf. Again, using Collage Medium to adhere the paper, then adding a a layer over the top to seal the paper.

Once the Collage Medium was dry, I added Walnut Stain Distress Crayon over the background to give it a bit of grunge (especially in the corners).

I used a drill to make a hole in the bottom compartment so I could add Tiny Lights.

Once the lights were in place, I added the Stencil Chip word.

PLEASE NOTE: I used Collage Medium for the bottom and sides, but I used Scor-tape along the foam core.

A wanted a more industrial look so I added Screw Heads to some of the Stencil Chips. 

I scribbled Walnut Stain Crayon over the top of them so the were not so pristine looking and used a small paint brush to work the crayon around. I also added Cello Sticker Tape in a few places.

INSIDE:

For the scene, I started with a Snapshot from the original package of Snapshots. It looked like a lucky day to me!

I used Distress Crayons to add color to the Snapshot. The cotton swabs helped give the scene a blurry appearance, using just dots of color in the background along the boardwalk, like the photo had been hand tinted. 

In my last post I talked about when and why I choose to "seal" a photo with Fixative spray. This is one of those times. I wanted to add ink details over the crayon work and that can be difficult since water will wash the crayon away. So I went to the garage to spray Fixative over the top of the Snapshot and by the time I got back to the craft room, it was dry and ready to go.  I made a puddle of ink and water, then dipped the Snapshot into the mix, drying with a heat tool. Any excess ink was removed with a paper towel.

Next is the Mini Display Dome with the metal clover from the Figure Stand 2 package. You can see I painted it with Rustic Wilderness Distress Paint (sanded with steel wool once dry). The cork base of the Mini Display Dome was painted with Ground Espresso Distress Paint then sanded back. String and Snippets Curator were used on the outside of the glass.

Add your pieces to the Vignette with Collage Medium. I have a small wood block behind the Snapshot so it can stand up and be at an angle free from the back wall of the vignette. Once the wood block is secure, the Quote Chip can be added to the Snapshot with a thin foam square.

I also painted a knob with white paint. Once dry, I scribbled Distress Crayon over the top to age. Remember this technique from my last post, "10 Ways to use Distress Crayons"? It was number 5 - Faux Patina.

By the way, the knob is not screwed on (there is no hole underneath). I just glued it in place with Collage Medium and let it dry for at least an hour before moving forward with the string.

I added labels from the Curator set to the top of the box with Collage Medium and Cello Tape. This shot is just delicious to me! It's everything I love! 

I also cut a small piece of string and added the bird to it. I tied a knot at the top to keep the bird in place, then added it to the knob, trimming away the excess. I cut a second string about 30" long, folded it in half, then tied a bow around the knob to complete the look. The little bird is from Sweetheart Adornments.

I added more Worn Wallpaper to the back of the box before securing the Tiny Lights in place with Scor-tape.

So to finish up I needed to add more dimension to the inside, so I decided to use the Wildflower Stems 2. I thought the stem on the right looked kinda like clovers. I sprayed a piece of Distress Watercolor Cardstock with Spray Stain then cut out three stems with the die.

I thought I better show what I did here. I really only wanted the top part of the tall stem, so I cut one whole (where the die is in the photo), then I cut two more times of just the top portion of the stem.

I used the top of one of the pieces as my base. Then cut leaves to from the leftovers. I took the leaves and glued them to the base, making each stem 3D. I made TWO of these + a couple extra leaves that are singles.

This is one base + leaves. You can see that I bent the top leaves so they stand away from the base.

I glued one to the top of the box - there are small foam squares under to leaves that hang over the Snapshot, so they are actually connected to the Snapshot, not just floating over the top.

I glued the second one behind the Quote Chip - I kinda munched that one up to give it a shape before adding it to the box.

Note: there are a couple single leaves on the left side, out of the camera shot.

I wanted to add another color so I decided on some flowers. I thought the small flowers from Brushstroke Flowers Mini would work perfectly. Again, I colored some Distress Watercolor Cardstock, this time with purples and blues. Then cut out a couple sets of flowers. I used a Villainous Potion Distress Crayon for the dark purple center of each flower.

Then I just added them with Collage Medium. That lavender looks so good with the green!

Heres the left side with the extra leaves and one flower.

I love the way this turned out. The colors are just so pleasing to me and it will be perfect to have on display in March and beyond!

Thanks for stopping by!

Now carry on,

paula

I Know That I Am Home

Hello Friends,

I am circling back to idea-ology today and a favorite project I created earlier in the year. I love this one, created with the Divided Box, which has been a favorite substrate of mine over the years.  I have loved it's size, depth and that it had so many way to configure it.  But all things comes to an end of their lifecycle and this is one such product.  I know many retailers still have the Divided Box in stock, but when retailers are out, they are gone for good. So fair warning.

The entire box was covered inside and out with Backdrops Volume 5.  I used blue and cream for the front, then added aqua, purple and pink to cover the back.  It takes time to cover any Vignette Box with paper so I alway measure, cut and glue (Collage Medium) on day one.  Then I walk away and come back to the filling the box.  For me, it feels good to come back into the workroom the next day with the box ready to go.

My paper choice led me to the blue color scheme that runs through each compartment.  The shade of blue varies for interest, but blue and cream are dominate throughout.  I chose a black Design Tape with numbers for the lip edge of the box.  You could use multiple tape designs if you wish but I liked the continuity of just one design.

On the back you might notice that I mixed in two Collage Strips.

The pink strip on the left and the group of neutral pieces on the far right side.  You can tell it's a Collage Strip because of the scale of the images.  I think they work really well with the larger Backdrop images.

When working on this box, I knew I was going to need multiple Corked Vials to fill the space, so I created all the bottles at the beginning.  Then when the box was ready to fill, I could just use the ones that fit the space the best.

CORKED VIALS

1. coat with a base of Collage Medium - let dry.

2. coat with Crackle Paint- translucent - let dry

3. drip or pounce Alcohol Ink over the bottle (do not soak or your crackle finish might lift).  I used Mushroom, Moss and Bottle Alcohol Ink to color the glass.

4. don't forget the cork - paint it or rub Alcohol ink on it, maybe add a Hitch Fastener, pick at the cork so it's not perfect, etc. Mine are all different.

5. add string or wire around the neck of the bottle.

Now back to the large compartment...

The entire piece started with this photo from Snapshots 2. 

1.  I pounced Gathered Twigs Distress Ink on my glass mat then sprayed it with water to created droplets.  I pressed the Snapshot into the ink repeatedly (drying the ink in between) until I had an aged look to the photo.  This method only works on a slick surface if you press, then dry, then press, then dry.  Somehow the ink fuses to the surface enough to create the aged look. I used this same method on the blue label that sits below the Snapshot on the right.  

2. Tint the Snapshot photo with Distress Crayons and a cotton swab.  To get the textured look on the skirt and red coat, I tinted the skirt and coat with darker colors.  Then I pressed a piece of paper towel over the top (do not rub).  The paper towel pulls enough of the dark crayon away, making the clothes appear to have the texture worn away. 

3.  If you look closely, you can see that I also used a cutting knife to cut around the top of the car and along the top of the frame.  I also cut out the windows of the car so you are able to see through.

4.  I added thin foam squares to the frame, then added a 'scene' of a house that can be found in the Ephemera Palette Pack. 

5. Once the photo is ready, it can be mounted on foam squares and added to the back of the tray,

The bottom of the large compartment can be filled with anything you have on hand.  A little vintage is a must. Here is a list of what I've added:

from left to right:

+ Corked Vial with ephemera label and vintage lace.

+ Foliage Adornment - white paint added

+ Photo Frame - Foundry Wax + Mushroom Alcohol ink.  I cut a piece of chipboard for the center of the frame.  Then covered the chipboard with a piece of vintage velvet. I used Scor-tape to add the velvet so I could still stitch through the velvet to add the Bouquet flowers.  As you can see, it just added three stitches to hold the flowers in place. There was no glue involved.

+ Mini Flair with 4 leaf clover

+ Second bottle with snippet label (Curator pack) and wire around the neck

+ Corked Dome filled with vintage buttons (I collect buttons that have been used and still have the sewing thread in place).

+ vintage spool of silk thread with added threaded needle.

+ Figure Stand - I painted the top hat black and added the metal flower that I cut from a vintage earring.  I LOVE the new Figure Stands so much!  Tim's idea to have interchangeable pieces (the other pieces are a pointing finger and star) on a stick is just brilliant. They are the perfect miniature size.

The figures are double sided, so for instance, the pointing finger can face either left or right.

The MADE IN paper is vintage.  It was on a bunch of vintage flowers and I removed it to use here.

If you are wondering how I made the Butterfly stand up in the background, it's very simple.  I cut a sturdy wire and hot glued the butterfly to the end.  On the other end I added a cork (larger end down) which gave me something to glue to the bottom of the box.

The top right compartment has blue paper so I tried to use more cream items.  Cream in the labels I chose for the two bottles, the Baseboard window frame in the background, and the Collage Paper I used inside the large Pocket Watch.  

The word Sweetheart is vintage, as well as the blue flower cluster (a vintage earring I have had for years). You can see I added the Hitch Fastener to the top of the Corked Vial to make it look like a stopper of some sort. I painted the metal and the cork with metallic paint so the two pieces look like they are one.  The blue stamp in the background is from the ephemera pack and I just stapled it to a vintage card of hook and eyes.

I added the phrase, "I know that I am home" from the Clippings sticker book.

In the bottom compartment, you will find a Matchbox filled with more Bouquet Flowers (Antique Linen Distress Spray was used for color).  The metal embellishment with the French feel, is from the Ornate Embellishments pack.  The words are, again, from the Clippings Sticker book.

I added a Word Tag to the neck of the bottle and a snippet label (I LOVE the Curator pack of tiny labels).  

To make the ball of string, I just started with one of the larger Bubbles left over from a Halloween project...winding and winding till I had a ball of string.  I stuck two tiny Sequin Pins into the ball like they were knitting needles.

The vintage button card with added ephemera was added to the background.

And that is it.

Creating all the bottles at the same time made the work seem easier, since it really is messy when you are coloring with Alcohol Ink and paint, and inked string, and wire, etc.  Once that's all done, you can clean up and then come back to assembling.

Three cheers for idea-ology...I love the kooky, creative thought process to make things come together!

now carry on,

paula