Two of Hearts

Hello!! Happy Friday everyone. I'm here today with a quick little Valentine project inspired by these amazing Heart Playing Cards from Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts. The instant I saw them I envisioned them all rusty as a frame for some antique photos. Although this was a super easy project I am so pleased with the outcome.

The frames come in a 2 pack and there are 4 pieces total with the fronts and backs. 

Run the frame backs thru your Xyron and apply short hand book text. Trace around the frame opening and then paint the outer edges of the back gold. This gold accent will pop thru once the frame is put together. 

 

For the top of the frame pieces I used my favorite faux rust treatment. 

 Using a cosmetics sponge apply brown paint and then dip directly into cinnamon. Pounce on more brown paint and heat set. If you have a heat gun that runs hot you can burn the cinnamon for that great crusty effect. But be careful!! 

Photo copy your vintage images. Heat emboss using Baked Texture Vintage Beeswax. Die cut with Stitched Oval die. I heat embossed my images before die cutting so that the die cut details would stand out. 

Cut a length of vintage patterned seam binding and adhere down the center of the frame backs. Adhere the photos centered in the cutout area. 

Adhere frame to the back. And voila you have a super easy antique inspired Valentine in just a few minutes. 

Although its a quick and simple project I love the way these Heart Playing Card frames take the main stage. And be sure to stay tuned on the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Blog this coming Monday Jess from Two Mad Dahlias has a tutorial using these amazing frames as well!!

Happy Creating ~ Jennalee 

With Wonder Shadowbox

Hello!! Happy Friday and Happy New Year!! I spent the first day of 2019 in my studio playing, and this was the result!! I had put together this Mini Shadowbox a while back and found it in my drawer while looking for the Pocket Watch, which was the inspiration for this whole piece. Being the new year I wanted to make something with a watch or clock theme. From there I just let the piece guide me. Those are always my favorite projects!!  

Begin by covering the inside surfaces of the 3-inch Shadowbox with vintage ledger scraps and cigar label patterned paper from Tim Holtz Paper Stash. Then assemble the box.

Cover the back of the shadowbox with a ruler print patterned paper. Cover the sides of the shadowbox with a faux rust background.  Sand edges and ink to help everything blend together. 

Apply Distress Crazing Medium to back of box and allow to air dry. Once dry add distressing using Prima Artist Powders.

Make a photocopy of a vintage photo booth photo on plain copy paper. Heat emboss two layers of Vintage Beeswax over image. I prefer to do this technique on plain copy paper because of the unique transparent effect it achieves. 

Apply Distress Grit Paste randomly on the 1 1/2 inch Pocket Watch. Allow to air dry. 

Once the Grit Paste has air dried apply a faux rust treatment. 

Stitch photo to pocket watch. Wrap wire around the top of pocket watch. 

Heat emboss the 2-inch clock from the Pocket Watch Assorted Size Set with Burnt Copper Leaves and a sprinkle of Patina Oxide.  

Adhere clock to inside of shadowbox. Add a small screw in hook to top inside of box. 

Add a Gadget Gear to the inside of the clock. In bottom left corner add altered Numeral. I wanted a nod to 2019 so I cut the word nineteen out of the dictionary and adhered it to the metal number. 

Finish off two opposite corners with a corner sticker from Industrious Sticker Gallery. 

Apply Handle with Care ephemera piece to top of shadowbox. 

To finish off the pocket watch add 'wonder' sentiment from Clippings Stickers. Adhere key to bottom of shadowbox. Add a vintage metal film canister lid to bottom of box for a stand. 

I really enjoyed creating this project and love the way it turned out. It was a great way to kick off 2019. I wish you all a very happy year full of renewed creativity!! 

Thanks for stopping by and happy creating my friends ~ Jennalee

The Red Thread

Hello!! Happy Friday, I'm here today with a quick tutorial for this assemblage piece featuring the rusty Altoid Insert Fairy Frames.

This piece was inspired by a Chinese Proverb I recently read. It says "An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of the time, the place or the circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break."

This proverb resonated with me so much because my husband and I worked at the same place for a few months back in 2010. Somehow we never noticed each other. And that's quite surprising considering he's 6'3 and red-headed. He moved cross country and came back in 2011 when we met and the rest is history. Our red thread led us to each other. 

I began by rusting up the frames from the Altoid Inserts. Paint all the frames with Burnt Umber while the paint is still wet apply ground cinnamon. Build layers and heat set until the desired effect is achieved. Add accents with Prima Metallic Waxes. 

Apply same rust technique to a couple keyholes from the Key and Plates Shape Set. 

Attach key plate to frame with gold brads. 

Adhere frame to postcard. 

Make copies of vintage photos. Apply 3 layers of Vintage Beeswax. 

The thicker you apply the Vintage Beeswax the more transparent your photo becomes. And look at all that amazing crazing. 

Attach photo with a simple hand stitched X in all four corners. 

Attach a vintage key beneath the Altoid Frame. I used glue dots to help hold it in place due to the weight. Add handstitched details. 

To connect the two postcards stitch on a set of hook and eyes.

For the hanger at the top of the assemblage stitch on just the eye portion and tie on a red string hanger. 

Complete the bottom card the same as the top. 

Thanks so much for stopping by and spending a few minutes with me today. I really enjoyed this project. How can you go wrong with faux rust and some hand stitching? Happy Creating ~ Jennalee 

Free to Fly Shrine

Hello and happy Friday!! I'm here today with a variation on the Folding House Shrine. I had pulled out the house shrine a couple weeks ago to make but at the time my vision for the piece was not working the way I had envisioned. For some reason, I thought it was supposed to be a box. So my original plan was out. So there sat the Folding House Shrine. Then inspiration struck!! Instead of using the original chipboard "hinges" I decided to use ruler pieces.

I started by coloring the 3 house pieces with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I colored both front and back. 

While I had my ink out I added a bit of color to Tim Holtz Idea-ology Ruler Pieces. I cut one Ruler Piece down to size to fit the shrine pieces. 

I covered the front of the house pieces with vintage shorthand text. I cut to size and ran thru my Xyron. I applied the collage elements to my background pieces at this point. 

Once the backgrounds are adhered to the house pieces. I heat embossed all 3 pieces using Seth Apter's new Baked Texture in Vintage Beeswax. I used a Versamark pad to coat the background and then apply the powder. I did one layer. This picture shows the before (on bottom) and after of the paper. Once the piece has cooled add some depth and detail using Tim Holtz Distress Crayons. 

The wings are printed on dictionary text with a layer of Distress Crazing Medium. Once the Crazing Medium air dried I added some depth to the crazing with Vintage Photo Distress Ink and Tarnished Brass Distress Crayon. Not shown here I added a gold heat embossed edge all the way around each wing. 

The center panel of my shrine features an Idea-ology key that I colored with Vintage Photo Distress Crayon. I added a few drops of Seth Apter's Baked Texture Patina Oxide. I wrapped the key with a length of Tim Holtz Craft Thread dyed with Twisted Citron Distress Oxide. 

I then measured out my holes on each of my house pieces and punched the holes with a drill punch. 

To attach the Ruler Pieces the Folding House Shrine pieces I cut a 16 inch length of  20 gauge craft wire in Antique Brass. Start on the left and work across. Begin by threading wire up from back about 3-4 inches and wrapping a messy spiral. Once knot is desired size wrap around Ruler Piece making sure your wrap is tight enough to hold the Ruler Piece. Be sure to leave 3-4 inches for a messy knot on the next panel. Wrap wire the same way for the remaining holes. 

Attach the key to the middle panel using a strong hold glue. 

I adhered the wings at the base leaving them loose enough to have a flutter effect. I then cut a length of black sewing thread and rolled between my hands to get a messy look. Using an embossing dabber add a random bit of embossing ink and sprinkle on some gold embossing powder and heat set. While the powder was still hot I used to tweezers to apply the thread in the powder. I then added a bit more embossing ink and another sprinkle of gold powder and heat set. 

To finish off the back of my piece I tried out a new technique Eileen Hull shared a couple weeks ago. Using a sponge apply matte medium to an embossing folder and insert paper. I used a brayer to roll the folder to transfer the medium to my paper. I then applied my foiling. Set aside to dry. Once dry peel away foil sheet. 

 

I really love all the different textures and mediums I was able to incorporate into this piece. The finished project is a perfect size for displaying on a shelf. Thanks for stopping by and spending a few minutes with me today. I hope you have a weekend full of creative inspiration!! Happy Creating ~ Jennalee