After Christmas Card (or an early start for next year)

Hi everyone.  I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas with family and friends.  However, what do you do when you get a Christmas card from someone after Christmas?  Do you send them one back, or just wait until next year?  Whatever you decide, it is never too late, or too early, to make a card for someone special at Christmas.  So, this is an easy one but looks like a million bucks.  Okay, that's just my opinion, but I hope you agree.

Choose an image from the Vintage Christmas collection and an appropriately sized frame from GSL.  The Flourished Frame Karen works quite nicely for this image.

Trim your image to fit inside the frame opening, then paint frame with pearl nail polish and let dry.

Use your finger to dab the Stickles lime green glitter glue for a delicate application and let dry.

Turn frame over and dab glue over frame, again using finger to apply a light coat.  Lay frame over image and adhere both to front of card, as shown.

Make a couple of rosettes and follow directions that come with the die.

Paint Memories word ribbon and several different sizes of snowflakes with the pearl nail polish and let dry.

Use the flat end of a makeup sponge to dab Romance red paint over the top of the Memories word band.  Add crystal Stickles glitter glue to top of each snowflake for extra sparkle, and edge rosettes with pine needles distress ink.

Adhere all pieces to card front, as shown, and lifting some  of the pieces with foam dots.

Supplies Used:
GSL  Flourished Frame Karen
GSL Word Ribbons 1
GSL Snowflake Shape Set
Vintage Christmas Paper Collection (Authentique)
Olive Green card stock (for 5"x7" folded card)
Rosettes die  (Sizzix/Tim Holtz)
Tokyo Pearl Nail Polish (any pearl nail polish would work)
Romance chalk paint (DecoArt)
Lime Green, Crystal Stickles (Ranger)
Pine Needles Distress Ink (Tim Holtz)
Peace metal embellishment

I hope you enjoyed this super quick but oh-so-beautiful Christmas card.  You can make beautiful cards so easily just by choosing an appropriate laser cut frame from Gypsy Soul, and there are so many to choose from, too.  They add dimension without adding bulk, so they go through the mail without extra postage.  Of course, if you add lots more embellishments like the rosettes on my card above, you might want to box it up or hand deliver it.  Of course, if I am sending a gift, this is the perfect card to add inside the box, and yep, no extra postage there either.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I just want to wish you all a very Happy New Year!!!

Barbara

How to Enhance Your Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Chipboard

Hi everyone!  Barbara here today with a card project using Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts "Special Delivery" chipboard and Graphic 45 Once Upon a Springtime paper collection.  The colors in this paper are nice and soft and perfect for welcoming a cute little newborn baby.  My main focus today is sharing some fun and easy techniques for bringing your laser cut chipboard piece(s) to life. 

Make a 5"x7" top folded card using a peach colored card stock.  I cut two additional layers, each 1/4" smaller.  So the second layer measures 6-3/4" x 4-3/4", while the third layer measures 6-1/2" x 4-1/2".  The edges of each layer were heavily distressed.

Adhere each layer to the base card and set aside.

Paint Special Delivery chippie with Timeless chalk paint.   You could also use white gesso, so use whatever you have.

Dab Picket Fence distress stain (DS) over stork, and Brushed Pewter DS over "Special Delivery".  Let dry.

Color stork's beak, legs and feet with Wild Honey and Mustard Seed distress markers.  Color top of stork's head with Barn Door and Worn Lipstick distress markers.  Let dry.

Trace around the chipboard pouch, as much as you can, onto a piece of sticky back canvas.  You can also use a scrap piece of canvas without the sticky back, and just use white glue to adhere it.

Cut out sticky back canvas pouch and dry brush over it with a very tiny amount of Frayed Burlap DS that has been watered down. 

Remove adhesive backing and adhere over chipboard pouch.

Brush on a coat of white glue to stork and cover with Ivory Flower Soft.  (I did not have white Flower Soft, but you can use either color.  As always, use what you have.)  Add Baby Peach Flower soft to stork's head and add a bit over his tail feathers.  It looks funny right now, but let the glue dry and then gently brush excess flower soft away. 

Rub Tarnished Brass DS over "Special Delivery" for a vintage feel.  Fill in any areas that may need more Flower Soft.  Add a dot of Black Enamel Accents for the stork's eye.

Die cut a piece of the same peach card stock with a decorative die, such as the one I used (Timeless Heart).

Adhere to card front so that it sits centered beneath the words "Special Delivery".

Punch some leaves from a piece of the green print paper.

Adhere Special Delivery chippie, some fussy cut stamp images from the paper collection, paper flowers and craft punched leaves.

Here are a few closeups of some of the details added to the card and chipboard.

Baker's Twine tied around top of pouch

Gold Pearl 3D paint added to flower centers

Three stamp images cut from paper collection

Flower Soft added to stork, black enamel dot for eye

Supplies Used:

GSL Special Delivery
G45 Once Upon a Springtime paper collection
Spellbinders S6-126 Timeless Heart Die
Americana Timeless chalk paint
Distress Stain
  Picket Fence
  Brushed Pewter
  Frayed Burlap
  Tarnished Brass
Distress Markers
  Wild Honey
  Mustard Seed
  Worn Lipstick
  Barn Door
Ranger Black Enamel Accents
Five Leaf craft punch
Paper Flowers (Prima)
Flower Soft
  Ivory
  Baby Peach
Baker's Twine (pink & white)
Adhesive-backed Canvas (Ranger)
Gold Pearl Metallic Dimensional Paint (Jacquard)

I hope you enjoyed today's project and perhaps have been inspired to use some of your products you have laying around in your stash to further enhance your chipboard embellishments. 

As always, thanks so much for stopping by, and have a wonderful and craft-filled week!

Barbara

Art Journal - Winter Stars with ColourArte

Hi everyone.  I thought I would play in my art journal today since I haven't does that in awhile.  I found this wonderful saying online, and used it for my inspiration for my pages.  

I made this video tutorial to share my process with you.  

I hope you enjoyed my project today and that you take a look outside some really cold, still and starry night, and see if you can feel the beauty and joy in the silence of the night.  

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful, craft-filled week!

Barbara

Home Decor Christmas Themed Shadow Box

Hi everyone!  How's your Christmas shopping coming along?  If you need an idea for a unique gift this Christmas, how about making a shadowbox for someone special.  They can display it every year and think of you.  Or, keep it for yourself to enjoy year after year.

This one is a little tricky, so lay out all the pieces and, like a puzzle, dry fit them together.  Everything will fit perfectly once you figure how they work together.  I hope these pictures below will help you easily align everything.

view from bottom

view from top

Be sure to glue the inside portions of the house together first.  See photo below.

Next, glue the three outer sides.

Then glue the roof down, and set aside to dry.  (TIP:  I have my shadowbox sitting on a non-stick mat to keep any seeping glue from adhering it to my work surface.)

Prime chipboard with white gesso.  This step is optional, but as a mixed media artist, I find that it will give me a clean, smooth surface with tooth to accept any layers I decide to add, even if I decide to glue papers down.

Cut a piece of 12x12 paper to fit inside each cubby.  I used Bo Bunny's Snowy Serenade Overture paper, but you can use whatever paper you have on hand.  You may have noticed that I have not adhered these down yet because I want to paint the box with a coordinating color.

Remove the pieces of paper and number them to correspond to each cubby.  This will make it easier to replace them with less opportunity to make a mistake.  I did not number the triangle piece as it is the only one shaped like that.

I like to use my Xyron 510 sticker machine to run my papers through.  This will make it really quick and easy to add them later, when I get the back side finished.  Run all your paper strips and pieces that will fit through the Xyron 510 sticker maker.  

Cut strips of music paper to fit the roof and adhere.  

Cover the bottom and sides of the shadowbox, turning excess paper to the back, as shown.  

Cut paper to fit the triangle shape and adhere to top portion of shadowbox on the back, as shown. 

Cut a separate piece of the same paper to fit the bottom half of the house.  If your paper has a pattern, try to match it up or at least align the paper so it looks pleasing to the eye.  You can disguise the seam with lace or some of the chipboard Border Sticks that GSL carries.

I've decided to paint the inside cubbies with a color to match the background paper.  I didn't have the exact color, so I just mixed up a color to match.  You can see where I was testing colors on the back of some of the cubbies where it will later be covered with the paper.

Now it's time to adhere those papers that were cut and numbered to fit in each cubbie that was also numbered to correspond.

Cut two pieces of shell borders to fit along top of roof, and miter the center pieces to fit together.  Use a makeup sponge to dab white gesso over border and, while gesso is still wet, sprinkle ultra-fine gold glitter over it.  (TIP:  Catch extra glitter in a coffee filter and use the filter to pour it back into its bottle.)  Repeat this for both sides, since both sides will show above the roof line.

Glue border sticks to roof line, as shown.  Don't worry if the miter isn't perfect.  It will be covered in the next step.

Use makeup sponge to add white gesso to both sides of snowflake and cover with the white crystal snow glitter, then glue to center of roof top, covering the mitered join.  I also added strips of white Dresden border to the three horizontal shelves, as shown.

Cut seven snowflakes from the snowflake border from the Winter Shape Set, and repeat process as for the large snowflake above.

Adhere along seam line where square and triangular papers meet.

I thought the snowflake border looked a little lonely, so I repeated the process on three more snowflakes of different sizes and glued them to the back, as shown.

Glue metal feet to base of shadowbox with E-6000 glue.  See photo of finished project.

Use white gesso and white crystal snow glitter to decorate more snowflakes and part of the snowflake border.

When dry, adhere the snowflake border and snowflakes inside the cubbies, as shown.  You can always make more if needed.

Use a craft knife to separate the reindeer from the Santa's Sleigh Border.

Paint and glitter the reindeer, again using the same process of white gesso and gold ultra fine glitter.

Glue reindeer feet to cubbie with white snowflake paste, as shown.

Decorate with whatever embellishments you wish to use, and change it up for whatever the season or theme.  Here a some close-ups of each little cabbie.  Each one is a little scene.

side view of shadow box

Supplies Used:
GSL House Shadow Box
GSL Santa's Sleigh Border
GSL Border Sticks Shell
GSL Snowflake Shape Set
GSL Winter Shape Set
GSL Snowflake Border
Xyron 510 Sticker Maker machine
DecoArt Media White Gesso
DecoArt Media White Tinting Medium
Miss Lillian's Chanel Chock Paint
PVA white glue (any brand)
12x12 scrapbook paper (Bo Bunny)(Colorbok)(Paper Studio)
Gold Ultra Fine Glitter
White Crystal Snow Fine Glitter
Baroque Dresden Border White
Snowflake Paste (Finnabair)
E-6000 glue
Christmas embellishments (Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Tim Holtz, etc.)

I know this post is quite long and full of pictures, but I believe a picture is worth a thousand words, and I know from my own experiences that sometimes when I refer to something that is unfamiliar to you, a picture of it would have been helpful.  So, if you made it this far, thanks for staying with me.

I hope you enjoyed my project today and that you have been inspired to make a little Christmas-themed shadowbox for display in your home this holiday.  I plan to sit mine on my fireplace mantel.  What will you do with yours?

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a wonderful holiday season!!!

Barbara