One Lucky Day: December 2012

I had an idea a couple days ago and needed to see if it would work...it did and today's tutorial is a result of the basic idea of making a die frame for a shadowbox. Of course it morphed into more so I hope you are up for the ride.
Let me show you how I did it...

I decide to use the lid portion of the small 5.75" x 5.75" Configurations box. I flipped the lid over so the back of the lid will be my front (that will make more sense later).

I cut strips of book paper to line the inside and outside of the lid.

Using Multi-medium made it very easy to quickly add each piece.

Once the paper is added, I went over the entire surface with Multi-medium to seal it. Set lid aside to dry for at least 30 minutes.

To make the front of the shadowbox I chose Grungepaper, which will make the paper much more stable and long lasting. Adhere Grungepaper to a piece of 6 x 6" Christmas paper from the Holidays Past paper stash with collage glue stick.

NOTE: Grungepaper is thinner than Grungeboard. The sheets are 6 x 12", with 6 sheets per pack.

Cut to the size of the front of the box.

I had two dies that I thought would work for the center cut, Baroque and Vintage Cabinet Card. In the end I decided to go with the Cabinet Card shape.

The Grungepaper is 6" wide so it fits the die perfectly. I taped into place so it could not move when I ran it through the Vagabond machine.

Nice clean cut.

I only need the outside so I can save the inside piece for something else.

Next I cut a piece of Mirrored to fit the back of the lid. Then, stamped right on the Mirrored with the pine cone stamp from Stampers Anonymous Winter Sketchbook (love that stamp). I added sticky embossing powder, melted it with a Heat Tool then added platinum Stickles glitter. Once dry, I had to go over the image with a stiff brush to remove the glitter from the fine details.

Remove the paper backing to reveal the sticky back. Place Mirrored sheet into the back of the lid with the pine cone image on the upper left. DO NOT press down yet...one more step before you do.

I decided to add a Mini Lantern to illuminate the box at night. This was a new product that came out at CHA in July and I have not had a chance to use one, so today's the day!

To add the lantern, I needed to hang it from the top of the lid. Use a pair of pliers to open the screw eye.

I screwed the open screw eye into the top of the lid (it's easy to do) and hung the mini lantern from the hook. Once on the hook, I was able to close it up with my needle-nose piers. The thin cord has to go behind the Mirrored sheet, so I just pushed it forward from the back and slipped the cord over the top. Now is the time to press the Mirrored down.

I cut a piece of 6 x 6" paper to fit the back of the box. Notice the 1/2" wide hole for the cord to pull through? I just inked around it like it was part of the design.

Then added Wonder Tape to the edges. Pull off the red plastic coating.

Then placed the square on the back.
You can see the power pack for the lantern. It takes 2 AA batteries. You just plug in the brown cord when you want the lantern lit. It's just that easy.

Now back to the front of the shadowbox. Lots of different pieces here...then assembly.

1. Fence piece: I used Grungeboard covered in book text for the fence.

2. Christmas Tree: I sprayed a Woodlands Tree in Barn Red. Adding Barn Red Re-inker to a mini mister + water = red tree. I also glittered the tree stand... because I could.

Now my favorite part of the whole day...the ornaments...
I added random cheap pearl beads to a plastic bag and squirted in some Butterscotch Alcohol Ink. Close the bag and roll them around to coat.

Dump out on a paper towel so they don't run away. Discard the plastic bag.

Using a felt pad, ink portions of the gold beads with Mushroom AI. Oh my, how I love this...the Mushroom instantly ages the the gold and makes them look like old mercury glass beads...love, love, love. Can I say, I love Mushroom AI?

I did make one large bead into a tree topper using a pin from one of my tomato pin cushions...I inked the silver pin with Mushroom AL too, even though I will be the only one to ever see it.

I added each bead to the red tree with Glossy accents.

3. Mini star: I painted a chipboard star (from my stash) silver. I cut a flat back quilters pin with my trusty Tonic scissors so that it would fit the start back. (the cork will be explained later)

A little silver AI takes care of the yellow color on the back.

4. Ribbon: need red ribbon? Crinkle ribbon + Festive Berries + Gathered Twigs = fabulous red ribbon.

Putting it all together:
My thoughts when picking words for the Corked Vials really relate to the devastating events in Connecticut this past week. I decided my "Christmas Wish" was a little peace, love, and hope. Chichat words, vial labels, a large corsage pin dipped in glitter and some vintage string complete the set.

I added the word "Christmas" from the Seasonal Chitchat stickers.

I started gathering all the things I made to the box and gluing them down one at a time.

I added Wonder tape to the front die cut panel.

And pressed it down onto the front. It fit like a glove.

I cut 4 pieces of Memory foil tape to fit each side of the box. There was a bit of Alcohol Ink left on the felt tool so I dabbed the foil to make it appear aged then cut it with pinking sheers for a sawtooth edge.

Peel the backing and add to the box to cover the seams. I really like the way this came out. I don't think I have ever Alcohol Inked Memory Tape...I may never go back now.

I added Foundations metal feet (of course I used Alcohol Ink on each one in Slate and Gold).

To top it off, I added a crystal curio knob to the top with the fabulous red ribbon I made earlier. Remember, to make a bow like this, cut a piece of ribbon about 18"long. Wrap the ribbon around 4 fingers until you run out (usually 3 times around). Take a second piece of ribbon then same length and tie at center of the large loop leaving 2 long pieces. Wrap the long ribbon around the knob a couple times then tie into a bow.


NOTE: the one change I would make to this piece is that I would have punched the hole for the curio knob before I put the box together. It would have been easier and I could have made a much cleaner hole (not that you can see it now).

I do like the way it turned out...

I like how the glittered pine cone image glistens behind the mini lantern and how the Vintage Cabinet Card cutout frames the items in the box. My little fence kinda disappeared behind the bottles so maybe I will need to go back and lift it up an inch...an easy fix. But for now, I am going to move it to a place of prominence in my family room and plug it in as soon as it gets dark enough.