Lucky Dog

It's only Tuesday and the week has started with a BANG!  We are preparing to go to Quilt Market (for the trade only event) in Minneapolis this week, where four more of the Eclectic Elements Wallflower line will be released.   The remainder of the sample projects will be delivered today (can't wait for that) and once that happens, I will almost be ready to go!  Just a few more small projects to complete that will be used for booth props. 
To complete one of the projects, I purchased a pinking edge blade for my rotary cutter.  The blade was on sale for 50% off at Joann Fabrics ($8.49) so it is still a bit pricey, but it was worth every penny since I need to cut 32 small rectangles of fabric/interfacing with STRAIGHT edges.  Very hard to do with standard pinking sheers!  I was a very happy girl when I tested out the new blade and found that it works like a charm! If you are a sewer, I could definitely see the pinking blade having it's own handle so you could easily switch between the straight edge and pinking edge in seconds. 

Well on to today's project.  A little wood panel made with new and old ephemera  (and a few nails).  Follow along and I will show you how I did it.

I started by coating the raw wood board with White Gesso.

Then I added pieces of ephemera from the Emporium pack with Multi Medium.

I didn't overlap too many of the pieces, so some of the pieces hang over the edge.

It's a easy fix using the Sanding Grip.  Once the paper is dry, just sand away the excess.

So that's the basic foundation.

I painted a light coat of Gesso over the entire foundation and let it dry.
The Gesso seals the ephemera which will allow me to add more wet layers such as Fossilized Amber Distress Paint over the edges of the foundation. Oh I know it's a bold choice...

Use a wet wipe to remove excess paint, leaving as much or as little as you wish.

Another layer over the foundation...this time Texture paste through the Typo stencil.  I love this one because it looks good every single time I use it!

I put the foundation onto some paper towels (that's just how I control the over spray) then sprayed it with Chipped Sapphire and Walnut Stain Distress Spray Stain.

The Distress Spray Stain easily colors the texture paste.

Give it a quick dry with the Heat it tool.

Since I had used a Distress product over the foundation, I wanted to try out the new Distress Glaze over just the raised letters, to seal the color and make it permanent. 
Use your finger tip to rub a tiny bit with over each letter, then buff away any excess (a little goes a long way).

Now spray with water.
The excess ink in the background will bead up, but the raised letters are not effected by the water.  Now just wipe away the water droplets.

As a lover of Distress products, I know I have waited for a long time for a product like this to come to market.  Can't wait to see what else it can do!

Set aside the foundation to work on a focal point.  I had a small fabric covered book in my stash.  I cut off the cover of the book and ripped out the first page.  I love that the blanks are filled in!

I used Multi Medium to glue the page to the red cover.

Then I cut out one of my favorite Found Relatives to place over the writing.

A perfect fit.

I added some foam tape to the back of the book and adhered the piece to the center of the foundation.  I also added 4 tack nails to each corner (one reason I love to work on a wood substrate).

I took medium weight black wire and wound it around the tack nails to create a frame for the center piece.

I added an appropriate phrase from the Small Talk Sticker book to the center.  Then added a layer of Multi Medium to seal the paper surface.

By sealing the surface of the paper it will allow me to use a Distress Marker to add the drop shadow around the boy and his dog.  Just draw a line with the brush end of the marker and smudge with your finger tip.

I really wanted to spell out Good Boy but that would have required 3 O's, so I went with FRIENDS.  I painted each letter with Weathered Wood Distress Paint and let them dry.

Once dry, I sanded the letters with the Sanding Grip to age them a bit and bring out the brown underneath.

I used Glossy Accents to glue them to the board.

I thought the cute little dog needed a collar, so I added a marker line following the collar that is in the photo, then adhered a tiny Mirrored Star that has been colored with Gold Alcohol ink.

I also used the dabber top of the Black Soot Distress paint to finish off the edges of the foundation.  Once dry, I sanded parts away and filled in the Distress Ink in Gathered Twigs.

Using my fingertip, I swiped White Gesso over some of the Texture Paste letters to highlight them.  I just wiped away the excess leaving white at the edges of the letters.

Gosh, I just love the Found Relative as the focal point.  That really worked out perfect. 
If you don't have a little book you could just use some red cardstock mounted on chipboard for the center.  No matter the subject or what word you choose, it's a fun and easy project that gives a little bit of room for exploration.

And now I'm off to finish my rotary cutting and maybe pack a bag...I am quite sure Mario and I will be on Instagram (find me: @luckyday) and Facebook during the show this weekend.  I hope you will follow along to see the booth and some of the samples that were made for market.

now carry on,
paula

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