Peace Tree

Hello friends,

I love the Sizzix vault dies that were released for Christmas this year and I thought, what could I make that isn't a card? I also wanted something that was really festive and that could be used for a decor piece. Anyway, this is what I came up with and I love it. It was fun to make (I love anything I can dip into Rock Candy) and fun to arrange all the pieces. So lets get started so I can show you the process!

So this is how I started. I die cut a bunch of pieces using 2 vault sets (see below) from Distress Watercolor Cardstock. At this point I'm just trying to get the shape of a tree using the die-cut. You will notice that in the end I added another piece of pine and a bow. I also combined the juniper and the berries, but for the most part, these are the main pieces I used.

I used two vault dies: Vault Holiday Classic and Festive Wreath. The majority of the die shapes are from Holiday Classic.

I only used the bow from the Festive Wreath die.

Lets get started with the large Etcetera panel. This one is 6 x 8 1/2", so a bit bigger than the one I used on the Christmas tree panel last week. I chose one of the Backdrop Papers and adhered it to the panel with Collage Medium. I also added a layer of Collage Medium over the top of the plaid paper to seal it. 

Once dry, I used my Walnut Stain Crayon on the edges of the panel.

I wanted a snowy look so I used my Splatter Brush to platter white paint over the surface.

Once the paint was dry, I added l" low tape tape in the shape of a tree.

Before spraying, I laid paper towels over the exposed paper.

I sprayed Hickory Smoke Distress Spritz over the open space.

Then followed with water.

As I was drying the Spritz with the heat tool, I pounced over any puddles of the Spritz.

After removing the tape strips, you can see the tree shape is very shiny over the dark background (sorry about my thumb in the photo, lol).

Now to work on the die cuts -

You can spray any of the pieces the colors you want or you could even watercolor them. I wanted to add Rock Candy Glitter for some texture so I decided to stick with Distress Ink in Peeled Paint and Rustic Wilderness. I did use some Spritz on the greens but it didn't show as much as I wanted because the pieces are so small. One thing I should mention is that I cut three pine pieces (right side), then I cut two of them  into two pieces to get some smaller pine. You can also see I have added Rock Candy Glitter.

This is a combination of two pieces from the same die. One is a juniper and the other a berry branch. Once they were painted I combined them, then added the rock candy.

The poinsettias are my favorite. I was able to spray them with Lumberjack Plaid Distress Ink (dry them). Then spray with Lumberjack Plaid Distress Spritz (dry again). Then I gave them a few hits of Fossilized Amber Spritz (dry again). This combination is so beautiful! The centers were done with Foundry Wax Gilded.

I cut all the pieces from white Distress watercolor cardstock. I didn't want the white showing on the cut edges so I sprayed the word with Black Soot Spray Stain before adding two layers of Gilded Foundry Wax.

Now its time to add all the pieces to the tree. I started with the top and the bottom, then filled in the middle. I used thin foam tape under almost all the pieces to create different levels.

You might be able to see just a little better in this shot. The poinsettias, the bell, the word peace all have thin foam tape underneath. As do some of the greens, like the holly and bits of the pine. I used it as best I could to make the tree more 3-dimensional. I think adding the bow (sprayed with Speckled Egg) over the bell also gave some great dimension.

You may have also noticed in the last photo that I decided to add some gold droplets. I bought these at Hobby Lobby for another project but thought, why not add them to the tree? I could not leave them as is though, so I added a bit of Mushroom Alcohol Ink to make them more vintage looking.

I kept it pretty simple but more could be added if you wanted.

I'm happy with the way it turned out. I think this is a great project since you could use any die that you might already own, use inks that you have on hand and make it whatever size you want to fit your surface!

Now carry on,

paula

Christmas Stamps

Hello friends,

Just popping in to share a fun idea!
Did you know that the Postmarked stamp book has a sheet of blank stamps at the back? So far, I have always just used the vintage look stamps in the book but never the blanks. So today I though why not see what I could do with the stamps I have on hand.

(click on any photo to make larger)

First I chose some Archival Ink colors. You need to use Archival because the paper is coated so it is slick. Mine big Archival stamps pads are years old so many of the colors I used are not even available anymore. However there are plenty of colors in the Archival line that will work. Use what you have!

I used 4 Stampers Anonymous Stamp sets:

Holiday Postmarks

Seasonal Scribbles (I used this one the most)

Darling Christmas

Santa's Visit

I also used a great stamp set that I purchased from Simon Says Stamp - Tiny Words Christmas.  They are absolutely perfect for the size of the Postmarked stamps.  So, so tiny and absolutely essential for this project.

I used a grid block for stamping + a few post it notes to mask off the edges if the stamp was going to run over the edge (like the candy cane). 

I love the ones that use two stamp images on one stamp so you get two colors...then there is the ornament I colored with Distress Markers (yes, mine still work beautifully) that has red, pink, yellow and blue scribbled on and then stamped. Even though I know these will be use separately, my mind still wants to make the sheet cohesive! I'm funny like that!

There are larger stamps at the bottom, so I was able to use many of the longer phrases from the Stampers Anonymous sets there.

Well I hope this gives you an idea of how to use the blank stamps! They don't even have to be Christmas stamps - think friendship or birthday, thank you...so many ideas when you have a blank slate. In fact, Simon Says Stamp makes the Tiny Words stamp sets for Birthdays, Encouragement, Faith, and Everyday. I think I need to buy another set!

Now carry on,

paula

Making Spirits Bright

Hello friends,

Great to be here today sharing a fun project. Yesterday I posted a tag on Instagram using Distress Grit Paste Opaque and Distress Lumberjack Plaid Spritz, using water to push the Spritz into the background. It worked so beautifully that I wanted another try with a different color and on a larger scale. However this time there is no Grit Paste involved, just idea-ology Typography letters.

So lets get started!

I chose a small Etcetera Panel (7.25 x 5.25") as the substrate, then used Collage Medium to cover the panel with Christmas Backdrop paper. Once secure, add a layer of Collage Medium over the top of the paper, then let it dry. Do not skip the layer over the top, it will become important in a following step.

Once the Backdrop is dry, use Collage Medium to add the sentiment to the right side of the Panel. I used my Tonic Media ruler + Glass Studio Mat to keep the line straight when adding each letter. This sentiment is an easy one because each line is about the same length.

Here is the finished sentiment. I let this dry overnight because I was at the end of my work day. But in most climates, it would be secure enough to in about 30-45 minutes. You also might notice that I rubbed Walnut stain Distress Crayon over the edges of the panel. The crayon will show up in the end to give the paper an subtle edge.

The next step might seem a bit crazy, but I sprayed the entire panel with Antique Linen Spritz. You can see that I sprayed it quite heavy, going over the panel multiple times.

Immediately, I sprayed the surface with water which will cause the Spritz to pool up rather than just being speckled across the surface. If we had not added the Collage Medium over the paper to seal it earlier, you could not get this pooling effect.

Use a paper towel or soft cloth to wipe off the letters. It's not as hard as it sounds.

Then SLOWLY dried it with a heat tool. I say slowly because it takes a while for the Spritz to dry over the Collage Medium surface. I kept the heat tool further away and just let it dry little by little.

I also used a small bit of paper towel to dab up any puddles, then finished the drying.

The shine is so awesome! The Spritz made the Backdrop paper look like vintage wrapping paper. I just love the effect.

Set the panel aside and lets work on the tree. You could make the Woodland Trees any color you wish. I decided to do a multi-color effect using Evergreen Bough and Bundled Sage. But before I got started I cut off the back of the tree so it would lay flat against the panel. Once the cutting was done, I sprayed the entire tree with Evergreen Bough.

Before drying, I went to the kitchen sink and ran water over the top of the tree, then squeezed out most of the Spray Stain.

Back at the table, I sprayed Bundled Sage in the middle section to get the triple tone effect.

I added Collage Medium to add Mica Flakes over the front of the tree. I like to add the glue, then sprinkle mica Flakes from above. I know some people like to roll the tree in the Mica Flakes but I'm a sprinkler! Mica flakes are heat stable so you can dry them with a heat tool or let them dry on their own.

After the flakes were dry, I decided to cut notches into the tree shape. I know what you are saying, "why didn't you do that BEFORE you added the Mica Flakes?" Well yes, you are right I could have, but this way, the Mica was way more random and vintage looking. Like when you buy an old tree in an antique shop, most times the mica is missing in some spots and heavy in others. 

NOTE: I painted the base of the tree with gold paint.

I love the way it looks with the three colors of green. By the way, the Mini Re-Coil scissors are sharp to the tip and made the cutting a breeze.

Time to break out the "big gun" to glue the tree to the panel. I needed a lot of hot glue and my tiny precision glue gun is no match for my old school glue gun. Be sure to press the tree down while the glue is drying.

I decide to add a bit of variegated metallic floss to my tree. I wanted to add something without it looking heavy!

The metallic threads some apart just like embroidery floss. I tied a knot in one end and just pushed it into the tree, then ran it back a forth a few times till I got to the top. You could used hot glue to keep it in place or a dot of Collage Medium. I found tweezers were very helpful with the fine threads!

To fill in the space beside the tree, I opted for a simple solution that tied in the gold in the background, Mini Stencil Chips. I grabbed the numbers two and five, taping them together with Cello Tape Stickers, then using my Tiny Attacher to add staples at the top. I added four thin foam squares to the back and placed it on the panel. I also slipped a piece of Backdrop paper under the numbers to give them visual texture different from the poinsettia background.

The last thing to do was to add a star to the tree. I have some mirrored stars in my stash from years past and was able to find a large enough one for the tree. I covered the star with Mushroom Alcohol Ink and dried it with a heat tool. Then I sprayed the star with Antique Linen Spritz and dried it again. I added Collage Medium to the back and slipped it behind the tree.

What fun experiment this was. I love the woodland trees since there are so many options. I fact, it's sometimes hard to choose...texture paste? Rock Candy? gold Stickles? Mica Flakes? Which to choose? 

This is an easy project that cold really be done in an afternoon. It would make a fun decoration for yourself or to give away as a gift at the beginning of the season. I'm looking forward to seeing how people adapt the concept to suit their taste!

Now carry on,
paula