Saturday, January 17, 2015

Star Crossed Lovers

The theme over at Alpha Stamps this month is "Star Crossed Lovers" (which I love!) For my project I began by embellishing a Hinged Wood Chest with Clasp with glitter and stars and adding wheels...

Star Crossed Lovers for AlphaStamps.com - Nichola Battilana

... then I altered a series of cards with the romanitcal lusty theme to fit inside.

The cards themselves are distressed and then have fitting snippets from old books added.

Star Crossed Lovers for AlphaStamps.com - Nichola Battilana

I then added some wax and embedded glitter, stars and small heart shaped beads.

Star Crossed Lovers for AlphaStamps.com - Nichola Battilana

I love the way the wax gives a cloudy, dreamy quality to the pieces.

On these cards I've simply used regular candle wax but it has it's drawbacks... if your flame doesn't burn cleanly you run the risk of lampblack/soot getting into the clean wax.
Plain candle wax is actually quite brittle when dried and will easily crack so care must be take afterwards not to bend the cards. ALSO some candle wax is actually quite greasy (especially true if scented oils have been added).
Star Crossed Lovers for AlphaStamps.com - Nichola Battilana

Using beeswax can help you to avoid these problems. Alpha Stamps offers these beeswax pellets which are much more pliable and resilient and are intended for arty/crafty use.

Star Crossed Lovers for AlphaStamps.com - Nichola Battilana

Want to make your own? Here's what you'll need...
Star Crossed Lovers
Star-Crossed Lovers Add-On Kit
Hinged Wood Chest with Clasp* 

Beeswax Pellets

Star Crossed Lovers for AlphaStamps.com - Nichola Battilana