One Little Thing - May Queen

Can you believe it's almost May? In celebration this weeks theme is "May Queen"

"The May Queen or Queen of May is a personification of the May Day holiday, and of Springtime and also Summer."

Use this prompt to create one little thing in celebration of May.

Very Important Altered Awards

I'm not too proud to admit that this year has been a bit difficult for me creatively. I've been creating work. I've even made some things that were quite nifty... but I've kinda felt 'disconnected' with my work.

Anyway, I finally feel as though I'm getting back on track. I've got one or two projects I can't show off just yet, but I also made something just for the hell of it that I think you'll like. Some very important altered awards

Ever since seeing the Tim Holtz trophies shown at CHA I've had it in my head that I wanted to create some altered trophy cups. I found these babies in the party supply section of my local discount shop, four for $1.25! I've simply grunged them up with a bit of acrylic paint.

This piece is available HERE

Each little darling has a sentiment taken from vintage book pages that reflects the gentle nature of these 'awards'. How nice would it be to receive an award for twinkling?

The base of each of the awards is just a simple wooden block that has been gussied up with fabric, ribbon, buttons and burlap. 

This piece is available HERE

Some of my biddies are standing on Petaloo blooms.

This piece is available HERE

Some are atop a little mound of moss.

This piece is available HERE

Most are holding their declarations high, and topped with Tim Holtz Mirrored Stars  

This piece is available HERE

Best of all, when all together they look like they are having quite the party.

The 'Awards' will be listed in my etsy shop over the next few days. I'll update the links as they become available.

Here are some of the supplies I used to create these pieces:

Small plastic trophy cups
Wooden blocks
Misc buttons and vintage embellishments
Moss
Tim Holtz Mirrored Stars
A slew of charms and filigree embellishments from Alpha Stamps
Mini Rose Buds - Ivory* 
Flowers and leaves from Petaloo (especially love the Botanica Blooms!)

The call is coming from inside the house!

Just a funny story that makes me look like a complete dip.

I'm editing video today and my phone keeps ringing. I answer it and no one is there. It happened no less than a dozen times. It's really driving me flipping nuts because editing is one of my least favourite jobs and I have to stop, and retrack before starting again. 

I call Mr Pixie to see if he is trying to call me. Nope. 

I check all the phones to see if they are charged and not giving a low battery signal. They're all fine. 

I start to worry the call is coming from inside the house *Oh the horror!* 

... then I realize the ring is from the video I am editing, not the phone. 

I need coffee and chocolate.

Queen Bee Reliquary

I created this little chipboard reliquary while playing with my stash of Gina's Designs Lasercuts. 

Although I run like hell and scream like a ninny when one comes near me, I do have a soft spot for bees. Can we talk for a moment about THIS be in particular?

It's all sorts of spectacular. It's big and beautifully detailed. I've dulled up the brassiness of it with a wash or two of dark paint, which also enhances those little details.

Supplies....
Reliquary - Arch Top
Honeycomb & Bees Medium
Faux Metal Number Plates
Giant Brass Bee 
Medium Bee Charms - Raw Brass 
Music sheets
Acrylic paint

One Little Thing - Birds

This week I'd like to challenge you to incorporate the theme of "Bird" into your one little thing.

Think about types of birds, what they symbolize, their actions, their calls.

There is no wrong way to interpret the theme. Just spend a short time focused on the theme and create one little thing and you've been successful!

Because you asked so nicely...

There were a number of requests for an image transfer tutorial after posting my Petaloo project the other day. There are LOADS of videos and online tutorials available demonstrating this technique. I learned by watching others and you should absolutely view a number of tutorials, get as much information as you can, then experiment for yourself.

I've done a fair bit of my own experimenting over the past week and put together a quick video tutorial with a basic 'how-to', a couple of variations, and the results using different materials.

Here are a few points I didn't include (err... yes, I forgot) but are worth a mention...

Paint
In my demonstration I show an example where a wood block is primed with a wash of white paint before applying the transfer. I think this looks fab and provides a solid base, creating greater contrast in the finished image. Keep in mind that you will be saturating and rubbing your piece. Will your paint be able to hold up or rub off and take the transfer with it? Just some things to keep in mind.

Heat
Some people say that heat may help the transfer. You can create a weak transfer with heat alone after all. When I attempted to speed up the drying process with a heat gun the results were not pretty. I would even go so far as to recommend avoiding hot water when removing the paper.

Patience
It really does pay to wait. I know others have had success lifting the paper soon after application but in my trials I found that the longer I waited wait, the stronger the transfer was. Let that sucker dry!

More Patience
Let your piece dry before applying a top coat or sealant. Some of those paper fibers can be pretty sneaky! By allowing the piece to dry you can spot those smokey, foggy areas where some paper residue has been missed. Simply re-wet that area and rub the paper away. When satisfied with your piece after it has dried apply a fancy pants top coat or simply apply a layer of gel medium or Mod Podge.

Practice
In this case practice doesn't exactly make perfect, but you will learn a lot! Don't expect perfection. If you are okay with some distressing and having fun with your mess making, the entire experience and results will be much more satisfying.

The tute supply list: Golden Heavy Gel (matte), Mod Podge (matte), wood bock, laser print of vintage image from thegraphicsfairy.com, water, paintbrush

**Mod Podge does have a product specifically for image transfers. It was unavailable in my area but it does have good reviews.**

Artisan Style ATC Box for Graphic 45

Once in a while things come together so easily it sort of feels like cheating… that was the case with this little box.

I began by simply painting all of the edges and corners of an ATC book box black.To the top of the box I added Artisan Style Decorative Flourish, the sides are This Old House. 

The inside the box is covered with Craftmanship and the bottom of the box is covered with Natural Beauty for a bit of “POP”. A length of black ribbon is wrapped around the sides and a piece from Artisan Style Decorative Chipboard, and a Stamped Metal Brad added.

Finally, a set of those fabulous Claw Feet. The top has an amazing chunky Fancy Handle that I’ve affixed in the upright position. A little bit of distressing on the edges and the whole thing is complete and looks really elegant.

Now to decide if I should use this fab little box to store these cute Artisan Style ATC’s or maybe some fancy costume jewelry!

The Supply List

Decorative Flourish
This Old House
Craftmanship
Natural Beauty
Artisan Style Decorative Chipboard
Stamped Metal Brad
Claw Feet
Black MayArts ribbon
Fancy Handle
Black acrylic paint
For the ATC’S
Artisan Style 6x6 Patterns & 
SolidsArtisan Style 8x8 Pad
Artisan Style Journaling Chipboard
Artisan Style Tags & Pockets
Artisan Style Stickers
Ribbons
Glass beads