Romantic foldy thing-a-ma-bob and box

I'm exhausted so the best I could do for a name today is "Romantic foldy thing-a-ma-bob and box". It might not be terribly eloquent but it's apt. Managing apt is pretty damn good after the past few ultra hectic days!

But it is romantic. I mean, just look at this cute little cherub butt spreading love!

And the little thing within IS foldy.

I stand by my name choice.

I've kept things really simple here. The whole box is covered in Nature Garden - Meeting a Fairy Scrapbook Paper. I've given the top of the box quite a bit of dimension, using foam squares to prop up the nude little dude, and those flowers just sort of pop right out. (Those Small White Mulberry Blossoms are really cute!)

The ATC Scalloped Trinket Box is an adorable size for precious small things, but I'm keeping this shabby ATC Ticket Journal inside

I really put the ATC Ticket Journal to the test with loads of wet washes, smooshing and experimenting. It held up pretty well after all I put it through! And all of those fussy cut bits look sweet as can be together.

You can see the smudged and flicked and distressed paint here.

I just glued a bit of scrapbook paper into place and just went to town experimenting and playing with fussy cut elements and a bit-o-paint.

I like how cheery all those mixed up elements work together.

Want to make your own? See something you need to get your hands on? HERE is where you can find all the bits. And below is a list of all the elements I used.

ATC Ticket Journal

ATC Scalloped Trinket Box

Sheet Moss*
Nature Garden - Meeting a Fairy Scrapbook Paper
1/2 Inch Pale Peach Paper Roses
Small White Mulberry Blossoms
Collage sheets:
Butterflies Collage Sheet
Pink Fairies ATCs Collage Sheet
Pink Roses Collage Sheet
Seed Catalog ATCs Collage Sheet
The Language of Flowers Collage Sheet
Vintage Postcard Fairies Collage Sheet
Words Collage Sheet
Acrylic paint
Glue

Fairy Spying Spoon Wands with Tutuorial

I am in a bit of a tizzy today. I should have spent the day prepping and cleaning for this weekend's open house. (If you're near on Saturday, stop by, gimme a high five.) But instead I was lured away from the laundry and dusting by the fair folk. It's May Day, I should not be surprised.

So instead of the cleaning and the sorting and the organizing, I made fairy spying spoon wands. 

If you're not familiar with spoon wands, I totally swiped the idea from a child. His mum told me about how he was used a wooden spoon as a wand and I've been making my own ever since. 

Kids have the best ideas, and I do believe spoon wands are brilliant. I mean, something to stir and fold and mix and direct? That's exactly what I want a magical tool to do.

Today happens to be one of the very best days of the year to spy faeries, so I made some faerie spying wands... but there are soooo many possibilities here! 

Consider the magical properties of the colours you use. Add charms and bits of magic and whimsy. Incorporate knot magic! Embellish with runes and symbols to enhance your magical workings!

Or, you know, just make something cool as heck.

Jump over to my YouTube channel for all my tutorials and walkthroughs.

Darkly Delightful Bathing Machine for Grim Days at the Beach

The April showers might bring May flowers but right now they are making my landscape rather grim. Don't get me wrong, I am a fan of grim things and rainy days. Rather than fight against the current weather conditions, I'm going to embrace them and make something darkly delightful.

This little "Bathing Machine" is based on the 18th and 19th century change rooms wheeled into the sea by by-gone beachgoers. But what if the Adams' ancestors went to the beach? Or the Munsters? OR MARY SHELLEY OR EGAR ALLAN POE OR... well, you get the point. I'm sure they'd all visit the seaside on rainy days. I'd like to think they had a creepy little space for changing into their wading attire and doing a little fortune telling to see if the water was fine.

Gypsy Soul does have a proper Gypsy Wagon available if you're feeling more ambitious, but I like this little fella. It's a fun kit and there are LOADS of customization possibilities. Travelling snake oil salesman, a tiny portable library, a sideshow trailer... oooh, so many ideas!

Two tips I will mentions.

1. I am terrible at applying hinges so I glued my door in place and ajar. If you do the same, just be aware of the door placement so that you can still add the stairs.

2. I used the Chipboard Shingles - Half Scale Sampler for the shingles. One package is enough to do the entire roof. You might want to position the bottom row of shingles lower than I have. (Don't tell anyone but I think it would have looked a bit better with more of an overhang.)

If you'd like to see the process to create this particular piece, the walk through is available HERE.

And here are all of the supplies I used to create this version of this project: 

Bathing Machine

Chipboard Shingles - Half Scale Sampler

Round Table & 2 Chairs

Leafy Corners
Faux Metal Number Plates 1 to 25

Miniature terrain grass
Moss and faux flowers
Bead caps
Thin Looped Dresden Border
Black Zig Zag Dresden Borders 

Paper straw

1/8" doweling

Graphic45 - Rare Oddities
Acrylic paint

Glass marble

Miniature Novena 7 Day Spell Candles.

It's FINALLY spring and I have a head cold. Despite my nose is being an absolute jerk, I've been working away, making a butt ton of these adorable miniature novena candles.

They are in real glass and made with real wax but there is no wick so they cannot be burned. But really... gah! they are just so cute!

I've made a whole range of Saintly ones.

Like my favourite dude Saint Expeditus.

Our Lady of Guadalupe and a slew of others.

You can check them all out in my etsy shop. 

There are also a bunch of wee magic 7 day candles too.

Who doesn't need a tiny Jinx Removal candle?

If you don't know which saint or spell you'd like, but want need some miniature non-burnable candles for your doll house I have a discounted listing for 4 randomly selected candles available.

And now I am off to edit video and do battle with my sinuses... it's a hardcore rockstar weekend!

Pretty Flip Book

It crossed my mind to use this standing flip book to create something practical . I had thought of maybe a daily "to-do" list, or daily affirmations and meditations. That didn't happen. Practicality went out the window and I just made something pretty.

I dug deep into my paper hoard and used papers from my Graphic 45 days. I've used a mish-mash of older collections, I mostly used Botanical Tea and Time to Flourish.

I added a little sort of nest of flowers at the base... again busting the stash!

Assembly was SUPER simple. I only have two bits of advice... 

1. Be wary of adding a large design element at the top. It's so temping, but it may hinder the flipping of the pages.

2. When assembling the base leave the areas that slide together unembellished. This will help the pieces to fit together much more easily.

You know, I've always been more of a silver fox than a golden girl... but this gold dresden may be  swaying me to the other side.

Most of the butterflies I've used have been fussy cut from the G45 papers, but the ones below are stickers from... the dollar store! Aren't they pretty?!

The flip book comes with 6 chipboard pages so there is loads of room to play and experiment.

I was rather heavy handed with the dimention on the pages and there was still loads of wiggle room. You could easily add plenty of your own additional pages.

Want to make your own pretty flip book? You'll find the supply list below.

Supplies List:

Standing Flip Book
Faux Metal Number Plates 1 to 25
Graphic 45 papers
Metallic Dresden
Twig Vine Garland
Paper flowers
Flatback pearls

A little extra something

The author of my very favourite magical books ordered something from me the other day. Woo hoo!

It gave me an excellent excuse to make tiny versions of her books to tuck into her package.

It's also an excellent excuse to let you know about her work. If you're interested in magical things, Judika's encyclopedic books are a wealth of information. 

Buy some books! Learn some magic! And have a beautiful day my lovelies xoxox

The Monarch's Crown

I've been attempting to organize and destash. It's a bit like Christmas, rediscovering old ideas and inspiration along the way. I come across pieces and think "Oh! I was going to..." or see a sheet of pretty scrapbook paper and become enchanted.

This crown was a bit like that. I was going to make it back in September but life got in the way (as it often does). As I cleaned and sorted through my supplies it poked me and nagged to be made.

Spring had snuck off to make way for an ice storm, so something bright and cheery and golden was definitely in order. Is there a better way to wait for a natural disaster than feeling regal in a paper crown? I don't think so.

I think that paper crowns are the crazy craft lady version of the tinfoil hat. They keep bad thoughts away and make you feel glam while thinking good things.

I had thought about adding more... more sparkly elements, a focal piece... but I think the butterflies do well by themselves.

Crowns are gloriously fun to wear and you very nearly cannot feel bad wearing them. If you require a crown for your own noggin' here are the supplies I used to create my "Monarch Crown".

Gypsy Soul Chipboard Crown
G45 Couture: Accessorize
Authentique: Mysterious 2
BoBunny: Enchanted Harvest Butterflies
Gold Star Picks
Narrow Gold Dresden Diadem or Crown

Glitter
Acrylic paint