Whiskey Money Boxes

 Just a quick update as I realised I hadn't blogged a money box I made recently.

The photos aren't great but basically I use the tin/cardboard tubes from whiskey bottles to create money boxes.  This one was especially poignant as it was the last bottle my father had before his death so I decided to make a money box for my mum.

I start by gesso'ing the tube to create an even layer then add torn papers and emphemera.  I often add a watered down gesso layer to blend everything together adding gems, items of importance, ink dirbbles, stencils etc. 

 I cut a slit to add the money and the sunflowers are torn from napkins with a lady bird added

 I added leather die cut flowers, buttons, the word 'Mum' from metal etc

I then applied several top coats of a spray varnish to protect it all.

Full of sentimental value and made with love

Kyla

 

Multi layered scraps

Thought I would post one of my latest cards I made.

The background is an old 12x12 patterned scrapbook sheet I no longer like that I gesso'd, painted, wiped back, stencilled, stamped and collaged!

I then added an off-cut from an Angelina fibre die cut butterfly that I made for a previous card and attached it with coloured mini staples.

I added a butterfly with some foil adhered for a little bling and stamped a sentiment on the bottom left.

I got suitably inky and covered in paint so I was a happy bunny!

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

March 365 Journal Challenge

Hello peeps, I realised we are half way through March and I haven't shared my 365 Journal pages for this month!  

I have been following this on Kate Cranes Challenge blog for a few years now and it is great looking back and remembering the various events, big and small that happened.

In case you are wondering the black witches hats are on a Monday and are when I go to my Craft Coven get together-sometimes just a small picture is enough.

I used some gesso in the background as the inks were quite bright and this helped just bring it all together.

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

February 365

Hello peeps, well this is a first for me-I have actually made my February 365 Calendar Challenge page ready for the start of the month!!

This months is  a little different for me as I played with scraping gesso over the finished pages to mute the colours.

I also used some sequin waste to ink through and bottle tops dipped in paint to add some rings and splattered some paint across the pages too.  Once again the letters are die cut from my good old cereal boxes, Dorset cereal has a smooth white inside to their boxes, perfect for colouring!

So there you have it, a colourful page-because lets face it the weather is blooming awful at the moment so anything a bit more cheerful is a good thing in my book!

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

Inspired by Finnabair

 Hello peeps.  Over on the Snazzy's DT blog (a fabulous craft shop in Swindon...I recommend it if you are looking for the unusual and are in the West country) they have a challenge to be inspired by Finnabair.

Well, let be honest, its not difficult to be inspired by her work (if your are unfamiliar with her amazing work check out her blog)

So I decided to do a page on thick watercolour paper (its so thick I though it would be able to take the gesso and all the inks I planned on using!!).

I have not tried anything like this before and I was quite pleased with how it came out.

I started by using some texture paste through a butterfly necklace pendant and some sequin waste.  I added some fabric, flowers, beads, homemade resin flowers and hearts, washers, 2 hot glue cogs (I LOVE using hot glue like this) and then added some hot glue lines for even more texture.  I then gesso'd the whole lot (but forgot to take a photo of this stage!!).

 

I then used a selection of Dylusion inks and Tim Holtz DI to colour the page.

 

I then flicked water to add some distressing and flicked some black dylusions too.

I added a photo of my dad and me when I was first born, scratching the ink away and adding a little colour to help blend it in.  I finished with a hand drawn frame around the picture.

I think i will definitely try this technique again.

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

Who'd have thought it...and its free!

 Well, this is the cardboard box from the chemist...you know, the one I mentioned in the WOYWW posting (or as Donna put it in the comments..."from the clap clinic!").  Now, I didn't need it....I don't want you to think that!!  BUT when I was in BOOTS I noticed that there was a pile of lovely thick cardboard boxes which screamed "cute storage"...and I like to think of myself as resourceful (and to be honest I would rather spend my money on craft stash rather than storage)...I couldn't resist!

I gesso'd the box (to remove the dodgy STD labels!!) and added some texture paste through a stencil, I then used a variety of acrylic paints and wiped them back to produce different layers of colour.

There you go, a nice sturdy box ready for holding some crafty stash (I am thinking of using it for my charcoal pencils as they make my case a bit messy)....all for free!!

If you have any free storage tips, I'd love to know.

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

Stamp Man Challenge Bingo

Check me out, more than one blog a week...!  I have finally cleared a small amount of space in the craft room which allows me to have my netbook up with me, which makes things a bit easier (but means my hubby see's even less of me now!...not sure if that is a good or bad thing!!)

I thought it was time to start entering some challenges again, over at the stampman page they are playing craft bingo.  They have a bingo card with various craft items and you choose a line and make something using all the items.

So here is mine, I have chosen the line with Green, Flowers and Swirls to make this tag.

 

I have coloured the tag with with green acrylic, added some TH tape along the right hand side, applied gesso through some waste packaging (with holes in) stamping swirls and flowers when dry.  I added a stamped ticket which I coloured with DI and finished with a flower brad and some green ribbon.

There are some great makes over at the Stampman challenge so feel free to pop over and be inspired.

Happy crafting

Li'l Pidge
 

So taking some time today to browse the web and I came across a cracking challenge blog 'shopping our stash.blogspot.com' which encourages your to use the stash you already have rather than having to buy new, and lets face it, unless you are totally new to crafting then you no doubt have a TON of stash.  I have been crafting since I was about 7 years old, now I am 40 and live in a 3 bedroom house with my hubby....well you can guess just how much stash I have amassed over the years, what with that, my hoarding tendencies (is that me or are all crafters the same....I can't walk past a skip without having a little rummage!) and my love of charity shops and car boot sales (though not as many these days as getting up early on a damp Sunday morning suddenly has very little appeal-I wonder why?!).

So I decided to have a go. A few years ago I bought some sheet music in a charity shop and although I have used a couple of pieces I worry that sheet music will become too expensive and I wont be able to buy anymore!  Seriously, this is how crafting gets to you!!  But I decided to make a tag.

I glued the sheet music to some scrap card (seriously this is great card for putting through Colin and generally grunging up, £2 for about 1 kilo of scrap card from the card making industry lots of bit left over from apertures etc-you never know what your getting, but this time I got a lot of gold card so bonus!).  So, I glued the music paper to some card using some multi-medium and smeared over white gesso adding lines of gesso with the edge of an old credit card (well, a promotional Love Film card!). When dry I die cut a tag and added colour with distress inks and inked through some sequin waste.  I then spritz a little mica and water to blend everything together and add a little sheen.

Next I hit my hoard of ribbon (admit it-we all have one,if not two secret stashes of ribbon....we know we;ll never use it but its SOOOO much just to touch!!), or at least my wired ribbon.  Now, I was suckered into buying an entire box of these at a show some years ago (I am MUCH more discerning these days) so I have a large collection of different thicknesses and colours.  But they do made great ribbons and look great on tags.  So I decided to make a couple.  I added  a couple of TH tattered leaves that I scrunched up, distressed and spritzed with water to blend the inks and coated them in gloss accents for a bit of shine.

Finally I used some gold vellum (again, I bought this about 7 chrismas' ago!) and die cut a bumble bee, colouring in the body and adding some stickles for a little bling.

So pop over to shoppingourstash.blogspot.com and use up your stash....it'll make room for more when I hit the Autumn craft shows!!! (I KNOW it defeats the object, but anything that uses up stash is good).

Happy crafting

Li'l pidge x