Birdsong ACEO

Hello fine folks!  It's Susan here, welcoming you to today's edition of the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts demo!  I have an ATC redux to share.

I have a bin of leftover chipboard parts.  This is different from a bin of leftover parts from assembly of, say, a computer or a bicycle; that's usually bad.  My parts bin holds pieces that are partially used but ultimately (gently) rejected for a project.

In this case, it's an ATC/ACEO from the sarcastic frenzy I was on a month or two ago.  One side was ripped off just like this one here, and the other a pretty yellow design.

I've been dying to do a project with birds in hats (have you seen these Little Hats? So cute!) so off I went.

It didn't go so well.

I wanted the hint of a musical background, so I pulled out a fine clear embossing powder and musical notes stamp.  Turned out the stamp details are way too tiny for embossing powder.  then I tried a larger musical stamp with a light brown embossing powder.  Fail.

I went back to the drawing board, or in this case, the paper pad with the yellow paper.  Instead, I found this music note paper and heard a choir of angels sing!  It had nothing to do with my state of overtiredness and mild frustration.  Really.  Ok.  I might've been imagining it.

In mere minutes I Mod Podge'd over both sides and adhered the musical notes paper and it's coordinating reverse on each side.  Once the papers were dry, I used a straight edge to cut off the excess.

I used the same Mod Podge to attach the three elements.  (The bird was a fiddly and wouldn't wear a hat, so I gave up on that idea.)

Once those layers were dry I cleaned up the edges with sandpaper, painted them with Archival Brilliance Galaxy Gold and Coffee Bean inks, then finished with a matte varnish.

 

 

Thanks for your visit today! 

Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Used

Chunky ATC Blanks #C33O

Other Supplies Used

MME /Lost & Found/ Sunshine 6x6 paper

K & Co Brenda Walton Design Elements

1/8" snap-together letter stamps

Archival Brilliance - Coffee Bean Ink

Liquitex Basics matte varnish

Mod Podge - matte

Atelier: Mini Sewing-Themed Album

Hello creative friends!  I have an Alpha Stamps project to share with you today, made with gorgeous paper and a wee 4-inch chipboard album.

There's a feeling of nostalgia and comfort that comes from vintage sewing artifacts and ephemera.  I've collected enough bits and bobs over the years to have a vintage-sewing-themed guest bedroom, including an old singer treadle machine as a side table.

I was thrilled to see Stamperia's Atelier paper pad, a beautiful nod to seamstresses everywhere.  I couldn't wait to work with it.

Don't get me wrong - I am NOT a seamstress.  Funny story - when we lived in Pennsylvania, my husband and I hosted an annual Christmas party for a few neighbor friends.  There were a total of 4 couples and we did a funny gift exchange.  One year I made fleece pajama pants for everyone.  We had the weekend morning habit of wandering to someone's house for porch coffee -- usually in pajamas --  so I bought a pattern and matched the fleece designs to their personalities as best I could.  I sewed for months.  I was relieved when the last pair was finished, and tickled when everyone put them on at the party.  Needless to say, I haven't made a garment again.  It was fun to walk out my door and see those jim-jams that winter, though.

I mostly use my sewing machine on paper now, as you can see on each page of this tiny album. 

I loved working with this Memory Hardware Tiny Chipboard Album.  Leslie, our fearless Alpha Stamps leader, knew I wanted to embellish the heck out of this paper so she searched high and low for the perfect base.  Thanks Leslie!

The spine is white sticky canvas with a few coats of matte varnish to give it more structure and keep from fraying.  I supplemented the sticky back with white glue, just in case...

Let's take a peek inside!

The dress form on the right is great on it's own, so I only outlined it with a silver star jelly roll pen to give it a little sparkle.

Once they can no longer be worn, my husband gives me his old silk suspenders to reuse.  The collection of fabric "shirting" samples are actually very old quilt blocks that came in a large vintage sewing auction lot I won a few months ago.  These are my favorite pages of the whole album.

This is a small sampler of crochet laces.  I found the celluloid thread cutter in that auction box, also.

The dress form and thread top are just a few in the Atelier paper pad.  I wrapped brown ribbon around the waist and sewed a blue button with a lace scrap onto it.

A few notes on construction.  I painted the album edges white, and added linen hinging tape between each page to give a fabric-y look without adding any bulk.  It coordinates with the white canvas I used on the spine.

To help pick out a specific part of a paper design, I cut a piece of acetate to fit my item (in this case, the front and back covers), then hovered it over different designs until I find the perfect one.  After the outside was done, I trimmed the acetate to fit the pages, then set it aside for the next project.

There is a fair amount of hand sewing here, including the large mother-of-pearl button closure.  I punched two holes in the chipboard before covering with papers and added the button at the end.  That message was appropriate since I poked my fingers a few times... ouch.

The suspenders were added before the page was attached to the book.  I sewed the buttons on and attached the suspenders part with a zig-zag stitch mirroring the one on the fabric.

The dress form charm dangles on a sturdy eye pin from the jewelry section of a craft store.  I used cream seam binding for the closure.  The other end is glued between the inside back cover paper and the chipboard. 

Thanks for your visit today!  A complete Alpha Stamps supply list for this project can be found HERE!

Cheers
Susan

A Secret

Hello crafty friends!  I'm over on the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts blog today with this wee house of secrets.  I'm fascinated by the secrets people keep, from big whoppers to little things that can cause big misunderstandings.  I'm all for honesty and communication, even when it's hard.

Allow me to reveal all...

This "secret" key had been hanging around my stash for at least 5 or 6 years (if not more).  I had the chance recently to work with Stamperia's 'Time is an Illusion' paper, and set aside a small image of a woman's face.  I figured it could be a big element of a small project... then I found the key.  Bingo.

I started with the GSLC Tiny Little Shadowbox Houses #1.  This comes as a set of two houses.

I gave it a coat of white gesso first.  I thought at first I'd do a light base color, hence the white gesso.  I quickly decided to go dark, and repainted the seams with black.  (I took the photo after the shingles were added, so ignore them for a minute.)

Aaand a minute's up!  It's shingle time.  I used Tiny Shingles - Standard, alternating the seams.  (At this point, I thought I would hang something from the roof, but ended up skipping it and covering the hole.)

Once one side was fully shingled, I added shingles to the other side but left the last one off to give the scissors room to trim.  Before cutting, it's best to allow the glue to dry completely overnight.  Trim the shingles on both sides, then add the final layer.  I held that final piece in place until the glue set up, in order to ensure there wasn't a gap at the top.  Once dried, I trimmed that one, too.

The keyhole got a coat of Lumiere brown metallic paint, then I lightly swooshed my finger across the high details with a little copper metallic paint.  It took a few swooshes to get the coverage I wanted.

By this time in my project, the papers are adhered with modge podge, except the inside bottom.  The night before, I used E-6000 to attach the painted black base to the shadowbox, with the intention of adding the final paper once the E-6000 dried.  The next day I realized the weight of the key would have made this top-heavy with such a small base, so I added a metal washer and wider wood.  Once that cured overnight, I painted with black gesso then acrylic.

I'll share a secret with you:  I use the washer trick a lot.  I really makes a difference for the stability of shadow boxes, altered Altoids tins, and the like.  Plus, layering wood bits in this way helps give projects their own uniqueness.

Now, back to the face image... I love that she's right behind the key.  Does she have secrets, or is she the secret?

Thanks for your visit today!

Cheers
Susan

Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Used
Tiny Little Shadowbox Houses 1 - #C20A
Tiny Shingles Standard BB57A
Keys Engraved D12Q - coming soon

Other Supplies Used
Stamperia Time Is An Illusion
black gesso
black acrylic paint
wood bits
E-6000
TH "secret" metal key
Tiny eye screw
White glue
Black twine
Metallic paints
Pilot gold marker
Tiny gold balls