Altered Drawers

Do you remember the little set of drawers I got from a carboot sale for 20p a while back?  Well I’ve finished “doing them up”

I spray painted them first and then covered them with My Mind’s Eye – Quite Contrary, Jack and Jill “Be happy” Gleeful Paper (what a mouthful!)  and several layers of Modge Podge Gloss Lustre.

The knobs were from a recent HobbyCraft sale and cost 29p for a set of 6.

Three Altered Jigsaw Pieces

I made these a little while ago when I had a “thing” about jigsaw pieces, mermaids, and dragonflies, after finding some wonderful US altered art blogs.
But I never got around to putting some thread and beads through the holes of the first two pieces……

The face is made using a filmo mould, and then sprayed with gold paint when “cooked”.  The leaves and dragonflies are made using punches, with tiny pearls and clear gems scattered liberally over them.

 
The gold seashells came from a charm site on US E-bay.
The mermaid pieces were covered with glossy accents to give a bit of depth and shine, a bit like looking into the sea!

Altered Postcard

This is a silly little thing really, but I thought how nice it would be to send a handmade postcard now and again just to say “Hi”, or “Thank You”, “Thinking of You” etc.

First I covered a postcard with part of a page from Brenda Walton, Mira Designer Mat Pad (4 x 6) by K & Co.

Then I embellished it with punched flowers using a large daisy punch and other paper designs from the pad.

It wouldn’t be a “me” project without the addition of flat backed gems and hologram glitter! (I will be interested to see if the gems withstand the vigour's of the postman's bag!)

I know I bang on and on about hologram glitter and add it to almost all my projects, but the effect is soooooooo lovely.  I cannot take a photograph that does it justice, it is subtle and beautifully twinkly and it looks so professional, like the cards in the shops!

I am sure that this idea could be adapted for so many other postcards for all occasions and ages.
As a post note ......... I posted this card to my mum ....... she never got it!!  Oh well!!!

A Bit of Whimsy

This is something a bit different for me, not sure if you could call it Altered Art – but it’s my bit of whimsy.

I have used a new playing card as the base, ageing it with a mixture of stamping ink, rubbed on and then rubbed off with a tissue and some colouring chalk.

The photo came from this box of bits I got from a car boot sale for a couple of pounds, a funny place to find just one small photo.

The tickets are genuine old bus/tram tickets, another find, this time from an Antique Market for pence.

The dove is new, from Hobbycrafts (£1.49 per pack),  but I have rubbed a bit of brown chalk into it to make it look aged. I just love it, birds are so in at the moment.

The key was from bracelet I found in a sale in New Look, it was about £1.99 and had about 20 little key charms on, which I took off, it was like finding treasure!

The small butterfly circle  is from  K & Co Cut’ n Paste Die Cut Cardstock Ephemera (569805), and finally, the thread is just a length of embroidery cotton wrapped round several times.

This started out as a modern Valentine in my head but I sort of got distracted…..  but I am dead chuffed with the result, this is a keeper, for my treasure box.

Altered Jigsaw Pieces

I am fascinated by altered art but it just doesn’t look right when I try it!

I don’t think I use the dark moody colours the experts seem to and I am scared when it comes to choosing the right stamps to get the effect I admire. All I know is I like stamps with text and crows (and goodness knows what that says about me!)

I love Tim Holtz and I drool over his DVDs.  I was thrilled to get up close to him (and get the above shot) while he was demonstrating  at the Birmingham NEC earlier this year. But this is uncharted crafting territory for me,  and not one I think I will be able to truly master. Unless Tim ever gets to see this blog and decides to take me under his wing!!!

Anyway this is my sorry attempt at altering jigsaw pieces.