RESIST Shrine Grotto by Susan Killam

Hello creative friends!  Today on the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts blog I'm sharing a mixed media art project borne of current news topics as well as individual experiences many of us have endured.  This is a personal piece for me.

Moving right along, allow me to gush about the Shrine Grotto.  It really is a stellar design!

The grotto is 10 inches x 4 inches x 4 inches.  The material is a very thick chipboard which allowed me to use wood screws for the top handle and the dress form.  This a solid piece that will not come apart! I'm looking forward to more projects using this grotto.

To begin, I chose papers that would help illustrate the juxtaposition of outer calm and inner rage.  In the end, I used black instead of the orange paper.

This was a pretty easy assembly since I wanted to wrap the grotto instead of cutting individual panels.  Here I laid out all three walls and marked where the paper needed to be cut on both papers, even though the inner paper is only shown.

I also made small pencil marks where I needed to score the paper for the inner corners.

Once scored I did a dry run for fit, then glued the paper on, one chipboard panel at a time.

With each new panel I tested the scoring and fit, and reinforced the grotto with drafting tape while the  glue dried.

I used a small self-healing mat to cut out the extra flaps.  This was a little fiddly but I persevered.  I could have measured the paper for the short notch, but I wasn't sure how the inside edges would be finished and I didn't want chipboard to show at the top and bottom joints.

I used white glue and a brayer to adhere the papers to the chipboard.

Here the outer floral paper is attached, as is the top chipboard.  (Despite how it looks, the top outer black is just taped on, not glued.)  I've already added the gold foil Dresden and thought, "hey, why not screw the top handle in instead of [whatever it was I was thinking...]?"  Heh.  Out came the Crop-A-Dile!

I also made a hole in the bottom piece before covering with black card stock.  I added the front and all the black Dresden foil trim.  I sealed the outside with a couple coats of varnish, then finished with the top knob, dress form, and feet.  No photos of this... I was on a roll!

The scored corners look especially nice on the outside.  Since the Shrine Grotto is 12 inches from front edge to opposite front edge, scoring makes a 12x12 sheet a wee bit short.  I covered the deficit with the strips of black Dresden running down each outer edge.

Thank you for visiting today!  Each day here you'll find a new inspiration project from the GSL Cuts Education Team!

Cheers,
Susan

Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Used
Shrine Grotto D179G

Other Supplies Used
S.E.I. paper
Dresden foil trim
Black card stock
Found wood dress form
Vintage tissue paper torn to cover dress form
Ranger Glue 'n Seal to adhere tissue and printed phrases
Printed phrases collected from current events and friends
Wood knob, feet
Black acrylic paint
Gold acrylic paint
Liquitex matte varnish
A healthy dose of resistance