Bone Keeper's House with Stacy

Hello Friends!

I'm back today with a tutorial for a Halloween Ornament. I have a black Halloween tree that I've been putting out for a couple of years and I hang black and orange bulbs on it, but they were looking kind of lonely. So I decided that this year I should make some to hang on the tree... and here is my first one! I'm hoping to do a series of them...

It's a tiny bit creepy but I was itching to use my new Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous Skeleton from the Inventor 4 Stamp Set (CMS347)...

It's fun to be creepy at Halloween!

The house is from Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts. It is the Mini House Shadowbox 2 and measures 2 1/4"x 3 1/4"x 1" and was the perfect size to be made into an ornament...I just had to punch some holes into the top for a string!

Let's Begin!

First, I started by laying out my house. I picked a piece of patterned paper from the Tim Holtz Halloween Paper Stash and cut it to fit the inside of the house. The cut pieces were then blended with some Walnut Stain Distress Ink and then adhered.

Then, I adhered the bottom portion of the house together and left the roof off. I stamped a portion of the Inventor Skeleton inside the house at the back and chose some of the written descriptions to stamp in various areas. Technically, this should have been done prior to me gluing the bottom together...but I didn't know where my creativity was headed :)

Next, I marked dots where I was going to punch holes for my ribbon or jute to go.

then punched the holes...

Next, I created the paper to wrap around the outside of the box as shown here...

I took a piece of Watercolor Paper and stamped a few portions of the creepy tree from the Mr Bones Stamp Set (CMS345) and some portions of the Ornate Background Stamp (CMS348) and stamped them in Archival Black Soot then embossed them with Clear Embossing Powder.

I decided to do a Weathered Wood technique that I have previously shared on my blog...here is the link to that.

I then spritzed my paper and embossed it with the 3D Lumber Texture Fade, then dried it with my heat tool.

I took my Picket Fence Distress Paint with the dabber top and dabbed a bit of paint around on the white areas, and avoided the areas that had been stamped. Then I dried the paint, and sprayed the paper with Evergreen Bough, Walnut Stain and a tab bit of Black Soot Distress Spray Stains and water. Then dried it with my heat tool.

And here is the result...Oh so CREEPY!!

Then, I moved on to create the tiny crackled bottle that you see here...

What an amazing technique...you'll ooo and ahh after its done!!

Wait till you try it!!

To begin... take an Idea-ology Corked Vial and paint on a layer of Glue N' Seal Matte Finish. Then let it sit and dry.

When it is dry, paint a layer of Distress Crackle Paint - Clear Rock Candy...

I just used my finger and then set it aside to dry.

After it is done you get this!!!!!! Holy Moses!! Crackle goodness! Then I took my Walnut Stain Distress Crayon and a bit of water and colored the vial and rubbed the grunge into the cracks!! AMAZING!!!!

Now back to the house...

I embossed the edges of the house with a Ranger Embossing Dauber and dipped the edges into some Emerald Creek Burnt Copper Leaves Embossing Powder.

Some of the embossing powder accidentally embossed inside of the house, oops, but it totally worked!  Here is a close up of the edges...the color was perfect for this project!!! Grungy goodness!!

I trimmed the outside paper down to fit the outside of the house and adhered them with Distress Collage Medium. (I forgot to take a photo of it, but I adhered a piece to the bottom of the house as well.)

I then cut 4 of the medium size Planks, from the Sizzix Bigz Planks Die, out of Watercolor Paper, embossed them with the Lumber 3D folder and stained them with Walnut Spray Stain. With my finger I rubbed on a small amount of Crackle Embossing Paste onto them and set them aside to dry. When they were dry, I blended a bit of Gathered Twigs and Black Soot Distress Crayons and a bit of water into the cracks.

I adhered the planks onto the roof of the house. The planks were slightly bent to form a peek and wrapped around the front of the house to cover the front edge of the house.

I punched holes with my needle tool through the roof of the house where the holes had been punched but covered with the planks...then added some jute so that the ornament could be hung.

Then I began arranging the Bone-keepers decor...

Bones... Painted with Picket Fence Distress Paint and rubbed with Ground Expresso Distress Crayon.

Skulls... rubbed with Ground Expresso Distress Crayon.

Cheesecloth... sprayed with Walnut Stain, Black Soot Distress Stain and a bit of water then dried with a heat tool.

A leaf... from a previous playtime with Distress Spray Stains.

 A Key... an Idea-ology Halloween Key and Spider. Painted with Picket Fence and dabbed with Mushroom Alcohol Ink. The spider wound on with a bit of string.

 A Vial... finished off with a vial sticker (that comes in the package with the vials) that I distressed with my Sanding Grip and blended with some Walnut Stain Distress Ink and adhered to the front. I then tied on a bit of string.

All was then adhered with Distress Collage Medium, inside and outside of the house. To throw in some additional creep, I added a bit of dried moss!

And it was finished...

 

 

The Bone-keeper's house is ready to hang on my Halloween Tree!

I hope that you enjoyed this tutorial and that it inspires you to create your own Halloween Ornaments! Thank you so much for stopping by today!

Creatively Yours,

Stacy

GATHER YOUR SUPPLIES -

Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts- Mini House Shadowbox 2

Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous- Inventor 4 (CMS347), Mr. Bones (CMS345) Ornate & Lace (CMS348)

Tim Holtz/Ranger- Black Soot Archival Ink, Embossing Dauber, Clear Embossing Powder, Glue and Seal Matte Finish, Crackle Paint-Clear Rock Candy, Mushroom Alcohol Ink, Sanding Grip, Opaque Crackle Texture Paste

Distress Crayons- Black Soot, Walnut Stain, Ground Expresso

Distress Paint- Picket Fence

Distress Ink- Gathered Twigs, Black Soot, Walnut Stain

Distress Spray Stain- Evergreen Bough, Walnut Stain, Black Soot

Distress Tools/Mediums- Distress Sprayer, Media Mat, Heat it Heat tool, Blending Tools, Watercolor Paper

Tim Holtz/Sizzix- Skeleton Leaves Die Set, Lumber 3D Texture Fade, Planks Bigz Die, Vagabond 2

Tim Holtz/Idea-ology-  Halloween Paper Stash, Halloween Word Keys, Corked Vials, Halloween Adornments, Boneyard, Skulls

Emerald Creek- Burnt Copper Leaves Embossing Powder

Other- Cheesecloth, String, Dried Moss, Jute

An ABC Primer Organizer System

Have you seen the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Organizer System? I think most of the design team has done a version of this project, and for good reason! It's so incredibly handy!

It's built up of various components which can then be mixed and matched together.

You can choose just the elements you need separately, or buy the entire set.

Then configure however you like! Move bits around. Use separately, place them together as a unit.

I've used mine for months now and it's really useful. The little drawers are great for storage. I've been using the bins to store rulers and scissors. I have A LOT of paint, so I use the Acrylic Paint Holder portion to hold those colours I use most, and to hold my glue bottles upside-down so that it's always ready use.

It's a nice, neat system and it's held up really well for me.

My Organizer is embellished with various papers from Graphic 45's An ABC Primer Deluxe Collectors Edition. 

This is a BIG project. It's not difficult, but it will require time. If you're doing the entire set be prepared to use quite a bit of paper. I only covered the visible exterior sides of the pieces. This saved time and paper. This also reduces bulk to the drawers ensuring there is enough space that they slide in and out with ease.

I knew that this was going to be a well used piece so I limited the additional embellishments I added to a few metal nameplates. Function over frills and glitter for this project!

Think you'd like to try this project? Here are all the bits I used:

Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Organizer System

• 3 Drawer

• 3 Inch Bins

• 6 Drawer

• 6 Inch Bin
• Acrylic paint holder (Glitter Glue Holder also available)
Graphic 45's An ABC Primer Deluxe Collectors Edition
Glue
Black Acrylic Paint
Stamp pad for distressing edges
Metal nameplates

Happy Crafting!

Sweet miniature with Alicia Barry

I love all things miniature. I was so happy to have a little girl so I could build tiny fairy gardens with her. This week I have created a little country cottage scene using the House ornament kit from Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts. I have actually combined a whole bunch of pieces that are all designed to fit together, depending on how detailed you would like your scene to be.

I actually plan to make another one of these in a Christmas setting (to be honest, if I had the time, I would create a whole Christmas village).

The first part is the House ornament base. This a square base that is hollow should you wish to add wiring for some tiny lights (Something I will definitely do next time). I covered mine in white paint, then added some miniature grass which was leftover from a school project. We got this from a hobby store and is designed especially for miniatures.

Next I added House fences and the sweet little 3D tree. I used flower soft for the flowers and allowed them to sprinkle down onto the grass as if the breeze has just blown them down.

The main part of the project was the house of course. I started with a basic house ornament, then added the House ornament porch, the House ornament chimney and dormers, the House ornament window trims, and the tiny little shingles on the roof. (Don't worry, these come in strips, they do not need to be glued one at a time). Once assembled, I painted the whole thing with a white base, then sponged a little brown ink onto the roof. The rest I just left white with some flower soft on the window sills like tiny little flower boxes. The final touch was some mica flakes at the front door to look like a cobble walkway.

I feel like I could do so much more with this kit too. The roof panels under where the shingles are, has a couple of small holes that you can put string through to hang it up. The house has a trapdoor in the base in case you want to add that lighting I talked about, or even just a little tea light. Imagine a tiny little rope swing hanging from the tree. For next time, I need to figure out a teeny tiny mail box out the front. I think the front porch gives it a "churchy" feel, lending itself to an old country church scene...perhaps even for a wedding. The more I type, the more ideas I am getting. Ooh, imagine four all joined together in a square, with each one representing a different season. The possibilities really are so very many. How about a housewarming gift.