A Walk on the Beach

Hi everyone!  Leigh Ann here for Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts with a tag I made using several pieces of chipboard and shells we found on vacation to the beach in 2014.  We're going back this year so I was inspired to dig out the shells and create something fun with them.

I started by roughly coating a tag with white gesso.  Then I used Crackle Texture Paste in Platinum with a stencil to give it more texture. 

After that I sprayed it with Distress Oxide Spray in Mermaid Lagoon, sprayed with water, and dried.  I repeated this step a few times until I got the result I wanted.  Next I glued on some cheesecloth that I pulled apart a bit.  Then I added some more texture paste through the stencil and sprinkled it with pink mica flakes.  I cut 2 pieces of chicken wire chipboard, painted them black, and then used opal wax to give it a shine.

I got excited and forgot to take pictures of some of my steps so I will explain as best as I can.  I mixed Dina Wakley paint in Lapis with water and splattered it onto the tag.  I then added more small bits of cheesecloth.   I heat embossed the two flourishes with gold embossing powder then attached them to the tag.  

I covered a starfish and sand dollar from the beach shape set with pumice stone paste to give them a realistic look.  I also used patina pastes on a metal flower that I will add in the next step.  I coated the sides of a Tim Holtz glass vial with a mixture of concrete and pumice stone pastes to give it a weathered look.  I used diluted Distress Oxide Spray to give color to a couple of paper flowers. 

I assembled all of these pieces on the tag, then filled in around them with art stones and gel medium.  I added a bit of the diluted oxide spray to color them.  Then I finished by embellishing the tag with pieces from a pack of Sparklez.  I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial and it inspires you try some of these techniques yourself!  Here are a couple of close up views as well.

I used the following Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts pieces on this project:
Beach Shape Set
Large Chicken Wire
Leafy Swirls and Buds