Frightfully Sweet Book Box by Shanna

Hello to all you amazing crafters out there. I altered a Book Box in the spirit of Halloween. Have they started putting out the Halloween stuff around you yet? They have here! My kids went bonkers seeing pumpkins out.

So I used a small book box so that I would work with some 6x6 papers from the New Graphic 45 line. I pulled out this cute new skeleton from the Skeleton Shape Set.

I used the Stackable Labels to add a title to the box. Painted them with some Distress Paints and smudged a little Black Soot Distress Ink too make the colors darker.

The skeleton was painted with just plain gesso. Of course skeletons are never just white though.

So grab some new spooky shape sets and create along with us.

Gina's Designs Items Used:
Stackable Labels Shape Set
Skeleton Shape Set
Small Book Box

"You Make Me Smile" Card and Gift Box With Mini Book Charm by Kim C.

This week I have done two projects.

The first is a simple card created with kraft colored cardstock and some vintage pattern paper from my stash.I then added a doily to the side of the card.  The edges were distressed with ink.  I made some flags from the vintage paper and added them to the right top corner.

I took the sentiment "You make me Smile" and embossed it with black embossing powder. A dew drop from The Robins Nest was added to the "i" to make it stand out.

I also added more of the dew drops to the bottom right corner.  I took the other half of the doily and added it to the inside of the card.  I then added some flowers from my stash to the bottom left corner.  I inked all the paper and cardstock with distress ink.

My next project is a gift box with mini book charm.  I made the box from kraft cardstock.  I wrapped vintage pattern paper and some lace around the middle of the box.  I inked the box and paper with distress ink.

I then added some flowers from my stash along with a vintage dressform.

I made a mini book charm that hangs from a lobster claw clasp, which I attached to a book mark style tag.  I added beads and a charm to the chain and also added some lace and a metal flower to the front of the book.

I just love how these two projects just go together.

Gina's Design's Items Used:

Cardstock Doily Set 1

Words & Phrases 2

Dressforms 1 Shape Set

Other items used:

Dew Drops

Wild Orchid Craft Flowers

Mirabella Paper Collection from The Paper Studio

Lace

Cardstock

Distress Ink - Vintage Photo

Birds of a Feather Birdhouse

Hi chippie fans!  Barbara here with another birdhouse project for you.  If you haven't guessed by now, I love birds, and this Birdhouse Mini Display Tray from Gina's Designs Lasercuts started my creative juices flowing.  

Trim chicken wire to fit over one of the birdhouse frames.  Paint chicken wire with Sterling paint, then dab Rusty paint randomly for a weathered look.   Adhere to one of the black painted birdhouse frames.

Measure and mark chickenwire for size

Paint the two frame (open) pieces with black chalk paint.


Select a print clock face, adhere to the remaining frame (open) and trim excess.  Insert a set of tiny clock hands with a tiny brad.  

Select a portion of the print paper, using the open frame piece as a template to see which portion of the paper you want to show through. 

Cut out the paper just inside the pencil marks and adhere to the base (solid piece) of the birdhouse.  Paint the back and sides with black chalk paint just to finish it off nicely.  Color background paper with Rusty Hinge, Stormy Sky, and Peeled Paint distress inks.  Set aside.

These are the three pieces you should have now, and will be adhered together in this order later.

Use a spatula to spread a thick coat of the white crackle paste over the frame with the clock face.  (TIP:  You might want to do this before adding the clock face and hands).

Dab Gathered Twigs and Vintage Photo distress stains over crackled frame to bring out the cracks and to give depth with the different brown colors.  Then dry brush some of the Turquoise paint over the crackles.

Here is a closeup of the color variations from this technique.

 Adhere first frame piece with the chickenwire attached to the solid print covered background piece.

Adhere second frame piece with the clock face over the piece with the chicken wire, sandwiching the chickenwire between the two frames.

Color both the lace border sticks and one corner from the Art Deco Border & Corners Set with Prima Color Bloom spray mists in Soft Teal, Gilded, Cobalt, and Emerald.  Rub Rose Quartz Treasure Gold over the top.  Deepen the color for a better color match by sponging on Peeled Paint distress ink.

Adhere these three pieces to the top of the birdhouse, as shown.

Paint Birds of a Feather with Rusty paint (words), and Turquoise paint on birds and feather.  Add Rose Quartz Treasure Gold, more Turquoise to each section.  Adhere to the bottom section of the birdhouse, as shown.

I thought something was missing, so I used this tiny butterfly from the butterflies and dragonflies shape set, covered with the Rose Quartz Treasure Gold on both sides.  On the front side, I added a bit of blue color with the Prima Cobalt mist, but I used a paintbrush to add it to the wings.  I gently lifted the wings and adhered to the clock, as shown.  

Gina's Designs Supplies Used:

Mini Display Tray - Birdhouse

Butterflies & Dragonflies

Border Sticks Lace

Chicken Wire Large

Birdwatching Shape Set

Art Deco Border & Corners

Other Supplies Used:

Tim Holtz 8x8 Paper Stash - Collage

Dina Wakley Sterling  and Turquoise acrylic paint

Black chalk paint (FolkArt)

Viva Decor Rusty paper paint

Tiny clock hands (Blank Slate-Hobby Lobby)

Prima White Crackle texture paste

Tim Holtz Idealogy:  Mini brads

Tim Holtz Gathered Twigs and Vintage Photo distress stain

Tim Holtz Wild Honey and Peeled Paint distress inks

Prima Color Bloom sprays: Cobalt, Soft Teal, Gilded, Emerald

Treasure Gold Rose Quartz metallic wax

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you are inspired by my project today and will take a moment to hop on over to Gina's Designs Lasercuts to see the wonderful selection of chipboard to help get your creative juices flowing.  And be sure to visit the blog for more fabulous projects from the design team.  


Barbara

Steampunk Project with Guest Designer Jackie Neal

Hello and welcome everyone!  Jackie Neal here today and I am over the moon excited to be the September Guest Designer here at Gina's Designs!!

The first time I saw Gina's laser cuts used were on a friend's blog. Straight away I had to go check out the store and you know what? I sent my first order in that day!  Thank you Nichola Battilana for turning me on to Gina's Designs!

For my first project, I went all out with Steampunk!

When I received my pieces I knew I had to use the steampunk parts first. I love the chipboard assortment that Gina's has​ to offer; so much to choose from​!

"Fantastic Journey"



The substrate here is an upcycled jewelry box. Perfect to showcase Gina's steampunk elements!

For my gears, I coated the​m with embossing powder and then layer and layers of paint for a grungy, rusty look.​

With the Steampunk card stock doily set, I used embossing paste through a gears stencil over areas on the doilies. When dry, first I added more color to the embossed areas, ​then​ I cut and molded the doilies onto areas of the box​ using gel paste.

Next for my Steampunk lady, I used two different sizes of the dressforms cut and fitted to make her cage dress. She also has on a corset from the Dressforms set as well as Gina's Steampunk Wings.

Behind her in the box there is more of the Steampunk doily as well as FANTASTIC from the Word Ribbon 3 Set.

 Gina's Products used:

Clock Hands Shape Set

Gears Shape Set

Dressforms & Wings Shape Set

Dressforms 2 Miniature Shape Set

Steampunk Shape Set

Cardstock Doily Set Steampunk

Word Ribbons 3



Other products used:

Tim Holtz Distress Embossing Powder-

Vintage Photo

Wendy Vecchi Clear Embossing Paste

Finn​abair Mica Powder-Copper

​​​Finnabair 3D Gloss Gel​​

DecoArt Media Line Paints





 I absolutely had a blast making this piece and can't wait to show you more of my creations over the next few Wednesdays so be sure to stop back!!

 Make sure to visit back to see the design teams projects daily as well as have a look over on FB for ​​

inspiration​.​

others!



Thanks so much for visiting!

Jackie

http://www.creatingwithoutcrayons-jackiepneal.com/

The Fun Starts Here!

Hi everyone! Amylove here with a cheeky little altered canvas dedicated to my humorous brother-in-law. When I saw this picture of him taken on their summer vacation.... I just had to do it!

HAHA! I love it, and I am sure he will too! Please click the video link below to see how I made this piece: The Fun Starts Here Tutorial

Gina's Designs Products Used:

Beach Shape Set

Title The Fun Starts Here

From my stash:

burlap canvas

water color paper

sand texture

Twinkling H2Os

Gesso

flat back pearls

acrylic paint

hilarious picture of my brother-inlaw

Thanks for stopping by!

Bless your Nest - Housewarming Card and Tag

Hi and happy September, folks! Lynne here and I have to admit that time has been flying by so quickly that I still haven't quite figured out what happened to May and June yet, and now autumn is on the way.

While I'm experiencing the "empty nest" right now and feeling a little lost, I'm also excited that my very best friend is going to be moving into a new "nest" in a couple weeks, and rather than 45 minutes away from me, she will be only about 3 minutes away! That makes me a happy little birdie, so I made this card and gift tag for her to celebrate the occasion:

I used the beautiful Blue Fern Studios' "Frolic" paper collection which inspired me with the bird theme, and the sweet chipboard frames and flourish from Gina's set them off perfectly. I painted the pieces with light tan acrylic paint, then dry-brushed them lightly with blue and black to coordinate with the papers. Super-simple, but I was happy with the effect!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and may your autumn-and your nest-be blessed!



Gina's Items Used

Scribble Frame-Birds

Delicate Frames & Ornaments Shape Set



Other Items Used

Blue Fern Papers

Prima resin birdhouse

spanish moss

acrylic paint

Martha Stewart punch

Crazy for Coffee by Barb

Henry Ward Beecher said, "A cup of coffee -- real coffee -- home-browned, home-ground, home-made, that comes to you dark as a hazel-eye, but changes to a golden bronze as you temper it with cream that never cheated, but was real cream from its birth, thick, tenderly yellow, perfectly sweet, neither lumpy nor frothing on the Java: such a cup of coffee is a match for twenty blue devils, and will exorcise them all."

Anyone who has known me for more than, oh, 25 seconds, knows that I'm a certifiable coffee addict. It took absolutely no stretch of my imagination when it came to this design. I began by painting a canvas board with white, blue and brown acrylic paints. Then I added the splatters, rings and coffee beans - all of which are done with rubber stamps.

I coated the gears with Brilliance Pearlescent Chocolate ink and dabbed a bit of Pearlescent Sky blue over that once it had dried.

I painted the spoon with Imagine Crafts Creative Medium in silver. While it was still wet, I used a rubber stamp to make the impression on the handle. When it had dried completely, I used my finger to rub blue ink into it to make it stand out more.

I began the mug by painting it with a layer of gesso. After the gesso was dry, I colored it in with Colour Arts's Twinkling H2Os. I didn't want an empty mug (mercy, no!), so I colored in some liquid using a Sharpie. I also added Distress Stickles to the "liquid" to give it extra sparkle. I used a rubber stamp with StazOn ink for the words on the mug. For the steam I painted the piece with gesso and then glopped on a thick layer of Distress Stickles.

I wanted the word "coffee" to look like an old enamel sign. I began by giving it a thick layer of irRESISTibles spray in wedding white. Once it was completely dry, I stamped "coffee" all over it, again using StazOn ink. I used the same shade of ink and, using my finger (which only stayed stained for about a day and a half), I lightly rubbed it here and there on the piece. To give it a little extra depth, I dabbed on Distress Stickles. 

And now, if you'll excuse me, I think I'm going to get a cup of coffee!

Gina's Designs Products Used

Coffee & Tea Shape Set

Gears Boarders & Corners Miniatures