Mantle Clock Tutorial

I made this mantle clock is made entirely from scratch using chipboard and a clock kit.

 

All flowers were white paper flowers that I dyed with Antique Linen Distress Reinker & Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls (see flower dying tutorial here)

You will need:

• Clock Kit with 5.5cm hands
• Medium weight chipboard (approx 4 sheets)
• Light weight chipboard
• Tools - Craft Knife, Ruler, Scor-tape, liquid glue (Mod Podge)
• Distress Ink (Vintage Photo) & Ink Blending Tool
• Optional embellishments - Long Fasteners (brads), Flowers, Vine, Tim Holtz Ideaology etc

Download the mantle clock template

 

  Measurements:

• Clock face circle: approx 3 3/4" (90mm)
• Lightweight chipboard side strips x2: 2 1/8" (55mm) x as long as possible
• Lightweight chipboard clock face strip: 1" (25mm) x as long as possible

Base Box

• Front & Back: 1 7/8" x 6" (50mm x 150mm)
• Sides: 1 7/8" x 3" (50mm x 75mm)
• Top: 6" x 3" (75mm x 150mm)
• Front Trim x1: 1 1/2" x 5 3/4 (40mm x 150mm)
• Side Trim x2: 1 1/2" x 2 3/4" (40mm x 70mm)

Supplies used in shabby version:

• Pattern paper
• White paper flowers dyed with Antique Linen Distress Reinker & Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls (see flower dying tutorial here)
• Artificial Vine
• Long Fasteners
• Adage Ticket
• Vintage Photo Distress Ink

Supplies used in masculine version:

• Kaisercraft Pattern Paper
• Long Fasteners
• Vintage Photo Distress Ink
• Tim Holtz Sprocket Gears & Mini Sprocket Gears
• Tim Holtz Mini Numerals
• Tim Holtz Stamp from Stuff To Say set

  
Watch Part 1 on you-tube - http://youtu.be/zlG4yHp924c

Watch Part 2 on you-tube - http://youtu.be/h5TeAOSIBCM

Watch Part 3 on you-tube - http://youtu.be/-toORuyySkw 

Shabby Chic Technique Tutorial

 
I have been shabby chic painting so much lately. It all started when I was making decorations for my wedding. I made some crates, some really large wooden letters and an easel for our guest book. I'm still not over it so I have painted about 15 picture frames with the same technique to make them match.

 Here is how I do it:

 

Watercolouring Tutorial

 Watch this video on you-tube - http://youtu.be/zLIuZ0rne70 

 Supplies:
* Blender Pen (such as Tombow or Dove)
* Tim Holtz Distress Markers or Distress Ink Pads
* Watercolour Paper
* Jet Black Stazon Ink 
  * Twinkling H2O's
* Fine Water Brush
* Line Art Rubber Stamp (High Hopes - Handy Dragon)

See the text version of this tutorial here

How to stamp a clean and clear image

Check out this video for a few tips on how I stamp to get a clean and clear image.

Watch this video on you-tube - http://youtu.be/eOTPzQxTweg

Supplies:

Staz-on Ink
Watercolour paper
Waterbased Stamp Cleaner or solution
Stamp Cleaning Pad or Rub 'n' Scrub
Tack 'n' Peel
Acrylic Block

Steampunk Debutant Print Tray

 

This is a Tim Holtz Print Tray that I made using Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutant paper. It turned out so grungy and just how I wanted it. I have considered whipping up another one but using a smaller configuration.

The inspiration for this came heavily from the Graphic 45 Blog. I had been holding on to this paper stack and print tray for the better part of years waiting for the right idea.

The last couple pictures below explain how I did the grungy black and green edges on the print tray before I started decorating it.

I filled each compartment with all manner of stuff. I used quite a few Vintage Findings like the wing key on the right, vials and oval frame in the center. I also used Tim Holtz Numerals, Game Pieces, Keyholes, Word Sticks, Sprocket Gears, Plaquettes (coloured with Alcohol Ink), Time Pieces, Game Spinners, Memo Pins, Foliage and made a few ribbon spools from left over chipboard. The chipboard gears are from Make It Crafty.

Don't count anything out when you are putting together a project of junk. With a bit of paint you can colour it to match your project and having odd things in it just makes it more interesting. I used a spring that my friend found on the ground, a large key I found in the homewares section of Overflow, a blown light bulb from my friends Hilux and a 1918 penny that my dad gave me. I gave it the patina look by rubbing a bit of the same green paint on it then wiped it off. The high heel in the bottom center was a keyring from the Post Office that I painted black and then rubbed green paint over the lace pattern.

Where I have used tags and elements cut from the paper stack, I have glued it to thick chipboard and mounted it on foam tape so they sit up inside the compartment rather than to the back wall.

Some of the compartments have been turned around so they are no longer holes which I thought was an excellent idea from the G45 blog. I covered the edges of all boxes with a layer of Tissue Tape so that the gaps were hidden then covered the whole thing with a lot of molding paste with my fingers to create texture.

I then painted it with black and green/teal paint and sanded it back roughly to expose some of the paste. Then I sponged on some Vintage Photo Distress Ink to colour the exposed bits brown.