Having Fun with Grandkids

Our daughter married a great guy that has two kids:  We became instant Grandparents of Meghan, who is now 13, and Danny, who is 9.  This past summer we enjoyed having them here 5 weeks. When they were at our house, we always ended up in my craft room. They wanted to make "art". We painted on canvas and we also used some of my paper crafts.  Sooo much fun!!


Here is a picture of what Meghan made with a little direction on my part. She discovered how much fun the Cuddle Bug is, especially when using metal..

We began with a simple "cardboard type" box from Hobby Lobby and 4 Ball Knob's that were 1-1/2" also from Hobby Lobby. Out of the choices of color for the box, Meghan wanted to use a gold paint. We used Valspar Signature Color's "Metal and Patina Glaze" that I had in my supplies. I purchased this glaze at Lowes or Home Depot. The color was Gold 99192.

Meghan wanted black feet for the foundation, so while the paint was drying on the box, we painted the feet black, using Delta Creative Ceramcoat in Black. Then while these were drying, we turned back to the box.

She went through my scraps of paper and metal and came up with a nice combination of both. This is when I showed her how to use the CuddleBug and the folders. The thrill of seeing her expression when the embossed metal pieces came out of the folders was kind of like how I felt the first time I used this great craft tool.

Now she was on her own as she designed her perfect little box. Before we glued the paper and metal to the box, I had her sand the metal embossed pieces to crank it up a notch. We used Therm O Web double-sided Super Tape for the metal - to hold it securely - and for the paper, we used the Xyron 5: Creative Station for the adhesive. Another fun craft tool.

Now that the feet were dry, we used "Amazing E-6000" glue to attach the freshly painted Ball Knobs to the bottom of the box.

The final touch was to add her initials to the top of the lid. I cut several different versions of letters using the Cricut and gave her the choice of which one she would glue to the top.

Here are a few other images of her perfect little box that she will use in her bedroom. I think it turned out nicely and besides being my most favorite granddaughter, we found our she is one very creative girl, which made me super happy.  I love art and crafting and it is something that I can do with them and have a great time too.
 

Meghan chose to go with the MH initials on her decorated box.  Then, we went back to painting acrylics on canvas.  It is nice to have diversity....to have several projects going so you don't get bored with one.

Created in His Image.

Revamping An Old Picture Frame Mat and Altering a Damaged Photograph

This is an ordinary photo frame, but the inner mat is dirty and scratched. Also, the 8X10 photo is marred and scruffed in the background. Using Corel MediaOne Computer Software, I adjusted the photo by lightening it up a bit, and then cropped the image to a 5"x7". I found that even after cropping the image to 5"x7", there were still some distracting scratches.  Again, using Corel Media One, I choose a frame for the photo that is painterly - cute and funky. 

Now that the photo is acceptable, my focus returns to the damaged beveled mat . Using a Zebra print paper, I traced the mat onto the back side of the paper, including the inner rectangle where the photo is displayed, made the cuts and it fit nicely. Once the paper was secured to the mat (using "This to That" permanent zip tape by American Crafts-my new favorite zip adhesive thanks to my friends at Anthologies),  I used a Color Box Fluid Chalk Inkpad (color-blackbird) around the edges on the inner rectangle.. Now the photo is ready to be taped behind the mat to ensure that it doesn't move. To give it a three-dimensional feel, I added 1/8" thick 3D-Dots by EK Success between the photo and mat.  For added embellishment, I used black ribbon and sewed zig-zag using red thread, as you will see below.

When I placed the altered mat and photo into the gold frame, the frame just didn't fit the personality of the altered image.  Using black Delta Creative Ceramcoat and a foam paint brush. I stroked the black paint over the gold, then took a paper towel and gently rubbed some of the black off, allowing the underlying gold to shimmer through. I am happy with the results and hope you enjoy this altered frame, mat and photo.

Created in His Image.