Saying I love you with wood

Hello and welcome to my little blog. Hopefully you all have had a wonderful holiday with Valentine's Day. I decided to make my DH a wooden sign. The numbers on the sign are very special to us and one of a kind.

I started with some leftover pine boards and stained it with MinWax. I let that dry overnight and then printed out my latitude and longitude. These coordinates are the location of where Kyle and I first met. Awwww! I printed just the outline of the numbers to save on ink.

The next step was to "weather" my boards. I applied some watered down DecoArt chalky paint. After that was dry, I dry brushed some of the same chalky paint over the boards. Viola! The easiest way to make new boards look older and weathered. TIP-You might also want to take some random objects (metal works best) and beat the boards. This technique makes some interesting intentions for your stain to seep into. I've used a tire iron, chains, an axe, hammer and such on past projects. It's awesome and fun. 

The time consuming part came when I outlined all of the numbers and letters to show the coordinates. Yes, some people use transfer paper, others remember to flip their image before they print it and trace that outline but I plum forgot and had to transfer paper. So, I taped my "template" to the board and used a pen to trace the letters. Using a bit of force while tracing I was able to get the font onto my board and then use a pencil to make it even more apparent. 

Once my outline was done I used DecoArt titanium white and painted the letters and numbers. 

After everything was dry, I used a hand sander and lightly sanded parts of the boards to create even more of a weathered look. Below is a closer look after the sanding. 

All done and ready to hang up. I nailed some shims to the back of the boards and some hooks. This was a gift for my husband for Valentines Day and I just got it hung today. Whew! Here is a look at it on our wall.

Please don't mind my wall color. Our living room has not been painted yet and this brown was there when we moved in. I am so very tired of living in brown houses. Haha! But that is another post for another day.

Hugz and Carpe Diem! Thank you for stopping by! 

~Niki

I would like to share this design with these challenges: 

A Bit More Time to Craft #38-Anything Goes

Creative Carte Blanche-Love

Rhedds Creative Spirit-February Challenge

Valentine's Day Card

Hello everyone! With V-Day 3 days away I figured I needed to get started on my hubbies card. I decided to make him one this year (a first for me) because I love him and he deserves a handmade piece! Yeppers, he's awesome sauce like that! Haha!

I kept it mostly CAS/masculine but of course had to experiment with a new way to create some patina! One of my favorite artists growing up was Amy Brown (and she's still awesome sauce!) I remember getting her book when I was younger and she experimented with paints and salt. So I grabbed some salt and sprays and performed my own experiment. Here are two results.

The above picture features stamping with a TH stamp and heat embossing with Rangers Verdigris EP and multiple layers of LSG sprays with a layer of salt here and there. The picture below features larger salt grains, LSG sprays and DecoArt Carbon black mister.  

Pretty! Sometimes I am sad to create a background because I don't want to cover it up with anything! Know what I mean? 

Anyway, I used the larger panel to create my 9 small squares and edged those with Copper Inka Gold. Those were adhered to black cardstock that I spritzed with DecoArt misters and LSG sprays.  

The X's and O's were found in my Alpha letters stash. They don't all match but it's okay by me. I rubbed some of the Copper IG on those as well and left the Glittery X's alone. The heart was drawn and cut out then painted with Carbon Black, a coat of multi medium and Prima black micro beads were added for texture. I stamped inside the card as well but that is a secret! Hehehe!

I would like to share this masculine card with these wonderful challenges:

A Vintage Journey-Industrial

(Hopefully my new patina painting technique has an industrial element, I also used metallic copper cardstock for the base)

Southern Girls Challenge-Anything Goes with Team Trace

Country View Challenges-Make Your Own Background

One Crazy Stamper-Anything Goes

Paper Creator's Challenge-Must Be Love

Grungy Love at Anything But Cute #10

Well it's that time of the year where Cupid is flying around acting all sorts of crazy. So at Anything But Cute #10 we are celebrating love-grunge style! Our fantabulously amazing hostess this month is: Sara Emily of Sara's Closet and here's what she would like to see: To celebrate Valentine's Day, we would like to see you make a Grungy Valentine's project for your sweetheart! It can be a card, tag, or anything else you might give a loved one to show them how much you care. Just be sure it's Grungy!

I decided to try mending a heart (artistically). My best friend just had an 8 year relationship end and I thought she might be cheered up with this design. Her Destination in love is Unknown as of now, but I am confident she will find the right dude!

I started with a 5x7 canvas and used the TCW brick stencil then made my heart out of cardboard and some of the Cold Country papers. Love that paper set! I then added some holes so I could stitch my heart back together. I used elastic thread and a rather large needle so I could double up on the thread and my fingers wouldn't hurt so bad. The holes were pre-punched with a hammer and a nail. Smashing success it was! Lol

I then sprayed my canvas with some black DecoArt spray and wiped off the excess. When that was dry, I sprayed with some Colour Arte Primary Elements-Hunter Gray that I put in a mini mister. Random bricks were painted with Silks-Black Emerald (my new favorite color!) and some were painted with white acrylic paint. I added the hooks in the bottom left corner with Glossy Accents. 

I wasn't sure where to go next with this design, so I walked away for a bit. When I came back to the canvas it screamed at me-flowers! I am not a big flower person but that is what my canvas was telling me. So, I went to my small flower stash and pulled out a few and painted those with the Colour Arte-Black Emerald as well. The feather was inked with Alcohol ink and then lightly dry washed with the Emerald Black. I added some Black Prima Art Ingredients Mico Beads with Mod Podge.

The "corset" lace up was a blast to make and something I am going to be doing again and again, and maybe again. I used embroidery floss doubled up and tied it into a bow. The bow was glued to the canvas just in case, I didn't want it to come apart and fall off. The entire canvas was then splattered with white and black acrylic paints. I covered the heart, flowers, and corset with scrap papers so it would stay nice and clean while splattering. The plaque at the top is chipboard and stamped with my sentiment, with brads in the corners and the edges are dabbed with black acrylic paint. I sure hope you enjoyed this design as much as I did making it. My new favorite piece. Don't forget to see what my amazeballs teamies have come up with for their Grungy Love designs! What will you be making?

Come to think of it, those hooks look like what you see on your bra, hmmm, well I believe I used these bra hooks in a more unusual way. :) Hugz and Carpe Diem! ~Niki

I would love to share this canvas with these delightful challenges:

Emerald Creek Dares-Valentine's is NOT in the Air

Our Creative Corner-Sew and Sew

The Artistic Stamper-HeArt Art

Things to Alter #1-Anything Goes Not Cute

Creative Embellishments February Challenge

(I was inspired by the metal, the heart, and the sentiment in the photo)

February Tag Time!

Oh boy has this month been crazy and it isn't even mid month. Crazy in a good way. New job, looking for a new house and so much more but I can't tell you all yet what the exciting, exciting news is! Tune in on February 20th to find out!

As you all know Tim has the February tag up and running. I am determined to do all the tags and above is my February tag. 

Again I didn't have everything that he used but I did have the ephemera pack! I stuck as close to his as I could to see if I could really do it and reign in my design. I love putting my own spin on things but it was a bigger challenge to stay the course! Check out his version here (Tim Tag). For the ribbon I used Distress Stains in Victorian Velvet and Vintage Photo. I also added stickers that spell LOVE

Art supply items I didn't have and what I used instead:

•Glue and Seal-I used matte Mod Podge

•The metal arrow-I used a SpareParts metal arrow 

•The metal corner pieces-I used some from my stash. 

•Black Distress Marker-I used a Copic

•Picket Fence DP-I used Gesso

•Flash Cards-I used TH fabric

•Mini Movers Heart die-I hand cut the heart

•A sewing machine-I hand stitched the little X's to the felt heart (my fingers are Red!)

•Red Felt-I used orange felt and sprayed it with LSG sprays. 

See! Anyone can join in and use what they have. Lol! Happy crafting!

This piece will be shared with these amazing challenges:

A Vintage Journey: Tic Tac Toe HERE I chose Idea-ology or Any metal embellishments, ephemera, and stains

Mixed Media Monthly Challenge:Think Pink. HERE I used pink roses

That Craft Place: Anything Goes HERE

Fussy and Fancy: It's All About Love HERE Love is in the air and this tag will be attached to my DH gift.

Paper pleating Mixed Media

Hello y'all! Seems like 2015 is just galloping by. Our new challenge for February at Mixed Media Mojo is the theme: RED with a twist to use WINGS!

This canvas is part of my gift to my husband for Valentines Day. Awwww! I started by painting my entire canvas with gesso and then painting the sides with black acrylic paint. I added FolkArt Metallic Red over the black just to add some sparkle. 

Then I grabbed some paper from my stash with script on it (I was thinking along the lines of a love letter) and ripped the edges. 

I have wanted to try paper pleating for a couple of months now after watching a video from Gabrielle and thought this was the perfect time for it. 

I cut out two hearts from some scrap paper and then traced those to the back side of my script paper. I cut out my hearts and was left with a heart hole to put my pleated papers. Can you see the "fix" I had to do in the bottom left corner? In the end it gets covered for the most part. We should all submit a Mixed Media Mistake shot for a blooper page. Hehe!

I started with the smaller heart. I cut my red paper down to a size I thought would work. I cut two strips and sprayed water onto both sides of my paper (it is easier to shape) and started pleating. I didn't take pics of this because I do the same thing with the large heart. 

For the large heart I stamped my red paper first, then cut it around the 2 inch-ish mark and sprayed water on both sides. I cut 3 strips just in case things went wonky but you only need 2 

I then pleated all three strips. I put my script paper on my canvas (not glued down yet) and found the center of the large heart and made a mark on my canvas. The mark on my canvas is where the tip of my pleated paper will go. Shape both strips into a circle around the mark on the canvas. 

I cut a smaller heart out of leftover script paper for the center of the pleated heart (it also covers the hole that was left from the pleating). I then added a small skull and black hemp tied in a bow. I painted the spot where the smaller heart will go with black acrylic paint. I did this because the smaller heart is on dimensional dots and I didn't want any white to show through. I glued my script paper to the canvas at this point. Then stuck my small heart where it belonged. I added metal wings to the small heart as well.

I then made my 3 roses with the Tim Holtz Tattered Florals die. Red Stickles were used on the edges of the large rose. I used glittery black embossing powder on my chipboard. I adhered the roses and the chipboard with Glossy Accents. 

I used a red rose puffy heart (Dollar Tree)that I grunged up with black ink in the bottom corner. The red paper is cut into banner shapes and red Stickles were applied to that. The stamp, "Pass Some Love Around",  is a new one and I used white embossing powder on it. Then found some leftover lace trimmings and viola! We are done. Go check out our Mixed Media Mojo challenge HERE

Thank you for stopping by and peeking into my neck of the wood. Carpe Diem! 

This project will be shared with the following:

Shopping Our Stash-Theme: Love HERE. Everything I used was in my stash already except for the new stamp.

Time Out Challenge-Valentines Day with a twist to use hearts HERE and take some time out to create!

We Do Doobadoo-Romance HERE

Frilly and Funkie-Be My Valen-Twine HERE