Saturday, April 30, 2011

My Own Private Tiffany



Hello!

I am back with a new project idea to share. I have always loved stained glass and tiffany lamps but who can afford that? Very few...
Anyway, I thought of a way to get that tiffany feel on a shoestring budget. It will cost somewhere between $20 to $25 dollars. Not too shabby right?

Here is what you will need:
Cheap lamp this one was $9.99 Big Lots
Pack of multicolor sharpies  $5 to $10 depending on where you get them.
Black acrylic paint and some detail brushes. These are inexpensive ones from Walmart. About $5

Now we are ready to get started on the fun part!
Remove the shade from the lamp and make sure it is clean of any dust and debris.
Draw out your pattern using the black sharpie. I looked at a variety of lamps/stained glass and just went for it. there is no need to be precise on this. A mix of organic and geometric look great together.
When your pattern is complete start coloring your motif.
You can vary the colors in the pieces like real glass can be.
After you have the entire project colored to you liking; you will want to darken and sharpen all your black guides with the acrylic paint. You can skip this if you want but it really gives the look of a stained glass piece.
It is really starting to take shape now!
OK! Now it is time to put this back together and test it out.
Hey! Not too bad. It definitely gives the room a new feel. I hope you enjoyed reading and that your project turns out awesome!

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Everything Old is New Again!

Hello! Recently I was on my way to a show and I was wearing my most comfortable heels as I am not a fan of binding shoes. In any case the top strap broke and I had to change back into my motorcycle boots. I really loved those cute heels but they had definitely seen better days. I decided to give them a make over. This can also be done with any cheap shoe. It is a way to have something cool or unique or even rip off designer styles on a budget! So, without further ado, here are the photos and steps involved.
 Start with some shoes you want to make over. Here is the pair that broke on me!
Here are most of the materials I used. You can really use anything you have around: silk flowers, Elmer's glue, school glitter...
 I start with doing any minor repairs or cleaning before I really begin with any of the decorating.

 Patching up tears before I paint.
Lastly clean up scuffs and any other bits that need touch up with paint or shoe polish. You can even use a sharpie for this.
Use masking tape to section off any part you do not want paint on. You can also use it to mask off designs if you desire. then begin painting.

Now I have my base color down. I will now put down a second base color of red freehand swirls.

You can really stop at any point that you like the look...However, I am going straight over the top with these!
Once base coats are dry, I mix Mod Podge with glitter and start blocking in more shapes with glimmer.

Once these glittery bits have dried I go over the whole section with a thick glitter and Mod Podge mix to seal it and bring the whole design together.
Once that thick layer is dry I move to details and embellishments!

Above: Glued on new elastic straps. Added black ribbon over top (not Pictured) Below: Glued on applique star (glitter added) at each ankle strap.
Ready to go out!
                               Another angle featuring the lovely glitter effects!
Well, I hope you have enjoyed this post and that it inspires you to make something ordinary into something brilliant!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Build your own battle standards!

Hello There!

Recently my boyfriend and I built battle standards for his band banner. It took a little work but they turned out pretty nice and we were able to use them at the next show! Below are the steps!
You will also need a banner(s) This can be the spendy part. Ivan made his own banner so the only cost was for materials. You can also use sheets, canvas or fabric and stencil your band name on with cardboard and spray paint! These look great as well :)
Sand your PVC pipe so that the paint will stick better!
Put your stands together for painting.
These are the short versions...I painted these first then the extensions.
I did a rough brushed look almost sort of like black wood. Another coat and it would be solid but we liked this look.
Lets see what Ivan is up to...
Measure...I repeat MEASURE before you make your cuts. Thank goodness Ivan is very precise :)
One of the cut panels
Left over vinyl is used to make the tops of the banners. We cut ours so they would have an authentic battle standard look.
Next we sewed them with a regular needle and thread to the banner tops. We tried a glue gun first (didn't work on the vinyl). Let me tell you sewing this was not the easiest thing but it works really well.
Here is our first one! I will skip to the finished part now. Drum roll...
Yay! Here they are. We added thin Bamboo sticks to the bottoms to add some weight and to keep the banners straight. The bamboo sticks are about a dollar at any home and garden store. They are for plants :)
Hope you enjoyed reading this! Thanks :)


Thursday, April 7, 2011

New Doll For Sale On Etsy

Hello Everyone!

Just wanted to put up some new pics of my latest creation. This is a little girl named Blondie; she is somber yet sweet. You can make her your very own at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/EnchantedRevolution





Thanks for reading :)