Tag Archives: Mixed Media

Learn How to Upcycle Wine Bottles with Paper Mache

Posted on by

by Iris Rodriguez

Spring is coming and in some places, it’s already starting to look like spring with the beginning of sunny weather. To celebrate the change of the season, I like altering bottles of every type such as wine, liquor, and Coke bottles. Each one has it’s own potential and beauty. Today’s project is an altered wine bottle, made to look like flowers are springing out (pun intended) with a real zipper and paper mache to cover the glass. This project takes time! Paper mache takes longer to dry so to start this project please carve out a couple days for its completion. As part of my color palette, I was inspired by Pantone’s Color of the Year, Ultraviolet. For my version of Ultraviolet I used Fireworks! Shimmery Craft Spray Grape Jelly and Lulu Lavender. This altered bottle makes a beautiful home décor, centerpiece or just a nice gift.

Skill: Advanced
Time: 2.5 hours + 1 day drying time

Directions


Step 1

Select a bottle, remove labels and wash it inside and out. Dry completely.


Step 2

Measure the zipper on the bottle, determined where it should open and adjust slider accordingly.


Step 3

Glue cardstock paper on each side of the zipper, ensuring that the paper is on front facing side of the zipper. Add paper starting from the top of the zipper to where the slider is located. The paper helps to glue the zipper on the bottle and still allows for adjustments to the opening.


Step 4

Glue tissue paper around the area where the zipper will be placed. The tissue makes for a porous surface to color and to glue on the zipper. Let dry.


Step 5

Glue the zipper onto the bottle.


Step 6

Mix the Sculptamold or other paper mache product with water. Mix in small sprinkles of water at a time until the desired consistency is achieved, which should be similar to cottage cheese. Mix a small portion at a time. Be careful but quick because it sets fast.


Step 7

Apply the paper mache with a palette knife around the outside of the zipper. Work time is short—about 15 mins before it begins to set. Spray a little water to smooth the surface. (After it has set, you won’t be able to change it much.) Paper mache is very porous and takes the ink sprays very nicely. It is messy, however. It is water soluble, so clean up is fast and easy. Let the bottle dry for one day or more.


Step 8

Apply more paper mache or molding paste through stencils. The pattern will not come out crisp and clear because of the bumpy surface but that’s what makes it artsy! Let dry.


Step 9

Color the bottle with Fireworks Shimmery Craft Sprays.


Step 10

Color paper flowers with the Fireworks. If you want some dilution of color without dilution of Sparkle, add Sheer Shimmer in Sparkle. (Also, if you wanted to keep some white, make them match by just adding Sheer Shimmer.)


Step 11

Spray Fireworks onto the smooth side of the watercolor paper. Dry it completely. Stamp and emboss the butterflies with Tuxedo Black Memento Luxe and black embossing powder. Fussy cut the butterflies. For the antennas soak a piece of embroidery thread in glue. This will stiffen the thread. Cut little pieces for the antennas and glue to the back of the butterflies.


Step 12

To make a decorative bottle stopper use a dresser pull knob.


Step 13

Apply gesso to the dresser pull knob then color with the Grape Jelly Fireworks Craft Spray. Then seal the knob with the spray sealer.


Step 14

To adhere the knob to the bottle, use a natural cork and glue. The cork usually expands when it is popped out the bottle, so in essence, it’s hard to stick back in the bottle completely. However, you can shave down the cork with a serrated knife. This image shows the cork before and after.


Step 15

Screw in the dresser pull knob into the cork. Apply E-6000 adhesive. An alternative to using a cork, adhere the dresser pull knob with a two-part Epoxy clay.


Step 16

Place the corked knob in the bottle.


Step 17

Phew! Almost done. All that is left to do is to put it together. Glue the flowers in the area between the open zipper, tucking them under the edges. Glue butterflies around. Spray a little bit of sealer over the entire bottle.


Step 18

The pull knob’s neck area will need a ribbon to cover the seam and glued cork. Embellish the bottle with charms, rhinestones, chains.

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Glass bottle
  • Zipper
  • Paper flowers
  • Embellishments – ribbon, rhinestones, charms
  • Butterfly stamp
  • Sculptamold or other paper mache product
  • Molding paste (optional)
  • Cardstock – white
  • Watercolor paper
  • Gel Glue
  • E-6000
  • Cork
  • Dresser pull knob
  • Stencils
  • Gesso
  • Krylon – Spray Sealer
  • Embroidery thread – black

Learn How to Design a “Dream Forever” Mixed Media Page

Posted on by

by Kyriakos Pachadiroglou

Learn How to Design a "Dream Forever" Mixed Media Page

Owls are mysterious nocturnal birds and to honor their unique characters I decided to make a scrapbook or art layout using a combination of colors and techniques. Combining different kinds of inks, I colored a background in deep purple shades. Walnut Ink lowers the intense hue of Fireworks in Lilac Posies on the background.

The owl almost appears to glow as it is embossed on a piece of tracing paper that has Memento Grape Jelly colored on its back side. To further contrast the design, a piece of Sheet Metal is used to enhance the owl and adds shine and detail. I love this design and feel it can be used in so many different ways. Make a card, a scrapbook page or adjusted to make a cover on a book.

Skill: Intermediate
Time: 1 hour

Directions


Step 1

Spray the A4 watercolor page with Ink Potion No 9, Fireworks Shimmery Craft Spray in Lilac Posies and Walnut Ink in Lilac, in this order, from about 8-inch distance. Two sprays of the color inks are enough. Let them dry or use a heat gun to speed up the process.


Step 2

On a 3 ¼ x 5 ½ inch tracing paper stamp with the owl design with the VersaMark, cover with Imagine’s White Embossing Powder and heat set.


Step 3

Turn the tracing paper at the back and using a sponge dauber cover the owl design with the Memento Grape Jelly ink pad. Let it dry and repeat for a deeper color.


Step 4

Use a sponge dauber to cover the SHEET Metal in a diamond shape with the StazOn Royal Purple. Let Dry.


Step 5

Press the SHEET metal diamond shape on the rubber owl stamp that is covered with VersaMark. Cover with the Imagine’s White Embossing Powder and heat set.


Step 6

Color the chipboard words with a sponge dauber and the Memento Grape Jelly ink pad.


Step 7

Stamp the A4 watercolor page with the Memento Grape Jelly ink pad and the numbers stamp.


Step 8

Cut a 6 x 1-inch tracing paper stripe and a 5-inch long chevron ribbon. Use the On Point Glue to set them in the center of the page and continue with the owl embossed design.


Step 9

Cut 5 – 6 inch long pieces of jewelry wire, twist together and curve them.


Step 10

Use the hot glue gun to set the feathers, the wires, and the SHEET Metal in a diamond shape on the owl design.


Step 11

Glue the chipboard words and add rhinestones.


Step 12

Make small dots to embellish further and add texture with the irRESISTIble Pico Embellisher in Sweet Plum. Trim to desired size.

Thank you for stopping by the Imagine blog and if you enjoyed this tutorial then please comment below or share on social media! 

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Feathers
  • Stamperia – Owl stamp
  • Studio Light – Instructional Numbers stamp
  • A4 watercolor page
  • Jewelry wire
  • Chevron ribbon
  • Tracing paper
  • Rhinestones
  • Decorative chipboard words
  • Heat gun
  • Hot glue gun

See How to Make Great Wedding Crafts for a Beautiful DIY Wedding

Posted on by

We are wrapping up a week of Wedding Craft inspiration and thought we would do a little recap. Please pin this page as a reference or share on facebook. We encourage you to pull from these design ideas and mix and match them to create what you need. For example, Kyriakos table decor almost matches Kassy’s banner perfect. With a little tweaking on each design, you could easily create a full array of decor for a wedding.

 

Create a Matching Wedding Set – the Invitation, Favor Box & Placecards by Roni Johnson.

As always, Roni outdid herself by creating three dynamic matching papercraft projects featuring a free download for a favor box. Using the Imagine’s Color of the Month (and Pantone’s color of the year) Ultraviolet as inspiration for the color scheme.

A Simple, Elegant and Inexpensive Wedding Table Setting by Kyriakos Pachadiroglou

Kyriakos has a knack for jewelry and table decor. He certainly shows off this knowledge in this post where he creates a pull tab card, napkin ring, cutlery placeholder and wine glass placeholder for a lovely DIY shabby chic style. One super fun element we love in this design is the doily stamp. Yes.. that is a stamp not as an actual paper doily.

How to Make Wedding Flowers from Coffee Filters by Jennifer Vanderbeek

We are so impressed with how these paper flowers turned out! Since Jennifer is one of our video artists, you will have the luxury of seeing for yourself how these are handcrafted. Take a minute to watch this YouTube video to see how she designed these bouquets.

Create An Elegant “Always & Forever” Wedding Sign by Steph Ackerman

We like the rich purple flowers that literally pop off this banner style sign. See how Steph used Creative Medium in Iridescent Purple to match flowers to “Always & Forever” text.

Use a Cute Lovebirds Theme in Wedding Decor by Elina Stromberg

We appreciate this lovebird design as a theme for a wedding. Elina goes through a couple different color schemes and design ideas to show off how to use one stamp in a variety of ways.

Learn How to Make a Shabby Chic Wedding Banner by Kassy Tousignant

And if you have not watched this video yet then please do! Kassy goes through all the steps of creating this Shabby Chic Mr. & Mrs. Banner.

Learn How to Make a Shabby Chic Wedding Banner

Posted on by

by Kassy Tousignant

Learn How to Make a Shabby Chic Wedding Banner by Kassy Tousignant. VersaMark Embossing Powder - Black Fireworks! Shimmery Craft Spray - Desert Sand, Grape Jelly, London Fog

Shabby chic wedding decor is very hot right now! Today I used kraft banner pendants with doilies and gorgeous flowers to create a beautiful wedding banner. My favorite part is the delicate rosebuds created with Creative Medium in Iridescent Purple. Against the kraft paper, it pops just enough to create a wonderful background. It has a gorgeous finish that is delicate enough for wedding decor, yet bold enough to catch your attention. This banner would be a lovely decoration on the front of the wedding party table, near the gift table, or where ever a bride might find it is needed!

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • 3-in-1 glue
  • American Crafts – Thickers alphabet stickers, kraft banner pendants
  • 49 and Market – flowers
  • Tim Holtz – Rose stencil
  • Decorative border sticker
  • Purple organza ribbon
  • White paper doilies
  • Glue gun

Create An Elegant “Always & Forever” Wedding Sign

Posted on by

by Steph Ackerman

Create An Elegant "Always & Forever" Wedding Sign using a Purple Theme

As Summer is on its way, it’s time to start thinking about the upcoming wedding season. For this project, I wanted to incorporate Creative Medium acrylic paste so I decided to do some experimenting. The iridescent material in pastes pops on the black chalkboard piece and creates a beautifully vibrant effect. To match all the colors, I also applied the pastes to cardstock to make flowers. Take a look at how I created a beautiful decorative sign using Creative Medium and VersaFine Clair.

Skill: Intermediate
Time: 1 hour + dry time

Directions


Step 1

Tape the stencil to the chalkboard, covering any parts of the stencil you don’t want to use with extra tape.


Step 2

Using a pallet knife, cover the stencil with Creative Medium Purple Iridescent.


Step 3

Remove the stencil and allow the Creative Medium to dry.


apply Creative Medium Iridescent Purple onto a strip of purple cardstock
Step 4

Use a pallet knife to apply Creative Medium Iridescent Purple onto a strip of purple cardstock. Use a pallet knife to apply Creative Medium Metallic Gold onto a strip of green cardstock. Allow both pieces to dry before moving on to next step.


Step 5

Stamp flowers with VersaFine Clair Fantasia Ink on the strip of purple cardstock. Stamp leaves with VersaFine Clair Green Oasis Ink on the strip of gold covered green cardstock.


Step 6

Using the coordinating dies, die cut the flowers and leaves. Assemble the flowers by shaping the petals with a stylus and piecing together with brads.


Step 7

Use On Point Glue to adhere the flowers and leaves to the panel.


Step 8

Tie purple ribbon to the panel. Use On Point Glue to adhere pearls about the panel. This piece would look great hanging on the back of the bride and grooms chairs, near a floral display or by the guest book. It would be easily customized to match the wedding colors of choice as well!

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Chalkboard Panel
  • Heartfelt Creations – Classic Rose Stamp Set, Classic Rose Die Set
  • Cardstock – Purple, Green
  • Brads
  • Die cut machine
  • Pearls
  • Prima Marketing – Stencil
  • Shaping stylus
  • Ribbon

How to Make Wedding Flowers from Coffee Filters

Posted on by

by Jennifer Vanderbeek

How to Make Wedding Flowers from Coffee Filters pink roses

Flowers are one of the most expensive parts of weddings and yet it’s difficult to picture a modern wedding without copious amounts of them. When I got married I had far more time than money (we had a two-year engagement) so I used that time to craft all the paper goods, decorations including the flowers and even part of my wedding dress. In this video, I’ll show you how to make four types of flowers out of coffee filters that I’ve dyed with Fireworks Craft Spray and Walnut Ink, making them completely customizable to your wedding, shower, or party theme, as well as how to turn them into boutonnieres and small bouquets.

 

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Coffee Filters
  • Clover – Water Spritzer
  • Darice – Heat Tool
  • Fiskars – Scissors
  • Floral Wire
  • Floral Tape
  • Ribbon