Vintage Trunk

 I was especially proud of this project. It is a rather large trunk that I bought at the Craft Warehouse in Vancouver, WA. It was on sale, but still a pretty penny. I thought this wooden box would take a lot longer to complete, but I actually finished it in a day.

I painted the box frame with Modern Masters, to create this great rust effect. I used paper from a steampunk theme cardstock pack from the Hobby Lobby, and used the Cricut to cut out his monogram for the top, which I wanted to fit into the white space. 

The front is a stencil that I made with my Cricut (Indie Art, I believe) and stencil sheets from the Hobby Lobby. I rubber stamped his birthday in the crest just to make it personal. 

The inside is from the same paper stack, and really not that hard to cut it to size. This is another one of those stack-able projects. Some things need to be simple, so they are not just clutter and dust collectors. Keep it simple and it will last forever.

Old Curiosity Shoppe

Several years ago I bought a trunk full of mache boxes for $2 each. They are really nice quality and have longevity on their side. I used Graphic 45 paper, and the base is Martha Stewart festive green paint.

The wings are Cherry Lynn Designs, as well as the mini gear. The doll body is from the Spellbinders Mixed Media Playtime set.

Memory Box

This is a paper mache box that I bought several years ago. I gave it a crackle finish using acrylic paint, then it sat for a very long time until I needed somewhere clever to put little trinkets in my living room. The top is a bit dainty and fragile, but the entire piece inspires me, despite it being decorated with paper. It has been several years now, and it held up. The legs make it feel like a wonderful piece of decor, and somehow reduces dust. 

I made the rosettes out of double faced satin ribbon that I had dyed. The feet are by Tim Holtz and applied with basic craft glue. The red rose trim is a purchase from a scrapbook convention.

I used graphic 45 paper, Cheery Lynn Designs dies, and made the flowers are Tim Holtz dies, and Spellbinders dies.

I used Sizzix, Spellbinders, Cheery Lynn, and Memory Box dies.

Graphic 45 papers

The individual pieces are all hand or die cut, hand painted, or dyed.