In the Spotlight at Our Creative Corner

Thank you so much for dropping by today. I'm sure things are getting increasingly busy for everyone as December approaches so it's really kind of you to take the time to visit today! I've always loved Fridays and today is a really exciting one for me, as this is my turn to be in the spotlight over at Our Creative Corner! I was really thrilled and surprised when a little box I made with a pierrot at the heart of it was chosen in the 'Forgotten Things' OCC challenge. Ever since I discovered Our Creative Corner, I've been enchanted by all the beautiful projects their DT create and very impressed by the high standard of the entries to their competitions, so I felt quite nervous as well as excited about being asked to step into the limelight! Laura asked me to make something for my Guest Design Spot and here is what I did. It is a little MDF money box that I bought on a very happy visit to Ally Pally back in September when I met some of the lovely bloggers I had until then known only by name .

To begin with I sanded the little box with a sanding block until it was smooth when I gave it a good two coats of Fresco Finish Snowflake paint. I then applied a coat of Sage Fresco Finish. A little while back I discovered that some of the Fresco blues if applied over Sage have a really nice effect. I then mixed a little blue Fresco, I think it was Lake Wanaka, in some Grunge Paste and applied this through a Crafter's  Workshop ledger stencil. I painted my box, apart from the lid/roof, in a blend of Mermaid and Sky with just a dab of South Pacific at the edges.

I then took a Paper Artsy stamp, the script one from HP1006, and randomly stamped with Wendy Vecchi Cornflower Blue. I wanted an uneven look, so I used the stamp without a block. The leaf you can see in this picture is die-cut from a Tim Holtz tattered leaves die, painted with Fresco Chocolate Pudding and edged with some Treasure Gold. I also lightly stamped script over it in Potting Soil Archival. Then it was time for some fun with Crackle Glaze and Shrink Plastic - two of my favourite crafty things! First the Crackle!

 I love to watch as the crackles creep across the surface of a project, revealing the colour beneath; this time it was Little Black Dress under Mermaid! I edged this with some White Fire Treasure Gold. The edge was a bit of an experiment. I had a little Shrink Plastic left over and didn't want to waste it: what to do? It was painted with a thin coat of 'Tinned Peas' - I like to use fabric medium to thin acrylics when using them on SP, as this seems to aid the flow of the paint. I cut it to fit the corner of the roof and stamped the script from Paper Artsy Mini 26 on it: I quite liked the 'shabby' look of this, like some make-shift repair with whatever came to hand. Sometimes I like to glaze SP, but for this project I preferred the matte look mostly. So how else did I embellish with SP?

I die-cut some tattered leaves from Shrink Plastic painted with 'Tinned Peas' and stamped these little faces from a 'Lost Coast' time-themed stamp. These reminded me of Swiss Cuckoo Clock decoration, so I die-cut a Shrink Plastic pocket watch and stamped it with the image from Paper Artsy 'Ink and the Dog',
Petals Plate 3. This time I glazed the centre image with some Glossy Accents leaving it to dry overnight.

For the finishing touches, I added a Tim Holtz, tattered pine cone rose made from heavy card, painted with FF Blood Orange and then a warm copper tone of Treasure Gold. I used the same Treasure Gold around my pocket watch and added to this a little Prima rose coloured with Aquamarine Treasure Gold and some red pearls. I made this money box long before I started to think in terms of festive makes, but Mr Magpie said it had a Christmas look to it and that the red pearls reminded him of holly berries. My friend, Lucy, from 'True Colours' suggested that I save in this for the next Craft Show. Well, maybe I should keep any Christmas gifts of money in it and spend them on some beautiful crafting materials in the New Year! I wonder what the sales might have in store for Magpies who can't resist anything bright, shiny and crafty? Thanks for dropping by to look at my Our Creative Corner Project and have a great and creative weekend!