Every year after Christmas day, I go through all the cards that I have received and cut off all the fronts to keep for future projects. My Christmas cards this year were filled with clippings of the card fronts mixed with pieces of frayed fabric, threads, ribbons, old lace, rick rack, old stamps, and then heavily embellished with glitter, sequins, and metallic markers. Here's a few out of the 30 I made.
I enjoyed making these cards so much that I ended up embellishing the envelopes using chalks, ink, and glitter. Obsessive much? Maybe ‘jest’ a little…
This past weekend, I decided to make a gift bag using the same method, only on a larger scale. One of the reasons I decided to make it was because I was too lazy to put all the supplies away. Sometimes it only takes something little like this to create something fantastic. So here is my naked gift bag in a box waiting for its’ makeover.
When I make a collage, I always cut out the pieces I will be using and then place them on the surface to be covered like so.
Then I cut out the pieces more precisely using a craft knife and placed them back on the surface to get an even better idea of how it will all work out. This will provide the foundation of my creation.
I have to say that although the cards were much more time-consuming (mainly because I made so many), the bag was not so easy to make. The problem I encountered was with the adhesion of the heavier card stock fronts to the paper bag. So, after applying glue to the rear of the card fronts, I pressed them down firmly, but they weren’t staying down until I discovered this most magnificent tool below.
It weighs 2 pounds and 3 ounces, and its’ former purpose was rolling the seams on wallpaper. Funny how its’ use was upcycled and how I stole yet another tool from my other half. Oh, and using it for this purpose was like steering a mini steamroller around. So much fun!
Once I got the larger card fronts to adhere perfectly to the bag, I started building upon my foundation by laying smaller pieces on top. I added double sided mounting tape to some of the small pieces to elevate them. Next, I added sequins and glitter, but what I didn't add to the bag was the threads, yarns, and fabric because that just would have been way too much, right? <wink>
I enlarged the photos below so that you could see the glitter and sequins better. Taking the glitter pen and 'frosting' the snow on the tree branches, etc. is easy and it just makes the scenery pop when the light hits it.
Here is the finished product. You won't find these available in any stationery store which makes it that much more special.
After Christmas this year, I will be harvesting a new crop of card fronts to create something different and special for next year. Maybe instead of doing the fronts, I'll do the rears and see how all comes out... And saying this is the reason why I remain on the naughty list, folks. LOL!
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