altering with archival reinkers...

here's a fun 10 minute project...

the metal candleholder shown below

 was a Hobby Lobby find...

it caught my eye because of 

the chipped surface...

I also liked it because it was white, making it simple to alter with archival reinkers...

archivals are transparent when diluted, so they look great over light colored surfaces...

here it is looking down on it...

obviously it's a candleholder...

but is it really?

turned upside down, now it's an ADORABLE little display stand...

and it looks like a flower on a base...

from the top is looks like this...

for sure...

I see a flower!

start the timer...

this is a 10 minute or less project...

as always, I'm working on my craft sheet...

I added 2 drops of carnation red reinker...

that brown bottle behind it

 is rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol...

I diluted the reinker with the alcohol and mixed the reinker into the alcohol with a palette knife,

to make this inky solution...

then I took a cheapo paint brush and painted the flower portion of my little find...

oopsie...

having too much fun...

forgot to take the next photo...

I used the leaf green reinker 

diluted with alcohol to paint the base...

when the inks were dry, I swiped 

the watering can archival pad

 over the raised areas to define the flower better...

and here's the result...

this next photo shows that I allowed the ink to pool on the base for extra interest...

but, you could paint it 

to be perfectly smooth, 

if you'd like...

hmmm...

now what to put on the stand?

the moral of the story today is to...

always keep your eyes open...

look for simple (light colored) things to alter...

check Good Will...

or flea markets...

or antique stores...

remember...

it doesn't need to be pricy...

and remember that archival inks

 and archival reinkers are...

AWESOME 

when you want to alter your finds...

this technique will work on resin pieces too...

*coming soon to a blog near you!*

there are lots of archival reinker colors, 

so you can customize your find 

and choose any color that fits your decor...

I'm thinking that the new tea rose 

would be so pretty...

and for sure the new buttercup & 

sky blue would be cool too...

I like when products 

can be used more than one way...

use your archival reinkers 

to ink your archival pads 

or use them to...

make (altered home decor) art!

wendy

altering with archival inks...

episode 2...

I went back to Hobby Lobby to get more of these candleholders...

I showed you how they went from this...

to this...

but they were all sold out...

boohoo...

so...

on to plan B...

this one is close to the same thing,

 but has a metallic finish...

for those who like bling...

you might prefer this style instead...

keep in mind that archival inks are translucent, so the base color affects the end result...

I added leaf green archival to the leaves...

I used carnation red archival on a mini blending tool & tapped on the color & dried it...

then swiped the red geranium pad over the petal edges to accent them...

and dried it again...

remember this background stamp that I chopped up to make 9 little stamps?

I used jet black with this polka dot stamp to stamp over the petals...

and used a tiny text stamp to add text to the 

leaves...it's not essential to do that...

it's barely visible, but I KNOW it's there!

yes...I do realize that I'm NUTS!

here's the quick & easy transformation...

one thing to note...

the finish on these is different than the white version...

the inks felt a little tacky when dry, but this was completely gone by the next morning...

if this is a last minute gift, 

you can paint a thin layer of Glue N Seal over it, let it dry & it would be ready to gift in 10 minutes flat!

but the Glue N Seal is not necessary...

the inks will dry & NOT be tacky...

now...

use your imagination...

it's kind of poinsettia-ish...

to take it a step further...

you could add little bits of Glossy Accents to the petal edges & then sprinkle on some rock candy glitter for even more holiday bling...

I bought 2 so here we go again...

I wanted to change this one to gold, so I put a tiny bit of my gold metallic embossing paste 

on my finger & finger painted it on...

I made sure to keep the layer thin & not to cover up the recessed detail on the petals...

a little leaf green on the leaves & some potting soil archival ink swiped onto the petal edges...

I LOVE IT!

this time I used the plaid mini stamp with jet black to stamp over the petals...

random stamping, but I like the extra detail...

and here they are again...

from this...

to these...

next...

for those of you thinking of joining us on the England tour next July, 

Jim said we have just 6 openings left...

think about it...

grab a friend &

come join the fun...

we'll make art in England...

now a SHOPPING ALERT from Linda at

The Funkie Junkie...

The Funkie Junkie Boutique will slash our already-low prices by 15% accross the board* beginning at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, November 28th. We already sell at 20% below MSRP and with the extra 15% off you will enjoy a 35% discount on your entire purchase!  The sale will run through midnight on Cyber Monday, December 1st.  

this is a great time to stock up on supplies, or try some new products or let Santa know what you might like & save him some $$$!

a 35% discount is H U G E!

I have linked the products I used to 

The Funkie Junkie, 

so clicking on the links will magically transport you to them...

in closing...

just want you to know that

I'm so THANKFUL for YOU, my art friends...

you guys ROCK!

from Rick & I...

have a very

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I find it comforting to know that pumpkin pie has NO calories on Thanksgiving...

I *think* that's what I read on the net...

and if it's on the net...it MUST be true!

take care...

make (holiday) art!

wendy

altering with archival inks...

Houston...

we have a problem...

this is not the post I planned for today...

while writing the other post,

  I realized that I had used a "NEW" stamp, so I had to delay that post...

yikes...I almost got in trouble...

my reason for mentioning this?

I've been using LOTS of clearly for art with "NEW" stamps to make layered flowers...

(I know...flowers...shocking!)

I have been using Ranger's new adhesive foam tape & I love it...

 I've discovered it is THE PERFECT double sided adhesive for layering clearly for art...

it comes in both black & white...

I LOVE the BLACK, because it disappears between the layers when viewed from the side...

it adds the PERFECT depth & the adhesive is awesome with the clearly for art...

it sticks really REALLY well...

I also use it to add the CFA flower to the surface...

I'm letting you know so you'll be ready for when the NEW (flower) release comes out in January...

things like this also make great stocking stuffers or inexpensive gifts for friends...

glue n seal is my MOST favorite for adding paper to clearly for art...

and the foam tape is awesome for layering CFA...

ok...

remember this guy I showed the other day?

it's a resin candle holder from Hobby Lobby......

time to alter it...

for this one I used dandelion archival ink, with a blending tool...

just tap it on....

couldn't be easier...

so far...

 after giving it a quick dry, I added orange blossom to the center to add shading...

and a little to the edges of the bottom petals...

I dried it again...

and then used watering can archival to randomly stamp the subtle little polka dots...

that little bit of stamping adds so much detail...

ok...

to finish off the bottom...

I added a drop of the potting soil reinker onto the craft sheet, added a little rubbing alcohol & used a cheapo paintbrush to finish it off...

hmmm...wonder why I put the potting soil pad in the photo?

I DID use the reinker...

I considered using fern green...

or continuing with the dandelion...

or the orange blossom...

so I really think any of these would work for the bottom...

next I added a felt circle to the bottom & it's finished...

so...from this...

to this... 

all in 10 minutes...

other things to think about...

the bottom layer of petals could actually be leaves & they could have been inked with fern green or leaf green...

you could also die cut some leaves to add under the flower...

obviously it holds a candle...

BUT...

it can sit on a dresser to hold your rings...

that little recessed area is perfect!

that's how I'm using this one...

and...

since this can be coordinated to any decor, this makes a super quick...

inexpensive custom gift!

keep your eyes open when shopping...

there are lots of really nice, inexpensive resin pieces that can be altered with archival inks...

resin frames & vases make awesome custom gifts...

 remember...

archival inks are awesome when you...

make art!

wendy

ps...this was so much fun, I'm off to buy more...

I can not wait to make another, using cornflower on the flower, then accented with potting soil...

altered art...

I've had several requests to provide the measurements for the wood tree ornament that I've been playing working with...

 it's exactly 5 inches tall & you'll see the length of each layer to the right...

you sure could cut these same lengths from grungeboard or chipboard, if you can't find the tree...

I would love to find these trees in a smaller size, but it's easy to cut the dimensions in half & that 2 ½ inch tall tree would be so fun for a card front or as an embellishment on a gift box...

I've also had several emails asking for suggestions on what to look for when you're out & about...

what items are good to alter?

what surfaces work well...

anything to avoid?

so the title of the post is altered art...

but these items are in the PRE-altered art stage...

keep in mind that the prices for these things range from 50 cents to the most expensive, the wood frame which was $6.99....

but still a reasonable price for a handmade gift...

and it's double dipping...

you get the joy of making something cool & the recipient gets a handmade gift...

double dipping!

also...even if you don't have the same exact item, I'm sure you'll find something comparable & can play along with the ideas...

if you find something that has a good solid base, but the graphics are butt ugly, remember that both  embossing powder & embossing paste are opaque, so the ugly can be covered up completely & quickly!

first up is this hanging metal piece from Hobby Lobby...

great design...

sturdy metal & lots of potential...

I'm expecting to use my embossing powders on it...

***REMEMBER***

heated metal gets H O T & it takes a bit longer to cool than you expect...

trust me on that one...

especially a large piece like this one...

it stays warm for a while...

next is a resin candle holder from Hobby Lobby...

it's price was $2.50...

it's very heavy & will be fun to add my archival inks...

and maybe embossing powders?

still thinking...

it's about 31/2 inches in diameter...

and by using an unmounted stamp, I can stamp on some of the petals...

this makes a great gift because it can easily be customized for any decor...

I'll add some clearly for art leaves under it to take it to the next level...

this next wood frame is from Marshall's...

and was the most expensive item at $6.99...

I love it because the opening is square...

still thinking on this guy too...

there are lots of options...

embossing paste...white paste, 

that gets colored before with my reinkers...

or after with the distress spray stains...

I can stamp into the wet embossing paste so that it dries with texture...

or...

use archival inks & embossing powders...

this will be fun...

the next piece is a $2.00 glass bottle from Hobby Lobby...

I like this one because it has flat sides, which will make it easier to stamp on...

I'm planning to ink this with archival ink, then add my embossing powders...

if you're working on glass, it's important to ink the glass with archival ink & that will hold the melted embossing powders securely on the bottle...

if you try to use any of the embossing inks,

 the melted powder peels right off...

trust me...

if you're covering glass with embossing paste, embossing pastes stick very well to glass...

EXCEPT 

if you're adding crackled texture paste, you need to add a very thin layer of either gold embossing paste or silver embossing PASTE & dry it before adding the crackle paste...

that thin layer of the metallic paste holds the cracks firmly attached to the glass...

here's another little metal piece...

I'll have lots of fun for only $1.00...

ah...another Hobby Lobby find...

it caught my eye because it was worn looking & surprised me when I picked it up...

it's a box with a magnetic closure...

and for $5.00 it's a great price & it's strong & sturdy...

nice size & adorable!

remember that if *it can take the heat* it can be embossed with embossing powders...

all these pieces are also fun with my embossing pastes for a whole different mixed media altering direction...

so...be on the lookout (big box stores, flea markets, second hand stores, Dollar stores, Goodwill etc) for inexpensive, well constructed 

metal, glass, wood & resin pieces...

they are perfect when you want to...

make art!

wendy

ps...I'm PACING & patiently (that's a JOKE) waiting for the UPS guy to arrive with my new...

(stamps)...

"on the truck for delivery" 

makes me giddy with excitement...

CHA is only 2 months away...

yikes!