Bagatelle Boxes! Brand new at Gina's Designs

I had the honor of being the first Design Team member for Gina's Designs to play with the new bagatelle boxes.  This was so much fun.  Each box is individual and notches together easily.  These boxes are made of wood, not chipboard, and are very sturdy.  I used plain old inexpensive white wood glue to glue them together.  Once you have them glued together, the fun begins and you can arrange them any way you please.  Below are a couple of different configurations I played around with.  The starter set comes with 12 boxes, 2 in each of six different sizes.  You can also purchase add-ons if you would like a bigger finished project, or use fewer boxes and make two.  You can also configure these boxes to form a square or rectangle rather than a free-form shape, although you may need to use more or less than the basic starter kit to form that shape.

After I glued my boxes together and figured out which configuration I wanted to use, I used hot glue to attach the boxes to each other.  I think it would better to use wood glue, but I was in a hurry that day :)  The hot glue works, but you have to be very careful to get your boxes even the first time if you use the hot glue.  After my boxes were glued together, I chose to cover the seams with Tim Holtz tissue tape.  It was so easy to use!  I then painted the back and sides with a crackle finish.  I like to use the white elmer's glue method of crackle painting because it's cheaper and quicker. You can dry it with your heat gun, and you'll be done in a jiffy.  I papered the inside backs of each box, and this is what I ended up with:

Now for the finished project!!!!  I had a lot of help filling the cubby holes from my BFF Susan who used to be a miniatures artist.  She had so many cute items in her stash including the collectible Avon figurine thimbles.  I just love the end result!

And My Blog Hop Winner is.......

Congratulations to Cyndie2010 for being the winner (as chosen by random.org) of the $10 gift certificate for Gina's Designs.  Thanks to all of you who have become followers and joined our very first blog hop.  I hope you all had a great time!  Cyndie please contact me so I can give you the code you will use in your shopping cart.
Thanks again!
Nancy

Welcome to the Gina's Designs Blog Hop

Welcome to Gina's Designs Blog Hop!

Since April 15 – 21 is World Creativity & Innovation Week, Gina's Designs decided to hold a blog hop in celebration of Creativity!  We challenge everyone to try something new and craft outside their comfort zone.  In keeping with this theme, each of our Design Team members will be unveiling a project that includes a technique that is new to them.  So hop over to each blog, check out the fun new techniques, and enter to win the prizes.

The Prize on this blog is a $10.00 gift certificate to Gina's Designs!

The requirement to be eligible (by drawing) to win the gift certificate on my blog is to follow my blog, and to leave a comment on this post telling me that you would like to win.  Remember that to be eligible for the *grand* prize you will need to visit each blog on the hop.

When you have finished the hop, be sure to go back to Gina's Designs  and leave a comment so we know you completed the hop. In order to be eligible for our grand prize you need to complete the hop, follow Gina's Designs blog (if you are not already a follower) and like Gina's Design on  Facebook. You have until 1 am central time on April 22^nd to complete the hop. Have Fun and Good Luck!

For my new technique I chose to create a mixed media canvas on which I have used a new paint technique to decorate my chipboard birdbath.  How easy is this to spray paint it with a stone textured paint!  I have also outlined it with Prima chalk ink in black.  I love how it turned out and it was so easy!

 If you get lost along the way, here is a list

Gina's Designs
Marjolaine
Monica
Lisa
Angela
Marfa
Deann
Dawn
Shanna
Nancy
Rashida
Heidi
Kathi
Heather

DT Project - Altered trinket box stand for Gina's Designs

I had so much fun altering this trinket drawer stand and I plan to use it for my collection of bird pins and brooches.  The unfinished wooden stand is available and ready to alter at Gina's Designs.  The specific link to this product is HERE.

Items used:
script tissue paper by Recollections available at Michaels
Golden soft matte gel medium
Tim Holtz curio knob
Folk art paints
white school glue used as crackle medium
Petaloo berry vines
Prima chalk edgers
All of the items on the "shelf" including the bird, nest, moss, eggs, bark, ferns etc are all from the floral dept at Joann's

Layout - "Hello! Spring" DT Project for Gina's Designs

In this layout for Gina's Designs my cat "Batman" watches out the window waiting for Spring to arrive. Gina's Designs products include the large doily in back, the chipboard window, the large flourish in upper left, and the swirly vine at the top of the window. The butterfly is by Renea Bouquets on Etsy. The sun I cut with my cricut. I used Tim Holtz frosted film on the window panes then sprinkled the sticky film with clear glass microbeads (see closeup)

I used a dry brush technique to cover my chipboard window, simply dry brushing light coats of gesso, and some pale acrylics until I got the look I wanted.  I covered the back side of the window panes with the Tim Holtz frosted film.  with the sticky side up I sprinkled on clear glass microbeads.  I love the effect.

Mixed Media Photo Canvas

This canvas is 5 x 7 and features two of my cats Timmy & Robin.  The canvas is a design team project for Gina's Designs and includes one of the lazer cut chipboard ivy corners and one of our brand new chipboard lazer cut windows which will come in different sizes and designs.  The ivy corners are currently in the shop and the windows will be available shortly.  Butterflies by Renea Bouquets on etsy.

Layout - "Mayhem"

I created this layout of one of my cats, "Radar".  He's always into some sort of trouble.  In this creation I have used several pieces of lazer cut chipboard by Gina's Designs including two fabulous pieces from the build-a-layout Wild West collection (the jail and the title).  Also by Gina's Designs, I used a couple of hinges and some chain, and some corner gears.

Layout - Rumor Has It

This layout features one of my dogs Toby, and one of my cats Batman.....and of course lots of Gina's Designs chipboard lazer shapes.  On this layout, the Gina's Designs chippies I used were the birds on a wire, the telephone pole, and two flourishes.  The paper is DCWV Garden Tea Party, flowers by Bo Bunny and Petaloo, and the butterfly by Renea Bouquets on ETSY.  The delicate die cut foliage is by Marianne Creatables.

Mixed Media Canvas - Moonlight Fairies

This is a 12 x 12 canvas with lazer cut chipboard shapes by Gina's Designs including the three fairies, the garden urn, and two sets and styles of ornamental grasses.  Resin mushroom and bird by Prima, Butterfly by Renea Bouquets on Etsy, the chipboard moon die cut is by DCWV from the Immortal Love stack.  The vine die is by Cottage Cutz, inks by Dylusions, and Twinkling H2O paints.  Purple flowers by Petaloo.

Steampunk Photo Grid

This is one of the new lazer cut wooden photo grids available at Gina's Designs.  This is the steampunk cog framed design.  There are other designs available including a lace frame, a damask frame, dog themed and cat themed frames to name a few.  The frames are approx eleven inches in diameter and ready for you to paint, paper, and decorate.  Many other chipboard shapes from Gina's Designs were also used in creating this piece.

 The frame was painted with black acrylics, then covered with glass bead gel, then I rubbed it with silver rub 'n buff

 The peacock feather is also from Gina's Designs and was painted with Lumiere acrylic paints and I also used stickles .  All gears shapes are also from Gina's Designs and were painted with Lumiere acrylic paints and/or embossed with clear UTEE, or Stampendous frantage shabby embossing powers.

 Flowers by Petaloo canterbury collections.  background paper by DCWV The Timeless Type Stack, images by Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutante.

 Hot air balloon by Gina's Designs, inspire acrylic lightbulb by Prima Junkyard Findings.  Butterfly by Reneabouquets.

 Pocketwatch pieces also by Gina's Designs.