Sunday 1 July 2018

Upcycling a Box using Mixed Media Techniques

Back in May I was lucky enough to attend an all day class with Maria Moorhouse, where we upcycled a metal box using mixed media techniques.  I absolutely love how my box turned out and I am very grateful to Maria for sharing her ideas.  The only change I made, was to use gilding wax rather than chalk paints to add colour to the embellishments.  As Maria had her last workshop yesterday it is now safe to share without spoiling anything for others.
The original box was metal.
In order for gesso to adhere to the surface, tissue paper was glued all over the lid and the base of the box, taking care not to go above the ridge along the top of the base; otherwise the lid was unlikely to fit.  Once the glue was dry, the whole box was given a coat of black gesso, although white gesso was also a possibility.

I had taken various grunge paper die cuts with me and chose a large flourish, several hinges, a smaller flourish and an oval plate to help decorate the box.  These were all given a coat of black gesso and allowed to dry, before gluing them onto the lid and sides of the box using Cosmic Shimmer acrylic glue.  Once in place Pebeo gold gilding wax added highlights around the edges.  Gold glitter washi tape was added around the top of the box base to match.  It is thin enough so as not to prevent the lid fitting.

Additional decorations were provided by Maria and also die cut from cardboard packaging.  I used dies with matching embossing folders.  It is not something that I had done before, although I have done so plenty of times since the class (see HERE). 
Once all the elements had been added to the lid, I used Glossy Accents and Stampendous purple glitter fragments to add some bling to the centre of the flower.

The finished lid
When I have time, after school breaks up,  I will be transforming another box using similar methods.  Thank you Maria, it was a fabulous day.  I am looking forward to the next class; it will make the perfect start to the summer holidays.

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