Spring Shadowbox

So recently Graphic 45 featured the nicest spotlight on me!  Not only did we have to answer a few questions, but we had to make a tutorial in our favorite crafting avenue.  I chose to make a small shadowbox with Raining Cats and Dogs and the snapguide is below.

Check out How to Make a Small Shadow Box by Rhea Freitag on Snapguide.

The color palate in this line is great.  There is so much contrast.  It makes for a busy project, but I usually like lots of layers!

The metal flower above was faux enameled.  This gives it so much texture and age. The same technique was used on the filigree below.

I found yet another place to sneak in those cute red mushrooms.  I just adore those things!

The resin butterfly below has some patina colored gilders paste added to highlight the edges.  It also helps to bring it more into the intended color palate.  

Thank you so much for stopping by!  Happy Spring to you! (at least there is sunshine in Michigan...but it is still way too cold.)

Cheers, 

Rhea

7 Gypsies Serengeti Receipt Holder

Today I took some time to finally play with some of my new goodies from Canvas Corp.  I created this mixed media receipt holder with the Serengeti paper as the springboard for inspiration.

In order to add a layer of texture I used a few fun things. One is resin covered tissue that has been ripped and torn.  I also used some tissue tape.  The tissue tape was added over the edges to break up the hard lines of the receipt holder.    

Yet another fun element in this project are the patches.  I added them with vintage pins in the brass color.  

I am always trying to fill in every nook and cranny.  To that end, I also added some labels that I embellished with rub ons.  

I was able to sneak in a bit of twine by attaching it to a few of the global tags.  This adds more texture and a bit of movement.  

 Lots of the mini ephemera and vintage photos were used as well. 

This project was so super fun and it really came together quick.

As I created this I thought of an old friend of mine.  She is doing everthing she can right now to find a way to volunteer in Africa to save animals, specifiacally rhinos.  I wish her the best in achieving her mighty dream!

I hope you enjoyed today's post.  As always I treasure being able to share my goods with you all.  It inspires me so!

Cheers, 

Rhea

Springtime Bunny Box

This project was recently featured in Graphic 45's newsletter. I thought it made for a fun piece of springtime decor, but it could easily be modified for any season, holiday or even a memory.

For this project I used Time to Flourish. This paper line is beautiful and super versatile too!

For those of you who are interested in seeing how this was put together I have created a snapguide for you to check out.  There are so many great tutorials on this site!

Check out How to Alter a Small Graphic 45 Book Box by Rhea Freitag on Snapguide.

I absolutely adore the lace sticker edging I used on this project.  Sad that it was the last bit I had in my stash...  Another great trick here:  I used a layer of 7 gypsies tissue paper that I covered in resin over the bunny rabbit that I cut out of chipboard.  This makes for a cool textural element.

I was super happy to have finally used one of my resin bezels I made a while ago with lots of Graphic 45 goodies sealed inside.  

I hope you enjoyed today's springy offerings!  I know one thing for sure, here in Michigan we sure are happy it is indeed the first day of spring!

Cheers,

Rhea

Butterfly Tag

This is yet another project inspired by Miss Linda Ledbetter and her Creative Crew.  This week's technique for the Compendium of Curiosities Challenge was a remnant rub resist.  I love the detail it gave this fun tag.

I went back to my usual brown color palate, but added a small pop of blue to try and spice things up a bit.  One trick I used in this project was to make a "ribbon" for the tag with tissue tape.  Thank you Dyan Reavely for that one!

You can also see the layers of ink, stenciling and distress.  Notice also that I edged the tag with silver gilders paste, the perfect metallic finish.  Lots of metal elements always make a tag feel substantial.  

Again I used lot of vellum elements from Tim.  I just adore these! 

This week's challenge is being sponsored by The Funkie Junkie Boutique, check them out along with all the inspiration from Linda's team.  

Cheers, 

Rhea

Altered Art Letters

Hello all!  Today I am so excited to be able to offer you a peek of my feature over on Paper Crafter's Library.  Please stop over there to see more detailed pictures and more information about this project.

This is just one of the perks of being on the Graphic 45 design team!

P.S.  The design team call for Graphic 45 is still open...please consider trying out if you love their products, they are an amazing company to work for.  It has been an amazing two years!

Cheers,

Rhea

Tangled Journal Page

This project was completed for Canvas Corp and their recent Tangled challenge.

My focal here is from the Journey Tangled Pack and it was really easy to create.  I layered on lots of products, including some Tattered Angels S.W.A.K. mist, to give it a mixed media feel.  I was sure to add some of my own doodles and marks to make my page unique to me. 

The sentiment was taken from the new Gypsy Moments paper.  I love how the ink bled through the words making them blend into the background a little bit.

I also challenged myself to use some craft supplies that had been neglected.  It is my goal in 2015 to use up the good stuff!  To that end I used some butterfly rub ons as well as the paper flower borders which had been lying around forever.

I hope this post inspires you to use some of those old supplies as well.

Cheers,

Rhea

Air Mail Collection Folio

This project was completely inspired by Linda Ledbetter and her amazing Curiosity Crew.  They put together such an amazing array of projects, I could not help but to play along.  

This post is super long, so I warn you in advance!  Check out the great latch I added to close this fun folio.  I have included an image here of the back so you can see what the base of the project looked like.

Here you can see the great translucency that Ice Resin gives Tim's tissue wrap.  Some of my grungy stenciling and background can be seen peeking through.

I imagine I could keep on working in this book for a long time yet! It needs some doodling and journaling.

I used lots of the new vellum ephemera from Tim Holtz.  I ran most of my stuff in this book through my Xyron sticker maker and it worked great.  You can also see above where I used eyelets to attach my book to the folio along with a bit of E6000.  The combination of a cold connection and heavy duty glue made for a perfect combo.

Note that I added some stenciling after the project was complete.  This way I added a final layer of ink on top of everything.

This week's contest for the Compendium of Curiosities is sponsored this week by Inspiration Emporium.  I have not placed an order there before, but their site looks yummy!

The vellum has such an awesome translucency, I just love it.

Home made envelopes, paper bags, tags, tissue tape and tickets are sprinkled throughout my book.

 There are things tucked inside of each little pocket and envelope too!

Some of the ephemera is simply clipped on.  I like to have the element of movement to my work.

I used lots of scraps from my resin tissue wrap in this project as well.  The round postmark from the British Post office is one example below.

I hope you enjoyed today's post! I sure had fun creating this project! Thanks to the whole crew for an amazing week of inspiration.

Cheers,

Rhea