Things to Alter Day of The Dead Shrines

Hi all

I made up a few shrines for Dias De Los Muritos using the MDF Shrines from Things to Alter. Day of the Dead is a Mexican celebration of those who have passed on and families will get together to remember them. They create shrines with gifts and food left out for their dead relatives and that is where the sugar skulls come from as these are made out of sugar and given either to Children or left on alters. 

We have a new group just for Things to Alter makes,Tutorials and crafty tips. Here is the link https://www.facebook.com/groups/1784251875124998/

I used a stencil mask and White Modeling Paste to create the embossed background. I then painted over the top in bright colours using Crafters  Acrylic.

I painted the flowers and sugar skull with white gesso before painting on the detail. Use gesso first to stop the paint soaking into the MDF

I then decorated the shrine with lots of flowers

I used gold Dazzling Metallic on the cross and coated it with gesso first

For this one i glued MDF flowers around the skull and decorated the frame with small resin flowers.

The last shrine is actually one of the coffin boxes that i painted up and added modeling paste to the lid. 

I used Metallic Lustre to add color to the flowers and layered them up.

Thank you for visiting 

DecoArt Blogger Outreach Program: Things to Alter Coffin Boxes

Hello Craft Friends

Today I am continuing the Halloween theme with these delightfully haunting coffins. Here is the finished project and below i will go through how i got the wreathed wood effect.

These are the coffin boxes from Things to Alter which you can find here.http://thingstoalter.co.uk/products/3d-coffin-with-lid-mdf. They are great for putting little gifts inside or maybe a skeleton.

I used the large rosette die by Tim Holtz and added a little mdf spider on top.

I used a skull bead and added flowers

This one was stained with red DecoArt Media Mister and spritzed with water which i let drip down the lid. Looks like blood doesn't it.

To create this weathered wood look, I first coated the coffins in Black Gesso and then once dried i added Weathered Wood Crackle Medium. 

Next add a thick layer of White Crackle paste and leave to dry. Once dry you get a deep crackle that will flake off if it isn't sealed.

To get the faded mahogany look, i used DecoArt Antiquing cream and painted on the English Red Oxide around the edges. I then used a wet brush and spritzed water onto the cream to turn it into a wash and just painted it over the whole coffin. I repeated this step with Raw Umber to get a dirty brown color.

I lined the coffins with red material so it looks like a Vampire Coffin.

Thank you for visiting

DecoArt Blogger Outreach Program: Things to Alter Coffin Boxes

Hi all

I am continuing the Halloween theme with these delightfully haunting coffins. Here is the finished project and below i will go through how i got the wreathed wood effect.

These are the coffin boxes from Things to Alter which you can find here.http://thingstoalter.co.uk/products/3d-coffin-with-lid-mdf. They are great for putting little gifts inside or maybe a skeleton.

I used the large rosette die by Tim Holtz and added a little mdf spider on top.

I used a skull bead and added flowers

This one was stained with red DecoArt Media Mister and spritzed with water which i let drip down the lid. Looks like blood doesn't it.

To create this weathered wood look, I first coated the coffins in Black Gesso and then once dried i added Weathered Wood Crackle Medium. 

Next add a thick layer of White Crackle paste and leave to dry. Once dry you get a deep crackle that will flake off if it isn't sealed.

To get the faded mahogany look, i used DecoArt Antiquing cream and painted on the English Red Oxide around the edges. I then used a wet brush and spritzed water onto the cream to turn it into a wash and just painted it over the whole coffin. I repeated this step with Raw Umber to get a dirty brown color.

I lined the coffins with red material so it looks like a Vampire Coffin.

Gecko Galz 2016 Blog Hop With Free Collage Sheet and Prizes

Hello Everyone!

We want to welcome everyone to the

Gecko Galz 6th Annual Blog Hop

This is your Twelfth stop on a wonderfully Wicked Blog Hop! 

We have 16 AMAZING blogs for you to visit this weekend, each with some gorgeous projects created using the Gecko Galz collage sheets that we are giving you for FREE! Each blog you visit will have another free Gecko Galz Collage sheet for you to down load, the one here is

"Sweet Little Girls".

Also make sure you leave a message on each blog site you visit and on the last blog there will be a phrase that you will email to us to be entered in our drawing for a wonderful treat pack.  So sit back, relax, take your time and enjoy the hop!

We have FOUR amazing prizes up for grabs:

·        First is a Gecko Galz shopping spree for $100!

·        Second prize is a $50 Shopping spree with Gecko Galz.

·        Third prize is a $25 shopping spree!

·        And our Grand Prize ONE FULL YEAR of Gecko Galz PRODUCTS!!! This includes the 6 new collage sheets each quarter, a new stamp set each quarter, a new paper pack each quarter!

 This is a $100 value!

First of all, you will need to visit all 16 blogs and leave a comment on each blog :) **This is important so we know you have been to all the blogs **. Collect the phrase at the end of the hop on the Fripperies and Butterflies site there will be a link to email the phrase to Gecko Galz.

This enters you in the contest. On October 31st we will randomly draw the 4 winners and email each of you, then we will post the winning names on the Gecko Galz blog site.

For an extra chance to win make a purchase from the GECKO GALZ ETSY STORE between the 27th of October and the 30^th of October and your name goes in again for a better chance of winning (each purchase you make that weekend gives you another chance to win) 

Please enjoy this free Gecko Galz Collage sheet

“Sweet Little Girls”

Now have fun visiting each Blog

Gecko Galz

Gerri Herbst

Barbara Bird

Nancy Smith

Lena Hermanson

Dana Tater

Michele Storms

Jackie Neal

Vicki Romaine

Margaret Ashby

Tracy Sagriff

Katie Lamb

Heather Hudson

Marilyn Hughes

Patti Fisher

Leanne Seed

If you did not start at the Gecko Galz Blog you might want to start there so you will not miss a thing!

Here is my are my projects made using the free collage sheet

Thank you for visiting and good luck

Susan K Weckesser Creative Team Mixed Media Believe In Yourself Art Journal page

Hello all

I am back with another mixed media journal page for the Susan K Weckesser team. The theme on the blog this month is mixed media and one of my favourite themes. 

I started off by applying modelling paste around the page using a stencil and then i spritzed DecoArt Media Misters on top. I spritzed water over to dilute the colors.

Next i added more colors using acrylic paint which i painted on in blocks of color. I then used the In Circle Me stamp to add a textured layer to the background. I used a stencil with black modelling paste for the quote and writing. I let it all dry and then added another layer of stencils.

I used the A Little Grunge Love stamp set and used the Clearsnap Color Pop Mini inks to color them with. I glued them down and once dry i went over the top with a stencil to create a textured effect.

I used the A Little Bit Washi stamps and stamped them on to tissue paper. I learned this trick of Susan and this way you can position the images before gluing them down.

Thank you for visiting 

IKE's Art Spooky Love Madam Death Halloween Card

Hello crafy friends and welcome to another blog post for the IKE's Art design team. It is nearly Halloween so the theme on the IKE's Art blog this week is spooky love so i have something spooky and a bit naughty to share. If you would like to join in with the challenge for a chance to grab yourself some IKE's Art images then pop over here http://ikesworldchallengeblog.blogspot.co.uk/

Warning this blog post contains nipples which viewers may find offensive unless you like nipples in which case it is ok.

Here she is the lovely Black Widow who would have your head off the minute you took your eyes off her.

I used scraps of Halloween papers from the Gecko Galz and then i used a Tim Holtz Strip die the one with the spiders wed to add another layer.

I love these alternative sentiments which you can find over at Athena Crafts.

These are the mini dies by Docrafts and they are awesome.

I finished off the card using a small MDF spider from Things to Alter and a bit of black Metallic Lustre.

Thank you for visiting and i look forward to seeing all your spooky makes over at the IKE's Art Challenge blog. I will be popping in to say hi so get those entries in.