Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Shabby, Chicken Wire Hearts


Hello dear friends...
How is your week going so far?
I hope it's been peaceful.
 Full of love and inspiration.

I look forward to the start of each new day.
It seems that I awake in the morning so full
of ideas and hopes for the day!
(What's your favorite time of day?)

There are always so many fun things to play at!
And I love to work.
Apples have been on sale. 
We bought 20 pounds and I'm glad because
 they are so crispy and delicious!

 My intention for some of them
 was to make dried apples.
And so this morning, I grabbed our 
Ronco dehydrator
from our storage room and began slicing.

********
If you like to create, you probably have 
projects that you have in mind to work on.
I have been wanting to do something with my roll 
of chicken wire for a while now. 
I decided on hearts.

I didn't really have a plan or how to.
So I just laid a cardboard heart on top of the wire 
and started cutting around it.
 My gloves in the shape of a heart..
That just happened.  I see hearts all the time.
They just catch my eye.
Is that strange?
Since I didn't have a frame of any sort,
I had to take a pair of pliers and twist the cut ends together.
The hearts didn't turn out symmetrical
and have sort of a rough look to them.
I gessoed the hearts and then painted them with one coat of
Vintage White acrylic paint.
And then went to work on the design.
This is what I came up with.
I had some strips of sari silk that I used for the bow here.
The velvet yo-yo is from a thrifted shirt. The shabby flower is
made from a strip of old sheet and lightly colored with
a pink stamp pad. The white filigree flower is gessoed with
a pink cabachon added. 
I also used some soft, pink seam binding as a bit of filler
between the paper heart and shabby flower.
The heart and sentiment are from The Romance
paper pad by Prima~I love the rich colors.

I enjoy adding a piece of rusty hardware
or something from nature. I found a small stick and 
wrapped some floss around it. Mixing soft shabby
and rough grays and browns is something that I love to do.
In my home, I have weathered barn wood and lace curtains 
on the same wall. 
For this heart, I made a vintage, sheet music rosette.
I distressed the edges with Tim Holtz Frayed Burlap ink.
After gluing it to the wire, I then glued some of this moss
to the rosette. I added the angel which I had 
hi-lighted with gold Rub and Buff. That paint lasts
an amazingly long time. That tube is probably 20 years old!

I glittered a small oval acrylic piece and added these
words from the Tim Holtz Ideol-ogy Chit Chat Stickers.
In all of this soft loveliness, I used gold tulle, 
organza ribbon, satin ribbons, lace seam binding,
and a piece of gold, vintage trim that I found in
a box of antique, Christmas ornaments. 
It's a very heavy, woven trim. 
I thought it was gorgeous. I don't have many
authentic, vintage trims. I would love to find some.
Do you have a favorite source for these?
It looks as if this sweet little angel 
has her hands clasped in prayer. 

What a lovely thought.

Thank you so much for visiting my little place here!
Best wishes for your week.

Tamara Xo








5 comments:

Roosterhead Designs said...

Oh Tamara these hearts are beautiful! Made with love and a mix of "finds"; they are just perfect~ I enjoy a mix of rustic and lace too; like using twigs from the yard and lace from the basket. I like the vintage look of your red/pink heart! sweet details. And the white heart (how smart to paint the wire white!!:) has a great shabby chic feel with the angel and the romantic moss.
Thanks for sharing! I found the little vintage lace I do have - either @ estate sales, or some came from Liz (lululizinlalaland.blogspot.com) Have a blessed week dear friend~ Karen O

Tamara said...

Hi Karen.. It's such a pleasure to have you visit! Findings are such fun to hunt for and oh when you find those special ones.. And I know what you mean about picking up sticks and things. Thank you for your coming by and leaving your thoughtful comment! And thank you for answering my vintage trim question..

Blessings to you<3
Tamara

Anonymous said...

How beautiful they are!
I adore the rustic appearance of the chicken wire set against the prettiest of ribbons and trims and painting the chicken wire with Gesso, such a wonderful idea.
Perfectly shabby and oh so very chic!
Wishes
Lynne

Kelly @ Homespuns 'n Hayfields said...

I just love these, how creative!

Tamara said...

Thank you so much Lynne.. Have a wonderful weekend!

Tamara <3