Shabby Dressed Papier Mache' Heart Keepsake Box

Hello sweet friends.

It's another day to CeLeBrAtE life's

goodness and beauty. 

It just has to be a choice sometimes.

And, today, I wish for you the strength

to look beyond those bumps in your road

and find the exquisite in the everyday.

*********

In the following photos,

I'd like to share with you a papier mache' 

heartbox that I found at a Goodwill 

several years ago.

As you will see, it's

all dressed up Shabby. 

This is one of my favorite things to do!

Find something with so much

potential and just let my heart and

hands go while trusting the process.

Sometimes it can be a little scarey because

I don't know where I'm going but

that's all part of the journey and learning!

 I always forget my before photos and so I 

cheated and found this one online.

So... TaDa!

This is before her makeover.

I don't have photos of the entire process

because it was very involved.

But I will share the basics and I

would be glad to answer any questions.

The first thing I did was to Gesso 

the box. This covers and 

water-resists the paper 

for painting or glueing, inking, or 

whatever wet medium 

you may want to use.

 I also gessoed some old sheet music.

It gives it a washed sort of look that I love.

There are many places online where you

can learn how and where to use 

this very versatile product. 

I then dry-brush painted the box with 

Vintage White acrylic, craft paint. 

The little texturing that you see here

was done with a gesso 

and Vintage White paint mixture.

Gesso is white and I wanted 

the creamy look and so I

 just mixed some of the paint with it!

Another wonderful thing about gesso (love it)

Is that you can tint it any color you want!

I spread a little on and then I took 

my french script rubber stamp 

and stamped the image on it.

After it dried, I rubbed 

a little Victorian Velvet Distress Ink and

 Frayed Burlap over it

to give it that color.

This tearing back of the paper

was a look that I had seen all around online 

in mixed-media projects and in 

card making. It's very simple.

I just dampened the paper and very carefully

 tore the size opening that I wanted. 

The gesso makes the paper a bit stiff

when the water dries which helps

it to hold it's shape. I then, 

with my finger, just carefully

rubbed some Frayed Burlap 

Distress Ink on it.

I also distressed the edges of the box 

and the sheet music 

 with a mix of dark and pink inks.

I really like to mix 

tattered and grungy with

 sparkle and elegance. To me,

they just seem to compliment 

each other so beautifully.

Do you like the grayish-green leaves?

I wasn't sure at first but the fabric

matched the color hues and so I went

 with it. Do you think it blends well?

 (I am not good at color blending! 

I have learned a lot from

others but I still have to  

ask my family for their input at times :)

To get the the pink splattered look,

I used the Perfect Pearls Forever Violet

spray from Ranger. It can be messy!

I hold my piece over 

my large trash basket and spray carefully. 

It takes some experimenting. 

You can add a little or a lot and 

the shimmer of the pearl 

is very subtle.

The embellishments were 

just what I had on hand.

 Fabric yo-yos...

shabby flowers... rhinestones... tulle...

I just love the mauve flower.

It's made from a thrifted, silk shirt. 

That's where I come by most of my 

fabrics for my crafting.

I wanted the inside to be somewhat finished

so it could be used for special keepsakes

but I really didn't want to line it. And so 

 I decided to paint/gessso it and then I made this

little lacey pillow to lay in the bottom.

It's up-cycled from a thrifted curtain.

The sweet bear came home with me from

a thrifting adventure as well. This post 

wasn't supposed to be about thrifting

but you can sure see how many ways

to save on your crafting supplies!

Well, I hope that you've 

enjoyed the project

and that I've shared some tips 

that have been helpful.

This project was a lot of fun but it

did take a while in the thinking of

the design. I'd love to hear about any projects

that you've been working on. 

Or just say hello!

Have a wonderful day and thank you so

much for stopping by.

Tamara xo

I'm joining the party at
Share Your Cup Thursday!
The Enchanting Rose

(oh my! I just noticed that the corners of some of my pictures are
edited differently. And it would take a lot of effort to fix them all,
including re-doing this entire post!  I'm sorry.. It seems that no matter how I try,
my "fine details" are a bit quirky.. I guess that's partly who I am.
Thanks  for understandin'!)

Art Inspiration: My Journey .... Chasing Your Dream to Create Your Future

Hello Dear Friends~

It's been quite a while since I've shared 

anything of my soulful journey of finding my way

 along the winding path of 

this artistic and heart awakening.

*********

It's another day and that's a good thing. 

Everyday is rich with possibilities.

~ Dreams and hopes fly on the wings of tomorrow ~

Tomorrows always seems so full of promise and 

it can seem easier to dream for tomorrow than

to expect reality today.

And though it's good to have hope for our dreams,

TODAY 

is the time to take steps toward making 

those dreams come true.

And so writes :

Victor Hugo.....

an Ohio sunset during one of my visits to my "other" home :)
isn't it gorgeous?

Are we waiting for something in our hearts to be born?

Maybe the birth has already begun.

 A dream can seem very elusive.

Appearing...fading..again and again..

I used to think of it all in terms of

"the being there."

Do you allow yourself the grace for the process?

 The learning of the skill...or the honing of a talent?

Are you thinking of everything little

seed that you sow to get there as a

 part of the beautiful process?

Is it protected by keeping the long-term hopes

in perspective. Are the tender shoots

allowed to grow in the light without being over-shadowed

by the pressure of expectations and the road ahead?

We stay focused.

Guarding that dream with all

the passion of a mother watching

over her babe as it grows.

We run after it every day,

never letting it out of our sight.

Learning how to nurture it in the every day and

adding to it's growth and strength.

Pushing through the hard things.

Remembering that there will be set backs.

Unexpected hardships and disappointments will come.

These things that seem to resist us will only

make us stronger.

Watching step by step.

 Recognizing the beauty as it unfolds before us. 

As the truth of what's in our hearts

begins to shine through the glory of what He

enables us to create with our hearts and our hands!

Always keeping the faith that we are being 

guided by The One Who

inspires and directs our paths.

If you are on a similar journey,

I would love to hear about your revelations. 

And ways that you have overcome as well as 

the beauty that grows in your heart and life.

I know there are so many different ways of expressing 

the passion and beauty that wants to

 overflow from a life!  

My admiration and respect grows for those

who are able to truly listen and stay true to

their hearts and course!

Wishing you blessings and beauty

for the rest of your week~

And always,

thank you so much for coming by. 

I appreciate your visits and comments so much!

Tamara xo

  

An Up-cycled Denim Flower for Spring...

Hello everyone and 

Happy Spring!

Isn't it just so exciting to see 

those little green shoots

coming up around the yard?

And my, oh my! The birds are singing

such happy little songs. 

I hope that your spring is shaping

up to be a happy one. 

Filled to the brim with many blessings.

I find that when I'm feeling blue,

if I practice a little

~ GRATITUDE ~

****

it helps to change my outlook.

I did some cleaning up

and watering around the yard

and in my herb garden this morning.

I'm not feeling very well and so

it felt good to be out in the sun!

I've been using my essential oils like

crazy and they help so much. 

I'm very thankful to have them.

I have a little spring project that I'd like to share.

I really enjoy re-using and re-making things.

And denim is so fun to work with!

I was going through my scrap drawer one day

and decided to just gather some different

pieces of random things to try to 

put something together.

And I came up with this little sign 

and the flower seemed perfect for spring!

It's made of a side seam 

from an old pair jeans.  

I really like the quote. 

We are all so unique and

shine with a special light and have 

a beauty all our own!

Id' love to hear about any projects that you 

have going for spring! Are you planting and 

re-arranging plants outside yet? I know that it's a 

little early for some to be out but it's 

 great fun to be planning, isn't it?

Thank you so much for stopping by.

 Wishes for a peaceful weekend

and I hope you feel beautiful as well!

Tamara xo

Old Windmills, A Vintage Truck and The GiveAway Announcement!

Happy Monday, everyone!

It's a beautiful day here in the White Mountains.

Today, I will announce the winner of my 

altered book but first I'd like to share some 

photos with you. 

I said I wanted to start sharing more 

of our travel experiences.

We do a lot of traveling and sometimes

it's worth the extra time to 

take to the back roads.

That's really my favorite way to go.

It opens up the heart and mind a little and makes

spontaneity more of a reality.

 And doesn't that enrich our lives and

give us a fresh perspective?

It also makes room for surprises

or finding the extraordinary.

That's how we came across this

collection of windmills.

Do you like them?

Maybe some of you have never seen one. 

 But here in the west, they are still

a part of working ranches. 

And there are also many that 

are abandoned but still standing.

 What a beautiful blue-sky day it was! 

With just a few fluffy clouds floating by.

"When the winds of change blow

some people build walls,

and others build windmills."

~Chinese Proverb~

  At the bottom, left of this picture, you can see the

pipe that is fixed over top of the stock tank 

so the water can flow in. 

I just love seeing how things work!

 Aren't they beauties!? 
tall and inspiring....

And there's a little log cabin, too.

Below, there are some photos of a
rusty, vintage truck.

Do you ever wonder who drove those 
old treasures to the store..
school..
church...and maybe the country wedding?
I've always wanted to write a song
about one of those old trucks!

I had a good time trying some different angled shots. 

I hope you all don't mind. 

I recently read a blog post about how 

annoyed some people get with all the 

different shots of the same thing!

I'm sorry if that's me.

I don't know what this place was but

I was very excited to have found it!

 Out in the middle of no where.

I would have liked to ask some 

questions but there was no one around. 

 It seemed a little mysterious 

and that added to it's charm!

I hope you enjoyed the little tour and now onto

the giveAway announcement!

And the winner is.......

 Linda! 

Congratulations to you! Could you please

contact be by email with your mailing information,

I will get your book sent out to you this week!

Thank you very much to all who stopped by and left lovely,

sweet comments about my book and other posts!

You're all very kind and gracious and I

appreciate you so much.

Blessings to you all,

Tamara xo

A Baby Bird and Altered Book Give Away .... Just Because

Happy Monday!

Was your weekend 

restful and productive?

I hope so. 

It's so good for the

 body and mind to 

take time to rest, relax and 

then get something done!

Do you feel just 

"all around better"

if you keep things 

in a balance? 

I do.

The weather is changing and many

of us are starting to focus

on outside projects.

That's always exciting

as well as a lot of hard work. 

We are working on an area

of our property that we

have had dreams about

working into something special!

I will be sharing about 

that in the future.

I know it's been a long, 

cold winter

for a lot of people.

It will be spring soon!

And...this is what 

we have to 

look forward to! Isn't it precious?

This is one of our Sugartree babies.

It's a little Fly-Catcher. 

You'd never know it but there 

are five of them in the nest. 

Those parent birds were

very busy!

*******

It's always fun to win something.

And during the 

2015 Grow Your Blog Party,

it was suggested that we

 have a giveaway.

However, I wasn't sure what to

 give and so I didn't have one.

But I thought of the books that

I had altered and decided

to offer one of those.

I have been wanting to host  

a giveaway for a while now.

I'm a gift giver for sure so this 

will be fun!

Here goes..

So, if you'd like

 to enter, just leave 

a comment. And if you're new

here, WELCOME! If you 

 find some encouragement 

or inspiration here, 

I'd love to have 

you follow along.

Here's the book that I

will send to you if 

your name is chosen.

The winner will be 

announced next Monday.

March 16th.

Thank you so much for stopping 

by and best wishes to 

all who enter!

Tamara xo