The other day my first Hannah Grey design team package arrived. I couldn't wait to dig in and get to work on something. In the box there was an array of goodies... Jenni Bowlin rub-ons , a collage sheet from Paper Relics, stickles glues, an mdf crown, and more. What I like about the whole concept is the responsibility to be creative. They send me this stuff and it's my duty to get busy with the crafting skills. So without a moments pause I grabbed my first challenge: the mdf crown plaque.
I definitely had no surefire plan. I have to admit I did a lot of blank staring. It could've went in so many directions. So I started digging in the crates of supplies for some visual stimuli to get the wheels turning and I happened upon a perfect sized print of our Charlotte and thought 'this plaque will be Charlotte as Queen for a Day.' It was really easy after that. The crown shape was already there for me. All I had to do was give it some texture, and for me vintage sheet music is at the top of the texture list. And then I needed a pretty background pattern for Charlotte and some three dimensional details to set her off. These mdf plaques are available at Hannah Grey so you can do your own version. The first step was gluing on the pink polka dot paper, using the plaque itself to trace out the exact shape. Second, I cut out Charlotte and glued her right over the polka dot paper. You can use a photo of you or someone special, or an "instant relative" pic you find at a junk shop or flea market...blow it up to the proper size on a color copier. Or snap a picture of an actual vintage doll and do the same. Next choose your patterned paper for the crown. Again use the plaque itself as the stencil to trace out the crown shape. And you don't have to get it perfect. Imperfect edges are easily handled later on with a bit of sandpaper. To soften the borderline where the crown meets the head use a bit of rick rack, tinsel trim, crepe paper, etc...To embellish the crown use vintage buttons, sequins, rhinestones, etc... I finished her off with a chipboard C for Charlotte and sprinkled it with some aqua glass glitter.
I love mdf as a work surface. It's so smooth and I love the heavy, chunky feel of the plaque in my hands. And it's a fairly thick plaque so you can paint the outer edge a color or add another patterned paper as trim.
I made this Queen for a Day start to finish on the day the Hannah Grey package arrived. I loved how she came out and was psyched to send Shosh the pics so she could see that I was an enthusiastic new teammate! And Shosh seemed to like her too. She asked if Charlotte could pack her bags and go on the road to some trade shows over the next few months. I was just getting used to seeing my little queen up on her shelf and I'm sending her off into the world already! Well, you do your best to raise 'em right and one day they're gonna head out into the big wide world. ; )
Thanks to all of you who left such sweet comments on Flickr...very encouraging. And I'll be at work on some more Hannah Grey stuff this week. Definitely go check out their stock when you get the chance.
Oh and handful of you gals have asked how big this crown plaque is...10 inches!! Really a fabbbb size!!!
Got an amazing package of pretties and supplies from Lilia at Fleamarket Studio . There is never ever a shortage of beautiful stuff in her shop! I could stare at these handmade vintage crepe paper and millinery flowers all day. So dreamy! The vintage Cocoa Soap box has got to be one of my favorite things in a while. As a collected group the stuff looks so fab but really each individual item is a treasure on it's own. That's telling of Lilia's excellent talent and eye for detail. So stylish. Love the stuff!!!
Once again my girl Ellen over at One Ripe Peach has me smiling like crazy! Look at these tiny little baby cards!!! too too cute!
I will be sending one or two off to a dear friend very soon. I especially love the "mother" tags! Ellen adds super cute things weekly and sometimes daily! You never know what you will find or what you have missed! : ( but she does do custom orders in case you missed out on something.
A brand new place for cute and colorful vintage supplies: Nickelcandy! A new shop by Sadie Lou. Very fun stuff. I picked up these candy colored trims and I know I will be back for more soon! Pop over and see what's new for yourself.
More good stuff from Pink Grapefruit over on Etsy! I gushed about her a few posts ago...it is my new favorite place to shop! The ledger and the song book are awesome. In the ledger there are not only tons of someone's personal recipes but some amazing journal entries dating back to 1920. Each entry starts with the word "remember". Sample opening lines: "Remember when it rained this morning Sun." "Remember when our Ford was stold at the Methodist in Charleston Sun." It is so cool. Very "rural" sounding. I love it. Also this whole gang of "instant relatives", this cute vintage jar with floral lid, and a mix of vintage white/cream buttons. My goodness this girl has some stash! I could buy her entire store in one sitting!
How adorable are these little Spring tags!? These and the bundles of pastel pipe cleaners are from Amy Elise. I just love how she dresses up her wares. I'd say she takes her presentation seriously but I think "seriously" would be a great misnomer for just how whimsically she puts things together! : )
Well last week was the kick off of Show and Tell Sundays on flickr . That was buttons...and this week it's vintage millinery. So here's my contribution. You gotta go on Flickr and check out the dizzying dozens. So much eye candy you might go into sugar shock!
One last thing. We want Spring now! We're just not there yet here in Jersey. So to generate some momentum we're having a special on our Springtime Greeting kit. Free shipping ! We shipped out a bunch when we debuted it and now we're starting to see some completed projects on the Flickr group and we're psyched to see the results! So, if you're feeling crafty and springy go over to Etsy and pick up a kit and get free shipping. We're currently at work on a couple more kit ideas...we love the whole concept of spreading the artistic bug around so expect lots more in the kit department from us.
Ok, that's it for now. Gonna go watch a horror movie!
xoxo, Jenny
