Have you created something with DecoArt products that you'd like to share?
Tell us about your project and it may be featured in our project gallery!
About the project
I was tired of seeing the old tomato pincushion. I wanted to have something more stylish, something prettier to sit on my sewing table. I took an old picture frame, some Americana paint and some burlap and created something pretty and functional! http://scissorsandspatulas.com/2011/09/stylish-new-pincushion-with-decoart-paint.html
About the product:
Americana Blue Mist acrylic paint- Americana is an all-purpose, premium quality acrylic paint used for decorative painting, home decor, and general craft painting projects.
About the blogger:
Jen from Scissors & Spatulas- Mom, wife, creative being and blogger. I love creating new things from old things. I call it “reinventing fabulous!”
About the project
I found this lovely caned chair at Goodwill for an amazing deal! A little paint, including DecoArt acrylic and some fabric transformed it into a fabulous piece for my craft room!
About the product:
Americana Blue Mist acrylic paint
About the blogger:
My name is Jen. I’m a mom, a wife, a former teacher and a girl with a burning desire to create, transform and knock-off anything! My mind is constantly spinning with ideas and I have the ability to see an item (usually junk to others) and envision a way to upcylce it. I call it “reinventing fabulous!”
About the project
After the sonogram where I found out that I was having a girl, I found myself humming a little song by the Temptations quite often. Can guess which one it is? It became one of the main songs that I sang to my little bump as she grew, and I still sing it to her now.
About the product:
I pulled out my DecoArt paint in Daffodil Yellow and White, a few of the same colors that I used for the damask stencil on my nursery walls, in addition to Americana Paint in Grey Sky.
About the blogger:
Erin from Lemontree Creations: I’m a professor’s wife, stay at home mom, and Christian. I recently moved from the glorious Edinburgh Scotland to Lincoln Illinois, and have been surprised by how quickly I’ve grown to love the small town life. My husband remains my best friend after 10 years together, and we can’t get over the joy that has come into our lives since we’ve had our son. I really love making things for the house and am thrilled to be able to share them on LTC and even sell a few on my etsy shop.
About the project
Let’s make some notebooks! It looks like a lot of supplies but you probably already have some of this on-hand. Each notebook requires 1 piece of cardstock and 5 pieces of printer paper plus about 18″ of embroidery floss. You’ll also need scissors, pattern scissors, a ruler, something to write with, some masking tape, a large needle and something sharp to poke holes.
About the product:
DecoArt Americana Desert Turquoise
About the blogger:
The mission of Whimseybox is to encourage creativity. We know how easy it is to get stuck in a creative rut or get swept up in the pace of life and let months pass without making anything. We are here to encourage you with a monthly package of new products, a project gallery with step-by-step tutorials, a blog full of inspiration and a community of fellow crafters.
Editors Note- We’d love to see your version of this handmade book with some images of you and your mother printed out on half of the printer paper before assembly– how sweet!
About the project
I can’t tell you how excited I am to work on this project for a friend of ours we’ve known for many years who’s having her first baby this summer. She’s invited us to her baby shower, and although we’re not going to be able to attend because it’s out of town, Ken and I wanted to create an 8 x 8 Scrapbook to add in her basket of goodies we’re mailing for her new baby. This is one of my favorite layouts in the book that has a really cool paper painting technique, and I wanted to take a few minutes today to share the project with you!
For the background paper, I recently discovered DecoArt’s DuraClear Satin Varnish and I just love it! Water soluble with a satiny-smooth finish without brush strokes, this varnish is versatile enough for use on mixed-media projects, home decor pieces, wood finishes and even paper crafting. I love it and you’ll see me using this quite a bit going forward!
First, I cut out several of Spellbinders Parisian Accents from some scraps Ken had to use as my masked stencils. I laid them out on my page to create my pattern.
One-by-one, I used a stencil brush and DecoArt’s DuraClear Satin Varnish to stencil all around the die-cut shape, creating a clear, reversed stencil pattern (make sure you remove the paper stencils as soon as you are finished to keep them from sticking to the paper).
Then, I thinned-down flat white acrylic craft paint and, using the same stencil brush with very little paint, I dusted the paper using a circular motion. This is the key to the technique. I blotted a lot of the paint off of my brush and then acted as though I was dusting the paper over and over and over so that the white paint would penetrate the paper that didn’t have the Satin Varnish, but would also white-wash the parts that did have the Satin Varnish. Basically, it all gets a dusting of white, but the stenciled area accepts the paint much more, creating a really cool, whitewashed-grunge affect.
For the Aster Flower, I created layers and layers of the same blue, whitewashed and white papers using all of the dies in Spellbinders Aster Flower Topper die cut set. I used Quick Quotes Mocha Mama Chalking Ink to age the edges, I curled them a bit and then assembled the flower using a brad through the center of each piece. The center was made with ribbon, a stray button and a bead we had in our ‘found object’ collection and glued over the top of the brad.
The butterfly was created similarly, using layers and layers of white, orange and yellow papers to create something really spectacular and dimensional. Spellbinders Wings of Hope die shapes lend themselves perfectly to this. I also aged these pieces with the Mocha Mama Chalking inks.
This picture demonstrates how all the layers create something that jumps off the page and give you some great color variations without relying on the actual paper design to drive your own design. This is all just plain cardstock.
Next, I created two square photo mounts to compliment the 8 x 8 square layout using the same orange, blue and white cardstock. Each photo mount is glued together using Aleene’s Tacky Glue and then aged with the same Mocha Mama Chalking Inks. The Butterfly, Photo Mounts and Flower is then connected using a thin satin ribbon and attached to the layout page using more Tacky Glue.
Then, the layout’s edges are aged using the chalking inks, sanded with an emery board and then aged again to give the plain cardstock some personality and adds to the girly-grunge look.
About the product:
DecoArt DuraClear Satin Varnish
Americana White Acrylic Craft Paint
About the blogger:
With long histories as artists and crafters, Ken Oliver and Jeremy Bright have come together to share clever project ideas, paper crafting techniques, favorite products on the market and will even be exploring how technology and digital media is making the cross-over into the arts and crafts community. From traditional scrapbooking and card-making to off-the-page designs, mixed media projects and digital crafting, we’ll be exploring new techniques and teaching others what we learn…both our successes and even the blunders. We love getting our hands on new products and putting them to the test, so expect the unexpected here as we’ll often explore uncharted territories from two manly perspectives!
About the project
Jami from Freckled Laundry has videos and everything on her site for mixing all the colors, so be sure to check them out. The gist is that you use the 3 paints to make light, medium, and dark metallic colors.
About the product:
Taking a tip from Jami, I used DecoArt Metallics Elegant Finish in Shimmering Silver (found at A.C. Moore or Michael’s), Ebony Black, and Titanium White to create my faux finish.
About the blogger:
Rachael from Lovely Crafty Home is a 20 something DIY-er who loves doing household projects, crafty things, and entertaining friends.
About the project
Since I have been on a little succulent and terrarium spree lately, I thought it would be fun to make some mini accessories to dress them up!
About the product:
Once the clay has baked and cooled, you are now ready to embellish with your favorite acrylic paints. {I used my DecoArt multi-purpose Americana Acrylics}
About the blogger:
I’m Stephanie Lynn. I am a blessed Mommy to one precious little boy and married to a handsome guy {who also happens to be my handyman and best friend}. We recently moved into ‘Our Dream House’ and have been working hard at making it ‘Our Home’.
About the project
I just wanted to give you a close up of the little (heart) pillow I made to coordinate with a cross-stitch painting. I used a canvas pillow from Canvas Corp and asked hubby to lightly draw a grid with a pencil.
About the product:
Following the pattern here, I used DecorArt paint and Fabric medium and simply painted the x’s with varying colours to match Bella’s decor.
About the blogger:
Hi, I’m Lucy. I planted this little Craftberry Bush in the hope its fruit would inspire you to create. I am grateful to have you here, where creativity is always in bloom.
About the project
Today I have a few ideas of how to use dried roses to create pretty art for your home.
About the product:
I painted the blank canvas using some acrylic paint in my favorite color I was sent by the kind people at DecoArt to try out: Spa Blue. YUM.
About the blogger:
Brooke from The Crafting Chicks is a mom of three and wife of her best friend! Brooke and her husband met when they were 14 and the rest is history! She loves photography, Photoshop, creative projects galore, cold glasses of milk, Carnation Instant Breakfast, Charlie and Lola, dancing like a spazz, and making her kids laugh with her ugly faces.
About the project
I’m so excited to share this DIY project! It’s fast, easy, cheap and I love how it came out.
About the product:
Just buy a bottle of fabric medium, like DecoArt Americana Fabric Painting Medium, to use with craft store acrylics- I’ve had great success with this.
About the blogger:
I’m Alicia DiRago and I live in Houston, TX where I teach and blog all about DIY, fashion, craft, style and design.
