5 in 5 - July 2015 - CHOOSING BLUE

Welcome to '5 in 5' where on the 5th of

each month I post 5 photos that I have

taken in 5 minutes. 

 

 

I planned outdoor photos for this months challenge but today it is raining, a refreshing change from the intense heat we have enjoyed this past week.  I was wondering what photos to take instead and then a bottle and the shower curtain caught my attention.  Both blue.  So I decided to use this as my theme and to go around the house and here they are....

 

The bottle.  It standing on the landing and the sun shines through, though today it is dull so it doesn't look its best.

 

 

One of my favourite pictures that hangs in hangs in the utility room.  I love boats and the sea  and I often wonder what the boy is looking at or thinking.... 

 

 

Another favourite... my bag.  Gosh it has seen better days... one of the buckles has fallen off and parts of it are frayed and worn.  But
I love the size and even my camera gets lost in it!  This style is still around so I may have to buy myself a new one but I have yet to see a design I like as much as this one....

My collection of blue china balls and eggs.  I love the designs on these.......  they serve no purpose but to make me smile.

And likewise this jardinière. My mother in law gave it to me and it has been passed down the family for several generations.  I once had a house plant in it and maybe I will find another. An Aspidistra perhaps!

 

 

Thank you for popping by, your company and comments are always appreciated and special thanks to Maggie, Joy, Eileen, Helena, Melanie, Barbara, Mandy and Vikki who took part last month.
 

If you would like to join in this monthly photo challenge please link in below so I can come and see your photos. Here's the plan:

 

  1.  Choose a location.

2.  Have your camera ready.

3.  Set a timer for 5 minutes (I use my mobile phone).

4.  Take as many photos you can until the time is up.

5.  Choose 5 photos to download and share by using the link tool below. 

   Please note: 

You can take  your photos any time, they do not have to be taken on 5th!
And you have until the 25th of the month to add your photos to the link.

 

There are more details here. 

 

 

 

FAUX VINTAGE JOURNAL

Welcome if this is your first time of visiting my page, and if not welcome anyway! Last month I chose to decorate some frames for my
THAT CRAFT PLACE DT project. If you missed that post and tutorial you can see it here.  I planned to do something completely different this time but last weekend I discovered a beautiful Victorian Photo Album in an antique shop.  It wasn't cheap so I decided to give myself time to think rather make an impulsive purchase. However, all week the album has been on my mind. I did go back to buy it the following day and the shop was shut.  When asking about the album I had been told someone else had made enquiries and had gone away to think about buying it as a wedding present.  It seemed not meant to be....

But I still couldn't get the album out my head so I phoned the shop and it was still there!  It was waiting for me all the time!  I am super excited as it is a beautiful book filled with black and white photos. A real treasure and I can't wait to collect it next week.

Meantime, frames and vintage albums have been on my mind and I have been meaning to use an ornate MDF frame that is part of the TCP collection.  So I decided to use it on the cover of a hand made journal, here it is and I'll include a brief tutorial:

First I prepared the pages by sewing signatures. I used 120gm A4

paper folded in half.  It would take too long to explain this whole process as it is a post in itself and I will do that another day. So for now I will concentrating on the cover of this book and tutorials for creating pages are available on YouTube.

 

I prepared my covers by measuring the pages to find the width of the spine needed. I added Duck Tape to the front, with the correct allowance, and I put waxed paper on the back to protect the sticky side. 

 

 

Turning the cover right side up I painted the tape and round the edges in black paint.

 

 

 Next I chose some pages from a vintage book and painted these in a  coat of paint diluted with water to create a light wash with brush marks.  Once dry these were glued to the front and back cover.  As I wanted a distressed look I made a few marks on the page while the glue was wet. 

I then painted the frame: first in black paint and when dry, in coat of grey paint.  I then used a piece of scrunched up waxed paper to dab the frame so that the black paint showed through in small patches. 

 

 

 

Leaving each stage time to dry in between, I gave the frame a coat of PaperArtsy Metalic Glaze, and then in places, a light rub of Treasure Gold to further create the aged effect. 

 

Back to the main cover:
Using the same grey paint as the frame I took a dry brush and with the smallest amount of paint I very lightly brushed areas of the cover. This was done to subtly tie the frame and cover together and to continue the distressed effect. 

 

 

Time to add a stamped image inside the frame:
I chose a stamp to fit inside the frame and positioned the frame with a piece of paper under it so that I could create a template.  I drew inside the frame and cut this section out.  I them carefully removed the frame leaving the paper in position.  This allowed me to stamp the image so that a the shape of the stamp fitted inside the shape of the frame and any unwanted areas were printed onto waste paper.

I gave the cover and spine a coat of Matt Medium to seal it and make it harder wearing. More than one coat can be used but as this journal has a vintage look I do not mind if it picks up the occasional scuff.

Final stages:
I glued the frame into position and decided the overall effect looked a bit flat.  So I added embossing ink to the area inside the frame and a layer of chunky embossing powder. Once heat treated  this offered a different texture and gave definition. 

I used metallic wax to colour a MDF lock and glued this into position. It needed final detail so I found some greyboard 'screw heads' in my stash and used black ink to give them a base colour.  A light rub of Treasure Gold completed the effect and these were glued into position onto the lock and down the side of the book.

 

I removed the wax paper from inside the spine (see photo 2) and added a strip of wide Picture Framing Tape so that it covered the sticky back of the Duck Tape and the inside edge of the covers.  This adds further reinforcement to the spine and the pages are now ready to glue inside.  And here it is, with pages shown.

PRODUCTS I USED FOR THIS PROJECT ARE AS FOLLOWS:

 

MDF frame and lock from TCP

MDF, Mountboard or Thick card for cover (mine measured slightly larger than A5 so that the paper fitted inside nicely)

Duck and Picture Framing Tape

Paints by PaperArtsy (Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics in South Pacific Little Black Dress and Snowflake)
PaperArtsy Fresco Finish - Metalic Glaze

Embossing ink

Thick embossing powder

Treasure Gold - Renaissance and White Fire

Cosmic Shimmer Glue

DecoArt Matt Medium

PaperArtsy Stamp

Archival Ink (Black)

 
If this inspires you to make your own journal you can buy everything you need from THAT CRAFT PLACE.  Please let me know if you have any questions about making this journal and any comments are appreciated and welcomed.  And do let me know if you make one of your own because I'd love to see what you make!

 

Thanks for popping by and do visit the TCP facebook page for more creative ideas and details about the monthly Mixed Media 'Anything Goes' challenge.