"BIRDIE DARLING" - ALTOIDS TIN BOOK

As a follow-up to my previous post about creating a book from two Altoids tin lids, comes another book made from the bottoms of two tins.  This one is just as easy to make as the book using the lids.

The bird theme is inspired by an Alpha Stamps collage sheet;  Bees, Birds & Butterflies.

The advantage of using the bottoms of Altoids tins is that there is a deep area that can hold dimensional items.

The tins are held together by a hinge, and I added feet to give them more height.

VIDEO TUTORIAL – There is now a YouTube video tutorial for this project.  The video also covers 5 other altered tin projects.  You’ll find the segment about this project at minute 19:11 in the video below.

WRITTEN TUTORIAL

Start by removing the lids from 2 Altoids Tins.  Next, bend flat or snip off the hinges.

Paint or ink the edges of the tins.  I used Aged Bronze Patina paint as it sticks to metal.

Paper the inside and the outside of the tins.  I used Serendipity Chronicle paper on the outside and House of Roses Old Letters paper on the inside.

Add the décor to the inside of the tins.

I decorated the left side using chipboard leafy corners, a 3 inch chipboard cage, roses sniped from a rose garland, a connector charm, and a bird from the Birds, Bees and Butterflies collage sheet.  Popping up the items gives the piece more dimension.

On the right side, I used more of the leafy corners and roses, plus the lovely little girl image.

Hold the tins together with the insides facing each other and attach the hinge.  I used E6000 glue for this project to attach the hinge to the tins.  I added a bead to the holes in the hinge.  Alternatively, you could use brads to attach the hinge to the tins.  If you choose this method, punch the holes in the tins before adding the paper.  If you want to hide the prongs of the brads, attach the hinge to the tins before adding the paper to the inside.

Next, attach the swirly connector charms on the opposite side, or you could add a latch. They have been painted with Aged Bronze Patina Paint.

For this project, I used a die-cut chipboard piece for the base of the front and back covers, so I assembled them separately from the tin.  After assembly was complete, I glued them to the front and back of the tins.

On the front cover, I started with a lovely chipboard cage backed with Serendipity Chronicle paper and an image from The Garden collage sheet.    On top of the cage, I used various paper flowers, a bronze swallow charm, a bronze bird on a branch, calla lily leaf charms, and the words “Birdie Darling,” which are from the Birds, Bees & Butterflies collage sheet.

Notice that there are flowers on the top.  Those are glued to the top of the back tin.  You can also see the chipboard wrought iron archway (attached to the back) peaking over the top from the front of the tin.

On the back cover, I started with the chipboard wrought iron archway and added more of the leafy corners, paper flowers, and birds from the Birds, Bees & Butterflies collage sheet, which is also where you’ll find the urn and the paper bee.  The gold dragonfly and bee are from my stash.

The final step is to attach the brass box feet, which makes the piece more interesting and heightens.

SUPPLIES

Click here to jump to the supply list at Alpha Stamps

If you are interested in seeing another example of an Altoids tin book, click here.

Woodland Tea Party

Deep in the forest, a tea party is set to begin under a moss-draped tree.  Looks like the fairies have created a sumptuous feast for the woodland creatures.

I see the squirrels are already munching on a bowl of berries.

The birds are enjoying the sun sitting on the roofs and ledges of their houses.

Vine chairs make comfortable seats for owls.  At the bottom, you see a rabbit from the Into the Woods collage sheet.

A 3-D tree made from a kit anchors the scene with fiber moss hanging from the branches.

Even the smallest of creatures, a snail, is joining in on the party.

This happy scene is built into a box with handles that serve as a tray, making it easy to lift and reposition.

MAKING THE BASE

The base is made from an easy-to-assemble Cottage Base kit which I flipped to make a tray.  

I started by painting the inside of the tray green (anywhere you think it may show) and papering the outside of the base.

I then cut a piece of Styrofoam to fit the inside of the tray.  They are also painted green.  The Styrofoam gives me something to insert the embellishments into.

To jazz up the outside of the tray, I added pieces of chipboard ivy border painted two colors of green and door pulls to serve as handles.

THE TREE

The 3D Tree kit consists of 2 pieces.  The pieces slip one into the other.  I added glue to the slits before combining the pieces and then wiped away the excess glue with a damp cloth.  This kit comes in three sizes.  I used the largest (8") for this project. The tree is one of my favorite parts of the project and a special request of mine to Alpha Stamps.  I can see using this in many future projects.

To add fullness to the tree, I used a second kit in which I cut each of the pieces in half, giving me 4 additional pieces.  I glued the cut pieces into each intersection of the main tree, which gives you a full-looking tree.

Then, I painted the tree two colors of green and attached the leaves, which I punched from paper.  There is nothing special about the order of assembling first and then painting.  You could choose to paint first and then assemble.  If you are going for a winter or spooky look, leave off the leaves.

The last step was to drape various colored fibers over the branches.  I soaked the fibers in water first to straighten them out, laid them flat to dry, and then draped them over the branches.  Before mounting the tree in the scene, I added wood blocks to the Styrofoam and then glued the tree to the blocks.  This was to give the tree more height and make it look like it was on a small hill.  The tree's base and the wood are covered with sheet moss and pebbles.

THE TABLE AND PARTY GOODIES

The base of the table is made from branches cut from a tree in my yard.  Of course, I had to pick a tree with what seemed to be the hardest wood.  It’s an Ironwood tree, so I guess its name is accurate. 

The lengths of the pieces don’t have to be exact, as I covered the top with sheet moss.

On top of the table, I added some fall oak leaves for contrast.  The main item on the table is the scrumptious cake.  The layers of the cake are made from a wood miniature cake kit.  I used pieces from 2 of the kits.  I painted the cake red and drizzled white paint over the cake to serve as icing.  I cut out a larger circle of chipboard (painted brown) to serve as the plate.  Around the edges of the cake are lavender berries, kiwis cut from polymer clay, beads serving as berries, and leaves from the rose garland I used in other parts of the scene.  At the top are roses from the garland and a butterfly.

Berries and apples are sitting in bowls made from acorn caps.  You can see a little hedgehog waiting to dig in.

The teacup is made from a tulip bead.  The handle is the stem cut from one of the mushrooms in the scene.  The teapot is made from a tulip bead cap with acorn caps as the base and top.  The handle is made from three stems twisted together.  On the table sits a fairy from the Vintage Postcards Fairies collage sheet, which is the source of all of the fairies in the piece.

BIRDHOUSES AND CHAIRS

The birdhouses are from chipboard kits that are easy to assemble.  I assembled them first and added the paint, moss on the roofs, and leafy chipboard pieces as decoration.  Small twigs from my yard served as ledges.  The wood the houses sit on is again from the Ironwood tree.

MY COLLAGE SHEETS USED IN THIS PROJECT

Into the Woods Collage Sheet

Butterflies and Moths Collage Sheet

or

Butterflies and Moths Digital Image Set

It’s All About BEEs – Domino Books, Accordion Book Box & Coasters – Tutorials & New Collage Sheets & Giveaway

Let’s hear it for the fuzzy buzzing bees that make our lives so sweet!  I love everything about bees.  I’ve used the tiny busy creatures as inspiration for four projects and two new collage sheets. 

The projects include two different domino books; which I’m giving away (details below), an accordion folded book in a box and a set of coasters.  I’m thinking any of these projects would make great gifts.

NEW – Bee Themed Collage Sheets

Bees Collage Sheet

Colorful bee themed medallions and faux postage fill this sheet.  The medallions make great labels for bottles, jar lids and on coasters. The faux postage can be used as ephemera on your artwork or to jazz up envelopes.

Birds & Bees Collage Sheet

This sheet is loaded with bird and bee themed art.  Included are 12 small panels are sized to fit on a 1” x 2” domino and a long panel that can be accordion folded to fit inside two 1” x 2” dominoes like a book.  There are also ATC sized collaged images and extra birds and flowers.

TUTORIALS

Accordion Fold Domino Book

I started by painting the domino's front, sides and edges of the backs with a combination of Patina Paints.

Next, I glued a panel from the collage sheet onto what will become the back of the book and glued a strip of Dresden around the edges of each domino.

Using E6000, I attached the brass leaves to the bottoms of the dominoes to serve as feet.

To the backsides of each domino, I attached ribbon which is used to tie the book closed.  Don’t worry if you see the glue seeping through the ribbon as it will be covered with the accordion folded pages.

On the front domino I collaged images from the collage sheet (flowers & bird), various brass leaves, paper roses and a bee.

The long panel on the collage sheet measures 1 7/8” x 7” which is slightly shorter than a standard 2” tall domino and long enough to create an accordion folded strip with 8 panels.  If you are not using the image from the collage sheet for your book just be sure that when you fold your strip you end up with an even number of panels (to facilitate attaching it to the domino covers).

Mark and score along the panel every 7/8” and accordion fold the panel.  

Ink the edges and the back of the panel.  I used Vintage Photo Distress Stain.  Cut 8 panels from decorative paper and glue to the back.  I cut my panels 1 5/8” x 6/8”.  You could also use the small panels on the collage sheet but you would need to reduce them first.

The final touch to decorate the back is the addition of some of the faux postage from the collage sheet.

The last step is to glue the end panels to the inside of the dominoes and you are finished!

Hinged Domino Book

To Bee or Not to Bee…Queen (always a tough decision)

This type of domino book is much simpler to put together as it consists of simply hinging two decorated dominoes.

Start by coloring your dominoes on all of the surfaces that will remain exposed after embellishing.  I used Onyx Patina to paint mine.  I used panels from the collage sheet to cover the backs and fronts of both dominoes and glued Dresden around the edges. 

Dresden Note: In the case of a hinged domino book use sturdy glue like E6000 to attach the Dresden so that when you attach the hinges to the sides (onto the Dresden) the Dresden won’t pull away from the dominoes when you open the book.

I also added the crown (with jewels) and the bee banner from the collage sheet.

Once I had finished decorating each of the dominoes, I glued two small hinges to the sides of the dominoes (using E6000).  In the hinge holes I glued small brass beads.  Make sure you let the glue dry completely before trying to open the book.

The final touch are handles (glued in place with E6000), which are made from bead caps, eye pins and Victorian drops.

Accordion Fold Book in a Box

The idea with this project is to use the box as the covers for an accordion folded book.  When you lift the cover off of the box it opens the book.  The book is attached at one end to the inside lid of the box and at the other end to the inside bottom of the box.  The box I used measures 3" square.

Start by assembling the box.

Next, I inked all of the edges inside and out.  Tip: to get in the box crevices use alcohol ink and a brush.  I have brushes dedicated to using the ink as once they are use with ink you can’t use them with other products.  I used a combination of Vintage Photo Distress ink and Caramel alcohol ink.

I applied decorative paper to all of the surfaces, inside and out.  Be sure to glue the paper down securely so that when you open and close the box it does damage or lift the paper.  Don’t use thick paper or card stock as the lid won’t fit back on the box.

I used Distress Ink and a honeycomb and bee stencil to decorate the sides. 

MASONITE BEES

For an additional decorative touch I used Masonite bees.

I started by painting the bees with Ocher Patina paint.  I didn't completely cover up the brown of the Masonite but tapped the paint on with a brush.

Next, while wearing a rubber glove, I used my finger to lightly brush on Espresso Alcohol Ink.

For a final touch I used Onyx Patina paint to paint black stripes.

To make the book, cut strips of decorative paper 2 7/8” tall and as wide as the paper.  Cut as many strips as you like based on how many panels you want in the book.  The only restriction to the number of strips is the size of the box and you must have an even number of panels to facilitate gluing the book to the box.  I suggest using 12x12 paper as the strips will be longer and you will have to cut and glue fewer together.

Score and fold the paper strips every 2 7/8".  You should end up with a short piece at the end of each strip which will be used to connect the strips together.  For the sample piece, I cut 4 strips.

Connect the strips together.  Cut away any short sections that you didn’t use to connect the strips.  I decided to go with 14 panels.  Notice the direction of the folds and how the end pieces lay flat on the surface (this means the book is folded in the right direction.  Decorate the pages.  Be mindful of the bulk of the book to make sure it will fit in the box.  In addition to using images from the collage sheets I also used bee poems.

Glue one end of the book to the inside bottom of the box and the other end to the inside lid of the box.

Lastly, I added a stained wooden knob to the top of the box.

Coasters

After creating the Bee collage sheets with the round medallions, I was thinking that they would be perfect for coasters (I need a new set of coasters).  I think they would also make a great gift.

To make each coaster I cut 3 pieces of heavy chipboard 3 ½” square.  I glued the 3 pieces of chipboard together to form one coaster.

I sanded the edges to make sure they were even and that there were no loose bits.  Next, I applied a product called Texture Magic to the edges so that you could not tell that there were 3 pieces layered together.  I used this product because it was handy but you could use anything that you might have like Gesso, wood filler, embossing paste etc.; anything that hides the layers.

I lightly sanded the edges one more time to make sure they were smooth.

Next, I used Vintage Photo Stain to color the edges (you could also paint them).  Depending on the product you used to cover the edges, you may or may not be able to stain them.  I glued decorative paper to each side and then the medallions from my Bees collage sheet.  I sealed the coaster by painting it with multiple layers of Mod Podge.