Frida Boxes and Fur Baby

Our little grand pup is growing quickly!

Gus loves this little patch of grass we

have in the backyard for our tortoise. 

It's the softest and coolest place to lay.

No wonder he gravitates there

every time he visits. 

Our son-in-law is in the middle

of a 2 month long chemo treatment. 

Every opportunity to help the kids out

during this tough season of life is a blessing. 

This is one of my two Frida 

shadow boxes. 

The yellow background on this

one is an easy way to tell the two apart. 

(Just a little side note, there's a glare

in this picture that isn't in the actual piece.

These are hard pieces to get good pictures.)

This one has loteria cards

on the side. 

 This is the second one. 

It's sides are painted with gems added here and there. 

I've left a spot in front of each to

place some tea light flameless candles. 

It'll help to light up the inside. 

Personally, I don't think pictures

do them justice. 

I love the way they look in person if

I do say so myself. 

Hoping you're having a wonderful 

week and all is well with your soul! 

Terri 

Shrine Embellishing

Remember this shrine from

way back when? 

In case you missed it

and are so inclined, 

you'll find the related post here.

It's just been sitting around 

on a shelf waiting 

for some zhooshing up.

I got out my bead box,

assorted assemblage items,

and went to work (or play, as I'd rather say). 

I used a PVA glue instead

of a glue gun, or the stinky

kind of glue that'll literally 

glue your (I should say,

 'my') fingers together. 

It takes a little longer to dry,

but I think in the long run

it'll create a more durable hold

and my fingers will remain separated. 

Thank you for stopping by.

Hoping you have a fabulously creative week! 

Terri

Hearts, Flowers, and Cross Shrine

This was such a fun project to make.

Just looking at the picture inspires

me to want to make more of them. 

(In case you missed my other shrine posts

you may see them here and here.)

Everything was handmade from the

paper mache shrine box, to the 2 kinds 

of clay that I used. 

One was cold porcelain clay,

and the other one had a flour and glue base. 

For the candle wicks I

stripped a twist tie of it's paper

and used that to suspend the flames.

The cross, leaves, flowers, and candles

are made from the cold porcelain clay. 

The top center heart was made from the 

flour and glue based clay.

It was a little harder to shape

into specific designs, but it was

good for building up dimension. 

I also used some puff paint to add

some texture. It worked great. I was

a little unsure because I think it's mainly

used for fabrics. 

Now here's a behind the scenes

look at what usually goes

on when I'm trying to take a picture

of my work outside. 

"Maybelline! Move your head!"

She's always at the ready

to lend a helping hand paw. 

She loves being the center

of attention, so I thought

I'd give her that honor today. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Terri

Love Shrine

 From the time I was very

young, I've loved dioramas. 

These three dimensional vignettes 

often capture a snapshot of life

which tends to spark my imagination.

I guess that's why I'm drawn to

Mexican nichos and shrine boxes. 

The one I'll share with you today

conveys a simple message. . Love. 

I started out with some nice sturdy

boxes for the base and designed

frames out of cardboard. 

More cardboard cutouts were added

to enhance the dimension. 

I then made cold porcelain clay roses. 

Cold porcelain clay was fun to 

work with, but I learned a few important things. 

First of all, don't use a good pot. 

Had I've known my pot would be ruined,

I would've bought a cheap one at the thrift store

to make the clay in. 

Next, when coloring the roses I used

markers instead of paint because it was

easier and less messy.

The problem with that is it completely

dries out the markers and then they're no good. 

Next time I'll put up with a little mess and use paint.  

After that, I covered my shrine boxes with paper mache, let

them dry, and then painted them with a base coat. 

I added some gems along with 

the roses and coated the frame with

a glitter mod podge for some extra sparkle. 

The "LOVE" letters are made

out of folded magazine pages. 

I thought it was so cute. 

I'd gone to Hobby Lobby after

Christmas and picked up a bunch of 

ornaments for a couple dollars each

with the intention of using them in my boxes. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Terri

Mini Bear & Blue Bird Diorama

I made this mini diorama

out of a tuna can and a cardboard frame

that I drew and cut out. 

The whole thing was covered with paper mache

and then painted before I added the little scene

in the center. 

I made some cold porcelain roses

and glued them on with E6000 for

a cute finishing touch. 

I discovered that coloring

cold porcelain clay with Sharpies

(as opposed to paint) is less messy,

but it dries them out completely.

I wouldn't do that again. 

A little mess to clean up is better

than having to toss my Sharpies. 

Because of the frame design,

it sits at just the right angle. 

I coated the whole thing

with a gloss gel prior to affixing the

inside scene. 

The only thing left

to do is sign it!

Thanks for stopping by. 

Terri