Recycled Halloween

Recycling items we already have or saving items from the trash can open up a whole new world of possibilities when it comes to creating.

For years I have always loved old frames. They are just so timeless. Whenever I head to a thrift store or rummage sale I go right for the frames. There are always so many of them left over, I usually take the whole lot of them and get a great price as well.

Last Spring I received a lot of 12 big wood frames w/o the glass for $2.00. Then 2 days after the sale there was Spring clean up week in my town. As I was walking I found a bunch of discarded frames waiting to head to the dumpster, so I rescued them. Now I had a bunch of open frames waiting to turn into some kind of art and this Fall they did.

A few weeks ago I mounted the open frames onto the wall and decided to create a Halloween scene in each of them using black paper owl cutouts from the dollar store. There are about 18 in a pack, just attach some scotch tape to the back of each owl cutout and attach inside the frames to create a scene.

This whole project cost about a $1.00 for the cutouts and the free frames from cleanup week. You could do this for any theme, holiday or family silhouettes. Fast and easy project with an artsy, vintage feel. Recycling is a great way to preserve our past and to bring discarded items back to life again.

Happy Recycled Halloween!
xoxo
Lisa

Piddlestixs Vol.7

Its finally ready. Piddlestixs vol.7 w/5 extra pages, now 45 pages. featuring so many great artists, and 2 pages of collage sheets. Now available in print. Follow the link below to purchase your own copy!
http://www.lulu.com/shop/lisa-kettell/piddlestixs-vol7/paperback/product-21837069.html
 To submit an article, project, story, artist spotlight, recipe or collage sheet to piddlestixs magazine, email: lisakettell@yahoo.com  Place Mag. Submission in the email header.

Piddlestixs Mag, ArtStixs and Faerie Zine come out 2-3 times a year. All publications are available as print or download. Please note there was no Spring or Summer edition for 2014 only Winter and Fall.

Enjoy!
xoxo
Lisa

Summer Memories Ornament

Every summer we embark on a multitude of adventures.  Exploring becomes a way of life either on a stroll to the park, hike in the mountains or a swim at the beach.

As an artist I always try to come up with unique ways to capture my adventure and preserve it. Back in June I was lucky to share an adventure to the Jersey Shore with my creative friend Marfi Bradford, who traveled to me from Arizona for some artful fun and exploring.

Everyday became a road trip to all parts of the Tri-State area.  One of those trips was to Asbury Park and Ocean Grove, NJ.  Both seashore towns located on the Jersey Coast.

While there I was collecting ephemera and found objects on the beach such as shells, drift wood, pebbles and sand.  When Marfi, My Mom and Myself returned we were all exploding with creativity, so we decided to start making art in the studio.  Marfi choose to work in a Halloween theme.  My mom created in a Victorian theme, while I wanted to capture the day at the shore.

My finished piece was created using some of the elements I found earlier at the shore. I called my piece: Queen of the Sea, a summer memories ornament which will preserve our memory of the day in Asbury Park and Ocean Grove.

Materials:
-Drift wood
-Shells, all sizes
-Beach pebbles
-Lettered wood beads or scrabble pieces
-Chipboard letter
-White paper or floral wire
-Vintage image
-German silver glass glitter
-Glue: hot glue sticks, paper glue stick, tacky glue
-Tools: hot glue gun, scissors
-Other: pearl stick pin, chenille stem, navy fine glitter, card stock, letter sticker

 

Directions:
1. Cut out vintage image from paper, adhere to card stock using paper glue stick, re-cut again. (This makes       the image more sturdy)
2. Hit glue the cut image to the center of a piece of drift wood or glue to the location of choice.
3. Begin layering shells and pebbles onto the drift wood.  Attach with hot glue.
4. Cover a chipboard letter with tacky glue and sprinkle with German glitter.  Then attach to the drift wood.
5. Thread a piece of paper wire with letter wood beads and hot glue each end to the drift wood.
6. Wrap a piece of chenille stem into a circle, attach to a stick pin, add a sticker and pearls. Insert into drift       wood.
7. Embellish vintage image with navy glitter and a crown shape made from a piece of chenille stem.
8. Write the date and location onto the back of the image.

Tips:
-Create a tag.  Write the date, location, who you were with and a brief description onto the tag and attach to   the ornament.
-Use a photo of the day instead of the vintage image.
-Use a large shell as the base instead of the drift wood.

The possibilities are endless on what you can create out of your summer findings.
Thanks for visiting.

xoxo
Lisa

Spring Birds Canvas Project

Spring Birds Canvas Project by LK Designs DT Member Marfi Bradford

In Marfi's Words:

 

Yesterday I sat out in the tiny "backyard"of my gypsy wagon and

created a little project using some of

my awesome Lisa Kettell products.

It's simple and it's a little tribute

 to this beautiful season.

Supplies

unfinished china doll head  

6x6 canvas

paper mache bird box

hot glue gun/glue sticks

acrylic paints: black, navy blue, medium blue, dark pink, light pink, orange, peach

oil pastels:dark brown, green, light pink, fuchsia, peach

red lace trim

Directions

1. Paint canvas dark blue

add a bit of light blue for interest.

using the oil pastels, draw branches and flowers

2. Paint china doll head peach, add facial details and hair color

cut the top part of the bird off

paint dark pink, orange and light pink.

3. Hot glue china doll head to bird body

add lace trim

hot glue to the canvas

paint feet on with light pink paint.

4. There's a lot of different things that can be done

with this one...

she could be a raven for Halloween, or a dove for Easter

her body can be covered over in sheet music

or she can placed in a little cage...

there's endless possibilities1

I hope you try this out & have loads of fun.

Visit Lisa's blog and artfire shop 

for a happy inspired day:) 

 

For more fun projects, DT projects and creative magic, visit the amazing Marfi on her blog at:

 http://marfibradford.blogspot.com

Stay tuned for more Lisa Kettell DT Member Projects this week. Be on the look out first thing in the morning for the Secret Blog Post Event too.

xoxo

Lisa

Piddlestixs Vol. 6, A Sneak Peak Inside

The latest installment of Piddlestixs is now available. This newest installment is vol.6 and filled with wall to wall full color projects and articles. The theme of Piddlestixs for this installment was Halloween, Wonderland and Storybook. Many of the projects created had incorporated those themes.

Our top contributors for this were; Joan Kettell, Marfi Bradford, Deb Famularo, Amy Mayfield, Kim Smith and Myself. Besides these fabulous ladies, there were also projects and articles from other artisans as well.

After a year, it was time to get back to the editor screen and release another installment, I personally believe that this is the best one to date and has more pages then the others, including 2 collage sheets exclusively for the magazine.

Here's a sneak peak of the cover

Here's a sneak peak inside


I'm currently working on vol. 7 and vol. 8, if you have a project, DIY, article, recipe, collage sheet, or idea for the publication please email to:

lisakettell@yahoo.com
Write "Mag Submission" in the subject line.

On Monday I will be announcing a call for design team 2014, chosen designers will receive product before December 1, with main projects starting to post on/or before Jan.2014. If you are interested please email:
lisakettell@yahoo.com
Write "Design Team" in the subject line.

Starting December 1, Sports Cuff World is looking for product affiliates, for more information email:
lisakettell@yahoo.com
Write "Sports Cuff Affiliate" in the subject line

As you can see lots of exciting things are on the horizon and we at Lisa Kettell Designs want you to be apart of it.

To purchase the full color print edition or the ebook download edition please visit this link:
http://www.lulu.com/shop/lisa-kettell/piddlestixs-vol6/paperback/product-21246903.html

I hope you enjoy this installment and I look forward to your submissions,
xoxo
Lisa

Halloween Popcorn Box Hop

 
What does Halloween Time mean for you? To many, Halloween symbolizes so many things Magic, Witches, Wizards, Ghosts, Goblins, Jack'O'Lanterns, Pumpkin Pie, Costumes and Treats. Its that time of year where kids are adjusting to a new year at school, temperatures start to drop, sunlight is shortened, scenery is basked in the rich hues of amber, reds, yellows and hybrid violets, eggplants and black. Fall festivals, candy apples and themed carnivals get in their last hurrah for the year. We begin to make way to cozy nights indoors w/hot chocolate, cider, soups, buckets of movie popcorn, and holiday cheer. Every farm is celebrating with grandeur pumping out pumpkins, mums and stalks in a frenzy, corn mazes are waiting for you to explore and new adventures waiting to be started.

For me its all of the obvious, but it also allows me to celebrate my Grandmother's Birthday which is on Halloween, it's this time of year that my creativity begins to soar and allows the creations inside my secret world to come to life, this carnival inside my head begins to beam out all forms of creative magic for everyone to enjoy. When I was asked to join this blog hop, all my creative juices began to whirl, I saw the seer sucker red and white popcorn box and knew instantly what I was going to do.

Instead of pulling put the typical creatures and colors related w/Halloween to decorate my box, I decided on playing with its other themes; Carnival/Circus which I relate to the popcorn box, magic, adventure, back to school, ABC's, Storybook, the unusual, lanterns and lights. I pulled inspiration from my book, Altered Art Circus, Quarry Books and the essence of magic, the result is; "The Flight of the Giraffe", revolving around Lucy the Giraffe and her magical adventure.

Halloween time is the time of year where everything goes, magic comes to life and new adventures are being made. Now come set sail with Lucy and her friends for the adventure of a lifetime....

"Lucy Wistlebee is a ballerina giraffe from Maplewood, she is the niece of circus sensation Jeannie "the Giraffe" Bellows who toured the lands with the Carlisle Circus and other troupes, her fame enabled her to open the Bellows School of Dance where Lucy was also a student, where she learned tap, dance and ballet twice a week. During regular hours, Lucy was enrolled at the Lavendoor School of Magic, where she excelled in potion-ology, astronomy and carnival spells, quite often Lucy would get into some mischief with some of her classmates who formed the Willawig Club, designed to uncover secrets and hidden locations all around the school grounds and neighboring towns, Two years ago Lucy and her friends uncovered the forgotten Lionel Tunnels which connected the Savory Lighthouse to the edge of the school gate, once thought to just be school folklore.

This year Lucy was ready to compete in the Constance Bellamy Mid Summer Fair Competition, which she prepared for months. On Full Moon Eve, in the countryside of Peapack, the competition was held and Lucy won first place, what Lucy didn't know was she would embark on the adventure of her life when she meets Lionel Cromwell at the awards ceremy. Lionel Cromwell is a Professor of Carnival Magic Studies and the leading Wizard of Marble Magic which is a series of spells using the energy of marbles and orb wands, he is the leader of a secret underground society aimed at stopping bad magic and the descendent of Lionel Woodbridge who built the Lionel Tunnels.

Little does Lucy know that she possess a rare power and a marble which is the key to other portals which Becker Horricle wants to get his hands on, so that he can rule these portals and the world we live in. Lionel must stop Becker and protect Lucy, securing the rare Olibuate Marble and the 3 others which are found in the other portals. 

"You look stunning Lucy" boasted Abigail Dickles, who is Lucy's best friend and co-founder of the Willawig club. "Thanks so much Abigail, I feel like a super star after winning the competition" replied a happy Lucy, " You should" replied Abigail, the two began to walk to towards the big tent to find their friend Oliver. "Hey you guys, I'm over here", waved Oliver, soon the three where united, laughing and dancing with joy as Oliver won third place in the skelliwag competition, both were sharing a look at their awards, until the majestic sound of calliope music began piping loudly outside of the big tent.

The three walked outside the big tent to see where the music was coming from, as soon as they opened the curtain, they saw a glowing calliope flying machine with lights, rides and fun docked. "Wow that is amazing", "Oooh let's see if we can get closer" "Yes, let's" boasted the three, they started walking closer to the calliope flying machine and were soon greeted by Lionel Cromwell. "Aren't you Lionel Cromwell?" asked Lucy, "why yes I am", replied a cheerful Lionel, he then asked the kids if they wanted a tour of the flying vessel, they all agreed and hopped on board. Little did they know that one step onto the flying vessel, would begin the adventure of their lifetime.

Within minutes, Lionel lured the kids to a secret tent on the flying vessel and proceeded to tell them of Lucy's danger, the marble, Becker Horricle and what they must do to save her and the world, just then an explosion occurred lightening and thunder, lights out, weird mists, full moon hidden, he was here, Becker Horricle was here and on a mission to kidnap Lucy and take the marble.

"We must go now!" yelled Lionel, within seconds the flying vessel was under attack, Lionel and his crew hurried to get out of there to safety, soon they had escaped to another portal filled with sunshine, rainbows, golden landscapes and cherry cap trees, it was here that the lost world of Gnomes lived and Henrik Widdlebatt lived, the gnome wizard of Graspby, now they would be able to secure the second marble and gain help from Henrik...."
I hope you enjoyed a glimpse into Lucy's world of adventure and a preview of her story, now I'd like to introduce you to the Enormous Calliope Flying Vessel that they flew in. You can now make a replica of her vessel like I did right now with these simple directions and easy to find materials.

Materials:

• Popcorn box
• Paper cupcake cups
• Paper straws
• Paper lantern
• Sturdy gauge floral wire
• Small rubber or plastic animals
• Scrapbook paper
• Embellishments, Lisa Kettell Designs
• Buttons, Laura Kelly Designs
• Rit Dye, various colors
• Glues: hot glue, mod podge, plaid
• Tools; hot glue gun, scissors, hole puncher, XL zip lock bags,
• Other: scrapbook embellishments, white crepe paper, glitter, paint, bakery twine, Chipboard, wood block scrap

Company products I used: Laura Kelly Designs, Lisa Kettell Designs, Rit Dye, Plaid, Graphic 45, Crate Paper, Clearsnap, K & Co, Michael's.
Directions:

1. Open the popcorn box, insert a wood block to the inside bottom of the box, hot glue in place. Flip popcorn box over and hot glue a piece of chipboard to the outside bottom of the box. This will secure the box and give it some weight.
2. Punch a hole on 2 sides of the popcorn box, 1/2 inch from the top edge. Make sure each hole is punched across from each other. 
3. Thread a piece of floral wire through each punched popcorn box whole, thread a paper straw through each piece of wire, set aside. Now wrap a piece of floral wire around the lantern base. 
4. Now attach the lantern to the wired popcorn box by threading the ends of the popcorn box wire through a section of the wired lantern base, secure each side w/hot glue and a button, let hot glue cure.
5. Attach a paper cup cake liner to each side of the popcorn box.
6. Insert scrapbook paper to the inside of the main popcorn box.
7. Cut 3 yards of lightweight white paper floral wire, attach triangle shapes cut from scrapbook paper to the paper floral wire, leaving a small space in between, attach with hot glue. Set aside.
8. Pour about 1 Tablespoon of Rit dye in color of choice into an XLzip lock bag, followed by a 1/4 teaspoon water, insert white crepe paper, shake around until covered, pull out crepe paper w/plastic tongs, let dry on a disposable tin pan.
9. Decorate the rubber/plastic small animals using crepe paper, scrapbook paper, trims and embellishments. 
10. Begin to assemble your flying vessel with the wire banner, decorated animals, scrapbook embellishments, lettering, trims, buttons and carnival pieces.
11. Insert triple A or required battery to the lantern, hang or place in your favorite part of the house or studio. 

 
Tips/Tricks 

• Refer to my book Altered Art Circus for more fun ideas on decorating rubber/plastic toy animals
• Use collage images in place of the decorated animals such as Dresden scrap images and storybook images lined onto chipboard and cut out. Use my doll head embellishments from Lisa Kettell Designs to enhance them, I recommend the Bailey embellishment.
• Coat areas of your piece w/mod podge and sprinkle with glitter, shake off access.
• Make a triple sized lantern w/more popcorn boxes, or one XL popcorn bucket tub and attach three various sized lanterns. 
• Add Rit dye to mod podge for glaze coloring and coat your embellishments with it for a fun effect.
• Use colored streamer crepe paper if you don't have any Rit dye on hand. 
• Cut a plastic animal in 1/2 with metal cutting shears, small hand saw or hot knife, use caution when using these tools.

This is a great project to create with your children, or for a fun party, using any theme you like. Its a perfect re-invention project, recycled project and great for using project scraps over again. I re-use everything and recycle as much as I can. I hope that this project has inspired the creative magic inside of you.

I want to thank Laura Kelly for asking me to be apart of this fabulous blog hop and give a shout out to the Sponsors and Cre8Time for all they do to spark the creativity in all of us. Be sure to enter the raffle to win $100 from Disney!

Links:
www.laurakellydesigns.com
www.laurakellydesigns.com/laurakellydesignsblog
www.cre8time.org

And check out the rest of the wonderful blogs that are apart of this hop:

An InLinkz Link-up

xoxo
Lisa  

 

How To Apply Snaps!


As easy as it sounds, applying a set of snaps to a piece of ribbon, fabric or leather can be a task if you never did it before. Some packages give you instructions, while others do not.My first snap application went on backwards, lol, but after another run or two, I got the hang of it and yes it was easy, a snap.

Supplies
-Set of snaps
-Snap tool
-Brick or tile
-Hammer
-Hole puncher or Cropadile for leather
-Ribbon, fabric or leather of choice

Directions

 Step One: Punch hole at one end of the ribbon, about 1 inch in from the end

Step Two: Match up the snaps, see photo example below

Step Three: Place hollow side of the rubber snap tool onto a brick or tile, see photo below
(If you don't have a brick or tile, place on a concrete or patio floor)

Step Four: Insert the rounded snap piece into the hollow rubber snap tool, see photo below

Step Five: Place hole punched ribbon onto the snap, right side down, wrong side up ( the wrong side is the side of your material, that isn't the side that will show, basically its the underneath part of your ribbon.

Step Six: Place the adjoining snap on top of the ribbon, see photo below

Step Seven: Insert metal tool into the snap center, then hammer about 5 to 6 times, until the snap is connected. See photos below

Step Eight: Punch Hole at other end of the ribbon, see below


 Step Nine: Flip the rubber snap tool over to the indented side and insert the next snap

Step Ten: Flip the ribbon over so that the right side of your ribbon is showing, see below (this is the side where you will decorate over)

Step Eleven: Place the ribbon onto the snap

Step Twelve: Place the last snap onto the ribbon

Step Thirteen: Insert metal snap tool, hammer 5 to 6 times until connected

Step Forteen: Your snaps are attached


Tips/Tricks
-Look for fun snaps
-Double up a bracelet and use 2 sets of snaps for an edgy look
-Use curtain tie backs for bracelet bases

 Now you are ready to either embellish your piece or wear it! Hope this helps you to attach snaps in your next project.


xoxo
Lisa