September Art With Heart Challenge: Favorite Fall Things

After a blazing hot weekend around here (fall????) it has finally cooled down. Bring on the true fall weather! I love the changing leaf colors and a nip in the air (at least as nippy as it gets around here in the San Francisco Bay Area). You still have a week to play along with Eileen's September Art With Heart Challenge. The theme is Favorite Fall Things and we want to see your projects.

For my project, I took some artistic liberties with Eileen's Canister Die and used it in an atypical way. Don't be afraid use parts of or totally alter your diecuts. The intended use can be merely a starting point! I love that Eileen's dies are so versatile. I made my canister into a fall themed votive candle screen!

The leaves are translucent so the candlelight glows through:

Use battery operated votives!!

Let's get started on how to construct this:

Step 1 – Cut two sides and two bottoms out of scoreboard matboard (you won't need the lids for this project). Completely trim off two tabs on each bottom piece and about a sixteenth of an inch from the other tabs. Also trim off the side tabs from the panels. (All these parts are marked with an 'X' in the photo.)

I also went ahead and cut out my windows using a sharp X-Acto knife and ruler.

Step 2 – Crackle Paint! I folded my panels on the score lines and then applied a coat of Decoart Media Crackle Paint. When it was dry, I glued everything together. You could probably assemble it before applying the Crackle Paint – your choice. Where the panels meet in the center I made tabs of cardstock and glued them to the back so the edges would stay flush.

I then applied several layers and washes of Decoart Media Fluid Acrylics to bring out the crackle texture. I added final highlights using Titanium White because I wanted the frame to contrast with the fall-hued leaves that I was going to attach to it.

Step 3 – Using an even layer of Glue n Seal, I glued white coffee filters onto pieces of Clearly For Art Modeling Film. Coffee filters are great because they are sturdier than tissue paper but are still translucent looking and accept mists and inks well. When dry, I trimmed the excess filter paper off and used Distress inks to create vibrant leaf colors. I stamped the leaves with archival ink (Potting Soil) and then carefully cut them out of the plastic.

Step 4 – This is a really fun part. The wonderful thing about Clearly For Art is that when you heat it, it becomes pliable and then stays in the shape you mold it to when it cools.  (This has all sorts of possibilities!) I formed the leaves into natural looking shapes.

Step 5 – I used a strong quick grabbing glue (Api's Crafters Pick The Ultimate!) to attach the leaves to the frame. I did a few at a time and let it set up a bit before adding more leaves. The modeling film can be reheated and reshaped so I could tweak the curves of the leaves as needed to get them to fit right. (sorry no photo, I was too busy gluing!)

Please be sure to take a look at my team members' inspiring projects on Eileen's blog. There is some serious eye candy over there! The challenge post is here, link up your fall project to have a chance to win Eileen's Trailer die! You have a week so get crackin' and right now there is only ONE entry. Where is everybody?

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you've had a chance to exercise your own creativity lately. The supplies I used for this project can be found at Sizzix, Inspiration Emporium or Amazon. Follow the links below and use my code JUICE at Inspiration Emporium to save 10% if you go shopping there. I will also point out that US shipping is always $5 and international shipping is just $10 at IE. ;-)

Sizzix ScoreBoards XL Die - Canister	Tim Holtz Collection - Fall Leaves	Wendy Vecchi - Clearly for Art, clear	Sizzix Little Sizzles - 6" x 13" Mat Board Pack	Tim Holtz - Distress Ink Pads - Barn Door	Tim Holtz - Distress Ink Pads - Festive Berries
Tim Holtz - Distress Ink Pads - Squeezed Lemonade	Tim Holtz - Distress Ink Pads - Mustard Seed	Tim Holtz - Distress Ink Pads - Ripe Persimmon	Tim Holtz - Distress Ink Pads - Spiced Marmalade	Fossilized Amber	Archival Ink Pad Designer Series: Wendy Vecchi - Potting Soil
Inkssentials Glue N' Seal - 1 oz. Matte	Deco Art Media Crackle Paint, 4-Ounce, White	Deco Art Media Fluid Acrylic Paint, 1-Ounce, Titan Buff	Deco Art Media Fluid Acrylic Paint, 1-Ounce, Titanium White	Deco Art Media Fluid Acrylic Paint, 1-Ounce, Transparent Yellow Iron Oxide	Deco Art Media Fluid Acrylic Paint, 1-Ounce, Diarylide Yellow
Deco Art Media Fluid Acrylic Paint, 1-Ounce, Transparent Red Iron Oxide	Crafter's Pick "The Ultimate" glue

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