Melt It Challenge at A Vintage Journey Challenge Blog

Hi everyone xx Hope you are all well and keeping cosy if you live in a cold climate......for those of you in sunnier climes enjoy the weather x I just can't wait for Spring to arrive xx

Today I am sharing my project created for the lovely and talented Julia Alston's challenge theme for A Vintage Journey blog, which is 'Melt It'. Here are the challenge details as described by Julia:

"This month we're asking everyone to MELT IT! Get out the UTEE (ultra thick embossing enamel), beeswax, encaustic wax, embossing powders or good old wax crayons and a heat tool and get melting to create something in a vintage; shabby; mixed media; art journalling; industrial, timeworn or steampunk style!"

Our sponsor this month is COUNTRY VIEW CRAFTS, who are giving our randomly chosen winner a £20 gift voucher to spend at their online store.....so definitely worth entering!! We, the Creative Guides, ( DT) choose three Pinworthy projects  who will receive a Pinworthy badge to display on your blog.

I had such fun with this challenge theme and decided to play with Shrink Plastic as well as my Melt Pot, which had not seen the light of day for a few years !! 

First of all a Bee Crafty MDF Art Board was covered in gesso then painted with Raw Umber by Decoart. Once dry Decoart Weathered Wood Crackle Medium was randomly applied  to the substrate as I only wanted a few areas of crackle. Once the crackle medium was dry the Art Board  was painted with Decoart Chalk Paint in Lace. My wood mounted Egyptian Stamps, which I have had for over 20 years, were used to stamp the background in  Sepia and Forget Me Not Archival Ink. Once satisfied with the stamping, which was not perfect as I was attempting to create an aged feel to my project, Vintage Photo DI was applied, creating some depth to the cracked areas.

It took me ages to find my shrink plastic, carefully hidden amongst other treasures in my stash. Once again Egyptian stamps were inked with Archival Ink in Black then  once stamped were roughly cut out to create a variegated edge. When my heat tool reduced the image size  Vintage Photo Distress Ink was applied. 

A torn piece of 300gsm card was covered in Ranger Perfect Medium, enabling the UTEE to stick to it.  My heat tool was then applied to the embossing powder on 4 occasions before stamping in to the medium whilst still warm. (nb The Egyptians stamps were also covered in the Perfect Medium before applying to the UTEE as it prevented the step from sticking) TIP - if you are not happy with the stamped image then you can just heat it up again and stamp until you are satisfied with the outcome.

Jet Black Archival Ink was applied to another of the stamps and I was pleased to see that it adhered very well on the enamelled surface. 

Then it was time to play with my Melt Pot and more UTEE powder in Gold. ( I also placed some UTEE Flex in with the powder as it makes the molten powder more flexible when it hardens...not sure if it has been discontinued but it is really beneficial, especially when trimming stamped areas with scissors or a craft knife)

First technique was to pour the molten powder in to a silicone pyramid mold. 

The second technique was to pour the molten powder on to my craft sheet and then stamp in to it with a Nefertiti stamp, which again had Perfect Medium applied to prevent it from sticking. 

Tim Holtz Idea-ology Print Books, which were a gift from my lovely blog friend, Redanne, were used to finish this piece and using my fingers I applied a coat of Decoart metallic Paint in Ice Blue, the edge of the Art Board was also given a coat of this stunning colour, which really pops against the background colours. (I have decided I must use more of my Tim Holtz gifts/stash in projects this year)

Please take  GREAT care when using a Melt Pot as the liquid is very very hot and you should always use both hands when pouring. 

For more inspiration by fellow Creative Guides Please click HERE, which will take you to the AVJ blog.

Have Fun & Happy Crafting xx