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Happy Anniversary

Friday, July 23rd, 2010 by Alyice

On August 4th, my husband and I will be married for 20 years. Our marriage has withstood the death of a child, the death of a parent, five state-to-state moves, 2 job lay-offs, the loss of our retirement savings, financial strife, friendship strife, the start up of a business, the decline of a business, and the usual ups and downs of living with another person. And through it all, we have remained best friends, lovers, and soul mates.

I have always dreamed of renewing my vows in Hawaii, dressed in Hawaiian ceremonial clothing, with my son as the best man and my daughter as the maid of honor. Unfortunately, with the economy in the state of affairs that it’s in, that is not going to happen. So we’ll be doing something close to home, instead.

To help jumpstart the festivities, I repurposed this cute Bride and Groom wedding glass set from Consumer Crafts.

I received a complimentary set of the wine glasses to help illustrate how easy it is to frost the glasses using etching cream. (See my tutorial on the Crafts Unleashed blog in August. I show you how to use etching cream to create a “frost” look on the glasses. So adorable and simple to do!)

Though I loved the outcome and may want to frost some actual drinking glasses, I realized that as drinking glasses these wine glasses would only come out once a year.

You see, we don’t drink wine. The closest bubbly we partake in is Sparkling Grape Juice—and that’s only on special occasions. And though that would’ve been a nice substitute, I decided to create an ambience for the evening with the wine glasses, instead.

One glass will hold a few yellow roses. The roses hold a very special meaning to both of us—a meaning that brings both tears and joy. (I know the picture shows a different yellow flower. I needed a prop since the roses will be bought fresh closer to “our” date and the single fake rose I have just didn’t look good.)

And the other glass will hold a flickering, battery-operated candle to symbolize the flickering heartbeat that accompanies first love’s contact.

The clock is attached to symbolize the lifetime we’ve spent together—the beginning of a new life, the hope of eternity, the end of one era and the beginning of another, and the simple act of living in the moment with the one you’ve promised to share your life with.

Can’t you just see these glasses decorated with a newly married couple’s wedding flowers and left over fabric from the bride’s dress?

They could even tint the wine glasses, using the colors of the wedding. (Food coloring and Mod Podge baby! That’s all it takes to change the color of these glasses.)

Don’t be afraid of repurposing…

Posted in Artist's Life | 2 Comments »

Stained Glass Folk Art Jar

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010 by Alyice

When I was a little girl, my aunt-in-law, Becky, created beautiful stained glass ornaments. Once, she even took me to see where she worked. It was a small shop in the back of her boss’ home. There I watched her cut the glass, design her piece, then solder the glass pieces together. It was delicate work—and if I might say a little scary.

Image Copyright 2010, Alyice Edrich
Stained Glass Heart © Becky Tomren, 1978

Years later, when we purchased our own home, I wanted to create beautiful stained glass pieces in my own home. Unfortunately, I was still afraid of the glass cutting so I went to the hobby store and found “stained glass window paint”.

That evening, I created an abstract design on my kitchen window.

The next day, I looked at that window and the memories of the day I spent with my Aunt Becky came flooding back—good memories, indeed.

Last year, I bought some more window paint but instead of designing a window, I designed a blue and brown candle holder.

Then one day, as I was browsing the Internet, I read that food coloring can be mixed with Mod Podge to create a lovely stained glass look. And my brain began churning…

The one problem I had is that Mod Podge has a tendency to peel off glass, and so I tried to put the idea out of my head. Still, I couldn’t help but be intrigued with the idea so last night I decided to cave.

I pulled out my glossy Mod Podge, yellow food coloring, Fabric-Tac, paint brush, an old food jar, my hand painted paper, and some twine. And I came up with this simple yet stunning folk art-style jar.

It was so easy to create, too!

How To Create A Stained Glass Folk Art Jar

Clean the glass so that no fingerprints remain. Mix a few drops of food coloring into the Mod Podge, then paint strokes (from top to bottom) onto the jar. Let dry.

Next, cut out a heart from your scrapbooking paper (I used hand painted paper.) and cover the back with Mod Podge. Adhere the heart to the front of the jar, hold it into place with your fingers until it sticks nicely. Let dry.

Once dried, apply a top coat of clear Mod Podge to the heart. Let dry.

If you like streaks, you’re good to go.

I, however, wasn’t too fond of them so once dried, I dipped my brush back into the colored Mod Podge, then gently dabbed the Mod Podge over the entire jar and let it dry. (I just love the texture!)

But wouldn’t you know it, as I applied the Fabric-Tac to the top of the jar and began winding the twine, the Mod Podge began to lift and peel. It was so disheartening! (I heard there is an “Outdoor” Mod Podge, I am going to try that next.)

I stopped dead in my tracks, grabbed my DecoArt Triple-Thick Brush-On Glaze and a sponge paintbrush and dabbed it onto the jar. Once dried, I returned to wrapping the twine around the top.

Keep Creating

Posted in Art How-Tos, The Art Jars | 1 Comment »

Grab Bags 7 8 and 9

Monday, July 19th, 2010 by Alyice

I just got done packaging three more Mystery Art Grab Bags. Each time I create one of these grab bags, I can’t help but be reminded of the joy I had, as a young child, reaching into that grab bag bin and pulling out a treasure of goodies—all wrapped up in a brown paper sack.

Here are the next three miniature works of art up for grabs.

Home Sweet Home

I originally created this image for a “We’ve Moved” announcement which is sold on Zazzle. But the more I gazed upon the image the more I thought about those cross-stitched “Home Sweet Home” wall hangings of the 50s and thought, “I bet a little hand stitching on this image would be cute.” And you know what? I was right!

This grab bag comes with the “Home Sweet Home” hand embroidered (stitched) greeting card that is suitable for framing, a hand crocheted pot warmer, and two hand painted and hand cut paper ornaments.

Embroidered Flower

You may recall me teaching you how to create the image on this card here. It takes a couple of hours to stitch but the effect is so worth it!

This grab bag comes with the hand embroidered flower (which is placed onto a blank 5×7 greeting card using black foam risers), and two hand painted and hand cut paper ornaments: a bird and a star.

Salute To Soldiers

Most of my brothers-in-law have spent time serving our country, as have my biological father, my step-father, and my maternal grandfather. Even my husband joined the forces for a bit. So I have a lot of appreciation—and admiration—for soldiers and the sacrifices they make to keep me and mine safe and free.

This grab bag includes the soldier greeting card—which is a silhouette of my father-in-law on top of hand painted paper. The hat is pieced together from three pieces of cardstock, then painted and outlined. The text is a quote by Hans Christian Anderson and reads: “One must have freedom, and a little flower.”

The grab bag also includes a hand crocheted pot warmer and two hand painted and hand cut paper ornaments. (The bird’s eye is foggy, it’s not a blur.)

Buy A Mystery Art Grab Bag

To buy one of my grab bags, visit my shop page over at The Dabbling Mum by clicking here.

Get a little mystery in your life…

Posted in Grab Bag Project | Comments Off

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AlyiceEdrich.com
I'm a freelance writer, mixed media artist, SMVA, and the owner of The Dabbling Mum.

Copyrights

All material on this blog belongs to Alyice Edrich, unless otherwise noted. No project, artwork, or text may be reproduced or displayed elsewhere without the consent of the creator. That includes making derivative works for resale. Please use project tutorials for personal use and/or gifts only.