It's thyme for Halloween My Pretties!

Who needs

 a 

COSTUME 

if you have 

 "The HAT"

Today my pretties I am going to show you how to have the 

most

SPOOKtacular 

Witch Hat Box

for

HALLOWEEEN

 "A girl should be two things. Fabulous and Classy " ~ Coco Chanel

Park your BROOMS ......and

Lets head inside the STUDIO!

Welcome to my studio My Pretties!

Grab a hat, some brushes and paint and lets get started!

My Palette

DecoArt Americana Acrylics

Lamp Black

First base coat your hat with Lamp Black. 

I mix some Multi Purpose Sealer 1:1 with my paint for better coverage.

I always keep a supply of grunged tags on hand.

If you don't have a recipe to do this you can use mine.....My Pretty!

Click on the link for the RECIPE

HERE

I printed out on a piece of paper the words

" Custom outfits for your next Covern Meeting"

I tore around the edges of my printed sheets of paper.

***** Or use your imagination......you can have your tag say anything! *****

Another idea!

Next I used a brush to spread DecoArt Decoupage onto the back of the sayings I had printed out.

I then smoothed the sayings on my grungy tags.

Let them dry well!

This next step is very important so your tags don't smear.

Spray them with Krylon Workable Fixative!

Once the fixative has dried completely brush the tops of your tags with DecoArt  Decopage.

Let dry completely......again!

You know what My Pretties???? 

So lets add some!

I brushed on ORANGE DecoArt Craft Twinkles

Let Dry!

Then I brushed on some Gold DecoArt Craft Twinkles

Eeeek! My Pretties!

Let's add some flowers and BLING!

Next I painted the outside of a paper mache box with a 1:1 ratio 

of 

Lamp Black and Multi Purpose Sealer

Mix well with your palette knife

I painted the inside of the box and cover with DecoArt Bronze Dazzling Metallic

Let the inside of the box and cover dry completely!

I then painted over the Orange Dazzling Mettalic with DecoArt Orange Craft Twinkles

I printed out the word HAT BOX on my computer.

Spray it with Krylon Fixative to set the lettering!

Spread glue on the back then center it on your box and smooth it out.

I then attached some brads to the four corners of the hat box sign.

( you can usually find the brads in the scrapbook section of your craft store.)

I used my Traditions Dome Blender to dry brush the sign to age it.

I then lightly brushed on some Orange Craft Twinkles here and there on the sign.

Did I tell you how much I like GLITTER?

AND

I LIKE BLING!

I found these sheets of  "jewels" at Michaels.

I glued the "jewels" all around the rim of the box.

I tore 2 coordinating strips of fabric about 5" wide.

The length would depend on the size of your hat and how big a bow you want.

I drilled 2 small holes in the center of the hat one on top of the other.

I folded each of my strips of fabric in 1/2.  

Keep the frayed edges of the fabric facing UP.

Cinch the fabric in the center with your fingers, 

then

take a small piece of wire

 and 

thread it thru the holes you drilled gathering up the fabric. 

Twist the wire tightly on the inside of the hat to hold your fabric in place.

Now take the ends of the fabric and tie a bow in the back of your hat

I found the larger "jewel" at Michaels as well. It just so happened that the smaller "jewels " fit perfectly inside. I put one inside the other and glued them together.

I glued the "jewel" to the center front of the hat to hide the wire.

Next I glued the HAT to the TOP of the box. 

Let that set completely before proceeding to the next step!

I added some black silk flowers, black feathers and some glittered balls to the side of the hat. Tuck them behind the fabric sash and glue in place.

Tie on your tag!!

Eeeeek it is so BOO-ti-ful!

View of the back.

Side view

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial to make a witch hat box.

This project was inspired by Deb Antonick. 

Have fun making your own "Hat Box" and personalizing it with your own "style!"

DecoArt provided me with the paints to complete this project as part of their 

Helping Artist and Blogger Outreach Programs!

Thank you DecoArt!

Happy Painting 

My Pretties!

Lynn

Eeek! My Pretties! Todays lesson is a BEGINNERS Guide to Spells & Curses

Today

 My Pretties 

I am going to show you how

 to 

CURSE 

someone !!!!!

Eeeeek!

I know you have 

ALL 

wanted to do that to someone

 at 

one thyme or another!

Today 

I am going to show you how to make 

your very own 

SPELL BOOK!

Please find a place to park your BROOM !

Now let's head into the STUDIO !!!

I see my shipment of Spell Books has arrived!

You can order these online at Michaels or find them in your local craft store.

They are paper mache.

I used DecoArt Acrylic Paints 

for my books

My Palette

Antique Green, Burnt Sienna, Antique Gold

I first base coated my books

 using

Antique Gold.

I let that dry then applied a second coat using a different color. 

I used Antique Green on some of my books 

and 

Burnt Sienna 

on others

 I actually did not paint this on evenly or neatly. 

I wanted the books to have an old distressed look.

You can leave some of the

Antique Gold 

showing through as you paint on your second coat.

After the second base coat had dried 

I brushed on a thick coat 

of

DecoArt Gel Stain

Apply the stain only to the TOP of the book for now!

Take lint free small cotton rag and scrunch it up.

Quickly press and lift your rag over the top of the book. 

Turn rag frequently for a clean area.

You should have a mottled sort of look.

Let dry!

Repeat the same process on the BACK of the book and then the SPINE of the book.

Remember to press and lift the rag across the surface rather than wipe the stain off!

You can speed the drying process by using a blow dryer.

Once your stain is completely dry use a sanding block on the corners to give them a worn look.

I had purchased some of the digital images I used for this project quite awhile ago on Etsy.

You can also search Pinterest

 or

 look for FREE digital images on the Internet.

You can even design your own !

Just have fun with it and add your own flair!

I printed my images out on a good quality linen colored computer paper.

I used a paper cutter to cut the images to the sizes I wanted.

This 

NEXT STEP 

is 

VERY IMPORTANT !!!!!!

****** Spray all your images with Krylon Workable Fixative ******

I spray my images so that they are WET!

Let your images dry completely!

The 

FIXATIVE 

prevents your computer ink from smearing.

 This is important for when we move on to the next step which is decoupaging!

DecoArt Decoupage

I began by using a sponge brush to apply the Decoupage to the BACKS of my images.

I worked on applying ONE IMAGE at a time!

Once you have applied the Decoupage to the back of your image smooth it in place on your book.

**HINT**

You can use the side of an old credit card to further smooth out any air pockets

Now apply Decoupage to the TOP surface of your image.

I made several of these books!

Let your images dry completely before proceeding to the next step!

I used my Traditions Dome Blender Brush and  dry brushed around the edges of my images.

I first dry brushed around the edges using the Gel Stain.

You can wipe off any excess.

On some books I then dry brushed over the Gel Stain with some Lamp Black paint.

On other books I dry brushed over the Gel Stain with Splendid Gold Dazzling Metallics.

Be Creative!

That is what will make your book unique!

I used the same technique to apply the images to the spine of the books.

I painted the stripes 

with

Splendid Gold Dazzling Metallics.

I painted the inside of my book with a 1:1 mix of Lamp Black 

and 

DecoArt Multi Purpose Sealer

I painted over the Lamp Black on the insides of my box with

DecoArt Craft Twinkles

The craft Twinkles come in a variety of colors and are really fun to work with!

I then decoupaged another image inside the cover of my book.

I painted the "pages" with 2 coats of Antique White

After I had all the "pages" painted I thinned some Lamp Black paint

I used a Wisp Brush or a Rake Brush will do to paint the "individual pages"

Close up of the "pages"

Let the Lamp Black dry completely!

I then painted over the "pages" with a thinned coat 

of

  Splendid Gold Dazzling Metallics .

I varnished my books with several coats of 

DecoArt Ultra Matte Varnish

I also added some Gold Craft Twinkles to the finished covers of my books!

You can fill treat bags and put inside your books for Halloween!

You can use your books to create a SPOOKtacular display for your home!

"Beware of all those who read the secrets that lie within ! "

DecoArt provided me with the paints to complete this project as part of their 

Helping Artist and Blogger Outreach Programs.

Thank you DecoArt and Rosemary Reynolds!

Eeeek! My Pretties! 

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial on how you can create your own 

Spell Books!

*****Remember*****

Happy Painting !

Lynn