Enchanted Picture Frame

You focus on the crystals, as if they are glittering stars dancing in the night. The crystals that are attached to the painted tree on the canvas sparkle to capture your attention. 

Looking closer, you notice the tree is dimensional and you wonder how it was created. The fine-crackled finish on the canvas makes it seem as if this frame has been passed down from generation to generation. The aged, embossed black metal peeking from behind the photograph also seems to hide the true age of the project. 

You wonder “Is it possible to make this frame? After all,” you think, “wouldn’t it be fun to play with those materials?” A smile creeps over your face as you realize the instructions from Carol Heppner follow below.
 

Materials:

Canvas Panel Base

• Aleene’s® Original Tacky Glue®
• Aluminum flashing, 5 by 7” (Alternative: silver scrapbook paper)
• Black Organdy ribbon, 1 ½ by 30”
• Canvas Panel, 5 by 7”
• Crystals, 5
• Crystal brooch
• Eyelets, 7
• ILovetoCreate.com™ Tulip® Glam-It-Up!™ Iron-On Crystals™
• ILovetoCreate.com™ Tulip® Puffy® Dimensional Fabric Paint, White, Clear
• Plaid® FolkArt® Medium - Eggshell Crackle Medium Set, ITEM#692
• Plaid® FolkArt® Artists Pigments™ - Raw Umber, Item # 485
• Plaid® FolkArt® Artists Pigments™ - Warm White, Item # 649
  
• Ranger Adirondack® Alcohol Inks Pitch Black TIM22138
• Ranger Adirondack® Dimensional Pearls, Eggplant ADA19336 and Lettuce ADA19428
• Ranger Tim Holtz™ Adirondack® Alcohol Blending Solution
• Ranger Tim Holtz™ Adirondack® Alcohol Ink Applicator
• White lace, 10 ½”

Collage Base

• Antique silver brads, 4
• Photograph, 2 ½ by 3 ½”
• Tan paper, 2 ¾ by 3 ¾”
• Fine-grit sandpaper
• Krylon™ Perserve It!™ Spray (Alternative: transparency sheet, 3 ½ by 4½”)
• Ten Seconds Studio Big Daddy Molds, BDAD4b
• Ten Seconds Studio Paper Thumb
• Ten Seconds Studio Rock Star Black Metal Sheet 40g, 3 ½ by 4½”

Tools

• Hole punch, 1/8”
• Foam brush
• Polyester-bristle paint brush
• Scissors
• Soft cloths (2)

Instructions:

1. Draw a tree on the left side of the canvas using the ILovetoCreate.com™ Tulip® Puffy® Dimensional White Fabric Paint. Let the paint dry completely.
   
   
    
2. Using the foam brush, quickly paint the lower part of the canvas with Ranger’s Adirondack® Dimensional Lettuce Pearl (ADA19428) and the upper part of the canvas with the Eggplant Pearl (ADA19336). Work quickly to remove the excess paint from the painted tree with the soft cloth.  Some of the paint will cling to the recessed parts of the tree trunk to give the tree a dimensional look. Use the same foam brush to randomly apply the Plaid® FolkArt® Artists Pigments™ - Raw Umber (Item # 485) onto the canvas. Let dry.
   
   
3. Follow the package instructions to apply the Plaid® FolkArt® Eggshell Crackle Medium, (ITEM#692) on the canvas. Use the second soft cloth to apply the Plaid® FolkArt® Artists Pigments™ Warm White (Item # 649) paint over the crackled surface of the canvas. Remove the excess paint with a clean section of the same cloth.
   
   
4. Use the Tim Holtz™ Adirondack® Alcohol Ink Applicator from Ranger to apply the Adirondack® Alcohol Pitch Black Ink (TIM22138) to the edges of the canvas. Randomly place a few small drops of the black ink on the painted surface of the canvas. Place a drop of the Tim Holtz™ Adirondack® Alcohol Blending Solution in the center of each of the black ink drops. Let the ink dry.
   
   
5. Place the Ten Seconds Studio Rock Star Black Metal sheet onto the Big Daddy Molds, BDAD4 (side b) and then use the paper thumb to emboss the metal. While the metal is still on the mold, use the fine-grit sand paper to sand the raised parts of the metal. 
   
   
6. Spray the photograph with Krylon™ Perserve It!™ Spray. (If you do not wish to spray the photograph, you can use a transparency sheet to protect the photograph. Just use a piece large enough to cover the embossed metal and then secure the transparency to the metal using the brads.)
   
   
7. Use Aleene’s® Original Tacky Glue® to attach the photograph to the tan paper. Glue the tan paper to the black embossed metal. Punch a hole in each corner of the metal and insert a brad in each hole. Cut a piece of lace to match the width of the metal. Glue the lace to the back of the metal, allowing part of it to show slightly below the metal.  Glue the metal to the canvas, then allow the glue to dry.
    
8. Cut the remaining lace into two pieces. Glue one piece to the top of the canvas and glue the second piece to the left side of the canvas.
   
   
9. Randomly attach the Tulip® Glam-It-Up!™ Iron-On Crystals™ to the tree on the canvas with the Tulip® Puffy® Dimensional Clear Fabric Paint.
   
   
10. Glue the back of the canvas to the aluminum flashing (You can substitute silver scrapbook paper for the flashing. Just cut the scrapbook paper slightly larger than the canvas.)
    
    
11. Punch five holes that are 1/8” diameter in the bottom of the canvas and two holes in the top of the canvas. Attach one crystal in each hole with the jump ring.
    
    
     
12. Place the black ribbon through the top holes. Tie a bow on the left side.   Attach the repurposed brooch to the center of the bow. Hang your frame indoors. 

Find more of Carol Heppner's work here:

www.carolheppner.com

http://heppnerstudio.blogspot.com