And we're off ........

Good morning ..... and Happy Wednesday!

Sorry I'm a bit late sharing the workshop from the weekend ...... I've been a little busy so far this week.  We're going on holiday today .... whoo hoo!!

We did have a great workshop though .... lots of fun decorating wooden boxes using acrylic paints, gorgeous shimmer paints  (Finnabair's Art Alchemy Sparks range and the Imagination Crafts Starlights), gilding waxes and lots of embellishments.  It's funny how everyone follows the same techniques, but the end results are always so different .... I love it!

Here's a look at my inspiration pieces I created to get them started ......

You've already seen one of these up close, in a blog post from last week, you can find the details here if you missed it.

This box has actually been altered quite a few times ...... there's quite a few layers of paint on there now.  That's the thing ..... if you don't like how it's turning out, paint over it and start again! Or if you love the box but just don't like the colour anymore, paint over it again  ..... easy!

We used various embellishments to create the detail on the boxes ...... paper flowers, metal and chipboard cogs .....

Metal charms and tiny Art Stones ..... anything to add interest and texture

I even but a pretty drawer handle on the top of one box .......

I love how the crown looks on this particular box ..... I used gilding waxes over the paint to bring out all the detail ......

You can see there's more of those Art Stones on here too ..... some larger ones as well as the tiny version

We used texture paste and stencils to add more interest ..... and there's pieces of cotton lace in there too

Once all the detail and the embellishments were on, then came the paints.  The whole thing was painted over, some used just the chalk finish acrylics, others went for it and used all metallics and shimmer, and some even used a bit of both.   We got a fabulous mix of colours and styles ...... here's a look at the finished boxes ......

Aren't they all gorgeous .... love the pink, very feminine.

The golden honey colour looked so rich ....... and as I said, everyone did the same thing but each one ended up totally different.

I'd love to stay and chat but ...... I still need to pack!
Then it's time to load up the car and start on our journey.  Once we're across in the UK our first stop is Birmingham.  Hubby and I have 3 nights in a hotel .... 2 days at the BBC Good Food Show which is on at the NEC, and then dinner booked on Friday evening at a favourite restaurant.
Happy days!

Thanks for popping by ... enjoy the rest of your day.

Cheerio until next time ......