Altered Book

So the May Flying Unicorn May Kit of the Month included this fabulous Off-the-Page Paper Mache book from Darice and I knew I had to make some kind of prop-looking thing, using chipboard from Creative Embellishments, Flying Unicorn Adornments and some bold autumnal paint.

The door knocker is from my personal stash and I knew that I had to use it on the binder as a finishing piece.

I started the process by using Beacons 3-In-One Glue (Fabritac will work also) and streaked it all over the top of the book and then spread it around with my finger. I knew that once covered with paint, the mottled glue would give the look of old, worn, aged leather. Then I added 3 beautiful Maple Leaf Flourish chipboard pieces from Creative Embellishments - manipulating them and getting my design laid out before I glued them down. After gluing those down I covered the whole book in two coats of gesso (inside, too.) I then sprayed the book with 13 Arts Ayeeda Chalk Mist in Dark Brown, making sure that I paid attention to the groves and nooks where there would be more shading from "age."

Next, I started adding the paint. Working in stages, I used three Silks paints first, (but you can use any metallic based acrylic paint for this project, depending on the look you want.) I started from the outside edges, working in toward the middle using the darkest of the shades Vavoom Red and then adding the medium shade in Love Struck - again, working toward the middle and then finally filling it in with Spiced Pumpkin to cover the center. I used the same process on the spine and the back cover. I would occasionally mist more Ayeeda Dark Brown along the way to get more depth where I wanted it.  I painted the "pages" (the sides) in Cinnamon Brown with a harder bristled brush to give it striations that mimic pages, and then when dried, added some Viva Décor Inka Gold with my finger. Then, on top of the chipboard pieces, I added three different green Silks paints in Olive Vine, Fern, and Forest Green to all of the leaves, making sure there is plenty of variation from leaf to leaf.  Lastly, after all of the paint dried, I used my finger to apply Viva Décor Inka Gold gold to all the high points, corners and edges of the book. When all the paint was finished drying, I affixed some Flying Unicorn Adornments, the door knocker, and the gold framed  piece with my initials (after painting the frame and using glossy accents on top of the letters to seal them.)

The inside is also painted with two washes of Cinnamon Brown Silks, and lined with a velvet paper liner. When everything was finished, I made sure to spray the book twice with Krylon Sealer so that the color will not fade.

I really enjoyed this experiment and I love the outcome. I hope you will give this technique a try!

Have a fabulous day!!!