Handmade Holidays Day 4 with Miriam Schulman

Welcome to Day 4 of Handmade Holidays!  Every day this week, you'll find unique art and craft ideas.    Remember that every post has a giveaway, and all the comments for all the days count!  I'll be picking all the winners after 11AM EST on Saturday, so make sure to check out all the Handmade Holidays posts!

Today, we welcome guest blogger Miriam Schulman!

Have you ever found yourself stuck without beautiful wrapping paper in the house?

Have no fear- all you need is a bit of acrylic paint, a stencil and a sprinkle of fairy dust to transform whatever paper you have in your house into something truly special. In this tutorial,  I'm going to share mixed media techniques that shows you how to embellish wrapping paper using  Jessica Sporn's Hamsa stamp and Five Hamsas Stencil.  (And of course, you can use stencils and stamps from your stash as well.)

Make all your packages extra special and show that you care with handmade wrapping paper.

• White wrapping paper
• Acrylic paint
• Hamsa Stencil 
• Hamsa RubberMoon Stamp 
• Rubber brayer
• Gelli plate
• Cosmetic Sponges 

 

You can also watch Gift Wrapping Ideas by Miriam Schulman on YouTube

 

In Case We Haven't Met Yet...

Like this? You might also like my 

other blog posts about art journaling 

or watercolor techniques.

Hey, I'm Miriam Schulman and I create mixed media art to tell stories. I also teach other people how to craft their stories with art. I give them the techniques they need to get the results they desire which brings more joy to their lives. 

My art has been published by Somerset Studio, Art of Man and the New York Times among others and collected by an international audience. When I'm not working on art in my studio, you'll find me in a museum spending time with friends or family. Explore my art at SchulmanArt.com or join the fun at TheInspirationPlace.net where you can find lots of free resources for artists.

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Thank you Miriam!  I hope this post gave you some fun ideas. 

Giveaway alert! I am giving away a Rubbermoon Hamsa Stamp to a lucky commenter.  Remember, for extra chances to win, make sure to comment on all the Handmade Holiday posts!  I will pick all of the winners on Saturday morning, 11AM EST. 

Please leave your email address in your comment (like this: jessicasporndesigns at gmail dot com) to be considered for the giveaway!

Make sure to check back for more projects and giveaways every day this week!  Click on Handmade Holidays to see all the posts. 

Your comments make me so happy and let me know you were here. I read and treasure every comment and will happily answer any questions as soon as I can.

If you don't already, please sign-up for my newsletter HERE, and follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Bloglovin and YouTube, so that you never miss a giveaway, and always get the latest Jessica Sporn Designs News!  

 

Handmade Holidays Day 3 - Ornaments and Embellishments

Welcome to Day 3 of Handmade Holidays!  Today, I'm sharing handmade ornaments and embellishments.  Remember that every post has a giveaway, and all the comments for all the days count!  So if you haven't commented on the previous posts, go back and do it before Saturday!

I made my ornaments and embellishments using the Build a Villa stamps from Rubbermoon, as well as the Hamsa and Text Stamps from my line.

You can also do all these techniques with stamps from your stash.

Make sure to scroll down for the giveaway!

For the first set of embellishments, I followed these Paper Casting instructions by Judy Shea.  Basically, you separate the plies of tissue or toilet paper, and lay them one at a time over your stamp, brushing matte medium between each layer.  I used six layers and it worked pretty well.  Here's how two of the houses and one of the Hamsas looked after they dried.

I gave them a coat of off white paint, and then painted two of them teal and two Quinacridone Gold.  When they were dry, I used my finger to brush gold and silver metallic paint on them.

I added some dimensional dots and swirls with glitter glue to the Hamsas...

and glued one of them onto the top of a previously decorated box.  What a fun, quick and easy technique!













Next, I decided to make some ornaments using polymer clay.  (Air dry clay would work too.) While my dedicated clay oven was preheating, I rolled out some clay.  I happened to only have orange, blue and green, but since I'd be painting them anyway, that was fine.

I stamped the images into the clay, then cut them out with an exacto knife, poked holes using a bamboo skewer, and baked them for 30 minutes at 300 degrees.  Here's how they look all painted up!   In addition to glitter glue, I embellished these with my Pearl Pen.  I think these will make nice hostess gifts for friends, and ornaments for our tree.

They were so sweet, that I decided to make some more clay ornaments for mini canvases.  These two are on 3 x 3" Black Art Minis, like the ones I used in a RubberMoon tutorial here.    The compass is a stamp by Mary Nasser.  

I created the background using the Six Point Starry Night stencil from stencil Girl.  I used silver metallic paint and then glazed over the square with Pthalo Turquoise Fluid Acrylics mixed with Glazing Medium. 

 For this one, I created the landscape background using the Teapot and Teacup stencil upside down!

Remember to always look at parts of your stencils, and don't be afraid to turn them!

The substrate for this one is corrugated Cardboard leftover from a project I did for Valentine's Day (!).   I really like how the cardboard added texture behind the clay pieces.

So... I hope this post gave you some fun ideas.  I will give away one of the ornaments to a lucky commenter.  Remember, for extra chances to win, make sure to comment on all the Handmade Holiday posts!  I will pick all of the winners on Saturday morning, 11AM EST.

Please leave your email address in your comment (like this: jessicasporndesigns at gmail dot com) to be considered for the giveaway!

And the winners are:

Corrine Gilman’s Brooch:  Lou Lou in Texas!  

Art is you Trade:  Suzie Q 23!  

Clay Ornament:  Karen!  

Hamsa Stamp:  Lisa Meyers! 

Three Trees Stencil:  Lu 

our comments make me so happy and let me know you were here. I read and treasure every comment and will happily answer any questions as soon as I can.

If you don't already, please sign-up for my newsletter HERE, and follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Bloglovin and YouTube, so that you never miss a giveaway, and always get the latest Jessica Sporn Designs News!  

 

Guest Post: Handmade Holidays Day 2 with Corrine Gilman

Welcome to Day 2 of Handmade Holidays!  Every day this week, you'll find unique art and craft ideas.  Today, Corrine Gilman of Sparkle Days Studios has a fun gift bag idea with lots of up cycling.  Remember that every post has a giveaway, and all the comments for all the days count! 

Take it away Corrine! 

To make your gift bag, gather up some materials of your choice.

Deconstruct a paper bag.  

Cut out a rectangle 9x24

Fold up to form a 9x12 finished bag.  (Here's a template.)

(feel free to experiement with sizes that work for you)

Take some additional paper bag sections and crumple for a crinkled look.  Fold in half and glue to the bag rectangle. This provides some interest to your bag.  You could also use any other papers to trim the sides and the bottom as well.

I put together my decorative collage using more paper bag,an old envelope torn off with it’s stamp still intact, an old book page and washi tape.  I made a crumpled flower out of a coffee filter and added some punched shapes to form a center that I painted with glittery craft paints. Washi tape rounds out the trimming.  

I folded over and cut the top at an angle just to provide a visual break, punched a hole in the center and used a piece of stretchy lace to make a bow.  Perfect for a journal, book,  some art, a scarf or some mittens to fit inside.  You could even make some to give as gifts themselves for your friends and family to use later.  Happy stress free creating!
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Thank you Corrine!  Corrine has offered to give away this beautiful brooch to a lucky commenter.  You can see more of her beautiful designs in Sparkle Days Studios Etsy Shop.

Remember, for extra chances to win, make sure to comment on all the Handmade Holiday posts!  I will pick all of the winners on Saturday morning, 11AM EST. 

Please leave your email address in your comment (like this: jessicasporndesigns at gmail dot com) to be considered for the giveaway!

And the winners are:

Corrine Gilman’s Brooch:  Lou Lou in Texas!  

Art is you Trade:  Suzie Q 23!  

Clay Ornament:  Karen!  

Hamsa Stamp:  Lisa Meyers! 

Three Trees Stencil:  Lu 

Make sure to check back for more projects and giveaways every day this week!

Your comments make me so happy and let me know you were here. I read and treasure every comment and will happily answer any questions as soon as I can.

If you don't already, please sign-up for my newsletter HERE, and follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Bloglovin and YouTube, so that you never miss a giveaway, and always get the latest Jessica Sporn Designs News!