Here’s a cute sample of everyday jars turned into pretty containers that can be both useful and pleasing to the eyes. With a few embellishments and color inspiration, these jars can add an instant splash of color on your rather blah cupboard.

Image: Mod Podge

Hop on over the Mod Podge blog for a quick look. To view the full tutorial on the same, please visit the A Craftier World blog.

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Recycle Your Jars!

A hand-me-down sweater … a raggedy old skirt from the thrift store … a plain T-shirt … Using just a few tools coupled with your creativity, all of these items can be transformed into fantastic works of wearable art!  The publisher of Belle Armoire and Somerset Studio invites you to submit your own altered and embellished clothing and accessories to be considered for this exciting publication. The special theme for the next issue will be Altered Suits!

Deadline for artwork to be received: September 15, 2009. Please read submission guidelines before sending your submissions to: Stampington & Company · C/O: Altered Couture · 22992 Mill Creek, Suite B · Laguna Hills, CA 92653

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Call for entries: Altered Couture

Well now my friend Corinne Stubson, who teaches book arts classes and has exhibited her books in art galleries, has decided to make a very special present for everyone in the group who wants to play.  We will each be creating a book page and sending it to Corinne.  She is going to color copy all of the pages, bind them, and send them to each of us.

Piano hinge book, by Corinne Stubson

Some of the folks in the group think that Corinne should keep our originals for herself since she is doing all this work and financing the entire thing as a gift to the group.  I hope we can prevail upon her to do just that.

Some of you may remember Corinne Stubson from an artist profile that she did for me awhile ago.

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Altered Books 10 year anniversary

Image:sxc.hu

Why not try some clipboard altered art or wall hangings.  They’re fun projects for children and adults.  You can hang them on your walls for decoration and to display memorabilia.

First paint the clipboard and clip, generally with acrylic paint, but you can try other types to see what works.  When it dries, stamp designs on it or leave plain.  Then attach items with glue or gel medium.

You can have a theme for your designs or simply arrange a miscallaneous display with items on hand.  The materials might include:

• Scrapbooking materials
• Old and new photos
• Fabric scraps
• Words
• Rubber stamps
• 3-D items such as buttons, shells, beads, charms
• Miscellaneous words from paper
• Scrabble pieces

Simply put your imagination to work and see what you can come up with.

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Clipboard Altered Art & Wall Hangings

There have been six issues published so far, and you can access all the downloads on the ArtTrader website.   When you visit, you’ll see that they’ve got an online store with materials for sale as well.

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Art Trader Magazine

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The Library – the best mixed media art books

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The Library – the best mixed media art books

Altered Curiosities is an excellent name for this book. Instead of starting with the usual list of supplies and tools that every altered art book feels obligated to include, Jane Ann Wynn jumps right into techniques. My kinda girl! Fearlessly, she plows into soldering and cutting apart small plastic animals, drilling, breaking glass, and cutting shapes into egg shells. This is not your average altered art book!

Just when you think your brain is going to explode with all the new ideas, Jane Ann plunges you right into the heart of the matter…storytelling. Assemblage without a story is just not as interesting. It has no soul and no real meaning. But, assemblage with a story…well, that’s worth making and viewing!

Many projects are included in the second half of the book, but it is stressed again and again that you really shouldn’t try to slavishly follow her directions, using the exact same items she’s used. Good luck with that anyway! Many of these items are unique and old. There are resources listed in the back, but it’s much more fun, I think, to follow your own creative path and become a collector of curiosities that beg to be altered. If you’re not a collector already, that is!

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Book Review: Altered Curiosities

Isabel Besse emailed me some great additional tips to pass on to everyone! She wrote:

Hi ! I’ve been altering photos for quite a while….a couple of things I’ve found out….

The photos don’t need to be wet to sandpaper. Also, you can use a spritzer bottle to wet the photo (helps to control the dampness, and they don’t take as long to dry). You can also spritz with a bit of bleach diluted in water.

Take a paper awl to outline any images you like. I like to use gel pens or the “souffle” type of pens to outline.

“Copic” markers (though expensive) are great for photos.

Someone once suggested dipping or soaking the photos in Drano. I haven’t tried this yet though !

Have fun !
Isabel Besse

Well, I have used Drano, and it allows you to smear the colors in quite an interesting fashion! These are great tips, and I really appreciate Isabel taking the time to send them. You can see more of her work at her blog, Sometimes I Wonder.

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Follow up on altered photos

Anyway, I’ve learned a number of very fun and fairly easy altering techniques that can be used on photos, so if you have already thrown out all your duds, just have a handful of your digital shots printed out. Many techniques work on shots printed on either photographic or regular printer paper (like inkjet prints), but I like the way the real photographs respond the best. Your mileage may vary.

Here’s what I did to these poor photographs:

Step by step instructions

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How to alter photos