Potato Chip Bag Art

Well, I thought I had taken photos of the artwork I came up with using the shrunken potato chip bags but I can now neither find the photos nor the artwork. Someday when I am no longer needing it it will appear. You know how that goes, right? I bet I put it in a SAFE place. :-)



I did find pictures of the process, however. The pictures are of my original attempts. I Googled "shrink potato chip bags" to get instructions. Since I could not find my heat gun at the time (are you noticing a trend?), I used my oven. One problem that I had was that the bags curled up on themselves. I also cut the bags open and used only one ply. I'm imagining that I would have far different results if I used the complete bag. I actually have a cupboard full of empty chip bags for future trial and error practices.


So, enjoy my "process photos." Have you tried shrinking potato chip bags? We'd love to see your results. Post them on our Facebook Page. Periodically we select projects posted at random and award a prize. www.facebook.com/alteredarts


I stamped on the bags using StazOn ink.



I added embossing powder and glitter to a couple of the pieces.

Most of the pieces curled up on themselves unfortunately. The ones on which I added the embossing powder came out usable.

July Challenge

Let me apologize for not keeping up with my blogging as I promised I would. No one (not even me) worked on the May challenge, and things were just so hectic that I never got around to making a June challenge. Here it is already midway through July!

I was drawing a blank on new challenge ideas so I asked our Facebook fans if they had any suggestions. There were several really good ones. The most intriguing idea was to shrink potato chip bags and use them in your art. I never knew you could shrink them. If you do a search online on how to shrink potato chip bags, you will get several different sites with instructions. Who knew? I have already done my challenge (to be posted later) so I can offer this suggestion: have lots of the bags on hand and experiment. Make sure the windows are open (there are some nasty fumes) and WATCH.

Post your challenge projects on our Facebook page. Your post may be selected at random for a prize.

May Challenge Product

We had a great response from last month's embroidery floss bobbin challenge. A big thank-you to everyone who posted their creation on our Facebook page.

This month's challenge is to use the plastic milk jug caps (and the thin rings that accompany them) in your artwork. Think outside the box. Have fun with it. Be sure to post your creation on our Facebook page for your chance to win $10 in FREE product.

I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with.

Embroidery Bobbin Challenge Project

I really had fun with this challenge. Did you know that the square space in the center of an embroidery floss bobbin is 1" x 1"? Did anyone say, "INCHIE!?"

For this project I used cardboard embroidery floss bobbins, fiber and images from the Artasia Minis Femmes sheet (http://www.mailboxmuse.com/Femmes-Image-Strip--Minis-40set-of-241_p_216.html). Additional materials and techniques were also used and are detailed below.

For the first side of the first bobbin, "ART," I used some "trash" to decorate the background. Let me explain: When we go to the various conventions we attend we offer a make-and-take in our booth. The last few make-and-takes have utilized ultrafine glitter. It is a wonderful product, but any of you that have ever used it know that it goes everywhere...it has a mind of its own. At the end of the day our black table cloth is covered in glitter. You can't shake it out. You can't wipe it off. What to do? I came up with the perfect solution: packing tape! I use packing tape strips to lift the glitter off of the table cloth. It works beautifully. As with a lot of great art, I discovered, purely by accident, that these waste strips of cleaned-up glitter make great backgrounds!

After cutting the glitter tape to the desired shape, I adhered it to the bobbin with a glue stick. I then cut out the word "Art" from one of the image strips and then cut out and adhered a small image. I edged the bobbin with ink and wrapped the bottom with a piece of fiber.


The bobbin on the left here was embellished with a mini puzzle piece (http://www.mailboxmuse.com/Tiny-Puzzle-Pieces_p_49.html). I inked the puzzle piece with a coordinating color. The bobbin was finished with ink and fiber.

The "Femmes" bobbin was created like the "Art" bobbin with the exception of the glitter background.

The "heart" bobbin was created by inking the bobbin with a few different inks (direct-to-paper), adding a small clay embellishment (using Makin's Clay and the heart Krafty Lady Art Mould: http://www.mailboxmuse.com/Krafty-Lady-Art-Mould--heart_p_200.html). I used a glue stick to add a little adhesive here and there on the bobbin and then sprinkled glitter on top. I finished the bobbin with ink and fiber.

The "Fashion" bobbin on the right was created by adhering the image and word (cut from an image strip). I then used thin double-sided tape at the bottom and applied gold leaf flakes. (http://www.mailboxmuse.com/Gold-Leaf-Flakes-AND-Double-Sided-Tape_p_118.html). I added a little adhesive in other areas with my glue stick and embellished with more gold leaf. I finished the bobbin with inked edges and fiber.



The last bobbin was created in the same way as the rest. Notice that the Makin's clay embellishment (created with a Krafty Lady Art Mould - this design is sold out) can be cut. How cool is that?

That was my response to the challenge. I
showed you mine, now you show me yours. Post your creation to our Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Altered-Arts-magazine/45128553476?ref=ts

To post on our Facebook page: click on "write something" at the top of the page. You should then see the "add photos" option appear. Your added photo will automatically be included in our Fan Photos album.

Let's Get Creating!!

Note: We now have a kit you can use to create your own floss bobbin flip-book like the one you see here: http://www.mailboxmuse.com/Bobbin-Flip-Book-Kit--Femmes_p_337.html

You can also take a class with me and learn not only how to create this fun book, but also learn some other fun techniques, too. I'll be teaching this 1.5 hour class at the StampScrapArtTour in Pittsburgh, PA July 9, 2010 http://www.stampscraparttour.com/infopage.asp?id=13

April product challenge

I've been having a lot of fun with the monthly challenges. They've been giving me a reason to sit down and create. Sometimes I need a kick in the pants like a deadline or a commitment to get me started.

I submit to you, however, that this challenge is not just meant to get ME creating. It is meant as a stepping off point for all of you to get cracking, too. Participate in the challenge with me and post your result on our Facebook. You may even win $10 in free product!

The April challenge is to use embroidery floss bobbins in some fashion...any fashion. They can be cardboard or plastic.

Netting Challenge - My Contribution

Okay everyone...there are still 9 days left in March. We want to see what YOU do with nylon netting. Post your creation on our Facebook page. You may even win $10 in free product!

I sat down today and created my own artwork using the nylon netting. I was fascinated by the idea of using it to create a pseudo-shaker box effect. When doing that, I found that the clover I was adding got "trapped" in the netting, yielding a very fun effect. I created these pieces on the fly, just showing that we always have time for a little creative outlet. Not everything has to be our masterpiece.

To create the ATCs I used the precut ATCs blanks from Sunday International (available at http://www.mailboxmuse.com/) along with a variety of St. Pat's embellishments I have collected over the years. The sparkly shamrock is a button from Dress It Up, the rhinestones are from Darice, and everything else is just stuff from my stash. I'm not sure where I got the loose shamrocks...I'm sure it was one of our local craft stores.

Nylon Netting Challenge

I made this challenge in our March newsletter email. If you didn't get our email newsletter, make sure you are signed up. (If you are registered on our cart, check your mail preferences. If not, you can sign up for the newsletter on the main page at http://www.mailboxmuse.com/.)

Please note that neo.rr.com email addresses consistently bounce our emails as spam. You will want to whitelist the following in your spam program: mailboxmuse.com, care@alteredbookclub.com, infomart2000.com and 3Dcart.com.

Your challenge (and mine) for the month of March is to create some art using the nylon netting that produce and even some craft items is stored in.

Any artwork will suffice. Post it to our Facebook page for a chance to win $10 in FREE products from our shopping cart.

Blister Pak challenge

Last week I challenged you to create some art using those little blister paks that over-the-counter medicine comes in. There is still time to participate. Create something and post in on our Facebook fan page before the end of the week. We will choose one posting at random and that person will get $10 to use on our website.

Here is what I came up with:

This little ATC book was created using: ATC Blanks from Sunday International (All That Cool Stuff collection Nov/Dec 07), Gold Corner Stickers from JeJe Produkt (On the Nile collection May/Jun 08), Femmes Artasia Minis Images from Artful Illusions (Fabulous Femmes collection Nov/Dec 08), Fabulous Femmes Exclusive Rubber Stamps (Fabulous Femmes collecttion Nov/Dec 08), Red Cat's Eye Ink Pad, Green Cat's Eye Ink Pad, Black Dye Ink Pad, Red/Black/Tan Fiber. The challenge item was a perforated blister pak that once contained Claritin.

To dress up the blister pak pieces, I added red, white and green seed beads with clear gel tacky glue.

I punched two holes on the left side and bound the book together using small black cable ties.

A new challenge

Hey everyone. I have a new challenge for you. This is one that I swear I will participate in myself....really.

At a CHA (Craft and Hobby Assn.) trade show several years ago a designer showed me a great project that she had created using the bubble blister pack thingy (you know...that medicine comes in). I was impressed. See what you can come up with using it and I'll see what I can come up with myself.

Our fan page over on Facebook allows you to post images of projects that you complete. Post your entry there. We are going to choose one posting from now through the end of the month and that person will receive a $10 gift certificate from our website. Your posting doesn't have to be related to this challenge, but we would love to see what you can come up with. While you're visiting our fan page, don't forget to register as a fan.