Alice in the library... and outside

 Alpha Stamps has a new monthly kit for May and it includes this awesome Gatefold Window Card.

 I used two of the gatefold window cards to make a sweet little double sided Alice in Wonderland shrine. On one side there is an outside scene with fake grass and a window box and lovely pink roses. You can view the library through the window...

 if you look closely you can see the Cheshire cat sitting on a shelf in the bookcase.
Btw, I used the Finnabair Art Extravagence Rust Paste Set to paint the window frames and the flower box because I swear I'm in love with this stuff!

From the side you can kinda see both little scenes...

 The flip side of my shrine has a library scene and you can look outside. I used the Alice Plays Croquet Collage Sheet for my outside view. 

 You can tell you're in the library because there are stacks of books everywhere.

The White Rabbit is looking a bit puzzled by the butterfly sitting on a stack of books and perhaps by the mushrooms sprouting out of the floor.

Those wonderful framed paintings are cut out of one of the papers included in the May kit :)

If you'd like to see a complete list of the supplies I used click here.

 Thanks for stopping by and reading my post. I hope you have a fun and creative day!

the Naturalist's Curiosity Cabinet...

I created my curiosity cabinet in the new and adorable Millinery Cabinet 1:12 Scale because I really loved the cabinet, but I'm not really into making hats ;)

I think it worked out nicely using the Cabinet of Curiosities collage sheet I designed just for this project...

 The collage sheet has Riker Mount drawers to put together so that you can fill in the cubbies with drawers if you want (although you will need two collage sheets to make enough drawers to fill all 16 of the cubbies). I used Small Antique Brass Suitcase Handles on the drawers, for handles, and it was pretty easy to do. I took photos as I added the handles so I could show you just how I did it...

 I cut out and scored my drawers, but didn't fold or glue them. I then cut a long thin strip of cardstock to reinforce the area where the handle would be mounted.

 I glued a small piece of the strip to the back of each drawer.

 It took 8 sets of the Small Antique Brass Suitcase Handles to cover all 16 drawers. I used a pair of flat nose jewelry pliers to carefully bend the loop part, on the ends of the handles, so they were less curved. They should look like the bottom handle in the above photo.

 Then I measured a drawer to find the center...

laid a handle in position...

then poked holes with a pointy tool.

 Next I laid a handle over the holes and inserted a headpin through each hole. The headpins I used were just some cheep bronze ones I had in my stash with large enough heads.

 Using my pliers I bent the wires on the back of the drawer as close as I could to the drawer without creasing the paper.

 I twisted the two wires together to keep them in place. You could glue or tape them down, with masking tape, if you didn't want to twist them together.

 Here's what the handle should look like when you finish.

After you fold and glue your drawer together, you may need to use a marker to cover the score marks on the edges of your drawers. The Distress Marker - Hickory Smoke is a perfect match.

Here's a bird's eye view of my cabinet so you can see some of the curiosities I used. The bones in the Mini Red Shadowbox are from a real mouse skeleton! I love the tiny mushrooms growing in a mossy pot under a glass dome.You could make your own curiosity cabinet as creepy or as scientific as you'd like, as it's all just a matter of what you like to collect.

Here's a view with my hand to show scale... 

Yes, that is a giraffe skull on the bottom left side. It's from an educational toy set made by Safari Ltd, I aged it with a bit of acrylic paint. I've also used tiny seashells, a miniature handmade bird nest and that wonderful owl statue made by Reutter Porzellan. If you'd like to know more about the other things I've used to create my cabinet you can view my supply list here.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope I have inspired you to go make you own miniature curiosity cabinet!

Rose Ella's reading room or a Witch's Grimoire...

Rose Ella is a witch with an addiction to reading. She likes nothing better than to curl up in her favorite chair with a good book and a cup of pumpkin spice latte (a girl after my own heart)...

I created Rose Ella's reading room inside a new Large Faux Book Box. The cover is meant to look like a grimoire (witch's spell book)...

 

Then you open it up and the fun begins!

 I used a miniature book I made (using the Spell Book Box Covers Collage Sheet) to prop up the front right corner of the book box because the chair I used is resin (and kinda heavy). This way it can be displayed open on a shelf without tipping forward.

My favorite part of this whole scene is the book case. I love how it looks...

It started out as an unfinished Corner Bookcase with 3 Shelves. I added Dresden trim to the book case like this...

It doesn't matter what color of Dresden you use as you are going to paint over it with Gesso once it dries. Then I attached some Tiny Resin Skulls like so...

You can see the frame I used (and a shelf for an up coming project in the pic too). Once the skulls dried I added a second coat of Gesso to everything then painted it all with black acrylic paint. A dry brushing with transparent white acrylic paint gave it an aged appearance.

Speaking of aged... isn't that little stone gargoyle adorable!? I loved him so much I bought extra to share with you, now available in my etsy shop.

I hope you have enjoyed this look inside Rose Ella's reading room... If you'd like to make your own witchy reading room, or other fun miniature scene, you can find my supply list here.

 

Stay tuned for more spooky and witchy projects as I gear up for Halloween :D

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland...

is one of my all time favorite books! Along with the sequel Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There, you have only to pick up either book, flip to any chapter and be instantly amused by the crazy antics of Alice and friends. That is why I couldn't resist doing a couple of collage sheets for both books sized to use with the Hidden Drawer Book Box.

Of course I also had to jump right in and play with the collage sheets and Book Box too! Here's what I came up with...

 I added the White Rabbit to the cover standing on a stack of books and holding a pocket watch.

 The White Rabbit is also standing on a pile of books on the back cover...

 he is joined by a framed photograph of Lewis Carroll himself.

 Inside you find Alice contemplating a bottle labeled "drink me" as the Mad Hatter peers at her from behind the curtain.

 There's a photograph hanging on the wall behind Alice taken by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll) of his maybe inspiration for Alice, Alice Pleasance Liddell.

My favorite feature is the tiny key with a tassel made out of thread. I almost went blind making that tassel :) but it matches the tassel on the book mark I attached to the top of the book so it was well worth the effort!

Would you like to make your very own Alice Hidden Drawer Book Box? Wanna know what I used? Then click here! 

Thanks for stopping by and have a fabulous day and a Happy New Year!