Giveaway #9 & Green Craft Wreath

****For those here for the One Heart One World giveaway, this is a different one!****

As I mentioned last week, I picked up a copy of Green Craft, Vol 2 by Stampington & Co. It is really a lovely issue. As a busy mom of little kids, if I want to make something and I don't have the supplies I can't just drop everything and go to Hobby Lobby. So I use a limited number of supplies in my art and use everything I have. So the whole re-purposing and altering idea really suits me.



In this issue Lana Manis of the blog Honeysuckle lane made this 'whimsical wreath' out of old book paper.


It is so lovely that I totally wanted to make one. So I followed her steps for making my own. Mine turned out a little on the rough & uneven side. You should check out Lana's blog, she does some amazingly perfect wreaths. Puts mine to shame! But is was a fun thing to make, so I am forging ahead and showing you my version.

So these are the steps that Lana laid out to make this wreath. In honor of valentines day which is fast approaching I made mine into a valentine wreath!



Step 1 - Draw a circle on some cardboard
Step 2 - Cut it out
Step 3 - Cover the circle with glue
Step 4 - Cover the circle with old book paper. Trim. Repeat for other side of circle



*excuse my coupon background newspaper! I had no idea it would be so distracting. Lesson learned :)

Step 5 - Cut or tear out a whole bunch of pages from an old book. Lana suggests about 60 pieces, mine was smaller so I had about 30.
Step 6 & 7 - Start to roll the paper into a cone. To make shorter cones roll on the longer side, for longer cones roll on the shorter side (this makes sense once you are rolling)
Step 8 - Staple the cone. Repeat for all your cones. This is a fun step to do while watching a movie!



Step 9 & 10 - Lay the longer cones out on the covered circle. I used spray glue, spraying below the cone and then above it as I went
Step 11 - The cones can be a little springy, so to make sure they were sticking I used the top of a glass jar to press the cones in place (my tip ;)
Step 12 - Lay a second layer of shorter cones over this bottom layer in the same way.



Step 13 - Once the cones are all stuck, flip it over and pick out a hanger. Lana used wire, I used some ribbon.
Step 14 - I glued a small paper circle over the ribbon and laid something heavy to make sure the ribbon stuck on (but not too heavy as to crush your cones)
Step 15 - Cut out a collage for the front. I cut a circle out of a pre-made collage with a heart (this had been going to be a journal, but the colors were perfect for this wreath's center!)
Step 16 - Perhaps layer the circle on another circle of old book paper and tear around it. Glue this to the center of your cone wreath to hide all the messy cone staples!

And there you have your valentine wreath:



Thank you to Lana and Amanda Crabtree, editor of Stampington & Co. Green Craft for giving me permission to post this based on Lana's design :)

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And now for this week's giveaway:

This is giveaway #9 on my Saturday giveaways. It is for folks signed up as followers of this blog. And there are so many new folks on the list this time. I attribute this mainly to One World One Heart, the (still on going) giveaway hosted by Lisa of A Whimsical Bohemian. I have 'met' so many new artists on this magic carpet ride, I have entered many, many giveaways myself and really hope to win something! We'll see. Anyhow, welcome to all the new followers :)

This Saturday Giveaway is a way for us to count down to the release date of my new book The Artistic Mother - A Practical Guide to Fitting Creativity into Your Busy Schedule (March 8, 2010).

So far I have given away a necklace, earrings, a wall hanging, mini journal, 2 butterfly reminders and some altered pegs. I have lots more tokens to give away too, so stay with me!

I choose the winner by the random generator. This week the winner is

Joanie of Full of Bolognie!

Congratulations.

Pick your prize from the choices below (click on image to see a larger image) and post it in the comments. I will contact you via email so you can send me, privately, your physical address.

Choice #1 - sepia colored soldered earrings


Choice #2 - an altered board book with soldered & beaded hanger, includes the words to a Yeats poem that begins 'Had I the Heaven's....' you know the one!


Choice #3 - my latest bound journal. this one is 4x4 inches with blank pages.


For everyone else - Please check back in next Saturday to see if you win something. I will offer a new set of prizes. I will try to offer a range of things in the hopes something will appeal to you when it's your turn! And thank you for being a part of 'An Artful Life'.

And of course, if you are not listed as following this blog, you are welcome to do so! Join in the fun.