So I have been thinking about recycling. Every time I Open a new toy or product, I always recycle the cardboard that come with the packaging. When I get advertisements in the mail, I recycle those too. But the card board is so sturdy, I think to myself, there has got to be something I can use these for in crafting.
Well today I am here to show you what I have done.
I made these using recycled cardboard from a few items around the house. The blue one is from an advertising mailer. The other two are the back of a pudding box. I will show you what I did.
For the blue butterflies, the colors were already so vibrant, I just punched them out. I had to work around the words, but in some cases, you may want to keep the words.
Now for the pudding box, I turned it over and decided to try and distress it as well as stamp it.
This worked pretty well. I was very happy with how the butterfly turned out.
I wasn't sure how the distressing would work, so I just started using it. First I used Tim Holtz Distressing paint. That is on the left. It worked pretty well, but I wanted to add some colors since these are butterflies. So I also added some of Tim's Distressing stain. I found that it worked best to just dab on the color. But this is all about trial and error, so try different techniques.
Can't you just imagine these colors on butterflies? I know I could.
Here is a closer look at the finished product
So when you get those advertisements in the mail, or see anything with color and texture, think about what it could be, not what it is. It is a lot of fun creating with imagination!
I found the Distress Stain and Paint over at BlueMoonScrapbooking. They are currently on sale and shipping is free if you spend $50. The Butterfly punch I found at Michael's and used a 40% off coupon. Gotta love those!
Supplies:
- Tim Holtz Distress paint - Vintage Photo, Forrest Moss, Rusty Hinge
- Tim Holtz Distress stain - Broken China, Victorian Velvet
- EK Tools Butterfly punch
Have fun!
Well done! I love recycling and your butterflies are gorgous!
ReplyDeleteThe distressed butterfly looks very nice.
ReplyDeleteHi Monica,
ReplyDeleteI was happy to get the email of your latest posting! Your butterflies are GORGEOUS and I love the idea of recycling (& saving on paper)!!! :) And it was so nice of you to take the time to so a step-by-step tutorial! It's so helpful. ;) Was it hard to punch through the cardboard? I always wondered if my electronic cutting machine could handle it.
Thanks for sharing!
Crafty hugs,
Jennifer
partridgelu at yahoo dot com
Wow, wow, wow and wow! This is just so cool. I save lots of things too but usually just recycle the cardboard. I'd probably try and save it as well if there was any place I could store it but my crafting stuff is bursting at the seams of our house now! Love how these turned out!
ReplyDelete