A Lovely Maple Leaf Brooch with Plaid Dyes

The project that I came up with for today is actually something that would look very good in the Fall, which is just around the corner.

The Items needed for this project are:

Proxxon Jig Saw
Proxxon Rotary Tool
Proxxon Delta Sander
Fine Sandpaper
Wood Burning Tool
Leaf Pattern
Small Paint Brush
Plaid Dye - Lady Marmalade
Plaid Dye - Pucker Up
Plaid Dye - Infra Red
Kamar Varnish
Pin Back
Glue
Black gesso
To begin, I traced the outline of a Maple leaf onto the gourd and wood burned the entire leaf.

I then tried out the Plaid Dyes in Lady Marmalade which is an orange color, Pucker Up which is a yellow color and Infra Red which is of course a red color. This picture is of the bottles that the Plaid Dyes come in:

And this picture is of  the colors tried out with just two light coats of the dye put onto the gourd.

I liked how the colors looked and so I used the small paintbrush to apply the colors to the gourd leaf. I used the same paintbrush for all of the colors with only rinsing  the brush in water and wiping it on a paper towel between colors. I thought the colors blended rather well, going from yellow to orange and then to red.

When the dye was dry, I started by using the Proxxon Jig Saw to cut around the leaf.

And then I had the thought of using the Proxxon Rotary Tool and a special Master Carver bur to make the job go more smoothly.

How's that for making some super nice cutting around the leaf and in all of the crevices. It's a really easy tool to use and the flex shaft with the pen like end is a dream to use. After finishing the cutting, I used the Proxxon Delta Sander to smooth the tips and a piece of fine sandpaper to get all the crevices. I then painted the back and edges with black gesso and sealed the piece both front and back with the Kamar Varnish. I glued a pin back onto the gourd leaf and Voila' I was finished.

This pin would look very nice on a shirt, coat or jacket this Fall when the air starts to get nippy. Check out all the Proxxon Micro Tools at www.proxxon.com if you like to work with tools made special for the shop.

Barbara

Painted and Embellished Bird House

Hi everyone Steph Ackerman here today with a cute birdhouse I recently found.

I began by sanding the birdhouse with the Delta Sander.

 

Then I painted the interior with Folk Art Milk Paint in Absinthe and the exterior with Bristol Green.  Once dry I used the Delta Sander to resand the birdhouse.  Then I lightly dry painted the bird house with Folk Art Milk Paint in Petticoat.

 

 

 

Next I used the Proxxon Precision Rotary Tool to drill 2 holes in the roof.  No bird house is complete without birds flying around so I inserted wire through the holes and attached bird charms.

Finally I die cut strips of striped paper to fit around the bottom edge.

All set for some little friends to settle in for the winter.

 

Thanks for stopping by.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coffee Time

Hello friends. Larissa here today with a fun way to make a wreath.
I am addicted to coffee theme items. Whether it be stamps or actual coffee cups. So today I decided to try something a little different.

Products Used:
Proxxon Hotwire Cutter Thermocut 
SmoothFoam 2x4x8 Block 
Plaid Folk Art HomeDecor Vintage Victorian Paint
Plaid Folk Art Brushes

The Stamps of Life Coffee4two Stamp set
Versafine Onxy Black ink
Grapevine Wreath
Canvas Letter
Beacon Premium Tacky Glue
Pink Sheer Ribbon 

I drew a light pencil drawing of a coffee cup on the Smoothfoam. Then I cut it out using the Hotwire Cutter.  Still think this machine is the best thing ever made.

I then cut the cup three times. 

I painted each cup using the Plaid Home Decor Paint. I used one coat on each cup.
I then stamped the image on top of the each cup using Versafine Onxy Black Ink. I have to admit that the stamping is super smooth and easy. 

I then added some ribbon to the wreath with a big bow.

I added this wreath in my kitchen above where my new coffee station will be. I will post pictures on Instagram and such when I get it all finished. 

I hope you enjoyed my post today. Have a wonderful day friends.

Larissa Pittman
www,muffinsandlace.com

TV Table Makeover with Proxxon Delta Sander and Plaid Ultra Dye

Hi everyone! Tammy here with you today with a fun way to makeover a simple TV Table into a cute work table. I love to sit and watch TV with my family at night and work in my planner. My TV table that I used to work on needed a little pizzaz, so I used some  Folk Art Ultra Dye Paint by Plaid and my Proxxon  Delta Sander and gave it a makeover. Now I love working at my little table at night. Here is how I did it...

Supplies:
Proxxon  Delta Sander
Folk Art Ultra Dye Paint by Plaid
Folk Art Milk Paint by Plaid
Folk Art Ultra Dye Paint brushes by Plaid
Folk Art Milk Paint brushes by Plaid
Wood top TV table 
Painters tape

Directions:

1. Use the Proxxon Delta Sander to remove any finish from the TV stand

2. Use painters tape to tape off lines for the stain.

3. Use more painters tape to tape lines the other direction and paint stand with Plaid Milk Paint in Pirate Black.

4. Peel off the tape exposing the colored boxes.

5. Flip the stand over and paint with more Plaid Milk Paint in Pirate Black.

6. Seal with Milk Paint Finishing Oil, and that's it!

I love how my tray turned out and I can't wait to use it to work on my planner! I hope this gives you some ideas on how to makeover a piece of furniture in your home with Proxxon tools and Plaid Milk Paint and Plaid Ultra Dye Stains.

Let's be friends!

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Getting Ready for Christmas

Christmas is my favorite holiday, and I enjoy making ornaments and decorations year round. This 3D Christmas tree is my latest holiday decoration.

Several years ago I received a holiday card featuring this swirl Christmas tree. I've always loved the flowing lines of the design, so decided to develop a pattern that I could use to cut a three dimensional tree from wood using my Proxxon scroll saw. 

I used Make-the-Cut software to design the file. You can download a PDF copy of the file so you can create one of these trees, too. I mounted the printed file onto my wood blank using the painters' tape method that I describe here.

A bit of quick sanding using 150 grit sandpaper and the Proxxon Delta sander, and the tree was ready for finishing.

To finish this piece, I coated it with colored resin. Just three tiny specks of dye in the resin give the tree a rich, vivid color.

One step closer to Christmas!! Keep your eye on this blog for more fun Christmas ideas.

Carole

A Thrift Chair Makeover

Hi folks! I wanted to show you a chair that I had picked up at a yard sale that was transformed with the use of my Proxxon sanders and some of Plaids new Milk Paint!

Items used in this project:

Proxxon Delta Sander OZI/E
Proxxon Belt Sander BS/E
Plaid Milk Paint 38916 Lexington Blue
Plaid Milk Paint Brushes
Tack cloth


I started out with this very sad looking chair:

Here's another shot:

Here's a shot of the paint jar on the seat of the chair:

It only took about half the jar to paint the chair.
I started by sanding the chair with both the Delta Sander and the Proxxon Belt Sander. This was mostly to knock off the peeling varnish and the dirty spots on the chair. Once that part was finished I just wiped the chair down with the tack cloth and got started painting. One thing that is very nice about the Milk Paint is that it goes on smooth with the Plaid Brushes.

 I used the Plaid Milk Paint in Lexington Blue as that was one of the paint colors that Plaid was kind enough to give us to try out.

Here are a couple of pics of the process of painting:

And here is the finished project:

The color is beautiful, the paint goes on smooth and the chair looks 100% better in my opinion! Next project will be using some of the New Plaid Dyes on a gourd! I hope you like the way the paint looked, as there are several colors. The Proxxon Sanders made short work of taking care of sanding the chair down and reaching into those hard to reach places. Check out the tools on the Proxxon Tools Website.

Barbara

Basket for Art Supplies

Hi everyone Steph Ackerman here today with another sweet basket that can hold your art supplies.  With school beginning across the country it's time to get everyone organized.  These wood baskets can really help keep you (and your little ones) organized for the year.

I began by sanding the wood basket with the Delta Sander.  I love this sander - it's perfect for all my projects.

 

Next, I used Folk Art Ultra Dye Paint by Plaid  in Red to paint my basket.  This dye is amazing and covered with just one coat.

 

Next  I wanted to add letters to the basket so I used the Delta Sander to distress chipboard letters.  I didn't like the floral letters so by distressing them I was able to use Folk Art Milk Paint by Plaid in Jamestown Blue to paint the letters

To add the letters to  the basket I used the Precision Rotary Tool to drill holes in the letters and the basket.  Then I inserted brads to hold the letters in place.

Fill your supplies and you will always know where they are!

What do you think you'd use the basket for?