Collage details

I promised some details about the collage and I figured I'd better put them up now before it heads out to Idaho. My sister said she wanted it. That really makes me feel good. She's kind of fancy compared to me. I wasn't sure it would fit her decor.

The tray is old, something my husband picked up for cheap at an auction. I gave him big kisses for that find. What a guy! I used cardboard from my Wii Fit box as the backing. I painted it with Molten Metals in Gold. Using a satin decoupage glue, I glued tea dyed lace on the cardboard, making sure to cover it well with the glue so it would be completely connected to the cardboard. I got all the pictures from a Dover publication (at least I think). I picked all sister pictures because they meant something to me.

I used old jewelry I got at another auction. Can you tell what my new hobby is? Auctions are such a great place to get old stuff that you can use in art, and then that stuff doesn't go to the landfill and you save lots of money. The necklace has beautiful grey pearl(ish) beads. I grabbed a pair of earrings and ripped the backs off (clip ons, ouch!). There is a faux pearl necklace framing one of the pictures. The spoon was painted with Metallic Mixatives in gold, Adirondack alcohol ink. And that pretty little doodad on the front of the spoon is also a clip on earring with the back ripped off.

I love the little bird on the front. I stole it from my four year old. I had to promise I'd get him another one to paint. This one was covered in thick kid's paints, so I just covered it up with Molten Metals in bronze, then gold, then added some dark brown accents (Liquitex Basics). I glued it all down with either fiber paste or decoupage glue. Now it's wrapped in bubble wrap and ready to go on an airplane with my mom to Idaho. I have an old mirror and an old picture frame that I need to get started on.