GARDEN LOVER STUDIO

This is a kit/wkshop from Judi Hamilton of Colorado. It was a lot of fun and easy to complete. Took me about one day to complete. Everything you see was included except for the flowers you see (the blue flowers on the potting bench was made by Judi---I just had to glue in place).

Left side of box. The hanging flower bouquets are PRESERVED German Statice that I preserved myself. The planter of flowers I bought yrs ago. I added the watering can from my stash. The sunflowers and poppies I made.

I "painted" the birdhouse with Sharpie pens. I painted the teacup with a toothpick.

You can also "age" paper with print using a wood stain. It gives a similar effect to soaking the paper in tea, without the mess of making tea. I was surprised that the stain did not wipe of the print.

Right side view. I "painted" the handles of the gardening tools with Sharpie pens.

To "age" the furniture, I wiped on gel wood stain and lightly wiped off the excess. After painting the wood furniture, I sanded with 400 grit sandpaper. Sanding blends the paint surface, smooths the wood, and lightly takes off the paint on edges and surfaces that gives the effect of worn, aged furniture. It also saves a lot of time painting multiple coats.

Best part of this project--it closes up and prevents dust! I added a grosgrain ribbon so I could hang the box. The holes were made with a hand held push drill. Being cardboard, the push drill had no problem making a smooth clean hole. You thread the ribbon through the hole and make a knot at the end and repeat for the second hole.

This was originally a decorative box that held notecards and envelopes. Makes for a great smaller 1" scale roombox with some creativity. Size of box---5 3/4 square, 2 1/4 deep.