Monday, August 10, 2015

Red Mixed Media House Tutorial

Hello friends! I hope you had a good weekend! We just returned from a very nice visit at my parents. The weather was great and we did a lot of fun activities. It is Monday and a new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge is up, Homegrown Summer: 'So many things have grown in the Summer. Inspiration can be found in backyard gardens and jars of freshly canned veggies or maybe children who have grown like weeds. Or an idea that's just taken root.' Lots of possibilities. 

I was thinking of the process of turning a house into a home, and made a funny tall red house inspired by that theme. When you move into a new place, it can take a while to turn it into a home, and into a place where you feel at home. I could move right into this house. Hero Arts blank DIY Wood Blocks are so fun and I knew I wanted to use them to build a house. You can use these blocks for all kinds of fun things, and they are also great if you want to mount cling stamps on wood. Anton built a train with the blocks, I will share it as soon as he has painted it. The blocks come in three sizes, and I used all three here. This is a little tutorial. 

 Start by coating the blocks with gesso.

 When dry, paint with Aged Mahogany and leave to dry.

 Paint again with Barn Door, in an uneven stripy fashion, to imitate wood.

 When the paint is dry, sand the blocks, concentrating on the edges.

Stamp with Hero Art's lovely woodgrain background stamp. It gives a subtle look when stamped with Red Geranium. If you want bolder woodgrain, use a darker ink, such as black or brown. Did you know that I love wood grain stamps? I have a hard time not to get such a stamp when I see it.

I wanted the edges a little whiter and used white paint.

The windows were done with the Irregular Checkerboard stencil and Texture Paste. I also gave the house a number with a Hero Arts number stencil. Apply the paste with a palette knife through the stencil.

When the paste was dry, I painted a window with black and white paint. Since the Irregular Checkerboard stencil gave irregular looking windows, I didn't need to worry about keeping it straight when painting.

The house was embellished with stamping and wood veneer shapes - a family of four birds.

The number was also painted white, so that it would fit in with the windows. I used alphabet stamps for some of the words.

A baby bird and a bigger brother.

The door was done in the same way as the windows, but I used masking tape instead of a stencil when applying the paste.

And the bike parked outside the house is mine, or maybe Anton's.

I glued the blocks together and the house stands steadily, partly due to the extra block at the front.

I hope you will have time to join us this week, and if you do, it might be you who wins a $50 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp, drawn randomly.

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

Happy crafting!!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:





20 comments:

  1. Ohhhhhhh - ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh - heheheheheh - soooooooo ADORABLE Anna-Karin. LOVE LOVE LOVE. Love the reds and the woodgrain stamp.... the birds and the little bicycle just made it perfect. Sooooooooooooo fun. SMILING BIG. j.

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    1. Thank you so much!! I love the birds and bicycle too.

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  2. Fabulous quirky house! I just love those wood blocks, they are so perfect for your project. I love the colour, the woodgrain, the style - everything! Anne x

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    1. Thank you Anne! I was so happy to find those wood blocks.

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  3. What a sweet house that you assembled from wood blocks! Very primitive and beautiful!

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  4. Love your primitive house Anna-Karin and what a great idea. Love the aged edges and touches of white too. I could live here too. Tracy x

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  5. I love the thought and detail you put into this, Anna-Karin! Adorable home decor!

    *mwah*
    Steph
    Simon Says Stamp!

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  6. What a fabulous home you have made ! Anna- Karin A wonderful idea and love that you have given it a character of its own with its quirky features. Love the paint effects you have created and I share your love of woodgrain . Great choice of wooden embellishments and so lovely that you kept them natural . thankyou for sharing such an inspirational project x

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  7. That is adorably fun and cute! Very inspirational! :D

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  8. This is such a great piece! Love how you used the blocks to build your house, and the deep reds are awesome! The birds and bicycle add wonderful detail to your project.

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  9. Such a cute little house! I love this project, and the words you added to the blocks are just perfect.

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  10. Your creativity is endless! Love every little detail and your idea!! Barbara

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  11. LOVE LOVE LOVE your block houses and so enjoyed seeing the process. Thanks for sharing such a cool project!

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  12. Oh this is so cool! Anna-Karin. Love your great creativity! :)

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  13. These are wonderful Anna-Karin and such a unique idea! I absolutely love every little detail and love all the details! :)

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  14. Such a cool idea! Love the little red wooden house! The wood veneer pieces are such a great touch! Hugs, Sandra

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  15. This is such a clever project and I have to give you huge kudos for creating such a brilliant texture here! I also think it's a wonderful concept to build a house that can get bigger and bigger. That's what life is about: expanding our circles and sharing happy memories!

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  16. I love the rustic look of this - such a delightful project.
    Alison xx

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  17. Amazing such a nice concept. I like those red wood blocks and your Home Plans.

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Thank you so much for leaving a comment! Happy Crafting!