Thursday, September 30

GOTHIC VINTAGE WELCOME BOARD...

Greetings, dear readers!

As I continue to deck the Halloween Halls , I thought I'd continue to share with you the "how to" part of my handmade decorations. This is a Gothic Vintage Welcome Board:





I used a brown paper bag, flattened and folded in half, and freehanded a pattern for the foam board.



I then laid the pattern on the foamboard and cut around outside edge. At the same time, I used the brown paper pattern to cut out my paper for the background of my sign. I used 12 x 12 papers for each half of the sign, to keep piecing to a minimum (the total overall dimensions of the board are 16x8 inches)I used black and white Valentines Day papers for the background...the words were lovely and the black and white made this an "anytime" kind of decoration!



I glued the background papers to the foamboard, with a Uhu Gluestick. Use a bone folder to adhere and remove any air bubble or wrinkles. I used regular white craft glue to create dots (about 1" wide) and then sprinkled irridescent glitter over the glue. Let dry.

Meanwhile: Select a vintage photo for the center of the sign...I chose a round image but you could as easily use a square or rectangle. I printed out the image in grayscale, so the image would coordinate with the black and white papers. If you choose browns or earth tone papers, use a sepia setting for the photo! Glue in place...(just eyeball what looks to be the center of the sign).



Then I took a charcoal pencil and scratched, etched and scribbled around the edge of the white paper...to "frame" and separate better the white from the background. I used tiny stickers to spell out "WELCOME" and stuck them under the photo image.

I used vintage bias tape (black) to trim around the edges of the sign (using hot glue) and to make a hanger for the top. I then hot glued several pieces of old lace at the bottom, and added an old brooch (the dragonfly was my mom's).



Finally, the pièce de résistance, find a FABULOUSLY colored silk or paper flower and add it to the top of the signboard.



Voila! A beautiful and festive greeting to add to your door, a window, a wall, just about anywhere!



Easy Peasy! Talk to you again soon!
Paula Clare

8 comments:

Cheryl said...

This is fabulous!!

Home and Heart said...

L-O-V-E it!!!!

BucksCountyFolkArt said...

Hi Paula!

So nice of you to drop by.

I found 3 blow-molds on Ebay, being sold as a lot. They tend to be expensive, but I've seen deals.

Also, I found 2 at a Sr. Citizens Center for 25 cents each! Now THAT was a score! I keep them outside though because the previous owner filled the bottoms with rocks. Don't ask me why! But, they look good on a little haystack outside our door. : )

Keep looking. The thrill is in the hunt!

Jill

ps Your work is spootakular!

Celestial Charms said...

How sweet is that! Thanks for sharing with us.
Maureen

Paula Clare said...

Hi Ladies! Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to comment! If any of you happen to create your own version of a Gothic Welcome Sign, DO let us in on it! I just LOVE to see how people "personalize" their crafts!

Unknown said...

Hi Paula, This is just beautiful! Do you actually use the paper bag, or only use it as the template? This is an easy project but looks so elegant! By the way.... I can overnight Nala by FedEx! ANYTIME! Have a great weekend! E

Nan said...

How clever of you and thank for sharing your directions.

NanE said...

Paula, FAB as always! How do you cut your foam board? Your edges are so straight and smooth! I always struggled with this until a found a hot knife. Looks and works like a woodburner but has an xacto blade on the end. Cuts through foam core like butter but I don't think my edges are still has nice as yours! Have a beautiful Sunday, xxoo Nan
ps: Don't forget to stop by my blog to get your St. Francis image!