Kid's stuff

The challenge this month at Tando Creative is to "Alter it". Now I'm in the camp that says to be really altered, something must be changed beyond its original use rather than just decorated in a certain style. Others are in the other camp and that's fine!

I started with a child's board book picked up for 30p in a charity shop. I'm not sure I would have given it to a child (a bit too much evidence of its previous owner's snacking habits!) but it was ripe for a bit of cutting and sticking.

The pages are covered with scrunched tissue paper and then painted with acrylic paint for a textured, leathery sort of effect.

On the front, I've added a bookplate with a stamped sentiment (Time to Stamp was one of my very first purchases from Cornish Heritage Farms way back when so I'm delighted that it's formed part of the first release now that CHF has new owners).

I painted the bookplate with gold acyrlic, beat it up with an embossing stylus and added a tiny bit of brown paint for the textured look.

The little stud on the right of the plate is actually the book closure - a Sam Browne stud (that's a hitch fastener if you're in the world of Tim Holtz but a whole lot cheaper if you're in the land of leather supplies).

 I cut a niche by removing the centre of most of the pages and sticking them together. Versamark dabbed through a mask and brushed with copper and bronze Perfect Pearls adds some pattern over the scrunched tissue paper texture.

I added sketchy circles with gesso on the inner page to suggest a clock face and added the ornate chipboard hands, painted with gold acrylic. They're positioned so that the thick bit where they are stacked on top of each other goes inside the niche when the book is closed.

Inside the niche I've sponged over a clock mask, added a stamped sentiment and a "rusty" chipboard key (coloured with a copper Krylon leafing pen and then given a coat of Vintage Photo Distress embossing powder).

A bit different for me but I had fun doing it and it's certainly not going to be used by a child to learn about colours and shapes so it fits my altered requirements!

Supplies:
Board book
Keys grab bag, Clock hands, Bookplate, Bamboo mask  (all Tando Creative)
Time to Stamp and Key Expressions stamp sets (Cornish Heritage Farms)
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Vintage Photo)
Versafine by Tsukineko (Onyx Black) 
Versamark by Tsukineko
Acrylic paint (Dark Umber and Gold)
Gesso
Perfect Pearls (Copper and Bronze)
Distress Embossing Powder (Vintage Photo)
Krylon leafing pen (Copper)
Timeworks mask
Tissue paper
Lace
Paper roses (Wild Orchid Crafts)
Sam Browne stud
Crop-a-Dile

Thanks for stopping by! As ever, we'd love to have you play along with the challenge and be in with a chance of picking out some lovely Tando goodies as a prize package if your name comes out of the hat at the end of the month! Details here: Alter it