After I’ve spent a month or two designing with beads and writing tutorials or having been immersed in resin and/or polymer clay or metal work, I need to step back and let my “inner child” emerge. That usually means getting out paper, crayons, inks, embossing powders, markers, stencils, and stamping supplies to create collage art. Playing with these materials is a refreshing change of pace. While I love the structure of geometric beading, working with paper craft materials unleashes a freedom to create a tiny world of images juxtaposed against text and script using an array of colors. These finished works just make me smile! It is also a great way to up-cycle boxes and containers that might otherwise be discarded…I’d much rather bestow new life on them!
Pictured here are two small round boxes that once housed bottles of perfume. Their original deep yellow color is shown at left on the unaltered lid in the forefront. Obviously, the collaged boxes are far more interesting and also the perfect size for holding pens and pencils or my collection of Distress Crayons. It’s truly fun to abandon my adult self temporarily and play like a kid!