Mason Jar Mixed Media Decor

Happy Monday creative crafters! I've been having so much fun getting inspired to decorate mason jars, I thought I would share with you a few different techniques you can use to spruce up any jar or even vase or glass bowl! Today's project is mixed media! And all the supplies used can be found at any local House Mart Ben Franklin craft store!

Supplies:
vinyl
scissors
Montana Spray Paint in 2 different shades of pink
black oil based marker
black puffy paint / black BoBunny Perler pen

First, I cut out an oval from the vinyl sheet (contact paper) and placed it on the glass. Then I spray painted the whole thing in both colors of pink using the Montana brand.
Once the paint was dry, I peeled off the vinyl, outlined the oval with the black oil based marker, and squeezed out little dots around it using the puffy paint / BoBunny Perler pen!

Supplies:
crepe paper
matte Mod Podge
brush
holiday ribbon / red burlap ribbon
hot glue gun / hot glue sticks
Snow Tex textured paste
Holiday themed wood slice 

First coat entire surface with Mod Podge using your brush and wrap your crepe paper all the way around. I added an extra coat of Mod Podge on the outer surface to seal the paper and make it more translucent. Once dry (maybe 2 hours) hot glue your choice of holiday ribbon around the outside and hot glue your wood slice as your finishing touch (I used it to hide the ribbon ends.) Then I used a brush and Snow Tex paste to add more texture around the top of the jar. I even applied a little to the top of the wood slice and the top edges of the ribbons! This will take several hours to dry but it is oh so cute!

Supplies:
dark spray paint (I used dark purple)
Ceramcoat acrylic paint in the color lavender  
brush
Ceramcoat Crackle clear gel 

First paint the entire outer surface with the dark spray paint. Allow to fully dry, and then using your brush, apply the crackle gel to the entire outer surface with a generous coat and set aside to dry until tacky for 10-15 minutes. Then with a clean brush, "lay" strokes of lavender acrylic paint over the clear gel layer. As the paint dries, it will start to crackle! The thicker the paint strokes the wider the cracks! Be sure to only paint in one direction so your cracks will match each other.

Supplies:
sand colored stone spray
vinyl alphabet stickers
Design Master or Montana blue spray paint 

This process is very similar to the first process! Place your stickers on the glass, and then spray with first blue, and then your sandy stone spray! Because I sprayed the stone spray really really thickly, it had to dry for a few hours before I could remove the stickers without ripping or smudging. But how cool right? What a cute place to put your found seashells!

Supplies:
BoBunny Perler Pens in multiple colors 

This process uses minimal supplies, but definitely takes the most focus and patience! I started at the very top with dots, and then every third dot made a teardrop. Then every other teardrop I made a half circle. Use your shapes as a guide as well as a design! Keep building and adding detail. This process also takes about 1-2 hours to fully dry. 


So those are just a few mason jar ideas you can play and experiment with. Have fun and happy crafting!!

Bethany @EnchantedLake

Crackle Apothecary Bottles!

Hi everyone!
I hope you guys have been having a great summer! I know it feels so soon, but I've already been getting into the swing of fall! It will be here before we know it! Plus I love fall crafts, so I'm actually pretty excited about this change of pace. Today's craft is apothecary jars! Ben Franklin just got in some more really cute bottles and jars, and I wanted to really transform them into aged and crackled ingredient bottles!

Supplies: 
3 glass bottles of assorted sizes
spray paint in black, and gold
crackle gel
paint brush
acrylic paints in gray, charcoal, and gecko green
jute
black cardstock
white pen
hole punch
scissors
optional: gloss sealer spray (to keep them from chipping)


First, you'll need to wipe down your bottles. Then spray one by one with your black and gold. Let sit to dry for 15-30 mins.

Once they are dry to the touch, using your brush, apply a generous coat of the clear crackle gel to the entire visible surface of your bottle. (There's no real need to do the bottom.)

 

Next, wait about 5 minutes for the gel to dry enough to feel "tacky" instead of "wet". 
Then will a clean brush, one color at a time, lay strokes of paint over the gel. Be careful to not mix the gel and top layer of paint. The key is to lay the paint right on top. The thicker your paint, the thicker the cracks will become. The thinner the paint, the smaller and finer the cracks will become. It's perfectly fine to have a mixture of thicknesses! I think it adds more dimension and variety to the crackle. After all, when things age, they don't age and wear down in exactly the same way in all places!

The direction of your strokes also really matters. You want to stay consistent and brush in all the same angles:
-all up and down
-all side to side
This technique will create an organized look about your piece. Like wood grain. 

 You can really tell in the paint stroke direction in this picture! The green bottle I went up and down, and the gray one I went side to side. Also the gray one had thicker paint strokes, so you can really see the cracks more visibly!

For the tags, I cut out squares from black card stock, hole punched the tops, and hand wrote the creepy crawly ingredients! I also drew a white border around the edges of the paper, and then I tied them on with Jute!

Have fun with your crackle paint!
It's available at any local House Mart Ben Franklin.
Happy crafting!

Bethany @Enchanted Lake