Handmade Jewelry box

For this jewelry box, I started with a box that was packaging for something that came in the mail. I measured the depth of the box, and then used that measurement for a grid I drew on top of the box.

I cut out the center square, and then cut diagonally at the corners. I then folded the remaining cardboard into the box and glued it in place using tacky glue. I then cut out a piece of cardboard to fit in the bottom of the box.  I ripped pages out of an old phone book, and glued them to the box using Mod podge. I did this to reinforce the box and hold all the pieces in place. After the glue dried I painted the entire box with gesso.

I have a lot of paper towels and baby wipes that I have used for soaking up paint in projects that use watered down paint. I save them because they are pretty and strong enough for collage.

I covered the inside and outside of the box with the colored paper towels.

I cut out a piece of canvas board with an exacto knife to use as the lid. I cut it to be a little bit lager then the opening of the box. I covered most of the board with the colored paper towels.

I cut a smaller piece of canvas board to go on top of the lid. I covered the board gesso, and then painted it green.

I painted watered down red paint over the green, then dripped alcohol onto the paint. After the paint dried added some shading. For more information on this technique check out acrylics & alcohol painting. 

I glued the painting on top of the lid using tacky glue.

  I pushed green plastic thumbtacks into the corners of the bottom of the box, and then glued them into place.

I like how the box turned out, so colorful.

Blue and orange collage, stationery box

I recycled a box similar to this one already; Upcycled steak box, becomes a stationery box.  You can check it out, if you would like to see how I made the box. To decorate this box I took a painting I made with glue and watercolor and made a collage for the outside of the box. If you would like to see how I made the painting check out Watercolor and glue 

 I painted the inside of the box with acrylics, then glued pieces of parchment paper I had drawn on to the box, and then I added shading and shadows on and around the paper.

 

I might go back sometime and add a quote or something to the inside of the box to tone it down a little bit. But for now, I think I’ll keep it like it is.

Recycled box with stained glass lid

I liked this box because it was already reinforced and sturdy enough for a heavy lid.

I cut off all the parts I did not need, next I covered what was left in sketchbook paper using Mod podge.

I constructed a side panel out of heavy cardboard to match the rest of the box. I attached the new side panel using Mod podge and sketchbook paper. I then painted the entire box with gesso.  Using Mod podge I lined the inside of the box with heavy-duty paper towels that were colored purple with watercolor paint. I covered the outside of the box with a napkin I kept from a church event. The colors were so pretty; I knew I could use it for something.

I had a watercolor painting that I had painted that I liked, but I felt like the composition was lacking. So I tore strips of the painting to go across the bottom of the box.

I added more shadowing to the balls on the painting and colored the edge of the paper with dark blue.

I cut a piece of blue stained glass to use as the lid. I do not have to be glass; chipboard, heavy cardboard or Plexiglas would work. I put copper foil on the edges of the glass then added solder. I put copper patina on the solder to turn it from silver to copper. I then glued for flat bottom marbles on the corners of the glass to keep the lid in place. I added three flat bottom marbles to the top of the lid for decoration.

I love how the box turned out. If you would like me to give more detail on any of the steps I took, please let me know.

Recycled tissue box

Now that it is allergy season, some of us have plenty of Kleenex boxes around. I decided I would see how much work it would be to make a box out of the empty Kleenex box. I started with a pretty box with butterflies on it. I painted some of the box with gesso. I allowed part of the pattern to show.

I reinforced the box with cardboard from a cereal box.

 

Using mod podge I glued some paper I painted with blue acrylic paint to the inside of the box.

Using tacky glue, I glued a piece of ribbon around the top of the box to cover the ragged edge.

I made a lid to fit the box out of heavy cardboard. I glued phone book pages to both inside and outside of the lid to keep everything in place.

I then painted inside and outside with gesso.

I painted patterns on the lid to match the patterns on the box.

I cut out strips and panels of the blue paper and glued them to the lid and to the box using mod podge. I filled in the white spaces with patterns I made with markers and gel pens.

I think the box is pretty and not a bad project, if you don’t mind spending some time on it.

Recycled cereal box

I liked my box I made for my calendar project so much, I decided to make one to hold pre-cut watercolor paper and my notebooks I draw my zentangle patterns in.

I cut off half of the sides of the box, and then used what I cut off to reinforce the sides. Then I folded the front and back into the box, and glued it in place to reinforce the front and back of the box.

Using tacky glue, I glued paper I had painted unto the box.

I then glued circles and strips onto the paper.

I added patterns, lines and circles to give it a doodle art look. Then I added shading, shadow and highlights. I brushed gloss gel medium onto the circles to give them a shinny orb look.  I am very happy with how the box turned out.