Upcycling with Ruth

I kept this box because it is nice and sturdy. I also like the decorations on the edges and top of the box.

I started by removing the decoration from the top of the box. Than I painted the entire box turquoise, being careful to clean any paint off the corners.

I made the tassel stinging turquoise flat beads and chips, silver beads, a silver star, green seed and bugle beads and a light blue glass bead on .015 bead stringing wire and a silver hoop. There are two holes in the box lid, that is why there are to strands of beads coming out of the top. I attached one side to an earring securing it with a crimp bead. The other side went threw a silver star, then looped around a blue glass bead, then secured with a crimp bead.

Using a sponge I added some dark blue ink and light green ink. I painted the metal silver, I filled the holes in with black ink to give the box an aged feel.

I made simple patterns with copper, light blue and silver acrylic paint. In the center I made swirly patterns with copper paint, then decided I did not like it. So I painted over it with light blue paint. I like the way you can just barely see the patterns under the light blue.

I lived in Tucson Arizona in the 70s, and wanted this box to remind me of my time there. Hippie jewelry and turquoise beads had to be part of the design. Turquoise and copper paint were also a must and silver looks good with turquoise. The patterns are similar to the patterns on Hopi Kachina dolls because I started drawing Kachina dolls when I lived in Tucson. I love my Tucson box, you can make Tucson box or choose colors and beads that bring back memories that you enjoy.

Materials needed

Shoe box

Pages from a magazine or you could use pages from a book

Watercolor crayons

Scrap paper

Yarn

Acrylic paint

Water soluble markers

Pastels

Mod Podge or a ½ glue ½ water solution

Card stock

Blue painters tape

Scissors

Heating tool or hair dryer

I started with a sturdy old shoe box.

I covered the box with pages from an old magazine using a ½ glue ½ water solution. Mod Podge and book pages would also work. I have found old books to use, but I can't make myself pull the pages out. I have endured too many years of parents and teachers telling me to take care of my books. It just seems wrong to me to tear one apart.

I sharpened a few watercolor crayons in a clean pencil sharpener, then I put the shavings in the box. After that I sprayed the shavings with water. It is a technique I had been wanting to try.

The next step would have been to put another page on top and then iron. Being that it was in a box, I put a piece of card stock on top and then heated it with a heating tool.

After that, using a wet brush I covered the watercolor crayons. Orange on the inside of the bottom and green on the inside of the top. In retrospect I think it would have been prettier if I had left it lumpy.

On the outside of the bottom I drew black wavy lines and filled in the spaces with the watercolor crayons.

Years ago, my sister and I were at a park with her three girls. The youngest came up to us limping and started to tell us how her sisters had given her the limp. Before she could finish her story a squirrel ran past, she stopped in mid-sentence and said "look a squirrel". She then, forgetting to limp, ran after the squirrel. So now when I feel like I'm being mistreated, I just think "look a squirrel", and I go on with my life. That's the meaning behind "look a squirrel" on the top of the box.

I drew the squirrel with an ink pen and the butterfly's are ink on top of acrylic. I made the balloons by putting down a round piece of paper I cut out and rubbing a red ink pad on top, then red and white pencil on the inside of the circles. I put red ink on a purple piece of card stock and wrote look a squirrel, thin ripped the words out and glued them to the box.

I decided I did not like the balloons, so I made them into flowers. I cut out circles from painted card stock and glued them over the balloons. I then painted petals around the circles. I painted light blue around the butterflies and squirrel so that they would stand out better. I outlined the wording with white on top and black on the bottom. I cut some violets from stationary paper and glued them over the grass.