Up-cycling Project!

I bought an A5 display book at the weekend to store my finished cards in - they've been getting a bit "distressed" in the plastic tray I usually use. Of course I wanted to decorate it and here it is finished. I'd seen a great tutorial video here on the Ranger website for a grunge paper butterfly brooch - I don't have any bendy grunge paper but I had the idea that the roll inside paper towels is bendy too and maybe that would work. It did! That's what the blue butterfly is made from. As shown in the video I dabbed on acrylic paint, embossed in my Cuttlebug, sanded the surface, sponged on Distress Ink and then wiped it off, leaving ink on just the sanded pattern.

I wanted to continue the up-cycling theme, so I used some saved brown wrapping paper to stamp on and tomato paste tubes for the gold butterfly and flowers. I've been saving tomato paste tubes for years and have used them for Christmas decorations, mobiles, etc but only recently found how fabulous it looks die cut and embossed. I've been able to cut the metal with dies in my Cuttlebug and with paper punches - works nicely with both. As an added bonus I think it may even help to sharpen paper punches - I've read kitchen foil does. To get this gorgeous golden metal, all I do is cut off the top and bottom of the empty tube with scissors and then carefully slide in a kitchen knife to cut down the side and open the metal out. A quick wash and smoothing with something like a bone folder or the body of a large marker pen and you're ready to go.