Lightbulb Moments!

Hello and welcome my Steampunk friends! For the summer, we are having a two month challenge - that gives all of us plenty of time to create and to play and enjoy everything summer has to offer.  

I came across this metal stand I had in my stash and decided to alter it in a steampunk/industrial theme. I jot down little notes to myself all the time when I am working. Ideas seem to come when I am creating and if I don't write them down, they disappear. So when I saw this, I thought why not after it and keep it handy to store those notes on, rather than digging through piles on my desk? 

I don't know why, but for some reason I had been saving this awesome piece of BoozyBear chipboard, and it was starting to get a little worn. So the AHA moment came when I thought - ideas... like the lightbulb turning on, and this is the time to use it! I glued it down, and also glued gears onto heavy duty magnets.

Next step, cover it all with DecoArt black gesso.

I got this lovely Decoupage paper (Olde Worlde) from DecoArt and Matte Decoupage to try out. I love them both. The paper is so smooth and adheres beautifully and the sealer worked so well with it. When I saw the letter keys, I thought it was perfect for my Notes theme. 

Now comes the fun part for me, and that is adding layers of paint. I wanted the letters to show through and had to rub some of the paint off with a baby wipe and as you can see, I rubbed a bit too hard in one area and took the paper off. Probably because I was impatient and didn't let the decoupage dry completely first. But, you'll see how I hid the problem in a moment.

I chose greens with a bit of gold and yellows - DecoArt Americana Margarita and Reindeer Moss Green, some Festive Green Dazzling Metallic, and Transparent Yellow Iron Oxide Fluid Acrylic.

Spritz it all with Carbon Black Mister, then dripped Green Gold fluid acrylic down before it had completely dried. 

For the magnets, I used the DecoArt Fluid Acrylics, starting with Pyrrole Red, then Payne's Grey, and finally Quinacridone Gold. Final touch - rub on some Copper Kettle Metallic Lustre. 

I highlighted the chipboard with Gold Rush Metallic Lustre to add some shine.

A bit of Q. Gold on the chipboard Noted (Tim Holtz), and my magnetic board is ready to hold my notes.

I'm looking forward to using my Lightbulb Moments board! Time to start digging into my work area to look for all those bits of paper I wrote ideas down on to stick here. 

I hope you'll join us over the summer months in our steampunk/industrial challenge! Have a wonderful and creative summer! 

Thanks to our sponsors who keep the gears turning at SASPC!