Silver Vase

More silver leaf. I love the vases that I'm seeing in all the magazines.  I picked up this clear glass vase for a buck from the dollar store, and used few sheets of Aluminum leaf  inside of it, and voila I love the way it turned out!

Vanity Tray Redo

I decided to repurpose this turqoise plastic tray that I used for an "Easter Basket" so long ago.  Since I'm into the silver finishes, I decided I would try my hand at gilding.  I had help my dad Gold leaf a large floor to ceiling mirror when I was a young girl, and remember it to be a tedious yet very rewarding process.  As much as I love silver, I decided to use Aluminum leaf, because it never tarnishes, and the finish is a little brighter, which works great when you want to tone it down with a little raw umber & black glaze. 

 Here is what I did. I put the sizing liquid on it, and let it set up for 12hrs.

From everything I read, I knew it was a messy project. So I got a garbage bag and cut it open, and began.  As  you can see the silver/Aluminum is very thin

I bought a book of 500 sheets. They actually go quite far, i only used the first pack (25sheets per pack) to do the entire tray and still had 5 sheets left in the pack.

Carefully layout each piece onto the already sized surface. You can smooth out with a paint brush, or use your hands. I like to use my fingers as I felt like I had more control.  My surface had small edges, handle cutouts, and lip where the plastic went in and out, using my fingers I was able to use more of the leafing in these areas without wasting it.  I used a brush at the end to smooth the areas.

Here is the finished result.

I love it!

Lipstick - How to make your own shades & use up old lipstick

Have too many lipsticks and want a better option to carry them around? Did you know that you can buy empty lipstick palette trays, & you can make your own at home.

All you need is:

1. Your favorite lip balms or lipsticks & a palette with however many wells you would like.                (you can find some great empty palettes at Target, Sally Beauty Supply) 
2. 1 teaspoon stainless steel measuring spoon Note: You can also use a medicine cup that comes with kids medicine.
   Nuke it in the microwave for 20seconds, and then pour into the palette. 
3. floss and flame

The first step is to take the product you’ll be adding to the palette and use floss to slice through it as shown. Be sure to not do all the product at once or it may overflow when it melts. After slicing the product, place it into the stainless steel measuring spoon.

It will soon look like this. Stir the mixture using a coffee stirrer. This isn’t necessary for lip balm, but for lipstick it is recommended. This keeps the shimmer (if applicable to your product) even throughout the mixture. Otherwise it may sink to the bottom of the measuring spoon.

Your final product will look like this. Do not disturb it while it solidifies. You will need to repeat this process with each item you add to your palette.

  

Name your new lipstick shades!

In addition to a palette, this would be a fun way to store it in weekly pill dispensers with 7 small wells... How fun to have a lipstick for every day of the week!

Use your lipstick to the max by ensuring you consume every last smudge of color

1. When your lipstick runs low, scrape out the tube and put leftover lipstick in a small container with Vaseline to create a tinted lip gloss. Add honey or vanilla for a natural and appealing fragrance! 
2. Scrape out several old lipstick tubes and mix them for your own custom color. 
3. When lipstick accidentally melts in the car or the sun, place in the freezer for a few minutes instead of throwing it away and it will reform. 
4. Get creative. Use a few of the ends of your favorite shade & create one whole new one, OR try taking a few different shades and make brand new shade. Once you get started you'll find its pretty fun, to take something you had a hard time using and turn it into a brand new favorite lipstick!