Sparkly Boho Mirror DIY

I always see the packages of round mirrors at the craft store, but I never know what to make with them!  Well, I decided to challenge myself and make some funky, sparkly mini mirrors.  They were lightly inspired by Rhoda's apartment on the Mary Tyler Moore show, as are most of my DIY projects!  For these mirrors I pulled out every trick in the book including creating the embellishments with hot glue and surrounding the mini mirrors with glamorous rhinestone cup chain.  Challenge your creativity when you can and see what happens, my fantastic friends, and don't forget to

Make Your Mark!

My colorful trio!

I love how the colors blend into each other!

2 layers of Unicorn SPiT Sparkling will give you some serious glimmer!

Watch how to make them here!

LIST OF EVERYTHING I USED

Walnut Hollow Plaques: https://bit.ly/2wBMFIm My favorite molds: https://amzn.to/2wNM06M Unicorn SPiT & Unicorn SPiT Sparkling: https://amzn.to/2pwP4kq E6000 Plus: https://amzn.to/30GJc4P

Hang them in a cluster!

A terrific way to brighten up any corner!

You're the fairest of them all!

Mini Art Journals DIY - Upcycled Cardboard & Gel Press DIY

My mom has a room in her house with every wall covered in shadow boxes filled with miniatures.  She's been collecting them since she was a little girl and they are fascinating.  I like tiny things, but that particular bug never bit me until I started seeing MINI ART JOURNALS on Pinterest.  Since I love to bind art books AND make art journals I thought, why not give this a try?!  The best part is that I got to use my Gel Press to make all the amazing pages for them in no time.  Working on a larger scale with the Gel Press and then cutting down the pages was a perfect way to get tons of color on the pages without having to start from scratch on each page.  Now I can stuff one in my canvas tote and take it to the coffee shop to work on it with my acrylic markers.  Art On The Go is the BEST, my creative possums!  Now get out there and Make Your Mark! 

THINGS I USED

Gel Press: https://amzn.to/364hn95

DecoArt Paints: https://amzn.to/2PAzk9H

My Amazon Store: https://www.amazon.com/shop/markmontano

3" x 2 1/2  Perfect size for your pocket or purse but you can make them any size you want!

I'm trying my hand at cardboard "rubber" stamps.  Still working out the kinks!

Watch how to make it here!

 Make several at a time.  Color copy your favorite pressed pages for filler!

Happy journaling!

Faux Blown Glass with Cup Spinner

As much as I want to learn how to blow glass, I'll admit it, I'm afraid.  There are classes here in Los Angeles, but I'm just too chicken to sign up.  Instead, I'll squirrel away in my art studio figuring out how to make a version of it with the things I have.  It dawned on me that I could take the tumbler trend and mix it with my bottle cutting obsession and create something blown-glass-ish!  I'm in love, friends. I can't stop making these beautiful vases!  The best part is that it's a perfect project to use with bottles that aren't cut perfectly.  A little dip or crack is covered with resin and the imperfections make this project even better!  Happy crafting, my sweet friends.  

Don't forget to Make Your Mark!

My beautiful faux blown glass vases/pencil cups

LIST OF EVERYTHING I USED:
Unicorn SPiT: https://amzn.to/2pwP4kq
Glaze Coat Resin: https://amzn.to/30GJc4P

My Cup Turner: https://amzn.to/2U7XDyp

MY AMAZON STORE: https://www.amazon.com/shop/markmontano

I love the sprinkle of glitter peeking through!

Watch how to make them here!

  

Make something beautiful!

Upcycled Magazine Art Journals and Stencils

As you may already know, I can't stand tossing things that I know can be turned into something beautiful!  For example, every year I splurge on a fancy home decor magazine from England called The World of Interiors and I have stacks of them going way back.  Because this magazine is printed on thick, yummy paper, in college I would use the old ones for smash books.  Now, I cut them in half and make art journals with them.  So much better than tossing them, right?  You can use Citri-Solve to dissolve the ink on each page OR you can just add some white Americana Acrylic over each page to create a base in which to paint.  Up to you!  Either way, this is an economical way to have tons of art journals for your creative adventures.  Use what you have, my sweet friends, and always

Make Your Mark!

Get the magazines cut in half at Staples with their guillotine machine!

I used a 5" x 7" Gel Press to create my colorful pages!

Make your own stencils with plastic salad lids and a Creative Versa Tool from Walnut Hollow

Watch how I made mine here!

And so the day begins!

Happy journaling!

Sparkly Southwest Jewelry DIY

Do you have belts from 10 years ago just hanging in your closet?  Belts that don't fit or have a funky buckle or that are just a little worn out?  Well don't toss them just yet, you can use them for this fun southwest-inspired-jewelry project!  A little Stylin paint from DecoArt and some flat turquoise stones and you'll have something amazing to wear that you made yourself.  The best part is that you've used something that was eventually going to get tossed.  Dig through your closet for upcoming craft adventures and always Make Your Mark!

I love the sparkly stones mixed with the earthy turquoise!

Save the rest of the belt for other projects!

Put it all together with E6000 Bead & Jewelry Glue!  This stuff is amazing!

Watch how to make them here!

Flat turquoise stones aren't expensive at all!

Sparkly on my friends!

Fun Art Journaling Techniques

Sometimes I'll take hours and hours on an art journal page and other times I like it to be impactful and fast. It depends on how much creative energy I have running through my body!  When I have the need for speed, there are a few techniques I always use and I'm sharing them with you today.  First I glue ripped book pages down with indoor spray adhesive.  Next, I apply color on every page with something that dries quickly like liquid watercolors. It's a great base and it's light enough to build on.  After that it's all about big foam stamps and paint markers.  That's it.  Just a few simple things and you can fill up a journal in no time and have beautiful pages to jot down your amazing thoughts.    Check out the video below to see just how I did it and make sure to check out Discount School Supply, Joggles and Artistro for some of my favorite art journal supplies!  

Now get out there and  Make Your Mark, my creative friends!

 I filled in the circle shapes with acrylic paint

Be fearless with color! 

Watch how I do it here!

 Work on a few journals at a time!

 Huge fan of Joggles Foam Stamps!  Big and BOLD!

Happy Journaling, my thoughtful friends!

Unicorn SPiT Bench DIY

My brother Matt helped me figure out the pattern for this bench a few years ago and I've used it over and over for all kinds of different projects. I even found a way to upholster it!  Today I'm using every color of Unicorn SPiT to stain the lovely pine wood.  I love how the colors blend into each other and create new colors where they meet.  The intensity is just wonderful, too!  Every time I use Unicorn SPiT I learn something new and this bench allowed me to channel my inner maniac and use every color with wild abandon.  Just like a kid does with a new box of crayons.  Let yourself go with color, my creative posse, and don't forget to Make Your Mark!

The perfect little bench for my hidden forest!

Add a serape and you've got home decor gold!

Watch how I made it here!

Have a seat, friend!

Hot Glue Bracelets DIY

I've been hooked on filling silicone molds with hot glue for a while now.  It dries super quick, is stronger than clay, doesn't have the odor of most epoxy resins and it's flexible.  Don't get me wrong, there's a time and place for other silicone mold fillers, but I'm a hot glue loyalist!  Now that I have my huge, high temp glue gun from SUREBONDER, I'm basically filling up every mold in the craft house.  For these bangles, I created a base from a plastic container and then made sure to connect everything so it would be one, solid piece of hot glue all the way around.  Grab a little black base paint and Enchanted iridescent paint from DecoArt and you'll be sure to Make Your Mark!

 Iridescent shimmer created by the new Enchanted paint from DecoArt!

 LINKS to the molds I used HERE

Watch how to make them here!

 Look at that shimmer!

Too good to be glue!

German Glass Glitter DIY

I love the vintage look of glass glitter and that it's not made from plastic.  With this project you can add a little eco-friendly sparkle to your projects with these lovely sprinkles.  Now, they're not as sparkly as other glitters but they do have an amazing look that's just as wonderful.  I used a thrift store coffee grinder to make mine and labeled it for CRAFT USE ONLY to make sure that it's never used for food.  You can grab a new grinder for $12 on Amazon and considering the expense of glass glitter in craft stores, you'll save money after a few uses.  Color them with Marabu Alcohol Inks in your favorite colors and you'll be glitterizing everything you can get your hands on.  One more thing, make sure to let the dust settle IN the grinder for 5 minutes before you open it, ok.  Happy crafting, my sparkly friends, and don't forget to Make Your Mark!

Displayed in my collection of 99c store shakers

Around the rim of a simple glass votive

Watch how to make it here!

Colorize them with Marabu Alcohol Inks in all of your favorite colors!

Happy Glittering!