Birds and Butterflies Under Glass

Part 2 of my Curiosity Cabinet series is here!

I love the Museum of Natural History in NYC.....LOVE IT!  Not only is it suggested donation only, you can easily spend an entire summer day in there escaping from the brutal heat.  Not bad for a buck, right?  I often find myself imagining what it would be like to live in a room filled with the birds, bugs and butterfly specimens.  Something about how they're displayed makes me feel like I'm stepping back in time.  You can easily make your own versions of these displays with simple supplies that you can find anywhere.  Don't feel like forking over the cash for the feather butterflies?  Just print some out on your home computer.  Yup, they look just as good.  Remember, have fun, use your imagination and 

never forget to Make Your Mark!

My tiny version of the Museum of Natural History

Fill glass jars with printed vintage bug images......DONE

Next week we'll tackle how to make a cabinet to house your curiosities

Watch the video tutorial here!

STUFF YOU'LL NEED

E-6000 Glue

Feather and printed butteflies

Glass Jars and vases

Faux flowers

Americana Decor Metallics in Vintage Brass

Faux feather birds and real twigs

Wood disks

Images of butterflies and bugs

 HERE'S HOW

1.  Paint your wood disks with the Vintage Brass Americana Decor Metallics

2. Glue twigs in the center of the disks

3. A simple straight twig for the butterflies and fuller for the birds

*Make sure your glass vases easily fit over the twigs

4.  Paint the twigs with more Vintage Brass

5. & 6.  Glue the faux birds and flowers to the twigs and then glue the mouth of the glass to the base

7.  Glue printed and feather butterflies to the long, straight twigs 

8.  Glue the tall thin vase over the butterfly twig

9.  Print out vintage bugs, place them in upside down glass jars and then glue a large shooter

 marble on top

Create different heights by using candle holders

Faux Bugs In Resin

Curiosity Cabinet Part 1  

A while ago I became obsessed with curiosity cabinets and decided I wanted to make one and then fill it with handmade curiosities.  These faux (plastic) bugs trapped in resin are my first of several projects. I know they're a little creepy but let's face it, not quite as creepy as the REAL bugs trapped in resin.  Poor little guys.  I love that you can paint toy plastic bugs and make them look like rare beetles using DecoArt's Metallic Lustres.  Truth be told, I went a little nuts making these so if you leave me a comment I'll enter you to win one, OK!  Have fun, make messes 

and don't forget to Make Your Mark!

Love the metallic shimmer!

Perfect in my cabinet with my other projects (coming soon)

Watch the video tutorial here

STUFF YOU'LL NEED

Glaze Coat Resin

DecoArt Metallic Lustres

Black Americana Acrylic Paint

*Dries matte so it's the perfect paint for this project

Plastic bugs

Silicone molds

*Got my mini cake molds at the dollar store

Paintbrushes

HERE'S HOW

1. & 2. Paint the bugs in the black Americana Acrylic and let dry

3. & 4. Embellish the bug with DecoArt's Metallic Lustres

*Mix colors like Brilliant Turquoise and Elegant Emerald

5. & 6. Mix a batch of Glaze Coat making sure to follow the instructions to a "T"

7. & 8.  Pour the Glaze Coat into the molds and then pop the air bubbles with a small torch or long arm lighter

9.  Place the bugs in face down, cover the filled molds and let cure overnight

Remember, leave a comment and you're entered to win one of my little treasures!