Couture Creations 2016 Design Team Introduction - Winter Blues

Hello, I’m Bridget Larsen, 

now living in sunny North Brisbane after having lived in Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney. I am lucky to be the wife of a very supportive husband, Michael and mum to Keira and Emma who are young adults. I was born in Fiji and came to live in Australia in 1983, so I’m almost Australian.

At a very young age I was always dabbling in anything arty/crafty. I have been paper crafting for the past 16 years and scrapbooking and dabbling in other crafts and hobbies like papermaking, cottage crafts, book binding, graphic design and photography during the past 20 years. I grew up in a family of crafty, hands on relatives so it was no surprise that I would continue in that area as a hobbyist which has led me to various jobs in this field.

I initially wanted to learn to craft while I was still young enough to be able to discover and physically attempt everything there was to learn out there so that when I retired I would be familiar and comfortable with designing anything I wanted to. I love all sorts of techniques, mixed media, working with papers and dies and my work usually turns out clean and complicated but adaptable, duplicatable and fun. I love working with photos, incorporating them into cards, books and off the page projects. I also taught and demonstrated at various craft shows and craft groups around Australia and was invited to Seattle, USA to demonstrate and teach at a craft retreat. I was very lucky to be on the inaugural Tim Holtz Crafting Cruise to Alaska in 2009. Along this journey I have met and made lots of lifelong friends.

I love inspiring my friends and relatives and look forward to inspiring the world with my creations.

You will find my creations on my blog http://bridgetlarsen.blogspot.com.au/

It is an honour to be invited to design for Couture Creations for 2016-2017.

My first Couture Creations Design Team post features the Sea Breeze Collection designed by Denise Boddey. A wonderful collection of glorious set of papers, embellishments, die cuts as well as stamps and embossing folders. 

We're truly into winter now in Brisbane so why not decorate a tissue box that will be put to good use. I usually visualize myself in a far away country with sun and sand to keep me warm and the 

Couture Creation Sea Breeze Collection was perfect for this project.

 Prepare an MDF tissue box and lay 12mm double sided tape on all edges. 

Pull out the section on the bottom of the MDF box and lay 6mm double sided tape on the edge 

 Choose your desired sheets from the Sea Breeze Collection Pack of papers and lay over all 5 sides excluding the bottom of the box. Take your scissors and cut into the top of the box where the hole lies and fold back the pieces of paper onto applied double sided tape on inside of the lid.

Take 2 sheets of gauze and apply vintage ink direct from the inkpad 

onto the gauze to give it that vintage worn rusty look.

 Using a hot glue gun, apply glue over opposite sides of the top of the box and lay each piece of gauze on the glue in a scrunched fashion. Add the blue mesh over each piece of gauze and glue down with hot glue.

Apply liquid glue to the diecut ephemera and sprinkle with glitter. Glue the diecut pieces on top of the netting. Glue the white netting between the blue netting on the long side of the box. 

Glue various charms onto the netting and box. 

I am sure when you visualize yourself on a sunny, sand filled beach you will get better real quick.

Products used:
CO724905 - Sea Breeze Collection Pack

Tools and Accessories used: 
CO724733 White Netting
CO724734 Blue Netting
CO724681 Diecut Ephemera 
CO724732 Metal Charm Set
CO721985 6mm Double Sided Tape
12mm Double Sided Tape
Stainless Steel Scissors
CO721957 Self Healing Cutting Mat (15"x15")
CO721971 Glitzin' Glamour Glitter Glue - Crystalina

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