Wow, can you believe it, the final post about the Happiness Project before the new year and the kick off of filling it full of happiness. I really am so excited to get to work on it! I have had so many ideas for cards in my head already. Since my project doesn't begin until New Year's Day, I have resisted the urge to make any cards for it.
I have to say that I am so touched by all of the comments and emails I have received about this project. I have heard from several people who are so inspired by it that they plan to do their own Happiness Project too! I love sharing what I do and my greatest hope in sharing my creations is to hopefully inspire some creativity for my readers. I already knew that this project was a great idea and something I really needed to do for myself, but to hear from so many of you that it touched and inspired you to do the same really has been a very moving thing for me. I love that many of us will be sharing this journey of finding "Happiness in the Everyday" together.
Okay, so now for a few details about the last part of the project, the drawer itself. I tried to find a photo online of the drawer empty to show you what they look like in case you haven't seen them, but couldn't find one. They come in a dark wood finish. It is a really attractive piece. I really wanted to change mine up a bit so I decoupaged patterned paper onto.
I cut a pieces to fit the inside bottom and sides. I used Claudine Hellmuth's Studio Multi Medium as my decoupage glue. I applied the medium to both the wood and the backs of the paper pieces. If I am going to wrap my paper around any edges, I like to add the medium to the paper and allow it to sit for a few moments to soak in and soften the paper a bit. On my drawer, I wrapped the paper from the inside sides up and over the top edge and down the sides so it was really helpful for the paper to have the medium soaked in a bit.
Once the paper and medium was dry, I went back and sanded each edge to distress them. I sanded in several places until the wood showed through. This gives the illusion that each side piece has been individually cut and placed rather than applied in larger pieces like I actually did. I added distress ink to each edge as well.
I found the phrase "All My Happiness" on a journal card. I cut it to fit the indented area of the drawer handle. I inked the edges and then adhered it with Super Tape. I added Clear Rock Candy Distress Crackle Paint over the paper to give it a more vintagey look.
So there it is, the last piece of the "bones" of the Happiness project. The next step for my project is to find a little happiness and make some art about it. Since it is a year long project I will be sharing those cards randomly through the year as I create them.
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