Sacred Heart Shrine with Kitty

Hello loves!  How is everyone handling the quarantine?  I'm glad NTI homework is finished because Momma has more time to play!!

I have this gorgeous Sacred stencil from the Sacred Hearts Series from Artistcellar that reminds me of the beautiful Mexican Folk Art shrines.  I'm not really religious, but I love the bright colors and skulls so I decided to create my own version in my Dina Wakley Journal.

You will have to forgive me, I wasn't the best about taking pictures during this whole process. I started out by choosing several back to back pages that I could use to create my journal shrine.  I cut off the tops of the first two pages in a triangle design, leaving the last page to print my stencil on.  I created a vignette so that my stencil would show thru when the pages lay on top one another. 

I embellished the front denim 'cover' with paint, stitching, and interesting ribbon.  No rhyme or reason, I didn't have a plan in mind.  I just knew I wanted lots of color and skulls.  The second page was glued to the denim to give it more structure and to cover up the thread.

For the stenciled page, I made sure to mark the opening from the first pages so that I knew where to center my Sacred stencil. I watercolored a soft green background and painted the inside portion of the heart (which I eventually cover up later on!)  I wanted different mediums in each part of the stencil, so I used painter's tape to 'block off' sections as I worked.

I used red glitter paste in the heart and gold crackle in the crown and rays.  I decided to add some gold leaf flakes on the rays while the crackle paste was still wet and GENTLY pressed them down so I wouldn't distort the pattern.  It looked like a hot mess & I had no idea if the flakes would even stick!

After letting the crackle paste dry overnight, I used a stiff paint brush to scrub away the excess flakes. This is a messy step but I love how it turned out!

After adding some final embellishments with stickers, stamps, and microbeads, this baby was done! I think it turned out really cool!

I wish I was a better photographer so I could showcase the sparkly glitter and the sheen from the gold leaf.  Have you attempted a technique that you weren't sure would be successful?  I would love to hear about it, so drop by the Artistcellar FB page and say Hi!

Stay safe (& 6' away!)

Kitty

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