Keys ATC

I've been swapping ATCs for about two years now with my friends on The Crop Room but I don't often blog about them. Today I had to make seven with the theme "door". My mind went from door to welcome mat, to key under the mat, to just key so this is what I ended up with in the end. I love the result and got to try several techniques I haven't used before.

Here are the products I started with. (I realised after I had already put them away, that I forgot to include the crackle medium, Kaisercraft key stamp, Cheery Lynn Heartland America heart die and black Stazon Ink in the picture.)  

I started by making the keys. I painted the chipboard with black acrylic paint and as soon as it was dry I painted on some crackle medium. While they were drying I made the ATC bases. I cut up some leftover book board/light chipboard that I had used to organise my cutting dies. I inked them with the three colours of Distress inks, then splashed some water on them. I dried the water marks with a heat gun, then using the Stazon ink I stamped the keys background stamp on and then the bases were finished.

By this time the keys were dry and I put some of the bronze versamark ink on them, wiped a bit off, then stamped some more on.

For the extra embellishment I cut up some leftover pieces of kraft cardstock with the heart die, but only the circle "flower" parts in the top of the die. I inked them with a little bit of the fired brick red distress ink and then put a bit of the bronze Versamark ink over top of that.

I tied the jute bows and attached them into the holes at the top of each key with some red liner tape. I then put the cards together. As there were only four of each design of key in the pack, the keys face different directions so the ATC's aren't exactly the same, but then I guess multiple handmade things never are.

I'm very pleased with the final result and I'd love to hear what you think.

Till next time, happy days.

Francine