Pam’s DIY Photo Frame | June 2022 Guest Designer

Hello everyone! I hope you are doing well. Today we have invited the lovely Pam Boedeker as our June Guest Designer, and she has TWO projects to share with us! She will be upcycling a photo frame for her main project and the story that Pam is sharing is very interesting. So let's hear it from Pam.

Get to know Pam

My first crafting memory goes way back to about age 8. I had attempted to make a paper mâché tunnel for my brother's toy train. It must have been too humid or the paper mâché consistency too wet. My mother investigated a rancid cheese smell which led her to the garage where my tunnel was found all soggy and moldy. That was to be followed by many many years of fabulous, creative mixed-media experiments; some successful and some not so much.

Now retired in my home studio, I spend hours every day exploring what can be done with paper and all kinds of mediums. The purchase of Altenew's Vintage Roses led me on a fabulous journey with AECP and my cherished Altenew friends around the world. I teach virtual and in-person classes. My projects are posted on my blog pamspaperddiction.com, FaceBook, and Instagram.

Pam's DIY Photo Frame

While sorting through old photographs, I found a school photo of my daughter when she was in sixth grade. I was overwhelmed by the uncanny resemblance to my granddaughter who is now in sixth grade; braces, long dark hair, the shape of their faces, and Grandma Houts’ eyebrows.

I texted the photo to my son-in-law and asked if there was a recent picture of my granddaughter that would show the resemblance. Instead, he and my granddaughter staged a photo with the exact pose, earrings, and hairstyle. (Son-in-law extraordinaire).

At that same time, I was contemplating what I might create for the Altenew Mixed Media Blog.
Inspiration was found at a local antique store. There I found a carved, gold frame that could kind of shabby chic. It even had a fabric mat that had some real potential. Best of all it was 25% off of $4.00! My plan was coming together.

I disassembled the frame. On a background piece, I gold heat embossed the words “daughter” and “granddaughter” from Family Matters. The mat background was then ink-blended with the same colors I would use for the Bountiful Bouquet florals.

Bountiful Bouquet was the new set on my desktop. It was perfect for this project! Because it is a bouquet made up of individual stamps it required only one pass through the die cut machine.
I didn’t have to die cut and arrange lots of individual flowers and leaves. I made 6 bouquets using colors suggested in the Altenew Brochure.

I turned the mat over and cut off any excess pieces of flowers from the mat. The frame was assembled without the glass to avoid photography glare.

Now, my moment of truth. This was to be a gift for my daughter. I love it so much that I want it in my studio to enjoy for a while. On the back, I will write a note to Annie and Bo telling them the story of the project and why I am so blessed to have them in my life.

Project #2

The shipping boxes from Altenew are so pretty I never throw them away. I decided to make them even fancier. (The floral on the boxes just happens to be similar to Bountiful Bouquet). . That set is so easy to work with. Seeing the layers come together is so rewarding I made 9 more images. I glued them to the front flap of the boxes. Wow! They look awesome on my studio shelves!

Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful photo frame and the extra project with us, Pam! There is definitely a very close resemblance between your daughter and granddaughter! We too love those Altenew boxes and can't seem to part with them. We hope you will join us soon on the Altenew Mixed Media Blog to share your wonderful creations!

Everyone, please drop some love for Pam in the comments below. Thank you for reading!

~SUPPLIES~

Family Matters Stamp Set [ ALTN ] Bountiful Bouquet Stamp Set [ ALTN ] Bountiful Bouquet Die [ ALTN ] Bountiful Bouquet Stamp & Die Bundle [ ALTN ]