Hello, crafty friends! We have some brilliant inspiration for you from none other than the amazingly talented Bridget Casey, our October Guest Designer. Today, she will share a couple of DIY wood coasters with us! But first, let's hear it from Bridget.
Get to know Bridget
Greetings from Maine, everyone! I’m Bridget Casey. I am a widow to my wonderful husband, Sean, mom to my inspiring son, Ryan, and two furry little kids – Oreo and Emery.
I have been crafting for 20+ years since I began a scrapbook for my son – which is still not finished! I started my Altenew Educator Journey at the beginning of 2020. I completed my certificate in November 2020, which has been a fantastic whirlwind. I frequently teach workshops, and YouTube/Facebook lives with Altenew. I also moderate and host virtual workshops with Altenew.
I am beyond honored to be a repeat guest designer for various blog/Instagram hops and releases.
I'd love for you to check out my blog, Instagram and YouTube!
Bridget's Wood Coasters
Hello, everyone! Today I am excited to share a project with you to create two wood blank projects. I plan to use mine as coasters. Birch trees hold an extraordinary place in my heart as a Native American. Plus, they were my father’s favorite trees!
I used the beautiful Birch Impressionism Stamp Set and Rock Collection family of ink pads. On the first wood blank, I began with the top birch tree of the stamp set. Take note that there are two gorgeous different trees in this one set!
I stamped with Limestone, Silver Stone, Industrial Diamond, and Pure Graphite. I intended to stamp two trees, one with the top of the stamp and one with the bottom. However, plans rarely go as you intended!
The great thing about this stamp set, though, is how forgiving it is. My trees were perfect, even though I may not have stamped precisely where I should have. The dye inks worked miraculously on these wood blanks – there was no stippling or spreading of the ink.
For my sentiment, I used Obsidian Pigment Ink. Again, there was no stippling or spreading – the crispness that Obsidian is known for showed through. I was excited about how nicely the “you & me” fit over my trees!
For the second wood blank, I used the bottom tree of the stamp set. Best laid plans…I messed up on how I stamped the inks on this one.
I began with Limestone and inadvertently skipped over Silver Stone and grabbed Industrial Diamond. As I was stamping, I was trying to create a Plan B!
Ultimately, I decided to continue using Pure Graphite for layer three and Obsidian Pigment Ink for the layer four image. Again I used the sentiment, but I opted to put the sentiment off to the right of the trees.
To finish my project, I treated both wood blanks with a matte sealing spray. I will add a few more coats before I start using these.All in all, I hope this project inspires you to look at wood blanks in a new way!
Watch the process video on YouTube.
Thank you so much, Bridget, for the beautiful inspiration! We see those wood blanks with fresh eyes now! You have completely changed how we see things; DIY everything – stamp, stencil, and washi tapes! LOL!
Jokes aside, it's always great to have you here. We hope to see you here again soon, Bridget. Everyone, please leave a comment for Bridget and let her know how fabulous these wood coasters look! Thank you for reading!
~SUPPLIES~
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1 comment
Bridget I always love your projects and tutorials and your workshops, too! These are so lovely! I know my husband would love them! He is happiest out in the woods, surrounded by trees…and bears and alligators and coyotes! This was a very clever use of these stamps!