Instant Rust

Generally, I tend to think of rust as something negative, caused by neglect or carelessness. In spite of that, I have a fondness for the look of a rusty patina - I just don't want to have to deal with nasty flaking metal or unsightly stains.

Enter instant rust! I saw an idea I wanted to try here. The blogger, Carolyn, cited this website as a source for the images she used. Although I had come across that site before, I'd never done more than a little browsing.  (All the images are available for free download). I decided to give her project a try, and downloaded this image. I printed it on our color printer and cut it to the size I needed for my can. Before doing any gluing, I dabbed some Adirondack Alcohol Ink in ginger to the top and bottom rims so the shiny silver metal wouldn't detract from the rusty paper.

I'm not a big fan of Mod Podge, which was recommended to glue the paper down. Instead I used Perfect Paper Adhesive which worked very well. Following the instructions on the blog, I brushed glue on the can in small sections, securing the paper as I went. I found that running my nails lightly along the can's grooves did the trick to get the paper down into those ridges. I overlapped the paper a little at the end, and brushed a small amount of the glue over the join to make it more secure.

Just for fun, I tied some rough twine around the finished can, and topped it with a flower I made. The outer part of the flower is made from a torn strip of unbleached muslin gathered with a rough running stitch. For the center, I punched a circle from a piece of cardstock. Next, again using the PPA and starting from the center of the circle, I glued the twine down, bringing the tail around to the back. I secured the center to the muslin with Diamond Glaze, a very strong adhesive. I also used the DG to attach the flower to the can. All done! Now I only have to decide whether I want to use it for pens and pencils or perhaps some artificial flowers.

Till next time!