Tiny Shrine: Celtic Crucifix with Keys

Hey there, I am glad you stopped by today, I have something very unique to share.  I've been seeing so much amazing art lately and I've found myself drawn to tiny shrines.  I love the way tiny shrines communicate something that is important to the one who makes it or the one owns it.  And, for whatever reason, religious iconography is really fascinating and beautiful to me so I wanted to use some of those icons in a tiny shrine; it just seemed appropriate. And just to be clear...I really do study religious imagery...I've traveled quite a bit and I almost always make time to visit a church, cathedral, masque or temple. I've been in cathedrals in Germany, France, Belgium, Mexico, Canada, the UK and in almost every state...and when I traveled Asia, I would often visit temples and monasteries.  There is something beautiful, mysterious and "other worldly" inside the walls of a church or temple.  It's where we, as a civilization go to commune with the maker, and with ourselves, and I feel there's something incredibly powerful in the energy around places of worship.  

So, I set out on my quest to create a tiny shrine...and I worked with tools and materials I know best, found objects and paper crafting tools.  

I cut a sheet of copper using a Spellbinders Arched window die, yes you can cut metals with some paper crafting tools.  

I used a Spellbinders M-Bossabilities Folder to emboss the copper.  This blog is less about being a step by step tutorial that will show you how to create this exact project, but more about using techniques, tools, and materials you may already own to create something completely new and different.  

I sanded and finished the embossed copper shape with a patina solution, then sanded again to reveal the detail of the embossed metal. I bent the bottom of the window back to create a stand. 

Then created a shield bezel from Spellbinders Media Mixage line, but turned it upside down, as I noticed the shape of the shield echoed the shape of the arched window.  Inside the bezel, I used a Celtic Crucifix, a Sacred Heart of Jesus pin, palm fronds and scrapbook paper...it's all sealed under ICE Resin.  

I affixed the cured bezel to the embossed metal stand with E6000.  Then I completed my tiny shrine with antique skeleton keys, also affixed with E6000.  The bottoms of the keys actually serve as tiny feet for the shrine.  To really make this tiny shrine glow, I buffed it with natural bee's wax until it was shiny.  

I love how the imagery and icons of this piece all work together, the shape of the Celtic knots on the cross are echoed in the embossed copper.  The shape of the keys is also repeated in the embossed metal.  The shape of the bezel is repeated in the arched shape of the embossed copper.  And, I love how the cross, the pin and the palm fronds are all preserved together in a tiny shrine.  The symbolic imagery conveys a story of faith and devotion and they're quite beautiful together, and hopefully I've captured that story in a way that is relevant and respectful. 

Thank you for letting me share this tiny shrine with you today...I really enjoyed the creative journey I went on as I was creating it and hope that you'll be inspired to create a tiny shrine too.

Ken  

Spellbinders Paper Arts at The Ink Pad in New York City

While I was in their neighborhood this week, I thought I should pop in on The Ink Pad in New York to spread little Spellbinders Media Mixage love in the big apple.  

Every square inch of this store is packed with creative, crafty goodness...there's so much inspiration...they have a stamp for everything you can imagine!  And they carry Spellbinders too...they have Spellbinders demo days occasionally with Seth Apter.  

Here's a quick look inside the store before we got busy.  

They've been written up in the New York Times, been featured on TV in Japan, Hong Kong, and in Europe ...I am telling you it's the crafty place to be in New York.  

Barbara Briskin and Anna Chiang are always there with crafty advice on everything they carry...they are a wealth of stamping knowledge.  Barbara taught me how to mount rubber while I was there.  

I love spending time with them...and Bonita is trying to hide behind her coffee cup...she teaches and she is one of the best stamping artists I have ever met.  She is a pro at Spellbinders die cutting and even offered me a few tips I'd never thought of before.  

If you are ever in New York and you love to craft...put this place on your "must visit" list...you will be enchanted...they have so much to offer.  And make sure to hang out in the store for a while.  It's a hotbed for celebrity siting.  Last time I was there, I got to craft with Katie Holmes, and this visit Robin Wright (Jenny) from Forest Gump and ex of Sean Penn) spent half the afternoon in the store looking at stamps.  

It was really busy all afternoon and everyone loved the charms and bezels we created.  

It was so busy that I didn't get too many pics of the projects we created and people we visited with...but we had an amazing crafty time.  

At the end of the day, I had an inky blotter and a metal bird blank, which looked kind of cool.  

Thanks again Anna, Barbara and Bonita...it was great to see you again and wonderful to spend time in the creative zone at The Ink Pad.  

Ken