From Ordinary to Awesome: An Artistic Transformation

Hello Everyone!  I would like to share with you an incredible group project inspired by the creative genius of my friend, Michelle Bodensteiner.  It goes like this:

What can you do with an Idea Market Paris Jewelry Stand?

Well,  when 5 other artistic ladies trust in Michelle's vision, you get this:

And this:

And this:

And this:

And even this:

And finally this:

Aren't these projects amazing!  Michelle took one look at the original jewelry stand and immediately knew what could be created for each person in the group.

Each person had a theme in mind for their project.  Michelle is known for her beautiful paper doll creations, so she pulled out some doll ideas and went to work.  All of them turned out so incredibly beautiful.

First off, here is a photo of Michelle's finished project.  She created hers along with a Santos Doll that   was dedicated to the women in her family who were seamstresses.   Michelle chose to keep the hanger exposed and to use it as a wardrobe for the lovely paper doll dresses. 

Michelle has a vintage family photo of these women wearing their own creations.

Next is my project.  I wanted to create a Whimsical Garden:

My stand is two-sided and features several birdhouses and multiple paper dolls.  I love it!

Here is a similar project created by Nancy Brooks.  She also used several birdhouses.

You may be wondering how Nancy and I managed to get the large birdhouse in the center around the main pole....Michelle to the rescue!  She had a friend who was able to cut the bird houses in half.  Then we glued them back together around the center pole:

Next is Marsha Franz's project.  She wanted to create a Fairy Garden.  Notice the center tree structure which becomes almost 3-dimensional double-sided.  That was the inspiration to add the branches for the fairy forest.

Now for Sandy Beck's project.  Sandy's father and grandfather both worked for the Singer Sewing Machine Company, so she wanted to create a project dedicated to them and using some of the keepsakes she had.  The inspiration for this project was her button collection which was adhered to the hanger portion of the jewelry stand.

Michelle also helped Sandy cover the lovely hatbox and helped her create the folio made for family photos.

Finally, Diane Martell loves Alice in Wonderland.  Michelle had her work cut out for her designing this project!

So much detail in the Mad Hatter's Tea Party!

Hope you enjoyed the photos and descriptions of our wonderful projects.  Don't forget to take a good look at the "Ordinary" and turn it into something "Amazing!

Susan