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I have many old beginner watercolor sketchbooks and in the past I just cut them into standard sizes to use as scrap card bases and for other projects. Since there were some parts of those old paintings that I really liked I began to think of other ways I could use them and came up with these mixed media art style textural elements. I gathered packaging material, other papers, various fabric scraps, threads, yarns and twine from my scrap bin. I also included some metal brads to add another type of texture and began assembly by layering different elements onto a base made of packaging material. I also added a little stamping with black ink for more texture.

Along with some other inspirational photos I found on the internet I began to think of spring and how the birds gather bits of string and whatever else they find suitable for their nests. I thought of my beloved crows and each piece became wild crow collections of various bits and pieces that also held their own memories. 

For this simple project you’ll just need some glue, packaging material, a variety of papers, fabric, string scraps and whatever other textures you’d like to add. For a metal texture you can add staples if you don’t have brads. 

These pieces are thin enough so you can add them to covers or inside of journals or you can frame them. Another idea is to glue some paper of your choice onto the photo stands that are found inside photo frames and keep them as dimensional displays with or without the frame. Just remove the glass. You can also make a paper frame. 

Happy paper crafting!