Tonic Verona Chest - Country Garden Theme

It's been a while, I admit, since I have added anything to my blog! I have been busy doing a larger project than my normal cards...
I decided that I wanted to try and make a piece of art etc. for my mother-in-law's birthday. I love making cards, but they are only kept for a short time, so I thought I would try something that could hang around for a bit longer!
I decided to transform one of the Tonic Chests called 'Verona' using a theme that suited the recipient: in this case 'country garden'. The chest comes flat-packed and you assemble it yourself, choosing the configuration that suits you. Once I had done this, I used some Polyfiller to fill some of the gaps that are visible and sanded this down afterwards. I knew that I wanted a garden theme, so I also wanted a gentle paint colour to match. I chose a sage acrylic paint and painted all surfaces/drawers etc. The next step for me was decorating the panels on the drawers. I had chosen a Papermania paper craft collection called 'Nature's Gallery'. There are some lovely subtle colour tones as well as drawings, birds etc., so I chose the paper pieces I liked and adhered to the drawer fronts (I distressed the edges using Tea Dye Distress Ink). On half of the drawer fronts I used the Tonic die Avante! to add the brown filigree effect. The bureau handles are also from Tonic and give a worn brassy look. They have been applied using a hand drill and brads that come with them. Finally the butterflies were all cut from the paper collection, shaped and then dipped into UTEE using my Melt Pot. The butterflies come out in a solid plastic and maintain their shape this way ( I like using lots of textures). I have dotted them around the chest to tie it all together.

My next task was to make the painted chest look less 'perfect'. I used Treasure Gold wax and rubbed it all over the sides and top of the chest. This gave a more distressed look. To decorate the chest, I  choose a scene for each of the main  panels. Each panel had a background added to it using base papers from the Papermania set with distress ink to the edges. Over the top of this, I have stamped IndigoBlu's 'Large Flourish' randomly all over, using Spun Sugar Distress Ink for a subtle look. The main flower image is from a Just Rite stamp set 'Grateful Heart Vintage Labels Two' and has been stamped in Versafine Vintage Sepia ink and embossed with Cosmic Shimmer Clear Detail embossing powder. I have cut the layers out using the matching dies and coloured the flowers using Spectrum Noir pencils (31,30,36). These layers have been raised with foam pads and some Tattered Lace foliage in various shades of green added underneath. I have also added some more of the solid butterflies and a little ladybird. The bottom sentiment panel is from an Artistic Stamper set, 'Botanical Plate 3', and has been cut and layered using Spellbinders Labels One and Decorative Labels One dies.
The other side panel starts off in the same way, but this time I have used the IndigoBlu stamp, 'Elizabeth Bennet'. Again she has also been embossed, and I have stamped the flower sections again, shaping and applying them using Pinflair. The sentiment panel is an IndigoBlu stamp from 'Enjoy Life'.

The back section was easily the panel that took the longest! I divided the panel into two main areas and needed to try and link the two. The top section I wanted to use some quotes for, so I chose one from IndigoBlu and one from Inkilicious.

In the background of the whole section I have stamped some of the background stamps from the Heartfelt Creations 'Sun Kissed Fleur' range, and coloured the foliage that will show through using Bundled Sage and Crushed Olive Distress Inks. The raised flowers have all been made using the same collection. I have stamped the flowers in Versafine, embossed them and then coloured using inks. I used Milled Lavender and Dusty Concord Distress Inks, with Ochre and Amber colours for the middles (Colour Box Cat's Eyes). They have then been cut using the matching die, shaped for definition and applied with Pinflair. The window has been cut with a Spellbinders' D-Lites die and mounted onto co-ordinating paper. I have added acetate to the window panes and created a scene in the background with a Hobby Art Scene-It set. The scene has been coloured with Distress Markers. The tiny flowers have been cut using the Sizzix Susan's Garden 'Yarrow' dies with some green foliage behind to create a window box.

The little envelope has been cut using a Marianne Creatables die and the quote is from Hobby Art. The gardening tools are actually from a large Sizzix Sizzlits set, which I have cut from shrink plastic, coloured and heated. The large panel with the willow tree has been made using a Sweet Poppy stencil. I have used Imagination Crafts' Sparkle Medium in Welsh Gold to give a magical look. There are also stamped and embossed Lavinia Fairies in the background, and some Jones' Tones glitter dotted around to make fairy dust. The sentiment is also from Lavinia and has been matted and layered using various Spellbinders' dies. I have continued the flowing flowers around onto the tiny side top panels as well.

Focussing on the front of the box now, I have used some more of the backing papers to decorate the top shelf. I have then used lots of paper flowers and created a bouquet for the centre piece. To tie-in with the brass handles, I have used lengths of jewellery chain and added some beads and charms to decorate. The flowers on the top hide the glue and create the 'swags'. Some lace to hide the joins in the chest and I was done!