I have always had lots of interests when it comes to arts and crafts. I love so many different forms of art... decorative painting, sewing, felting, sculpting, writing, etc.

I especially love taking something old or discarded and giving it a new life. I think it's a form of personification... I kind of feel sorry for things that are no longer wanted and thrown away.

Have you seen that commercial with the discarded plastic bottle rolling along the roads, being pushed by the wind, kicked around, and finally being recycled into a park bench? You can see it HERE. I feel so sorry for that bottle, and it's the same when I see something on the ground or in a thrift store. That's probably why I love thrift shop flips and trash-to-treasure projects so much!

Altered art with found objects is a way to save those old, discarded things!

I haven't done any altered art for a while but I've been itching to create some so I'm creating an altered book and calling it my Book of Curiosities.

I'll be using things that I have found on the ground or saved instead of throwing them away.

Book of Curiosities Altered Book - Part 1

I'm calling it the Book of Curiosities. 

It'll be a series and this is Part 1. I'm not sure how many parts there will be in the series... I'll stop whenever I feel the book is full I guess!

Today I'm sharing pages 1 through 3 in the Book of Curiosities. For these pages, I'm using the following found or saved things:

• a discarded bottle cap and rusty paperclip I found on the ground
• an old greeting card envelope that had yellowed and was missing the card
• some pressed flowers I saved from a bouquet I received
• a piece of broken windshield glass from a car wreck my daughter was in (don't worry, she didn't even get a scratch from that wreck!)

Here is the video I created for these pages, I hope you enjoy it!

Page One - The Question is Not What You Look at, But What You See

I used the yellowed paper from an old scrapbook for this page and gave it a messy green background.

I also used a rusty paperclip that I found.

And some faux typewriter keys that say, "loves me," and "loves me not."

I used these to create a flower.

Then I added a quote that I printed on my computer, "The question is not what you look at, but what you see," by Henry Thoreau.

I wanted the bottlecap to have the same look as the faux typewriter keys so I used some Glossy Accents. It's resin and will dry clear, giving a glossy, glass-like appearance.

Page Two - Collect Beautiful Things

Then I added in my pressed flowers and leaves.

I also used some cardboard from a recycled box to add some interest and texture.

If you peel the layers of a box apart there is this fun wavy design between them.

Then I used my rubber stamps to add the words, "Collect Beautiful Things."

I used a piece of masking tape over the cardboard and then added the words over that. I also used masking tape as an added detail on the top of the page.

I think this page turned out so pretty. It's a little warped right now because I've already started the next three pages on the backs of these. The pages will flatten out once the book is completed.

Page Three - Don't Tell Me The Moon is Shining

And I cut a small square of yellow paper and glued it to the back...

... to create the moon. I lightly sketched a face on the yellow.

Then I painted the moon's face.

I used the same technique that I used on these Repurposed Rattan Baskets.

I used white paint to stamp the Anton Chekhov quote, "don't tell me the moon is shining, show me the glint of the light on broken glass." I liked that the letters are sloppy looking 😊

I added some white and yellow lines under the moon to look like the moonlight shining on the water and then used an old toothbrush to add stars.

To do this, dip the toothbrush in water, rub it in the paint, and then use your fingernail to flick the paint onto the page.

And here's my finished broken glass page!

The Book

I am using an old 3-ring binder that used to be my grandfather's. He was a stamp collector but this book only had a couple pages of stamps and you can see he didn't even finish the cover!!

I painted it with black paint and sanded it.

I will probably wait until the inside of the book is done before I embellish the outside.

I hope you enjoyed part 1 of this altered book series, stay tuned for part 2!!