My Family Tree Shadow Box

I've been wanting a Family Tree of sorts for a while now,

a few ideas have been tossing around in my head.

I'm a visual person, the type that doesn't really read

the articles in magazines, just scans through to see the pictures.

Which is ironic- being that English was my favorite subject

and our Dad is an Editor/Journalist.

So when we girls wanted to do something inspired by Martha Stewart

for the CSI Project Challenge....

2 ideas came to mind.....

A sweet idea we had for a re purposed framed shadow box

and of course Martha's lovely Family Tree Crafts.

It also doesn't hurt that we love vintage old photos!

(I'm feeling old enough to be vintage!)

We thought it would be fun to show 2 similar styles of trees,
one a Direct Line 5 Generation Family Tree
and the other a Family Tree with all sorts of Favorite Family Pictures.
(Because we know it's hard to find all those direct photos!)

I've wanted to build a shadow box for a while now for my daughter's blessing gown

because I'm too cheap to pay the $400 for a custom made one

and the others in the store are at least $150 for a plain box.
So we decided to experiment with these!

Candace scored some great deals (freebies) from a model home auction.

Remember those lovely ottoman's....

These two frames have sat behind my grill since last fall

and we'd actually forgotten about them till now.

First we measured and cut our pine 1x4's to build a box

just slightly larger than the frame opening.

We primed and painted the box and frame.

For the frame and hinges to sit flush on top of the box

you'll need to use your wood carving tools to scrape out enough for the hinges to be inset.

(Wood Carving Tools~~Harbor Freight $2.99

or if you're particularly handy with a flat head screwdriver...)

We pre-drilled our hinge holes and hand screwed them into place.

Once we had them in place on the box we laid

the frame on top where we wanted it to be and

marked with a pencil where the top hinges would be.

This makes it super easy to put them on.

Don't forget to add the little hook enclosure to keep it closed!

Next let's work on the inside!

We just used the mat board from the original art work.

Spray a good coat of spray adhesive and adhere your fabric.

I used muslin and Candace used creme burlap, each for a natural look.

Make sure you start in the middle and smooth your way out.

After trimming with a 1 inch border, 

glue the edges to the bottom side for a nice finished look.

Next we trimmed some branches from one of my trees

and started to arrange and glue them together.

We used a glue gun and really added a bunch for extra strength on the back.

Then we coated it with some brown spray paint

followed by a "mist" of pewter.  I love this effect!

Candace wanted to play with the Celluclay again

and after cutting her tree form from foam board, she covered it with the Celluclay,

mimicking the natural wood grains and knots.
It was fun to do!

After letting it dry overnight, it was sanded and painted.

We cut out a bunch of leaves on the Cricut,

We even "misted" some of the paper leaves to tie in with the shimmer on the trunk.

For even more 3-D effect we folded each leaf in half.

Using the glue gun we started gluing the leaves in place randomly as desired.
Candace glued on faux leaves from a lavender shrub instead of using the Cricut leaves.

Last but not least.....

and of course what takes the longest.....

is to start collecting your pictures.

After 5 phone calls, several emails and 2 trips to get copies.....

It took us a while to get them all sized, cropped and sepia'ed.

I got a little frustrated because the only options on my computer for smaller sizes were

Wallet vs. Thumbnail.

Wallet obviously won.

I didn't really want them that large to start with but

after seeing the excitement in my little girls eyes,

seeing all these amazing people who make us who we are.

Plus to see the excitement on our Mom's face to see this.....

Priceless!

We just glued the mat board into the back of the box

and put some hanging gear on and it's perfect!

Here's Candace's:

Here's Mine: