A Victorian Inspired Paperweight Featuring Dried Baby's Breath and Statice

This paperweight was made using some of the small flowers I dried in my earlier blog post (Six Easy Steps to Creating Beautiful, Dried Flowers).

The supplies I used for this project are shown above.  They include tacky glue, foam mounting squares, a swatch of paper to use as the background, some dried flowers, and a brass heart finding.

Once again, I'm using the Heirloom Dome paperweight kit from our shop at PhotoWeights.com.  This is my favorite of the domes we carry because of the beaded design that frames the display area.

The paper I chose for the background came off an old scrapbook cover I purchased to salvage for my craft projects.  If you prefer, you can use decorative scrapbook paper.

TIP:  If you like to go to flea markets and antique shops as much as I do, look for items you can use as backgrounds in your designs such as album covers, tattered books, embossed document folders, and other things covered in leather, textured paper, and fabric.

Place the adhesive side of the mounting board (included with each paperweight kit) onto the reverse side of your background paper.

Using a pair of scissors, trim any paper that overlaps the edge of the mounting board.

Place a double-sided, foam mounting square in the center of the background.  (If you're using old paper, make sure the adhesive will bond to it properly.)  Leave the protective paper over the top surface of the mounting square to keep the adhesive clean.

Apply glue around the perimeter of the mounting square.   The width of your glue pattern will be determined by the length of the flowers' stems and the size of the decorative piece (brass heart) you place over the flowers.

Begin arranging your flowers around the mounting square, making sure each stem is placed directly in the glue.

Layer your flowers until you're happy with the pattern and coverage.  Make sure the flowers aren't thick enough to apply pressure to the back of the decorative piece (brass heart).

After the glue has dried completely, gently tap the edge of the mounting board onto your work surface to remove any loose particles from the flowers.  You can also use a few puffs of air from an air canister.

To finish your design, remove the protective paper covering the adhesive on the mounting square.  After you've cleaned the back of your decorative piece (brass heart) with rubbing alcohol or glass cleaner, gently position it onto the mounting square and press down to secure.

Center the finished design over the adhesive side of the bottom pad and gently press down to secure.

After you've cleaned your paperweight with glass cleaner, place the bottom pad face-down onto the base of the paperweight.

The brass heart I used for this paperweight has a fairly flat back which provided the perfect surface for an adhesive mounting square.  If you'd to use something that has a textured or curved back, such as a piece of costume jewelry, you could glue one or more small wood or plastic cubes to the back to act as risers which would allow you to secure the item to the background while providing enough space to tuck the flowers underneath.

Turn a Mary Engelbreit Greeting Card Into the Most Adorable Paperweight

Mary Engelbreit is one of my favorite artists because her designs are so warm and charming.  This is why I'm such a huge fan of American Greetings' line of cards featuring her artwork.

When I was shopping for Valentine's Day earlier this month, this sweet card caught my eye.  I knew it would make the most adorable paperweight.

The list of supplies for this project is very small.  I used the Large Rectangle Paperweight Kit, a Mary Engelbreit card, and some double-stick foam tape.  I also used something PhotoWeights just introduced, a display area template.  These templates are reusable and available for just 50-cents each.

My challenge with the greeting card was the fact that there were several inches of space between the little girl and the heart-shaped balloon (as you can see in the photo above).  I easily solved this problem by cutting out the balloon and placing it closer to the girl.  The balloon was attached with double-stick foam tape, raising it about 1/8" above the background.  This transformed it into a dimensional embellishment

Using the display area template, I traced a cut line around the area of the image I wanted to appear in the paperweight.   I recommend using a pencil for this step.

Cut around the outside of your traced line with a pair of good scissors.  Any visible portions of the line may be gently erased.

Adhere your artwork to the adhesive mounting board that comes with each paperweight kit.  This board is the same size as the template, so your artwork should fit perfectly if you cut just outside the trace line.

The heart balloon was carefully cut out with a pair of good scissors.  I placed a square of double-stick foam tape on the back, far enough from the edges that it would not be visible from the front.

The heart-shaped balloon was placed onto the artwork from the card, lining up the string.  Because this string extends all the way to the edge of the card, the balloon had to be placed close to the edge to cover it.

Any materials you place on the mounting board that extend beyond the edge can simply be trimmed.  (This is the top part of the balloon).

The mounting board (with artwork attached) was placed face-down into the recessed area on the bottom of the paperweight.

To finish, the base of the paperweight was covered with the self-adhesive bottom pad that's also included in each paperweight kit.

The next time you find yourself walking down the greeting card aisle of your local store, spend a few moments looking through the hundreds of greeting card designs that are available.  Which ones will you want to capture in a paperweight?

Hearts & Buttons Paperweights

This "Hearts & Buttons" paperweight is easy to create with a few inexpensive supplies from your local craft store.  It's also a project a child can complete (with an adult's help) so they can make heir own, extra-special Valentine's Day gifts.

I used PhotoWeights' Heirloom Rectangle Paperweight Kit for this paperweight (click for product info.)  The design was inspired by a package of paper Valentine's Day frames (Recollections 309474, Michaels Crafts) that were reminiscent of the Valentines I passed out in grade school years and years ago.

The first step in creating this paperweight is to cover the self-adhesive mounting board (included in the paperweight kit) with background paper.  I used a scrap of textured scrapbook paper in a soft shade of pink.  As you can see in the photo above, the black mounting board is fairly think.  This makes it a perfect cutting guide when you trim around the outside edge.

Because I want the frame to lay flat when I glue it to the mounting board, I removed this paper "pocket" on the reverse side that was meant to hold a photo.

The frame had an added embellishment along the bottom that was held in place with two small squares of adhesive foam.  I removed it because it was much too large for this particular design. (Another piece to add to my scrap collection.)

Your photograph can be attached to the back of the frame with glue or tape, whichever you prefer.  After the photo is mounted in the frame, apply a moderate amount of glue to the area on the reverse side that will come into contact with the mounting board.  Don't apply glue too close to the edges.  For this step I used Elmer's Craft Bond Fabric & Paper Glue.  It's one of my favorite paper glues because it's tackier than white glue.  It's also acid free and dries clear.

Trim any areas of paper that overlap the edge of the mounting board.

This photo shows the finished mounting board with the background paper, frame, and photo.  It's time to dress it up with a few added touches!

Using my heart-shaped paper punch, I made a few hearts out of red, textured scrapbook paper.

A few punched hearts were added to the design with glue.  I also glued mini buttons in the center of the hearts to add a little fun and whimsy.  Once the glue dried completely, it was ready to display in the paperweight.

When you're piecing together your own paperweight design, just think of it as scrapbooking in miniature.  You can use many of the same materials and techniques.  You just have a smaller area to work with.

If you use any materials that include glitter, be sure to remove any loose particles with a brush or a few gentle puffs of compressed air.  This will help prevent glitter from floating free inside the paperweight.

What are you working on?

We'd love to see what you've been working on!  Are you creating paperweights for Valentine's Day or an upcoming event?  Please share your photos on our Facebook page.

Conversation Hearts Paperweights

Our inspiration for the Conversation Hearts Paperweights obviously came the beloved Valentine's Day confection.

These paperweights are incredibly easy to make on your own with a personalized message.  The glass heart paperweight may be purchased on our website:  Heart Paperweight Kit

Step 1

In a word processing or publishing program, draw a 4" square box and fill with a color of your choice.  We used traditional Conversation Heart colors for the background and text.  Here are the color codes we used:

• Yellow - #FFFF9D / RGB 255, 255,157
• Lavender - #CD99CD / RGB 205, 153, 205

Step 2

Layer text over the colored box and center it.  Keep the shape of the heart paperweight in mind, as it substantially narrows on the bottom.  We used the following font and font color:

• Arial, 24pt.
• Color Code - BD0945 / RGB 189, 9, 69

Step 4

Print the artwork on a good quality photo paper.  Once dry, finish each paperweight using the instructions that come with each PhotoWeights paperweight kit.


What kind of conversation will your paperweight start?



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Valentine's Day Paperweight - Amour Ribbon with Heart Locket

With Valentine's Day exactly one month away, I thought it was the perfect time to bring you a romantic design idea.  This design is very easy to create and doesn't require a lot of materials.

What you'll need:  Ribbon, Locket, Background Paper, Paperweight Kit (Heirloom Dome), Hot Melt Glue

For this project I used fabric ribbon with Amour written in script (French General by Jolee's Boutique, Dots Words Ribbons).  The locket is new (a charm from Michael's Bead Landing collection).  If you prefer, you can use an antique locket instead.  These can often be picked up at flea markets for $5-10 in fair condition.  The red background is a sheet of textured scrapbooking paper.

After the background paper was applied to the adhesive mounting board (included with each PhotoWeights paperweight kit), I created a bow by forming a closed loop with a smaller loop circling the center.  The bow and tails were applied to the background with hot melt glue.

The locket was glued in place just beneath the bow.  I also glued the ends of the ribbon tails to the background, toward the edge of the round board, making sure to leave a little slack to give it a free-flowing appearance.  The edges of the ribbon were turned underneath the mounting board and glued in place to complete the design.

Once the design was finished, it was applied to the adhesive side of the bottom pad (included with each PhotoWeights paperweight kit), making sure to center it.  The black bottom pad may be seen in the photo above.

The final step is placing the design face-down onto the bottom of your paperweight so the applied decoration fits into the bottom recess.  Press the outside edge of the adhesive bottom pad to secure.

Are you working on some Valentine's Day designs of your own?  Please email your photos to me at susan@photoweights.com, or post them to our Facebook page at facebook.com/photoweights.  We'd love to see what you've been creating!

Vintage Valentine Paperweights

With Valentine's Day less than three weeks away, it's the perfect time to add a sentimental touch of romance (or schoolhouse puppy love) to your desk with a vintage Valentine Paperweight.  If you don't have any old Valentine's Day cards at hand, check with a local antique shop to see if they have a selection available.

I had the luxury of sorting through a few boxes of old Valentine's Day cards earlier this month and chose three simple, die-cut cards (pictured above) for these projects.  Choose cards with fun graphics that will fit well within the display area of your paperweight.

Important note:  Vintage cards can be very delicate, so be especially careful.  A coating that makes some cards shiny may also craze when the paper is bent.

To My Sweetheart

The first paperweight was created by cutting out the artwork on the Valentine's card.  I used a metallic paper background that shimmers when the light catches it.  This color of the paper (Blue Steel) compliments the dark blue bow in the little girl's hair.  It's also a nice backdrop for the red heart.

I used a glue stick to apply the card to the background.

Puppy Love

I'm a little heartbroken about this paperweight because I accidentally destroyed it when I attempted to change the background (note the earlier warning about the fragility of clear coatings).

The background is a soft shade of green.  I later realized it should have been blue to resemble a sky over the fence (duh!).  Plan B was to replace the green paper with a photo of a sky and clouds I tore out of a magazine.  It would have looked perfect. (Emphasis on would have.)

St. Valentine Greet to You!

I chose this card because I love the floral dress and huge, oversize bows. All little girls should have such a dress.  Don't you agree?

My goal with this design was to take a die-cut card and place it on a background that would make it look as though it wasn't die-cut at all.  I chose a piece of scrapbook paper in a yellow baroque pattern that really brought it all together.