GUEST DESIGNER CAROL -ALOTTMENT

This week we are in for another treat with an amazing Allotment Scene created by Guest Designer Carol. Just look at all those details...

Hi, I‘m Carol, a keen crafter with an interest in scrapbooking, album making and miniatures.  CoolKatzCraft is a gift of a company for me with their varied products that adapt over different types of craft and I have previously enjoyed working with their die cuts and stencils.  I made the Venetian Book Nook to remind me of my honeymoon there and was impressed with the uniqueness and precision of the kit. 

Although not a gardener - albeit on retiring last year my husband did, in an unrealistic and inappropriately optimistic moment, buy me a pair of gardening gloves! - on first seeing the shed and greenhouse kits, I was instantly inspired.  Knowing of the quality of the kits, I felt confident to be a little more ambitious with them and use both the Greenhouse and the Shed in the one setting of a small allotment diorama. I used a large piece of transit packaging from my newly delivered washing machine for the base – no time to do the washing though as I was eager to crack on!  I shaped and painted the edges and used a combination of model railway matting, flock and stones for the grass and pathways.  I had an old tree which I reinvigorated with more flocking and scatter which is just perfect to give a bit of shade over the rustic chair on a warm summer day.  This was made from an unused element of the greenhouse staging and was easy to adapt with the addition of a couple of cut and stained wooden stirrers. 

I painted the Greenhouse pieces before assembly but the Shed was easier to paint after construction with the cladding in place. I enjoyed making both of them look aged and worn with inks and so that it didn’t look too pristine, I had to break a Greenhouse window.  The fun continued when making all the pieces for the inside, I used my computer to reduce to the correct scale images of seed packs, grow bags, boxes, and labels for garden necessities etc. I bought a selection of white metal gardening tools to add some detail but managed to fit a couple of Cool Cats of my own on the staging, one of whom has woken up rather too quickly and smashed a flower pot on the floor as he stretched! I used tea (from a bag) for the seed trays and the earth in my raised vegetable bed.   It was a challenge to find little bits that might be stored in the Shed but I think, with the door propped open by a rake, you can see the oddities inside quite well I added the doors and supplied window panes as late as possible in the construction process and have made both roof pieces removable which helped with the interior decoration. 

Using a variety of the CoolKatzCraft Leaf die sets I was able to add finishing touches to the overall project and love the way the ferns that are dotted about on the slightly raised areas turned out.  Hope you enjoy looking at the project as much as I did making it, thanks Maggie and Kay J

Thank you so much Carol we are all wowed by the scene you have created.

If you would like to share your CoolKatz projects pop over via the links below to our Facebook group, where you will also find lots more
inspiration. And for more construction tutorials pop over to our YouTube channel where you will find a library full of those.

Happy Crafting
The CoolKatz Team x

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