Alter Something Challenge

This week's Challenge was to take something ordinary (or something ugly) and transform it. Not having a lot of time, my project was very simple!

I picked up this insulated coffee mug at the coffee concession in my local supermarket. You see, I had given one similar to this awhile back to a good friend, but even though the lining was stamped with a floral pattern, her hubby kept stealing it from her. It seems, it was the perfect size and kept the coffee hot a long time. So, since her birthday just passed, I thought I'd make her one that she could give her hubby so she wouldn't find hers missing all the time! (It's ok, I have other things that are just for HER!)

So, this is what the mug looked like before. Not very attractive....but, then it really was designed to be personalized.

Since this is for a man, that made the Challenge even more challenging! Masculine things are always so much more difficult, don't you think? Fortunately, I received Wanted at Convention and it seemed to work perfectly! The second photo shows the entire piece of cardstock stamped in a collage. Collaging is loads of fun, because it's practically mistake proof! I first stamped the entire background with the brand new Sanded background stamp. When I first saw this background stamp in the catalog, I was sure that I didn't need it.....but, guess what?!! I won it at Convention and I can already see that it will be a favorite! I just stamped randomly all over the entire piece of CS overlapping as I went....and you know what? It didn't matter! In fact, it looked even better!!

The rust colored band around the bottom was a bit tricky since the liner is curved and tapered and there wasn't room for any embellishments, but I'm kind of happy with the finished result. Now, I hope my girlfriend's hubby likes it as well! Although it was a really simple project, it was fun collaging with my brand new stamps!

Don't forget to check out some of the other bloggers' challenges. There are some terrific ideas!

Stamps: Sanded Bkgrd; Wanted

Inks: Soft Sky, Basic Gray, Not Quite Navy, Blue Bayou, Really Rust, Going Gray

CS: Soft Sky, Really Rust

Misc: Not Quite Navy Marker (for faux stitching)

NOTE: All images are by Stampin' Up!; Mug is from Starbucks

Hint: Click on any photo and the image will enlarge so that you can see the detail.