It’s International Talk Like A Pirate Day so I made this Pirate Treasure Chest to celebrate!  I imagine this chest has been sunk to the ocean floor by Long John Silver and is covered in barnacles and seaweed, and looking a bit old and decayed.  It’s just waiting for someone to discover it because it’s full of Spanish Doubloons and pieces of eight!

 

 

In the beginning…

I used a Eileen Hull Sizzix Treasure Box die <— how appropriate! to cut the pieces from greyboard
I actually meant to put the paper on the greyboard before cutting but I forgot and had to cut it separately, but actually this was better because I needed the pieces to line up
Constructing the box

Attach all the paper to all the pieces on the box

 

After I had assembled the box, I remembered I wanted this one to look like a “chest” doh! So on top of the lid that I had already covered with paper *rolls eyes* I constructed this chest shape using a cardboard tube cut down to the size I wanted it to be. I could have made it smaller or “less high” but I likely the quirky look to this shape.

 

At this point it is starting to resemble a “gypsy caravan” so remember that for the next time you need to construct one of those!

The middle…

Pretty sure Aberama Gold from Peaky Blinders lives in one of these! But anyway, let’s make it look more like a treasure chest!

Start by adding the bits and pieces – all moulds – and gluing them in place

The end…

Unfortunately I have no photos in between the above and the below as I was working on it last night and the lighting was no good for photos and I was listening to the radio and got distracted and forgot that I should be attempting photos!

So, some of the moulds had already been made for other things and not used, so they had already been painted but it didn’t matter as I would be painting over them anyway.  Some moulds like the goddess, wings and oval frame were made for this project and just got a quick coat of gesso.  The seashells and starfish were also freshly made and gessoed but then I used Inktense pencils on them to get those lovely coral colours.

Once everything was ready, I glued them all in place, and then started painting. The chest also got some paint – Black Raven metallique, Burnt Sienna liquid acrylics, and then later I sponged on some golden moss metallique paint mixed with hazelnut trying to make it look more aged and having that greenish tinge that you get when things have been hidden at the bottom of the sea for years. The hardware pieces like the keyhole, and the wheel, the goddess, wings etc were painted with metalliques, with a lot of dry brushing and drying between layers to also make them look aged.

 

Have you spotted the coins?  These will be covered in another post but I did make them to go inside my treasure chest, so I included them in a few shots.

Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of Rum!

The Inspiration

I am entering this Pirate’s Treasure Chest in the following challenges:

Country View Challenge September – Under the Sea This is my third entry for this challenge – I love the ocean!
A Vintage Journey Challenge September – Box It Up This is my first entry for this challenge but I am working on more because I love boxes and it gives me the chance to work with some of my dies.

Mix it Up Challenge Blog – Anything Goes with Optional 3D Project

 

PROJECT RECIPE:

Eileen Hull Sizzix Treasure Box Die
Greyboard
Prima Salvage District Paper, Moulds
Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
Hot Glue
Seashell moulds
Finnabair Liquid Acrylics (Burnt Sienna), Metallique Paints – Raven Black, Steampunk Copper, Golden Moss, Hazelnut
Derwent Inktense Pencils
Lichens

8 Awesome Comments (btw comment moderation is on)
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Julia Aston
October 3, 2019 10:45 pm

What a wonderful sunken pirate chest – all covered with encrusted seashells and flora – so clever to design a dome for Eileen’s Treasure Box – thanks for joining us at A Vintage Journey Box It Up challenge! xx

Rachel Fisher
Rachel Fisher
September 28, 2019 5:34 pm

oh my word! I absolutely love this!!! Thanks for joining us at Countryview Challenges and good luck! Hugs rachel xx

Monika Gulyas
September 23, 2019 2:30 pm

What an awesome project!!! A beautifully decorated treasure chest!!! Thank you for joining the September challenge of the Country View Challenges!

Craftyfield
Craftyfield
September 22, 2019 8:30 am

Love all the details and dimension! Great project, never mind the hiccups on the way! Thanks for playing with us at Country View Challenges this month.

Jo - Let's Art Journal
September 21, 2019 5:20 pm

Such an amazing make – I love it! I enjoyed following along to see how you made it too, it looks like you had so much fun ?. Thanks so much for joining us at A Vintage Journey! Happy and creative wishes! Jo x

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