My hubby loves Altoid mints, and I hoard the empty tins for altering projects. So when Mel of MelsCraftBoutique<\/a> asked me to do a Steampunk Valentine project, I decided I would alter one of them with some of her beautiful products and a scrap of hot air balloon B side patterned paper from the Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutante collection.<\/p>\n

<\/a>I first painted the tin using Rustoleum Painter’s Touch\u00a02Xs Paint and Primer\u00a0Heirloom Satin White spray paint. I just needed a base in case any of the edges of the tin showed through all the layers I had planned. \u00a0It didn’t have to be smooth or pretty (and believe me it wasn’t since I did the spraying in the rain).<\/p>\n

Then I covered the inside and outside front and backs of the tin with the patterned paper using Aleene’s Original Tacky Glue. This glue is great for getting a strong permanent hold, especially if you need some wiggle room time to align\u00a0the paper perfectly. \u00a0Just when I had finished patting myself on the back for remembering to secure the dainty ivory\u00a0scallop lace<\/a><\/span> I was going to use as the hanger before securing\u00a0the back panel papers, I realized\u00a0I had adhered\u00a0the back panel papers upside down (as compared to the inside papers). \u00a0I had to pull them off and then flip the tin and re-apply. \u00a0I seriously put the wiggle room time to the test, but it worked!<\/p>\n

<\/a>I then wove a\u00a0dainty black heart lace<\/a><\/span> through the buckle segments of the\u00a0ivory Venice lace in bow knot design<\/a><\/span>\u00a0to create a very luxe looking trim to hot glue all around the outside edges of both sides\u00a0of the tin as well as the inside of the deeper side of the tin. For the inside of the shallower lid\u00a0side of the tin, I just lined it with more of the dainty black heart lace.<\/p>\n

For the inside focal point for one side of the tin, I fussy cut out the quizzical cupid from the A side of the same Graphic 45 paper (cutting off the globe in one hand and the odd raven from the head). To give him a less green hue, I used Copic E51 and R30 for his skin. \u00a0Adding clear Wink of Stella to the wings added a nice little magical shimmer. \ud83d\ude42 \u00a0To hit home the idea of Valentines, I put a little heart key charm in the cupid’s hand.<\/p>\n

<\/a>For the other side of the tin, I simply used a large light bulb from the Prima Junkyard Findings collection that said “Adventure” (because isn’t love an adventure?). \u00a0I thought the light bulb shape echoed the hot air balloon shapes in the background nicely.<\/p>\n

To create a kind of “handle” for the tin, I bent one of the filigree pieces<\/a><\/span> from Mel’s shop. \u00a0After cutting off the tails of some mini brads, I adhered them to the ends as well as in the middle to give the appearance of faux rivets securing the handle. To add a Steampunk flavor,\u00a0I also added a little metal gear to the middle of the filigree. \u00a0I used a gorgeous metal butterfly<\/a>\u00a0and a Steampunk style button<\/a>\u00a0from Mel’s shop to\u00a0further\u00a0decorate the tin.<\/p>\n

To add more texture and interest to the tin, I added five more antique bronze gears. I also added an antique bronze key along the center seam and a couple more small metal butterflies (that makes THREE gorgeous metal butterflies, all of which I embellished\u00a0by hand with black bling) to the upper left corner.<\/p>\n

It was all looking pretty good, but then I remembered I had a Prima Vintage Trinkets set with a metal tree branch that had alpha charms hanging from it that spelled out “ADORE” and a little cream colored resin bird on a branch. \u00a0After feeling badly about cutting off the raven\u00a0from the top of the cupid’s head, I thought this would be a perfect way to\u00a0replace the reference to nature. \u00a0It was a little tricky securing these pieces, but with a little patience,\u00a0E6000 (for a permanent, stronger hold), and hot glue (for a quick hold) it all set up well. \u00a0I added a few tiny lace flowers, snipped off of a\u00a0remnant scrap of the ivory Venice lace to the bird’s beak and the branch he is sitting on in order to soften that resin piece and to help carry through the romantic theme of this project.<\/p>\n

Use coupon code CraftyPaws10<\/strong>\u00a0for 10% off your purchase at MelsCraftBoutique<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong> (min $15 order), and if you are in the U.S. and your order is $40 or more, this coupon code also gets you free shipping!\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

The following is a video share of this altered tin:<\/p>\n