It may be over 100 degrees here in West Texas this week, but I’m hoping fall is around the corner! I decided to break out some supplies and make some simple fall decor for my booth.  You may have seen several of the projects on Facebook using Jenga tiles.  I decided to give it my own look.

Here are the supplies I rounded up:

• Jenga type game blocks (I found mine at Dollar General for $4.25)
• glue
• Fusion Mineral Paint (I used Goddess Ashwagandha, Sacred Sage, Soapstone, Tuscan Orange, Prairie Sunset, Algonquin, Pale Gold, Copper, and Vintage Gold)
• 1″ paint brush
• Iron Orchid Designs Knob Topper stamps
• Iron Orchid Designs paper clay
• Fleur De Lis mould
• rolling pin
• small cookie cutters (I used the Simply Autumn Baking cookie cutters from Joann’s)
• Fusion’s furniture wax (I used Espresso, Black, and Copper)
• narrow ribbon

Step one: Apply a thin coat of glue along the edges of the wooden tiles and glue three of them together.  Once dry, paint it your choice of Fusion Mineral Paint.  I used Goddess Ashwagandha, Sacred Sage, and Soapstone.

Step two: While the paint dries, pinch of a piece of paper clay and roll it out about 2 inches in diameter and 1/4″ to 1/8″ thick.  Select one of the designs from the IOD Knob Topper stamp set and gently press it into the clay.  Then use one of the small cookie cutters to cut the clay into a shape.  Glue it into place on your board while the clay is still wet.

Step three:  If you want to add some extra character, grab an IOD mould and add some appliques to your piece.  I used the Fleur De Lis mould and pressed some paper clay into the acorn mould.  Pop it out of the mould while still wet and glue in place.

Step four: Now it’s time to paint your appliques.  You can paint them different colors or the same color as your background.  I knew I wanted to use metallic paints which are sheer so I painted a base coat of color to coordinate with the metallics.  When the base coat was dry I brushed on a coat of the metallic.  Pumpkins were Tuscan Orange and Copper, leaves were Prairie Sunset and Pale Gold, and the acorn was Algonquin and Vintage Gold.

Step five:  I used the Iron Orchid Designs Alpha 3 stamp (now discontinued 🙁 ) to stamp the word “fall” onto the bottom of one of the blocks with IOD black ink.

Step six: What sets these pieces apart is the layering of color.  I used the 1″ brush and dry brushed Goddess Ashwagandha on the darker colors.  The secret to successful dry brushing is barely using any paint on the brush.  The last step was to apply colored wax to show off the impressions on the appliques.  I generously applied the wax and then wiped the excess off with a rag.  I only applied it to the appliques but you could put it all over.

The final step was to cut a piece of narrow ribbon to wrap around the block.  I spread a thin bead of glue all around the block and glued the ribbon in place.  You could also add a small screw eye to the top of the block and add a hanging ribbon.  Mine are designed to sit on a shelf.

So cute and so simple, right??  Next I want to work up some for Christmas.  What would you do with these??