Hello Maja Design fans and friends!  Nancy Hanttula here, and I am so happy to have been invited back to once again share some projects using the magnificent Maja Design paper collections!

Today I am going to share a 12 x 16 mixed media canvas piece that I created using the exquisitely beautiful Sofiero paper collection.  This collection is a limited edition, so you need to get your hands on it now, before it is gone!

When I first saw this sweetly romantic paper collection, I knew that I had to make a special project for my sweetly romantic little girl, Elizabeth.  My little princess, who turned 6 at the end of this last May, is a true romantic at heart.  Her favorite part of every movie is always the “kissing” part, and if there isn’t a “kissing” part, well then, it’s really not one of her favorite movies.

Here is a breakdown of how I created this piece:

I started with a 12 x 16 canvas panel.  I like to use canvas panels instead of actual stretched canvases at times for a few reasons.  First, I like to “frame” some pieces, and it is easy to frame a canvas panel vs. actual stretched canvas.  All you have to do to frame them is to pop out the glass, and insert the canvas panel (into the appropriate sized frame) and voila.  This is especially important when using a lot of dimension on your project.  Another reason I like to use canvas panels vs. stretched canvas, is that when you use stamps on your background, the canvas panels provide a stiff & stable  surface.  Stretched canvas on the other hand is such a flexible and soft surface in the center areas, you really have to pay attention to using force underneath the canvas when you are stamping directly onto the canvas.

Above you can see where I have used the back-side print of  “The magnificent Flowerstreet” paper ( for my sky) and the front and back prints of “The elegant Wine House” for my rolling hills.  To cover the canvas for my sky and hills, I ripped up the paper and adhered the pieces to the canvas using matte Mod Podge.

After adhering the paper down, I then took stamps and paint and added texture and interest to the background.  I then created my castle and my frog prince.  Using a stencil, I traced the images onto paper (bs of Princess Margareta’s Garden for the castle & the front side of The elegant Wine house for the frog.)

After tracing out my images, I then added color and shading and details to the images.

After finishing the castle and frog prince, I cut them out and adhered them to the canvas.

Now, the really fun part of creating the “princess” clothes to hang on the clothesline and to outfit my little princess.

Once the clothing pieces were sketched & cut out, I embellished them up a bit by adding glitter, sewing, tiny roses, paper lace, and shading.

I adhered the clothes using hot glue to give them a bit of extra dimension.  I also used some tiny little clothes pins, the white parasol, and some white birds (all acquired at a yard sale) to “hold” the clothesline to give a bit of a magical whimsical feel to the project.  The shading was done using Faber Castell pens in browns and greys.

All of the paper used for this project was from the Sofiero Limited edition paper collection.  Other supplies used here included:  Anna Griffin Rub-On (lamb), Rub-ons from Basic Grey, Colorbok, Kaisercraft, Studio Calico (clouds); Matte Mod Podge; CTMH inks in Crystal Blue, Topiary, and Lilac Mist; Staz-on inks in Olive Green and Cactus Green; Ranger Archival ink in Viridian; Folk Art acrylic paint in Calypso Sky & whit; Acrylic paint dabber from Ranger in color Pool; reverse punchinella, corrugated cardboard, and bubble wrap used for background texture.

Thanks for looking!! I hope this has inspired you to create something magical today!