Homemade Trinket Boxes

Total Time: one hour

Yield: one trinket box

Supplies:

• pine trinket box sized 9 x 5.5 x 4.5cm
• silver mirror word
• one 1" high cerise pink wooden heart
• pearl seed beads
• cerise pink felt
• acrylic paint in the following two colors: mother of pearl rose pink and white
• Heritage Gloss craft varnish
• paintbrush
• standard scissors
• small screwdriver
• clear-drying wood glue (such as Qualigrip)
• clear-drying craft glue (such as Bostik Clear)

Steps:

1. Use the screwdriver to remove the hinges and the lock unit.

2. Add a layer of wood glue to the top of the lid.
3. Place the mirror word and wooden heart in position.
4. Cover the rest of the lid with seed beads, carefully gluing the beads all around the mirror word and heart. Remember to check that at the edges the beads fit in nicely.

5. Give the bottom part of the box an uneven wash with the mother of pearl rose pink paint and allow to dry thoroughly. Do not paint the inside of the bottom part, as this will be covered with felt. Also give the remaining areas of the lid an uneven wash with the mother of pearl rose pink paint.
6. Now add an uneven wash with the white paint to all the areas painted in the previous step and allow to dry thoroughly.

7. Cover the inside of the box with felt. Make sure that the felt is glued thoroughly into all the edges and corners.

8. To protect the paint from wear and tear, add a layer of water-based varnish to the box. Do not varnish the top of the lid.
9. Replace the hinges and lock unit.