Teresa Lipiec, Romeo and Juliet, inside
Teresa Lipiec, Romeo and Juliet, back
Gillian Allen UK, Retro bx, front
Gillian Allen UK, back
Tamara Saranpaa, OR. leopard skin  cigar box side
Tamara Saranpaa, OR. leopard skin  cigar box top
Tamara Saranpaa, OR. leopard skin  cigar box top
Gillian Allen UK, interior
Teresa Lipiec, Romeo and Juliet, front
Tamara Saranpaa, OR
The cigar box is covered with a leopard skin material then trimmed with a cord ribbon. The crystals are from a lamp that was made in the early 1900’s.
Gillian Allen UK
I painted the box with matt acrylic black paint. I found a group of photos that I thought would go together and played with them in Photoshop, increasing contrast, adding Auto FX Photo Graphic Edges and custom brushes--generally trying to make them look grungy and old. These were pasted down, also one put into a soldered glass slide, and one into an old metal film slide. Old button and watch face were also glued on. The inside print also created in PS and printed onto ledger paper that was given a wash and spatter of acrylic burnt sienna and yellow ochre, The handle was very gold new and shiny, but I took care of that with a coating of paint and varnish stripper, to get rid of the varnish--then a dilute black patina aging solution by Modern Masters, was applied. Also to the catch--all were screwed in with the help of a hand drill. Two coats of clear acrylic varnish were applied to the outside, and matt to the interior.
I think cigar boxes have so much potential for collage, decoration and assemblage. Transforming them into coveted collector purses is fun, challenging (but not too difficult ) and rewarding.
Scan and send in your cigar box purse creations to show on this page.
Powered by counter.bloke.com
Teresa Lipiec
The cigar box brand was “Romeo and Juliet”, which I thought would be a good theme for the purse. In order to use the main image I had to remove the lid and reattach it so the image would be the right way around. I painted the box with burgundy acrylic and painted a swirl pattern in gold in the interior. The box was then collaged in handmade paper stamped in gold/silver, various images of Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare and text taken from the play. I left one side alone so the “Romeo and Juliet” brand
remained. The box was then sprayed with two coats of acrylic sealant. The handle was made of a

cupboard handle, which was covered in glue and wrapped with ribbon this was screwed to the box, a couple of fabric roses were glued around the base of each handle. I reinforced the hinge of the box
with more of the ribbon and added a piece of lace. For the catch – I screwed a wooden knob to the lid (after painting it with acrylic and varnishing it) and used a heart bead with gold elastic to finish this
off. As a final touch I added two gold mesh hearts.
Linda Mitcheltree Happy Valentines Cigar Box Purse
Linda Mitcheltree Masquarade cigar box purse
Linda Mitcheltree Masquarade cigar box purse
Linda Mitcheltree Happy Valentines Cigar Box Purse
Happy Valentine's Day cigar box purse sides 1 and 2
Vintage images, charms, lace doily and roses from magazines and catalogs.
I gave it 7 coats of polyurethane.  Lined with yellow rose printed fabric.
Linda Mitcheltree
.