Collage Art Gifts to Make in An Hour

Honestly, this year I really did start early on my holiday crafting. But here it is Christmas Eve, and I still have a couple of last-minute presents to create.

This winter collage magnet took about an hour to create, including drying time between layers.

If you're in the same boat, don't despair! I have few collage projects you can use for 11^th hour gift-making.

Little collage art magnets make great stocking stuffers or gifts to have on hand for unexpected guests. And you can make a whole batch in an hour. I was inspired by Jodi Ohl's Winter Blue Sweet Heart Magnets to create my own version of these itty bitty mixed-media collages. Jodi used thin pieces of wood as her magnet base, but I had a bunch of mini canvases and used those instead. You could use a scrap of mat board or heavyweight watercolor paper.

Here's how to make a collage art magnet.

1. Paint the canvas with a base coat. I used a mix of regular and metallic paints. (I used Jacquard® Neopaque® and Lumiere® paints.)

2. For texture, I applied more paint using Bubble Wrap® and hole-punched paper (used as a stencil).

3. For my collage, I cut a small snowflake out of white paper and glued on some white glitter, then glued the snowflake to the canvas with gel medium. You could add a photocopied photo or other ephemera. I clipped some old text from a children's primer and applied that with gel medium.

5. To make the magnet collage more festive and wintry, I spread some gesso here and there with my finger and dabbed some silver Pearl Ex pigments (also by Jacquard) mixed with matte medium around the edges of the canvas and the old text.

Fabric collage brooches by Mary Hettmansperger.

6. Finally, I glued a strong magnet to the back of the canvas with gel medium.

Have a cup of cocoa while the whole thing dries, then wrap or drop into a stocking.

Here are a few other collage art project ideas you can make at the 11^th hour.

Collage folder by Heidi Sekovski and Karin Winter.

Wire and fabric collage brooch. If you have craft wire or metal found objects, fabric scraps, and and a square of felt, you can hand stitch a collage composition onto the felt. Just add a pin back, and you're good to go. 
 
Make a collaged journal folder. Take a manila folder and open it up. Score and fold a line horizontally 3" up from the bottom. Mark and score the folder vertically into four 41⁄4" wide sections. Fold along the horizontal lines to create the pockets, then crease along the vertical lines. Collage the covers and flaps with heavyweight decorative papers and fabric, stitch in place. Fill the pockets with stamped papers for journaling.

Framed fiber collage by Sherrie Spangler.

Frame a collage. Somehow, when you frame something, it instantly becomes more impressive.  So take your prettiest, glitziest fabric scraps and stitch them onto a base of craft felt or batting with decorative thread about 3" – 5" square. Add bits of decorative yarn, beads, metal mesh, and other elements to the fabric base to complete your collage. Frame with a purchased frame and mat (omit the glass). Write an inspirational word on the mat, if desired.

Need more ideas? Download our eBook One Hour Gifts: 10 Fun Mixed-Media and Fabric Art Projects now, and you'll be finished with your projects before Santa comes down the chimney!

P.S. Do you always make projects at the last minute, or are you sitting calmly by the fire while people like me are still crafting away? Tell me about it below.