INSTRUCTIONS:

1) Protect the work surface by covering the area with 1 or 2 layers of newspaper. Be sure to read all of the interesting articles first though, before you use them. *Smile*

2) Paint the wooden box with your base colour (example: earth brown)

3) Let it dry completely. This takes approximately 1 hour. When it's dry, re-paint it again, depending on the level of opaqueness you want. I suggest applying 3 coats of paint for best results.

4) If you paint the inside of the box, be sure to keep the lid open when drying. If painting the underside of the box, be sure that the lid is completely dry, or else when you go to lay the box on its head, the newspaper will stick to it, leaving nasty bits of paper where the paint was wet or tacky. If this happens to you, don't worry. You can just get a soft cloth, dip it in warm water and gently rub the area. The paper should come off.

5) Use the measuring tape and measure 1.5 cm from the edges of the box where you want the gold embellishments. This measurement depends also on the size of your box and how wide you want your gold band along the edge to be. Use a pencil to mark your box. Make several markings of the 1.5 cm measurement, along the edges for greater accuracy.

6) Take your masking tape and carefully follow your pencil markings. Line it up as best as you can and press down firmly so that the tape adheres better to the box. This is important, because the tape will be your paint guide and you don't want any of the paint to seep underneath the tape.

7) Use your gold (or other colour) paint and paint the area from the edge of the box to the beginning of the edge of the masking tape. Put only a little paint on your brush at a time. The more paint you put on your brush, the more likely it is that the paint will seep under the masking tape. Add more paint to your brush as needed, but don't just goop it on. Also, you may wish to paint the chest's/box's legs like I have.

8) Let that dry in the same way as in Step 3. I also suggest 3 coatings of the gold (or other colour) paint.

9) Get the scrap piece of paper and using your pencil, draw a simple design of what you want the treasure chest's side handles to look like. Make it wide enough to cut out with ease. Once you're satisfied, use the X-acto Knife or scissors to cut the handle out. If you are 12 or under, please, please, PLEASE get a parent or adult to supervise you or cut it out for you. Throw away what you've cut out. You will be using the remaining piece as your stencil. Also, depending on your box style, you might want to make another stencil to create a keyhole.

10) Using masking tape, secure the stencil to the side of your chest. Use the gold (or other colour) paint to fill in this area. Once again, I suggest applying 3 coats of paint. Make sure each coat dries completely before applying the next.

11) Once completely dry, you may wish to protect your work even more by coating it with a layer or two of clear varnish. I didn't do this, but that doesn't stop you! *Smile*

12) Once the painting is completely finished and the whole thing is dry, gently and carefully peel off the masking tape. This should leave you with a crisp gold (or other colour) painted edge. Now you can now have fun and do the easy part of this project! Fill it with gold or silver-coloured objects. I bought those chocolate coins from a bulk candy store to go with the whole treasure chest theme. I had some gold streamers and placed that in the bottom of the box. I also put in Ferrero Rocher chocolates in the box because they looked like little gold nuggets. I put Hershey Kisses in there, gold-wrapped hard candies like toffee and caramel. Since it was Christmas, I also included butterscotch candy canes just because they were yellowish/goldish in colour. I put a gold foil covered frame with a picture of myself in the box. On the underside of the chest's lid, I used masking tape to stick a photograph of my boyfriend (at the time) and I to the top. Be creative with your chest's theme. If it's for Easter, you could have a pastel-coloured theme and fill it with easter eggs, etc. Use your imagination!

13) For a final touch, I created my own scroll. Just write a message on a piece of paper and take a lighter or some matches to burn the edges away. Be sure to do this near the sink, where you can put out any fire with water. This will give it that old scroll antique/aged look. Please, please, PLEASE get a parent or adult to supervise you or use the lighter/matches if you are 12 or under. Be safe, okay? I don't want you to have an accident or get hurt...or...burn the place down....*Smirk* Incase you're curious what message I wrote on my scroll, I put: "I treasure our relationship." The theme for my chest was treasure and I wanted to tie that in with how much I cared.

14) Yay! You've made it to the final step of this craft project and I'm sure you know what it is: TIME TO CLEAN UP YOUR MESS!!!! Yes, that's right. Throw out the newspapers, clean your paint brushes, put away your pencil, X-acto knife/scissors, masking tape, etc. You want to surprise someone with your wonderful creation, not your mess.