No excuses- Make ATCs

Even if you aren't feeling creative, take a little time and make some ATCs. These little gems are fast and fun at 2.5" by 3.5". Use up paper scraps, try new techniques, get wild with colors. If you don't like the results, you haven't invested much time or materials. It pays to play in art to loosen up your creative spirit and this is a good way to do it. If you like your results, use them on a collage, greeting card or scrapbook page. Examples above include a pleated ribbon, faux postage and embroidered fabric scrap.

Why be BLUE.....

When you could be PURPLE!! This is a page from a mixed media accordian book on purple and all of its glory. The book included 6 Prismacolor drawings of purple flowers, lots of purple paper and all the purple scraps and doodads I could find in my studio!

Winter Witch Stuffie a Finalist!!

My WINTER WITCH stuffie is a finalist in the Reader Challenge from ClothPaperScissors magazine! She's on her way to their offices in MA so wish her luck!!

Mad Scientist in the Studio!!

Took some time this weekend to play with gelatin monoprints. Cheap and fun, you use grocery store clear gelatin and whatever paper, paint or dye you have on hand. I did a thin layer of gelatin in a cookie sheet so I had plenty of room to play with. I used Dr. Martin's colored India inks and Golden fluid acrylics with gloss medium for an extender. I applied the color directly to the gelatin and brayered or fingerpainted it across the surface. To clean up after the colors started getting muddy, I just laid newspaper in the pan and pressed gently.

So far, I've tried 3 paper types for the prints. First, I gathered my ugly paper- you know, the ones in a variety pack that you never use but can't throw away. The colors were transparent enough to allow some of the pattern to show but the the new colorways were much better than the originals. Secondly, I have a whole set of old encyclopedias that I'm using for altered books and other projects. These pages look great when they are overprinted. The text and pictures peek through the color and will make great backgrounds. Finally, I tried paper leaf stencils. I covered the gelatin with paint, then laid the stencils and pulled the print. Then, I overprinted the page with a different colorway. Had some technical problems with the stencils getting stuck so next time I'll use plastic or chipboard stencils and explore this option further.

I want to use as much original paper in my projects as possible and these monoprints are quick, easy and crazy fun! I had paint all over me and half the studio by the time I was done! A couple of hours yielded 30+ sheets of great paper. Now, I will go back through the stack and stamp, stitch and further embellish them to create really special collage components.

I'm in the 2010 ClothPaperScissors Calendar!

My art was selected for OCTOBER in the ClothPaperScissors 2010 calendar!! Autumn Leaves is a mixed media design sewn to a pieced quilt background. The leaves were cut from various decorative papers then glued and sewn to the fabric background. Beading and decorative stitches accent each leaf. It's a beautiful calendar -like everything else from by Interweave Press. Get your copy today at http://www.clothpaperscissors.com/

Book Cover- Putting It All Together

As you can see from previous posts, I am always experimenting, using up scraps and stockpiling collage components. When it's time to create finished pieces, all these piles of things around the studio come in handy. For this book cover, I had muslin that I had gessoed and painted with rainbow colors. The main collage image is a combo of holey paper scraps, colored clipart, an ATC and faux postage. The title piece is 6 kaleidoscopes torn and pasted to an oblong card. The fabric , small collage and faux postage were not made at the same time or to go with each other but when I chose my color scheme and title for the book, I had lots of things to choose from in my design stash. I find that when I experiment and play, the results are much better than when I agonize over just the right thing. Plus, using this method justifies making 50 ATCs at one time just because it's fun!

Fun with Leftovers

My desk tends to pile up with leftover bits and pieces from finished projects. This design is a mishmash of several things. The original background piece was a combo of black and red Tibetan paper with my kaleidoscopes collaged all over it. All the rectangles were cutouts for faux postage. The resulting holey background was too cool to toss so I glued it to some painted newspaper experiments. This got moved from place to place in my studio while I thought about all those holes. In the meantime, I had been doodling up a storm at night watching TV. I decided to cut up the doodles and fill in the holes. Once that was done, a scrap of turquoise painted muslin caught my eye and I ripped strips for each side. The total piece is 14" x 14". Now, I'm considering stitching the muslin strips down and adding Sharpie doodles to them to relate back to the center. I may use the whole piece as a journal cover or cut it up for smaller projects. These experimental pieces are the play that leads to great ideas. There are no preconceptions to hold you back and you're just using leftover stuff anyway so if it ends up being a flop- you toss it or cut it up.

Green Continued

My last post showed the progression from Scrappy Background to ATCs and the doodles created to become focal points for the ATCs. I am still working on the large finished green piece but I had a little pile of tasty bits left over from all the cutting. So I decided to make more faux postage. Sometimes I make sections that can be used together like the 12 small stamps at the top. Other pieces work better by themselves. Either way, by using all the scraps, I can make a stockpile of great collage elements. Any time I need a little something to perk up a project, I have a whole box of faux postage to peruse. I could also have made some great inchies to have in reserve. Using your scraps is a great way to clean up your leftover pile and make unique mini tidbits that will enhance your work.

Green Scrappy Background Part 2

If you refer back to the June 8th post you will see the first installment of Scrappy Backgrounds. Above is the green sheet cut into 9 ATCs. I'm going to mount them on a green brocade fabric covered background. I like the look of arranging them as they were on the whole sheet with a little space between each one. The green doodles at the top of the page will become the focal points on the ATCs. They were all done on speckled ivory cardstock. Some have green pigment ink coloring the background and one is a hand carved stamp that I doodled over. 12+ green felt tips were used for the drawings. I like to doodle while I watch TV. If I'm just too tired to be in my studio at night, doodling on the sofa with the tube on keeps me from feeling like a total slug! I picked leaves as my theme for these. Just let yourself meander with the drawings and don't worry about being perfect. It's a great brain relaxer. The next step is to add the doodles to the ATCs. All of the background and doodle scraps get saved for faux postage and inchies. From one background sheet and a couple pages of doodles, you can create a nice collection of personal images to use in your work.

Check out my Life's A Beach artwork in ClothPaperScissors magazine

Follow this link to see my submission to the ClothPaperScissors magazine Reader's Challenge.

http://quiltingarts.com/cpsmag/extras/25_LifesABeach.html

Fourth of July Cards

I love sending handmade cards for all the holidays. It's a great way to keep in touch with distant friends and relatives. Thye don't have to be elaborate and it's a great way to use up scraps. My focal point for these cards was a kaleidoscope made from a scanned flag in Kaleidoscope Kreator. Using the same flag, the blue field and stars were enlarged slightly then cut with a punch and attached to the flag pinwheel with a brad. The center square twirls around for a fun touch. The backgrounds varied as you can see from these 4 cards. I went through my supplies and used any paper that fit the color scheme.

Published in Sew Somerset!

Check out my mixed media pieces in the Summer 2009 issue of Sew Somerset magazine. Above is a detail of Moroccan Lily on page 128 and there are also 5 Lily ATCs on page 129.
The magazine is published by Somerset Studio, a beautiful magazine devoted to paper arts and mixed media. This spin-off is devoted creative sewing with mixed media. Find you copy at Barnes & Noble, Borders or http://www.stampington.com/ .

Special Details

Finishing a piece of artwork is like dressing up for a special occasion. The dress is killer but if the jewelry and accessories aren't perfect, it can make or break the final look. When I begin a piece, I usually gather EVERYTHING in my studio that fits the mood and colors of the art. From this large pile of stuff, I begin to whittle down and edit. Most of it will never be in the final piece but comparing and eliminating help clarify the process. At some point, when the composition is almost done, it's time for the fancy details that make it sing. I love to add beads, couched fancy threads and painted accents to really bring a spark to the piece. On the two close-ups above, you can see how the final tiny additions define and highlight the key elements and movement in the art.

Scrappy Backgrounds

I'm continuing to clean up the pile of paper scraps on my desk. All of these background sheets are 8.5" x 11". For the base, I used pieces of ugly cardstock since they are completely covered. I weeded thru the stash and made piles of related colors. Next, I arranged the pieces, cutting and tearing as needed. My goal was to produce interesting backgrounds for collage and ATCs (Artist Trading Cards). Each piece needed to be balanced and able to stand alone in it's entirety plus have enough interest all over to still look good if it was cut apart. Everything was glued with a glue stick. I ended up cutting all of these into ATC size- 2.5" x 3.5". There was a little waste with each one which I saved for faux postage. I think they will all be mounted to fabric colored boards and reassembled in the order they were cut. I'm still working on that idea so stay tuned.

This is a great way to use the beautiful paper scraps you accumulate and create beautiful, unique backgrounds. Great relaxation too! I usually make 8-10 at a time so I have them in reserve for future projects.

Unique Greeting Cards

I do a lot of artwork and experiments and I always have a pile of paper scraps, ATC (Artist Trading Cards) and collage parts accumulating on my desk. A couple of times a year, I make a big batch of cards with all the leftovers. I find if have a stockpile of readymade cards, I am always ready with a thank you or sympathy card and also give sets as gifts to friends. Everyone likes receiving a card that is unique as it makes the sentiment of the card more meaningful.

To cut down on the assembly time, I keep an eye out for blank card sets on sale. This way, I don't have to cut and measure to create the base cards. Even if cards are patterned they will work. Just coordinate the additonal layers and artwork. All of the cards above were made with purchased cards and envelopes. I really like the diecut layers with scallops and zigzags. I spread all the cards out on the floor so I can see them and then go thru collage scraps, ephemera, etc. to create the focal point of the card. Then, the paper scraps come out and I choose additional layers for each card. Finally, any ribbons or embellishments are chosen. I stack each card and its components in bins. When I'm ready, I just pull off the stack and assemble. It's so much faster this way if you think production instead of individual cards.

Making cards is relaxing for me and gives me a good breather in between bigger projects. It also teaches great composition skills and allows me to try new techniques. When I'm done the huge stack of "stuff" on my desk is more manageable and I have a stash of great cards!