An adventure using mixed media

In the past, I've made some panels stuck with 3d embellishments and collage this was my of mixed media. I was looking at some artwork and found something to rival the great Tim Holtz.
She goes by the name of finnabair- Anna Dabrowska and create such wonderful pieces of work. Subtle use of colour and careful playful elements. I wish I could something like that.
Here is a link to her flickr photostream it is breath taking.
Spent a long time analysing her work and figuring out the process only through watching youtube did I finally understand the process.

• First you build the base stick on pieces of paper
• Arrange and add embellishments
• Cover in white gesso
• apply modelling paste through stencil
• colour with ink sprays

Here is my attempt in finnabair mixed media piece, the base is often canvas since I don't have any instead used one of my past 'awful' collages and get it update

I used heated plastic because gives contorted almost organic forms. Gesso can be found any where not usually used by itself in the past I used this as a primer for painting.
Looking at other people's work I don't see much dry brushing with acrylic except for finnabair. I always painted with acrylic much easier to work with than watercolours.
To stick embellishments best to use gel medium popular one is Claudine hellmuth studio multi-medium matte same one Tim uses. I just use gloss as still an acrylic medium and same thing.
I only have a few colour sprays: Cosmic Shimmer Vintage mist-patina and 2 Color wash Adirondack dye sprays. With the Distress stains Tim shows how to remove the top and decant some of dye into mini mister.
The Stencil is grid from finnabair's sunset range.
Not bad for first attempt I need to work more on arrangement of elements and save room for stencils. Paper arty have wonderful Grunge paste which does the same thing. Wished someone showed me this style sooner well I never really attended craft classes and video streaming needs fast connection.
Here is the video which inspire me enjoy

Sadly ever since August I found it difficult to get back into crafting and don't enter the challenges any more. Well I do make ATCs and mailart. Thinking of using beeswax and UTEE my melting pot has been sitting in cupboard unused as normally use it for candle making. I have a project pans specifically for beeswax. If in doubt draw.

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June Challenges and say Hello to a new friend

I'm still new to these challenges and sadly none of my work has gone chosen so far it has been a while since I last made a proper card or any with rubber stamping. As the old cliché it's not the winning but taking part which counts and each day is fresh page in a journal waiting to be filled.
For June I decided to enter this card in 2 challenges:
Country View Crafts: Die Cuts
Stamping Sensations: Summer Blooms

 

I doodled some card sketches and chosen a colour palette, to me June is start of summer this season's colours if sorbet. I used Candy: Dark Red, Greens, Blues with Walnut Stain.
Lots of Distress Inks and Stains were used so I won't go into much detail as usual I pick out whatever pre Distress paper scrap in stash. Don't have die cutting machine but have lots of Die cuts in fact 38 pages brought from Create and Craft. The trellis was painted using Distress Crackle paint: Antique linen it turned out green. The roses individually hand crafted from 4 hearts punch using 10 pieces with some small punched leaf details, the flowers took the longest to make.
Rubber stamping were in Stazon Jet Black and used: Crafty Individuals, Stamper Anonymous, Paper Artsy Hot Picks, Birds and Nest set from Cox and Cox.
I should of used an aperture card then wouldn't need to cover the edges with paper string: idea-ology.
Finally added small touches using faux gems and flowersoft.
Not too much of background were hidden by embellishment I have been known to over collage things.
I have still have Tim Holtz June tag of 2013 to complete plus my version for February. In the meantime say hello to my new best friend. He is called Oscar and is Syrian hamster I believe is about 3 weeks old.

I brought him on Monday from Pets at Home, in fact all Syrian hamsters are boars (males)

He's panda coloured and I worried about him on Monday and Tuesday he was active and playing on the wheel but changed on Wednesday, barely eats and spends much time in his house and only comes out to collect wood shavings to build a nest. I've checked Oscar last night he doesn't seem to have wet tail and still fairly active. Since he is still new maybe still settling in, I remember what happened to Cherry the Chinese dwarf she suddenly died in within 6 days.
Hang in there little Oscar.

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April tag of 2013

Here is my interpretation of Tim Holtz tag for April. Yes I know it's almost a blatant copy but I used different elements and managed to nab some material before they were out of stock.
Luckily that's crafty  sells majority of items for anyone wanting to attempt Tim's challenge.
Local hobbycraft store stock some not much.

 I used metal charms- Philosophy tags, foliage, game spinner and word tags and did some improvisation with tissue tape and cut out my own 4. I wondered why the number than thought April is the fourth month in the year. Art Parts modelling film is thicker than shrink plastic and tricky to use since not used to this new media but I have future uses for this material.
At the beginning of the month metallic Distress paint weren't available I shop on artist trading post as well as they have more extensive range or products. They don't sell idea-ology 8 I have Tim Holtz's app and added the stuff I want to the wishlist. Still think washi tape is stronger and cheaper than tissue tape. I'm spending a fortune on one project and never wanted to get Distress Paints if you have Paint dabbler than don't need these. Almost finished with the palettes actually in the future I'm going to use whatever in stash unless really have to buy these items. Idea-ology and Distress is really expensive there's other I could of brought like Paperartsy, 7 Gypsies and other antiqued metal embellishments.
It's just I notice the ones which were selected resembled what Tim created. Would be nice if my tag was selected I'm not bothered anymore. Art can be made with few simple items but I'm an eclectic artist crafter. On 2012 monthly tags I thought he would do something special like in his Compendium of Curiosities. Besides I have to play catch up with February I will make 2 as one of them is going to have to be celebration of Chinese Lunar New Year. Snakes are cool.

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Free time after 2 weeks of studying

Whenever I update my blog I first have to update my flickr photostream as well after filling in the descriptions its exhausting. I was off for 2 weeks on study learning about customer service and First Aid and had little time to do my posting which is steadily building up. In the free time I did have I managed to make some atcs and few of these.

My tags were chosen at all not be let down I started again and focused to making tags for January. My first tag ends up being too dark even though there's nothing wrong with it. Focusing what the month meant new year, winter and fresh start. Checking back on Tim's previous monthly tag I noticed he used Distress stains Picket Fence along side another colour and gave me an idea.
I used broken china as the additional colour and darken with Distress ink- faded jeans and added some peeled paint. After tinting up the wings I added some stickles it's best to squeeze a blob on craft mat or catalogue in my case and using a your finger to rub some glue on then dry using the heat it tool. If you are careful the inkjet printed image won't smudge as much. Collected some scraps and add them on numbers stamp from fairytale frenzy work great when stamped in forest moss and little outline for extra touch. Most of time I'm staring at the tag what to add because less is more. Chitchat stickers are useful to create your own pearls of wisdom but hard to choose from all those text. As there is no word for 'new' then I thought of what it represents. New day is like blank page in journal ready to filled and life can be one big journey or adventure for the soul. I've finally acquired some crinkle ribbon to finish off the tag, these work best if the ribbon is scrunched and up after colouring and dried under the heat it tool. All done I hope only use one tag for April when rest of materials arrives so expensive buying all of stuff for monthly tag in future I'll use what I have already only buy if necessary. Here is are ones created so far.

Altered this a while ago it's a holder for moo cards and was rather plain I had no idea how to decorate it so as when I brought hot fix tool I used sample gems and stuck them on felt and added charms and clasp. Now attached to my bag.

I've been looking at matchbox shrines for while when I was still studying on the course, there's one discussed by Arttrader magazine and thought to give it a try. On one boring Sunday I was making 9 matchboxes unfortunately I was sick in the evening probably something I ate, a knock on head can cause it well I did bang my head and felt some pain.

This the inside view it's better if the elements were positioned so it resembles a scene. I have collected some much 'stuff' over the years and majority of don't fit. Oh well use a bigger matchbox next time.

I discovered when I was making the matchbox shrine it crosses over with my jewellery making skills. The whole process feels like assemblage not just a collaging a great way to use bit of scrap. I was over the top with the wings, majority of matchboxes I've seen uses butterfly wings why not bird or bat. If you have wings than fly.

I have a lot of clay elements which are too fragile to be used as jewellery, tags and shadow boxes might be useful. It takes 2 days to complete, 1 day for sanding and painting and another for layering of varnishing. I was partly influenced by the configurations these cost money but buy something you can make already it takes a little time.

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Why patience is a virtue

It pays to be patience well after I submitted my work to March tag of 2013 I've the noticed the colours of the tags were washed out and not bright compared to other tags. Once again technology has let me down if it's not a tablet it's the camera on the smart phone. You always take pictures using a digital camera in best light as possible. So I tried again this morning its still raining.

This is what the tags suppose to look like and colours are brighter and details are more clearer.

'Light' version I used one of floral imagery from Paper stash- Lost and Found as background and sanded it as suggested on Tim's tag. From the same collection I used rabbit card and distress the edges with Walnut Stain. It may not be clear but flourish masks were used for reversing masking along with Peeled paint, further colours were added Faded Jeans and Ripe Pesimmons.
Great thing about Idea-ology Paper stash is they have reversible distressed colours on the back each sheet. There wasn't anything suitable in coloured papers in my stash so I used a scrap from leftover projects, stamped border motif from Stamper Anonymous- Mini Ornates glued this on thin cardboard (Don't have grungeboard as yet) using glue and seal medium (this comes with handy brush).
I discovered an iron is useful in speeding up the drying time of the glue. Next I cut out circular shape, I don't have any Sizziz dies or even die cutting machine because feel there is no use for one all my cutting is my hand. Used to it because of other papercraft as in assembing paper models.
Stamped writing on several scrap of distressed paper scraps carefully drew floral motifs based on mini floret masks and used Shabby Shutters stickles, once this dried I cut the shapes out and fix them on tag using small brads, Dogwood flowers and beads were added too (From Beadery). Finally added stamped letters (Rubberstampede alphabet set), Stampendous peel offs and die cut motifs.
This tag is second attempt and more carefully planned I used the one below as guide.

I call this 'Dark' version as in more earthly tones were used. The tag was coloured using no wrinkle distressing technique with various colours- Spiced Marmalade, Crushed Olives and Forest Moss. I used Idea-ology Mini Florets masks and rubbed Walnut Stain, stamped various motif from Stamper Anonymous- Mini Ornates, Stampingbella- Bubble wrap in Peeled Paint and Ripe Persimmons. An image of rabbit (Animal Illustration by Dover publications) was added and made a small frame and flower using stamps using the same way as explained from above. The edges were darkened with Walnut Stain and added labels using Dovecraft mini alphabets with some accents using Distress Stickles.
It's too late to replace the photos with the new one I took, I'm tired in fact hadn't slept well for a week now. Sometimes there's too many ideas flowing inside my head or other people are annoying me with excess noise or being general nuisance. Hope to make a few changes to both blogs when I'm back ideally should be update the blog first and then flickr photostream. May this a lesson to take pictures of work in best light conditions as possible.

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TAG- now you're it

I have been busy not with cross stitch but organizing all my stuff together but sadly I'm still stuck in same situation I was last year without a permanent workspace. The ideal place for stamping is on the kitchen table lit under daylight I have LEDs daylight simulation lamp pity the batteries last long.
After reading Tim Holtz blog, watching his youtube videos and reading his Compendium of Curiosities I felt inspired to make tags for this month. I made two because wasn't happy with the first attempt never thought of making tags don't see their purpose.
For March: tag of 2013 I will submit them both they are part of set. 

First one I call Dark (because I used earthtones) and the other is Light. They both talk to each and have similar styles. My tags bare no resemble to Tim's because don't have sizzix or use the idea-ology materials I find it's best to make something more of your style like own personal interpretation of the project. 

Picture quality is not good as I've take this on my smart phone ideally I would take a picture using my digital camera in good daylight one thing in the UK it always rains and rains some more.
Much of what I used is explain in my flickr photostream I find it's good to have a source of vintage royality free images the rabbit is from Dover books.

See the colours are more subtle or could be because of poor light conditions. I'm not going to wait till tomorrow to do this why not now. Actually, last week I wanted to make stuff but couldn't because unsuitable condition it's too noisy and the table wasn't free. So I said to myself stop waiting and start doing. This was finished when first half ended of England vs San Marino match.

Here's another tag I made this is for second monthly swap of new yahoo group I've joined. Actually take on ATC I once made for Blue theme swap.

I was giving crushed jewels techniques to try and didn't realise you can add glitter, embossing powder, shaved ice at the same time. Oh well it pays to follow the instructions very carefully.
Okay I admit I went on a spending spree on buying Distress Inks, Stains and idea-ology finding will was for ATC swap now I have more variety for other things. I'm interested in making shadow boxes or personal shrines been a while since last made one. Well I have to find a way to use Paper stash pad I should really stop there's still more Stains and idea-ology, Stamper anonymous stamps to get but they are so expensive. Mini ornates cost £24.99 and you can't just have one.
No seriously I have to stop buying craft materials plus there's unfinished projects to do. There's further news from this post.

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