Discover Bister

Bister is a concentrated color wood stain from the Netherlands. It comes as a granular, water soluble powder in 8 colors and can be purchased from I Brake for Stamps. All the information I found on the internet was in Dutch so in this video I explore how the product reacts with other art mediums.

Til next time...

WOYWW 282 & 283

I was getting my supplies ready to film a mixed media project last week and even photographed my workdesk for last weeks WOYWW when our main computer was hit with multiple viruses simultaneously. My husband called me immediately and I was able to disconnect my network from the internet and isolate the computer to stop the spread but the desktop was toast. Windows and Office were rendered useless and after 3 days of chasing down and killing viruses I finally gave up, wiped all the hard drives clean, bought Windows 8.1 and started over. All is back up and running, I have better virus and malware protection and my husband is actually handling the change to Windows 8.1 better than I expected. He usually does NOT handle change! Now I can go back to crafting.

This was my desk last week just as the viruses hit. The big clear bottle with the black top is my new spray bottle that was designed in Holland and purchased through my hairdresser. It sprays such a beautiful mist with no drops.

And this is my desk today all ready for my next project to be filmed today as soon as I design one more Christmas card.




Til next time...

We've been bombed

I had 2 videos and several projects to post but we were bombed with multiple viruses last week. These were some of the worst viruses out there and they were in a multi-virus bomb that literally exploded on our desktop and released so many viruses at once that the virus protection couldn't keep up with it.  After finding 15 of them and still having issues with the system, I did a complete wipe of all hard drives and did a clean install of Windows but I am still installing all of my other software.

I am so careful about protecting my computers and yet this mess got through so obviously there were weak spots that I wasn't aware of. I am now so paranoid about getting anything that I am running 3 different kinds of virus and malware programs and you can't even check the time of day without inputting a password.

It will be several more days before I can upload anything to the blog but I'd like to leave you with a wee hint... Bister.

Til next time...

Finding My Style

Being fairly new at Mixed Media, I find that I spend a lot of time reading blogs and watching videos of Mixed Media Artists. This is how I learn what products are out there, what techniques the experienced artists are doing and hopefully I can use what I learn to develop my own style and find my own little niche.  This piece was inspired by Vivian AKA contadinaK and this video she posted on YouTube.

I started by spreading white gesso on a piece of mixed media paper with a palette knife but I didn't cover the whole page.  While the gesso was still wet I pressed into it randomly with an old rubber stamp. Next came embossing paste through a Damask stencil from UmWow Studio followed by random swirls of hot glue that were sponged with gesso once cooled.

Now that all the base texture was done I sprayed the page with Dylusions in Chopped Pesto and Slate Grey. I added poofs of PearlEx in Gold and Interference Green as I was spraying so the Dylutions would spread the powder and act as a fixative.

Once everything was dry I added Colorbox Chalk Inks from the Autumn Collection to the gessoed hot glue. Unfortunately it looks like a scene from "The War of the Worlds". I hid most of it by stamping and cutting 2 vases from some scraps of monoprinted paper using stamps and matching dies from Papertrey Ink then coating them with 2 layers of UTEE. The flowers were stamped with PTI's Larger Than Life set and die cut. The label was cut with a die from StampinUp's Chalk Talk set, stamped with PTI's Damask Designs then aged with Distress Inks. The sentiment from PTI's Meadow Greens set was stamped with Walnut Distress Ink and embossed with clear powder. The label and vases were mounted over the hot glue disaster with foam tape.

Til next time...

WOYWW October 22

Well my workdesk is rather boring today as I am in between projects. There are mostly remnants of a organizing project I did off and on for the last few days. I have an old Quickutz cabinet that really wasn't living up to its potential so I made 3 x 3 x 4 1/2 boxes to fit in the cubbies. Made some labels with my Brother P-Touch and now have storage for some odds and ends that needed a place to hang out.







Til next time...

City On The River

I managed to not only create a new Art Journal page but filmed the process, edited the video, added the narration and uploaded it to YouTube. Pretty impressive especially considering I'm really new at most of this. I apologize for the sniffling during the second half. We had tremendous winds today and since Utah IS in the desert, my furniture is now crunchy with sand and my nose is running. At least I didn't have a sneezing fit. Those can last for several minutes when the air is really bad.

This will be my last video with the Sony camera. The resolution is only 420 or so with the Sony which was pretty good 8 years ago but I splurged and got a Panasonic HC-V550 HD Camcorder. Can't wait to play!

So any who way, here is the video...

 

Enjoy!

Gel Plate Monoprinting

Ran across a video here on how to make a permanent gel plate for monoprinting and decided to give it a whirl. It wasn't all that cheap to make, smelled a bit funky, foamed like a son of a gun and had to be skimmed repeatedly to get rid of all the foam but it did work.  I still have it in a container at room temperature and it hasn't grown anything but it is a pain to clean and I think a silicone glue gun mat will work just as well.

So there I was with several sheets of cardstock printed in some not so great colors but went ahead and used them anyway. I had a print that was made by brayering red, orange and ochre paint on the plate and then stamping into the paint with a damp marble design stamp. I cut it down and made a 4 1/4 by 5 1/2 inch card with it.

The second print started out yellow and blue but I overworked it and ended up with green. A little embossing paste, a stencil from The Crafters Workshop and Salty Ocean Distress ink on a 3 1/4 by 4 1/2 inch ticket die cut made it work.

The next print was red and orange paint that was combed with a rubber thingy for doing wood graining. I used black Archival Ink and a stamp I lovingly refer to as "The 3 Broads" from my ancient stash. No idea who made the stamp. It's really old and just bare rubber.

Flowers were die cut from the Tim Holtz Tattered Floral Garland decorative strip. Papers used were: a book page randomly stamped with Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink; book page sponged with Salty Ocean and ironed with paraffin wax; book page sponged with Peeled Paint Distress Ink; a piece of needlepoint canvas sponged with Peeled Paint Distress Ink and a second piece sponged with Salty Ocean.

A strip of black cardstock punched with a Martha Stewart border punch, decorative brads from StampinUp and a bow made from hemp cord complete the embellishments. The final touch was the word "Friendship" stamped in black Archival ink with alphabet stamps from Hero Arts.

Til next time...

Testing 1 2 3 ...

I have been wanting to try recording some How-To videos for some time now but didn't know where to start. After watching this video from Imperfect Impulses and this one from Sheepishly Sharing I discovered that I had all I needed except experience so thank you Aaron and Margaret. I have already learned a lot just with this one test video - my resolution is too low, picture is out of focus most likely due to having the camera too high overhead, it's probably better to just do my project and narrate the process later and I need to stop waving my hands around since I'm Polish not Italian. (grin)

So anyway, here is my test run. Try not to laugh too hard and any and all advise will be greatly appreciated. My camera is a Sony DCR-DVD205 mounted to my old but trusty Velbon tripod and I'm using Roxio Creator 2011 as my video editor.

Til next time...

Fun with Art Journaling

In Week 3 of Camp Scrap's Art Journaling we were to have fun and do what makes us happy. One of the suggestions was to use scraps and stamps left on the work table from a previous project. On my work table at the time was my order from UmWow Studios, patterned paper scraps from Week 1 Kit-tastic, book pages, pieces of faux resin paper, a strip of watercolor paper spattered and smeared with Distress ink and a roll of Washi tape with world globes on it. A quick search through my stamp collection turned up a travel set and a passport stamp.

I began by gluing down all the assorted paper scraps with matte medium followed by a few pieces of Washi tape and a very thin wash of gesso. I added swipes of random colors of Fresco Chalk finish dye ink from Stampa Rosa that haven't seen the light of day for years. I had forgotten how great this ink was. I then glued down a piece of faux resin paper and stamped it with the collage image from the travel set. Unfortunately the image just disappeared into the background. I added the stars with a stencil from UmWow and Wendy Vecchi Gold Embossing Paste and while that was drying I inked up a manila tag with the chalk ink, stamped the collage image and the passport then fussy cut all the pieces. The collage pieces were glued over the stamped image with some being up on foam tape and the passport was added to the corner with foam tape. The sign post was done with a black PITT pen, brown Copic and a white gel pen. The final touch was the Arrow Confetti from UmWow which was inked with Versamark, dipped in gold embossing powder and heatset before being glued in place. Once it was done the cut out images on the left looked pretty bland so I added color with Distress markers and a waterbrush.

Til next time...

Sea Frame Week 2 Mixed Media

Sorry about the gap between posts but life got in the way with trips to doctor, dentist, veterinarian etc. Being a full time caregiver can be such a pain sometimes. I've had this project finished for a while but just couldn't seem to find the time to photograph it.

The mixed media project for week 2 of Camp Scrap was an embellished picture frame. I picked up a plain wood frame for $1 at Walmart and gathered some buttons, beads and other miscellaneous doodads from my collection. I coated the entire frame with Crackle Paste and embedded my largest items into the paste, filled in with small stones for fish tanks then set it aside to dry completely. The next step was to fill in any remaining space with a mixture of glass beads in 3 different sizes and matte medium and set aside to dry.

I painted the entire frame with Tim Holtz Distress Paint in Salty Ocean with streaks and dabs of Broken China and Victorian Velvet. Gave it a quick dry with my heat tool then applied Distress Stain in Vintage Photo, making sure to get it in all the cracks and crevasses then wiping it off all the raised areas. Final touch was dry brushing some Distress Stain in Tarnished Brass over everything. I am really happy with how this turned out.

Til next time...

WOYWW but it's Friday

I am a true, dyed in the wool Virgo. I have a place for everything and everything is in its place. I mean, come on, all my Tim Holtz Distress inkpads, markers, paints and stains are in alphabetical order as well as all my rubber stamps. Crazy, I know, but I can put my hands on just about anything I need or want within seconds. That's why I just had to photograph my workbench today and share it with you. It is a complete and utter mess. Soooooo not like me but I had a blast working on last weeks Mixed Media project and this weeks Art Journal page for Camp Scrap.

Now I need to clean this disaster up so I can put the finishing touches on my projects and get them posted.

Til next time...

Week 2 Art Journal

Yes I know I'm running behind. I wish I knew how other people can cook, clean, do laundry, medicate a sick dog, care for an old man, feed and water dogs, cats & chickens, make jam, create artwork, photograph it and get it blogged without getting behind. I haven't even looked at this weeks projects. Oh well, fortunately Camp Scrap is all recorded and should keep me busy for months.

Anywhoway... Last weeks Art Journal Project was to a) Use just one color b) Be inspired by a single shape and c) Use something from around the house. I did 2 of the 3. I couldn't think of a single thing around the house that I could use.

I chose hexagons because they remind me of chicken wire (I'm obviously obsessed with all things Chicken) and bees. The shades of yellow just seemed to go with the honey bee theme so I went with it.

In order of execution:

1. Apply book page to mixed media paper with matte medium
2. Gesso the whole page
3. Randomly stamp hexagon outlines (Papertrey Ink & StampinUp)
4. Mask previously stamped hexagons
5. Randomly stamp patterned hexagons all over page and emboss with clear embossing paper. (Papertrey Ink and StampinUp)
6. Airbrush with Copic markers starting with lightest shade of yellow in upper right corner, working down towards lower left corner using medium shade and ending with darkest shade.
7. Use Tim Holtz Honeycomb stencil and alcohol dampened applicator to remove some ink here and there.
8. Use alcohol and cotton swabs to remove excess ink from embossed hexagons
9. Remove masks, journal in and around white hexagons and stamp a few bees (PITT pen, StampinUp bees)
10. Using UmWow's hexagon confetti mask, apply a mix of white and gold embossing paste here and there (Dreamweaver, Wendy Vecchi)
11. Stamp, die cut, color and embellish large bee and mount in lower corner. (StampinUp bee and die, Copic Markers, Glossy Accents, Donna Salazar Pralines & Cream glitter

P.S. If you read my last post, the UmWow mask did give me a sharper, higher profile with the embossing paste that I really like on this piece.

Til next time...

An Um Wow Imp

There is an art journaling blog and YouTube channel that I've been following called Imperfect Impulses with Aaron so I guess that makes me one of his Imps. I love this guy - his techniques, his style, his videos as well as his personality. And he likes Lady Gaga so all in all he is just about perfect. There is just one tiny, little problem. He has been costing me money. In a recent video Aaron used some masks and doodads from Um Wow Studios that I just had to have.

UmWow has all kinds of laser cut chipboard from the tiniest Confetti Collections up to tag books. I tried to restrain myself but the confetti packages were just so tempting. I ended up ordering 7 packages of confetti. They are supposed to be chipboard but look like wood. They can be stained, painted, stamped on, heat embossed and probably things I haven't thought of yet. I do have to warn you though - these are laser cut so there is soot on them. Don't drop them on anything light that you want kept clean and wipe your hands after handling.
Diamonds: Solids as small as 1/8 inch up to 5/8 and frames from 3/8 up to 1 inch.
Chevrons: Solids and frames from about 3/8 to 1 inch
Octagons: Solids and frames from less than 1/4 up to about an inch.
Snowflakes: 1/8 to 1 inch
Gear Mash: The smallest is about 3/8 and the 2 largest are 1 1/2 and 2 inches.
Arrows: Every type imaginable!
Love Confetti: Hearts, tags, lips, people, X&O, and arrows in assorted sizes.

UmWow's masks are a bit thicker than most of the other masks and stencils I have which should give me a higher profile when using embossing paste. They are also a bit stiffer so I am wondering if I will get a sharper image when sponging or spritzing. The five that I chose for my first haul are: Brick, Butterfly Swarm, Diamond Confetti, Hexagon Confetti, and Star Confetti. Can't wait to use these!

Plan on seeing these products from UmWow in future projects. I already have a partial order ready to go and I haven't even used this stuff yet. Is there a 12 Step Program for this?

Til next time...

Fun with Mixed Media

The first project in Mixed Media for Camp Scrap was a 5x7 canvas. Can't remember ever working on a canvas so this was a new experience. I didn't have most of the supplies and stamps so I made do with what I had.

First step was to apply a book page with Acrylic Matte Medium which acted like both an adhesive and a sealer. Since I didn't have acrylic paint, I mixed Gelatos with the Matte Medium and painted over the whole canvas. Next I added a piece of burlap with the same medium and while that was drying I made the melon layer with more gelatos and matte medium, stamped a script background, embossed it with clear embossing powder to seal it then glued it over the burlap layer. For the bird and foliage I used the stamps from StampinUp's  Friends 24-7, stamped with Versamark and then used black embossing powder. I colored them with Derwent Inktense Pencils, fussy cut them and set them aside.. If you've never tried the Inktense Pencils you are really missing out. They are the most fabulous watercolor pencils I have ever used and I have used them all.

Made a lace doily stencil with glossy cardstock and a Cheery Lynn die, placed it on the canvas and applied embossing paste. While the doily was held in place by the paste I lightly spritzed with Dylusions then removed the doily. While the doily was loaded with paste and colored spray, I placed it face down on a piece of mixed media paper, rubbed from the back then removed the doily. I now have a beautifully colored doily plus a doily print to use on other projects.

I ran into a bit of a problem stamping the sentiment from Verve Stamps on the upper right corner. May showed how to stamp on uneven surfaces by using just the stamp and not an acrylic block. It looked so easy until I tried to do it. Disaster! I ended up stamping on a piece of tissue, heat embossing in black and setting it in place with matte medium which makes the tissue disappear.

Final steps were to attached the foliage to the surface, the bird up on a bit of foam and some bits and bobs from my stash. I added just a hint of distressing with a stamp from Tim Holtz's Slight Alterations set and Wendy Vecchi Archival ink in Tree Branch. This was a really fun project and I plan on doing more of these little canvases.

Til next time...

Kit-Tastic Week 1

In the Kit-Tastic category for Camp Scrap we will be working with kits obviously.  If you don't have any kits you can create your own using supplies you already have following a basic guideline. This first weeks session used 6x6 patterned papers, 3 neutral 8.5X11 sheets of cardstock and 2 colors of 8.5 x 11sheets of cardstock that coordinate with the 6x6 paper. Add some embellishments and 2 sheets of 12x12 cardstock to build your layout on and you were good to go. Have I mentioned that I have an entire drawer full of 6x6 paper pads, mostly untouched?

To create my kit I chose Graphic 45's French Country pad along with the coordinating stamps, StampinUp's cardstock in Cherry Cobbler, Hello Honey, Early Espresso, Very Vanilla and Crumb Cake. I created my own embellishments with silicone molds from Mod Podge and StampinUp's Simply Pressed Clay along with Copics and some Spellbinders dies. Added I piece of burlap from my stash.

I am very pleased with the 2 layouts and I'm thrilled to finally have the 2 youngest of my flock recorded for posterity.

Til next time...

Never Too Old for Summer Camp

Wow! It has been forever since I last posted. So much has been going on and I never seem to have enough time to accomplish everything on my list. One of the things I have been doing is Art Journaling and Mixed Media. It has allowed me to be creative in a whole new way and use many of my tools and supplies that haven't seen the light of day.

I signed up for Camp Scrap 2014 with May Flaum which started last Monday and I am really enjoying it. I plan on doing the Art journaling projects on individual sheets of mixed media paper and then binding them all together when camp is done. Our 1st weeks challenge was to do something out of our comfort zone and/or use a product we are unfamiliar with.

For the Art Journaling session I actually used my own hand writing which is something I never do. I started with a piece of mixed media paper and used gelatoes and a wet paintbrush to creat a rainbow background. It was beautiful. Then I used a stencil and some Dylusions spray in Crushed Grape on the left side, flipped the stencil and put it inky side down on the right. Note to Self... Dylusions are intense!!! It completely obliterated my pretty rainbow gelatoes. Live and learn... oh yeah, this is a class so I am supposed to be learning.

Next up was stamping the background stamp from WaltzingMouse Stamps with Wendy Vecchi Archival ink in Potting Soil in the lower left corner and enhancing the circles with a white paint marker. Second Note to Self... get a Faber-Castell Big Brush Artist Pen in white.

Used a Faber-Castell PITT artist pen in black to write my journaling and went over it a time or two to thicken the letters. Highlighted parts of the journaling with a Pilot Gold Marker. Doodled that bizarre creature with the paintbrush on the right with a black brush PITT pen. Added some texture with a Tim Holtz stencil and whipped spackle then used some distress ink once it was dry. Final steps were to stencil "K8T", ink the edges of the whole thing with distress ink and add the date.


Tomorrow I hope to post some projects from the Kit-tastic class.

Til next time...

Surprise!!! ... and a little WOYWW

Yes I'm back... again! Starting tomorrow I will be sharing projects I've been working on as well as projects from Camp Scrap 2014.  Tomorrow's post is already done and scheduled and Friday's is in the works. For today I just wanted to say "Hi" and post a photo of my workdesk for "What's on your Workdesk Wednesday".  I am a neat freak so this will need to be cleaned up soon or I'll go crazy.

Til next time...

Share Your Project

Guess who is back and ready to blog again?  To get back into the swing of things I am showing a project I made for a challenge sponsored by Scrapbookpal.com to use Spellbinders dies. I used Labels 4, Labels 4 Small, Gold Labels and Labels 17.

 

 

Other supplies used in this project are:

Paper, Ink, Butterfly Punch and stamp - StampinUp

All other stamps and dies - PapertreyInk

 

 

Til next time...