Mixed Media Place.......Summer Music vol.1 - Freedom

The first of a series of music challenges at Mixed Media Place.

"Freedom" by George Michael.

This song inspired me to create two faces, representing the other person we sometimes need, or are forced to be. I've let loose with my love of pattern using tissue, stamps and rub-ons. I have embossed pattern for texture and used watercolour to soften . The base paper and die-cut doilies are from Finnabair's beautiful 9th Wave Collection. I've also had some fun playing with latex masking fluid (see below ) and "empty" marker pens that you fill yourself with whatever you want.

Check out the Mixed Media Place for materials I used, to be inspired by the DT girls interpretation of this song AND how you can play along with this challenge and win yourself a prize from Finn"s shop.

Patterned applied with tissue, stamps and embossing.

Outline lips with rubber latex masking fluid, then you can add your colour with what ever medium you want, ink, paint stamps, texture etc. with out it going over the edges. This looks kind of gross here...........

Lips and eye lid coloured with a marker pen ( one that comes empty and you fill yourself with any ink or paint you want ) before being stamped.

Masking fluid around outside edge of eye brow first, then add colour, dry, then stamp, dry, then peel off masking fluid.

After stamping with black ink and making sure it's dry, use your finger to rub and roll off the yellow masking fluid. You can see where the stamp has gone "over the lines" of the eye brow shape and onto the masking fluid; when you peel this off, the excess stamped image comes away with the dried masking fluid and you are left with the sharp edge of the eye brow.

Not George Michael but my favourite band......hip-hop and art comment.

Thanks so much for visiting. May the music in your life sooth your soul and excite your creativity.

Mixed Media Place........An Empty Box

An empty box becomes a book. I know, it's not new, people alter boxes all the time; but it's definitely fun ! I have "decorated" several of these little boxes before, but pretty much kept them as boxes that you put stuff in...perfect for a collection of 6x4"photos, or chocolates, or jewellery, or theatre or spots tickets as gifts etc. but this is the first time I've "altered" one and made it into a book. Gels, pastes, Vintage Trinkets embellishments, papers, Color Bloom Spray and Silks Acrylic Glazes all from Mixed Media Place.

No.1 The hearing aid box. No.2 The front panel removed, the lid opened to reveal inside front cover and inside back cover. No3. Top lid of box, now the front cover of the book. Edges painted ready to have background paper stuck on. The magenta piece of lace at the side is part of the inside back cover which I've already done. No4. Beautiful 7 Dots Studio Nature Walk 'Grey Day' paper. No5 Molding Paste coloured with Silks Acrylic Glaze. No6. Embellishments...

Prima stencil used with Golden molding paste. Coloured with beautiful Silks Acrylic Glaze. Prima Doily Die-Cut and Finnabair's Vintage Trinkets.

Stampendous! aged scarlet embossing enamel.

Glass beads coloured with Silks Acrylic Glaze and pearls coloured with Prima Color Bloom 'Gold Foil' Mist.

A peak at the inside back cover for next time.

Thanks so much for visiting today; wishing you a happy and creative week.

I'm Coming Clean....paperDVIZHNIK Challenge #45

Challenge #45 at paperDVIZHNIK is "IN MOTION". Capturing or representing movement. 

So good to see Ausie gal Jasmine Shea is the dvizhnik special guest there this month, and her page is just amazing......totally encapsulates this whole idea of motion, both by the photo she's used and by the art she has created around it. Check it out HERE at paperDVIZHNIK along with the other fab DT work and how you can join this challenge.

As for my page; very clean, neat and tidy for me......no splatters and splotches or a million textural layers in the background (just a few dribbles). I find it fun and refreshing to sometimes work in a different style. 

But, there was a purpose to keeping this page "clean".....the images are of my daughter having a good old belly laugh.....throwing her head back then bending forward, cracking up at: well, I can't remember what; but I wanted the silhouette of her movement to be the focus of the page......hence the stark, white background. The circular swish of the yellow paint is meant to draw your eye around the images and high light the movement as well as act as a frame for the faces.

Lots of layers underneath tho; paper, washi, stamps, texture paste, acrylic paint, Indian Ink, chipboard and other embellishments.

Papers are a mixture of 7 Dots Studio "Cold Country" and "Nature Walk"

Chipboard 'happy' from Imaginarium Design kindly gifted to me by the sweet Natalie "Happy Daks" May. I have temporarily abandoned my beloved water colours for this page, and used only acrylic paint and Indian Ink.

I think I have to confess to being subconsciously influenced by the beautiful, fresh mood board from last month at Scrap Around The World with my colour choices..... thanks Di Garling

Movement is such a fabulous kick start idea for a page....please come and join us at paperDVIZHNIK this month. Details HERE.
As always, thanks for visiting today. Have a great week, and make all your movements fun, passionate, purposeful and rewarding !

Mixed Media Place........Emotional Challenge #7

During the past several months Finnabairs' Mixed Media Place has been throwing up some fabulous challenges. They haven't been your usual "sketch" challenge, or "color" challenge or "journalling" challenge........... they've been "emotional"challenges, and for me they have been the most meaningful and fulfilling challenges I have ever taken part in. There are some absolutely wonderful challenge blogs available to us, and we are very fortunate to have so many hard working, creative entrepreneurs around, who tirelessly run these blogs and constantly inspire us, but these emotional challenges at Mixed Media Place really make you THINK. They make you draw on so much more than just your design, color and technique skills. I try to give my pages much deeper meaning through subtle suggestive, and representative imagery. I am really sad that this is the last of these challenges, but of course that's what art journals are for, and I will continue to explore more "emotions" in mine.

This months emotion is "Stress". We have all experienced it. I looked at stress initially from a purely 'physical' perspective, rather than the obvious mental or emotional stress but found they are all connected any way.

We all put, at times and depending on what sort of work we do, considerable "physical stress" on our bodies...i.e. dancers, labourers, athletes, farmers etc. then if something goes wrong such as an accident or injury, then that in turn will cause us mental and emotional stress, so it's all related, one is dependant on the other.

Beautiful "Lost Letter" paper from Finnabair's Cold Country Collection is the background for this page. I've also used "Vintage Coal", one of the new Color Bloom Spray Mists from Prima. Also lots of stamping, texture paste and Distress Stains.

 

The concentric circles, and strong directional lines and arrows are representative of not just how we can "physically" be pulled every which way, but also mentally and emotionally.

If you want to push yourself mentally as well as creatively, join our challenge this month at Mixed Media Place. All the details are HERE, as well as lots of inspiration from the DT.

Some emotions visited in the past: Jealousy, Sadness, Tenderness, Fear, Calm and Courage.

Thank you for taking the time to visit today. Hope your week is totally "stress-free" !

Winter Blues

 Love these words.

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to be invited to a "scrappy weekend" in Mount Gambier with some absolutely lovely girls, who also happen to be amazingly creative. I was definitely "feeling good" when I created this art journal page that weekend.

Texture paste and hand drawn flowers using Tombow marker pens. I love these pens; I've had mine for years and they have not dried up and the colours are rich and vibrant.

Some gold flakes, just for fun ( actually I was trying to channel Louise Nelson who is the lady with the golden touch at the moment and who kindly gave me these gold bits to play with )

Texture, tissue and watercolour

Hand painted flowers, texture, stencilled back ground, dry embossed tag.

Here's the song and some great visual graphics based on repeat pattern and typography.

Thank you for coming by. I hope your summer or winter "blues" are only of the music variety and that where ever you are your staying warm or "being cool". 

Mixed Media Place and paperDVIZHNIK challenge #44

Hello !! High time I posted what I've been up to creatively. A new challenge at paperDVIZHNIK and a journal page for Mixed Media Place. 

The challenge at paper DVIZHNIK is a fab one, thought up by the very lovely Sandi Taloumis. 

A LO, card, tag, using black and white and ONE colour......but at least FIVE shades of that colour. Oh such fun, who doesn't love working with colour !? Details are HERE.

 Done some fussy cutting...whats new....done some stamping, embossing, stencilling, texturing, watercolouring and loved every minute of putting it all together on a piece of Prima paper.

Found the Dragon Fly stamp in a discount bin. It's made by Holly Berry House Originals whom I have never heard of but love the stamp.

An Art Journal Page

This art journal page was created for Mixed Media Place and I've used several of Finnabair's beautiful stamps, her paper, stencils and inks, all available from the Mixed Media Place on line shop. ( Finn's very lovely husband Andrew will pack and ship every thing to you quick as a flash ! ) This is quite a sentimental page as it reflects my happiness and excitement at being invited to join the Mixed Media Place DT but even more than that it expresses the freedom I then felt, that I could create in my own way, in my own style, not question what I was doing and that I would be accepted. I felt sort of "liberated" from my own creative fears and doubts. I know that sounds kind of "wanky" but that acceptance has made a world of difference to how I now create and how I think about creating.

Thank you so much for coming by to visit today, I'm so happy you haven't forgotten me !