If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be? Glue in a map image, or travel brochure pages for a trip you would love to take. Why do you want to go there? What do you want to see or do? How long would you stay? What, or who, would you miss most about home? What keeps you from going there?
I was recently playing around with using Citra Solv to alter National Geographic pages, and discovered a new favorite technique.
I simply used a VersaMark embossing inkpad (I like to use the small one) to stamp through a stencil onto an unaltered magazine page. Then I dusted it with Zing clear embossing powder.
I heated it with a heat gun until shiny, and then, once it had cooled, sprayed it with Citra Solv along with the pages before and after it, just as I normally would.
When I opened up the magazine minutes later, I found a lovely surprise! The Citra Solv turns the embossing into a flaky substance that can be brushed away from the page, leaving a very cool stencil effect. The facing page was also very cool, and even the page after showed a hint of the stencil design.
Definitely a keeper, and a technique I shared with my latest Citra Solv workshop!
Good job, Andi!
This weekend, I had a two session Citra Solv workshop at Tessera Fine Art Gallery in Wichita. I thought the results were lovely!
In Session 1 of the Citra Solv workshop, we learned the basic techniques of altering National Geographic pages with Citra Solv concentrated cleaner… with some lovely results!
In Session 2, we learned how to alter our pages even more, and looked at some ideas what to do with all of our pretty papers, with many happy creations!
Come back tomorrow and I will share one of our techniques!
Each week I use the key Scripture from the sermon to make a simple coloring page. It helps me focus on the Scripture, and remember it, as well as practice my lettering skills. Sometimes I have a fun inspiration for the design, other times I just do a plain jane design like I did this week.
If you want to color your own….
Thanks for stopping by!
Leaves are so versatile, I add them often to artwork and art journal pages. I carve them into stamps, doodle them, paint them, and stencil them. No surprise a leaf sampler showed up in my sketchbook! I love leaves, but I seldom know the actual names of the trees they come from, so my leaves have scripted names like funky, or spiral, or feather. For that matter, there may not be many that look like an actual leaf! That is when I claim artistic license and go on my leafy way.
What is showing up in your sketchbook?
In honor of Chinese New Year today, the art journal prompt is to add a dragon to your page. Can’t draw a dragon? Try using one of these free coloring pages.
This one from Activity Village looks very Chinese, and they have several to choose from:
And if you want a more “normal” looking dragon, try this site full of all kinds of coloring pages.
or, pull one out of your child’s coloring book (add wings to a dinosaur?) or an old children’s book.
Now give your dragon a personality and write about it. Is it a friendly dragon that protects you from something? Or is it a looming problem in your life that you have to deal with?
(There is nothing wrong with using someone else’ work in a journal, as long as you aren’t stealing something you should be paying for, or claiming it as your own work.)
I find these words very inspiring. Go ahead and dream your dreams, but then go do what you need to do to make them happen! As Henry David Thoreau says….
“If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundation under them.”
I liked this quote so much that I made it into one of my bookmarks.
Available laminated, and beaded, in my etsy shop!
Happy dreaming!
It’s Technique Tuesday, and today I want to revisit a quick and easy way to make your own stencils and masks using magazine images. You could do this with animals and objects as well, but my favorite is the human form.
It is easy to find appropriate magazine images, just look for images that can be identified in silhouette as a person! Sometimes funky arm angles or a partly turned head can be a problem, so watch for good arm and head positions.
Once you have chosen your figures, the next step is to simplify the features. I usually get rid of the hair.
Then, I cut out the image and laminate, but you could also trace it onto a file folder or cereal box cardboard.
Cut out again, and you have a beautiful mask and stencil to use again and again!
Now it is time to play! So many things you can do with these!
Have fun with these!
Over the weekend I had a fun workshop with a lovely bunch of ladies. We worked on altering and creating planners to be smashable style beauties.
First I showed some examples from my personal planner…
…ideas for months…
…weeks…
…fun fold outs….
…and painting over the past!
We talked a bit about supplies…
Then we got right to it, using planners, journals, composition books and smash books!
I love the atmosphere of friendship and helpfulness when creativity brings people together!
Andi was most gracious in hosting this workshop in her home, but they can also be hosted in a church, school, business…
Can’t wait until the next one!
Supplies:
monthly and weekly smash book pages
Love is the topic of the day…and every day!
from victory road 
