I am really enjoying playing with all my mixed media products. I bought a bare wood word “Home” a couple of years ago intending to do something with it. So I finally plucked up the courage to try something. I don’t know about you but I have loads of ideas of what I want things to look like but not the actual courage to start because I am not confident that the end result will be worth it.
But I have finally decided it’s about time I actually started using all this stuff I have accumulated and have a go. After all if it’s a complete mess no one needs to see it and hopefully I will have learnt something in the process.
I keep meaning to take photos of the various stages but forgot and just went for it.
I love birds as a theme and managed to include a few in this project.
I was quite pleased with the finished look and am now deciding what to try next!!
After saying I would do a mixed media workshop at McOyster Crafts in Cupar, I have had some fun playing!! And making lots of mess. Over the years I have collected paints, waxes, pastes, mica sprays etc, but never really used them properly. So I decided it was about time I actually started using them.
I have been inspired by several mixed media artists, especially Finnabair (Anna Dabrowska) and some of the artists on her design team. I am still learning how to use the different products and produce something I am happy with. I want to find my own style but think at the moment I am happy to try ideas I have seen. Here’s what I have made so far.
This was inspired very much by Finnabair and the techniques she showed us on a workshop my friend Linda and I went to last September. I didn't have a black and white head shot to hand so this was from a card my daughter Catriona had printed at Art College. I quite like the layers of lace for the background and the white gesso dry brushing to pull everything together.
For this mdf tag I was trying to get a rusty patina look with paints over the black gesso base.
This was created using Finnabair rust paste then gold wax on top. The background layer was a piece of thin metal paper embossed with a Tim Holtz 3-D Mechanicals embossing folder.
The photo does not show this at it's best. I love this stag die and wanted to create a wintery background. Again I used a piece of metal sheet (that I got from McOyster crafts) and embossed it with a Tim Holtz Christmas words folder. I triple embossed the stag after colouring him, with clear powder. I then stamped into the hot melted powder with a crackle effect stamp and used a copper wax to pick up the raised areas. I might do something similar for another workshop if the first one is successful.
I think its time now to clean up my desk before I start anything new. I look forward to seeing some of you next Saturday 9th February at my workshop at McOyster Crafts in Cupar.
Keep stamping!!
Siobhan xx
