My scrappin' life

Crew Member Wednesday With Linda

Hi there and welcome to Crew Member Wednesday! Today we have Linda with 2 summery canvasses. I love how she used clear heavy body gel medium with stencils and then used markers to color in the textured translucent flowers! 

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Hello there. It’s already June and here in Norway we are still waiting and hoping for that warm sunny weather. Hopefully by the time this post is live we’ve got at least some days without rain. This month’s project is inspired by summer gardens and it’s a typical project I would make to give away to a friend or someone else who could need a token of love and this is for me more personal than a card.

 

The video shows how I prepare the backgrounds on the canvases with collage, masks, Gel medium and paint. When I was finished with the canvases and kept looking at them I thought they looked too white. So at the end of the video I’ve got some still images. I did paint one of the white backgrounds green before I started working on it with the white acrylic paint and a stencil. The other canvas I used a green inkpad and the same stencil. As you can see this made the canvases totally more interesting for the eye.

 

Using acrylic markers in the process to highlight details

 

Details of the stencil work on the finished project

 

Hope you like it, and any feedbacks on the video is appreciated.

Products used in this project:

     

Linda

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Thank you so much for stopping by!!

Make sure to drop by every Wednesday for ongoing inspiration by my fabulous Crew!

We would love to see your creations on Birgit's Mixed Media Art Crew Facebook page so if you created something inspired by one of the Crew Members or using any of my products then please share!

 

For The Love Of Layers Workshop In Zwolle, May 29 2015

On May 29 I will be teaching my FTLOL canvas workshop at Creatief Centrum Inside Out in Zwolle, The Netherlands.

Time: 10.00-16.00

Place: Brinkhoekweg 2, Zwolle.

Price: € 75,- including all materials and a nice lunch, drinks and snacks.

For more info and to sign up you can e-mail [email protected]

Love,

My Canvas Collage Challenge - A New Way Of Creating?

A long time ago I ordered quite an amount of small 6x6" (15x15cm) canvasses for a workshop I had in mind but that I never really worked out to teach. While looking for something else I came across these canvasses and thought I should do something with them.

I decided to challenge myself by working on several canvasses at the same time and started adding paper collages to them. I used paper from magazines, books and my gelli plate prints on deli paper. I had never thought that it would be so much fun. Just randomly stick paper to canvas and then adding paint, with still no idea in mind.

When I was finished with the first layers I took one of the canvasses to work further on but any left over paint I randomly added to the others adding to the layers. Fun, fun, fun!

For the whole last week I didn't have to start on a blank piece, there was something I was already working on every morning on my desk and it was so easy to sit down and continue! Way easier then a clean desk with nothing going on and having to start blank!

So far I finished 7 canvasses (6 little ones and one 8x8"(20x20cm) since last Sunday and messed up one. But I'm sure that one has great layers now to start something on top :)

I loved working like this, I felt inspired all the time just by looking at what I already did, I was in this perfect flow of feeling creative.  I'm pretty sure I will work like this more often! 

Here's an overview of the general process. I will do separate posts on the individual canvasses with more details on how they came together later.

Tell me what is your favorite way of creating, what keeps you going? How do you get in that flow of not wanting to stop and just create, create, create?

I would love to hear!

It's Friday, Yippie :D

Have a good one and happy weekend!

Love,

 

 Products I used in these projects:

Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylic Paints	Liquitex Acrylic Ink	Liquitex Paint Markers	Liquitex Matte Medium
Reeves Water Soluble Wax Pastels	Pilot PermaBall	Archival Jet Black

InLinkz.com

How A Control Freak Learned To Let Go Of Control

My previous post was about the For The Love Of layers Workshop that I taught in my studio 1,5 weeks ago. 

The atmosphere was very relaxed and easy and gave me the opportunity to work on my example during class. I liked where it was going at the end of the workshop so much that I couldn't put it aside and kept working on it the next day until I finished it.

When I put all the canvasses I made since I started teaching this workshop next to each other I notice that I'm getting better and better in letting go of control and go with the flow. The thing I tell my students all the time about not thinking, just do it and so on, has been a hard thing to do for myself for quite a time.

A while ago I (in my "Around the world blog hop" post)  talked about how I had always been a perfectionist in my "art", so much that when I made a scrapbook page I didn't glue anything down until the point that I knew exactly how the page would look like when I did. It took tons of time and thinking and rearranging and sometimes I felt like getting nothing done.

When I started using paints and inks on my scrapbook pages I had to try and let go of that control as paints and inks simply don't always do exactly what you want. A splatter may end up in a different place than you planned, colors might accidentally mix… But still, once the background was painted or inked I started controlling the layers that came on top again.

Starting to art journal made it better. I didn't feel like I HAD to create something beautiful anymore, I could mess up and nobody had to see it. And even if they saw it, it's an art journal, right? It's meant as a place to try out stuff and mess up. Nobody cares so why should I?

Besides, what is the worst thing that can happen… that you ruin a piece of paper! Big deal!! LOL, right?

If I look at the first period I did art journaling I see that there is still quite some control in the pages. But it got better in time.

I learned to start a page without any expectations, without a result in mind. Creating for the sake of getting my hands dirty and have a good time. It was very liberating. I now have quite some pages in my journals that I don't like at all, but they are there and that's ok with me. At least I had fun when I was creating them.

So when I started teaching this workshop I thought that I was already there, but looking at all the canvasses I guess I still had a way a to go :D

Anyway, I never lied to my students, I never said it was easy, I only said that it feels good! And it does!

Constantly telling my students to come with no expectations, no end result in mind, telling them to just add colors and let go of control and showing them who to do that helped making it easier and easier for me to actually do it myself. Because I really liked the outcome every time I was able to do so… 

So here is the result of one of the first times I taught this workshop, about a year ago, and the latest one.

There is quite a difference, don't you think? Of course, you could say it is a matter of taste which one you like best… for me it's a matter of freedom. And therefor the second one is my favorite :D

BTW the first one is published in Marieke Blokland's book Art Journaling & Mixed Media. A great book stuffed with tips, tricks and facts for both the beginner as the more experienced artist. You can find the book here (in Dutch only)!

Thank you for stopping by and reading all my ramblings :) I'd love to hear if you are a control freak or not :D

Have a great day and happy crafting!

Love,

 Products I used:

Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylic Paints	Pilot PermaBall	Carabelle Studio Rubber Stamps	Carabelle Studio Stencils & Masks
Archival Jet Black	Liquitex Paint Markers	Talens Indian Ink

InLinkz.com

No Waste!! Left Over Paint Is Awesome!

I am soooo excited about this!

I've been using my craft sheet as a paint palette for quite a while now. It's perfect in so many ways, has a lot of space for mixing and using a brayer and it is also very easy to clean which is way better for the environment than the disposable palette paper.

But, speaking of cleaning… that is something I haven't been doing for a couple of months. At least not right away. I thought that the dried paint on the craft sheet would make a great product to work with when scraped off.

I know there are some people that made fun of me for collecting all that dried and "useless" acrylic paint, hahaha, but now I'm the one laughing because Oh My Gosh... I LOVE these little bits and pieces of paint!

I've collected a couple of these boxes filled with scraped off paint:

I can't help myself, the look of this makes me all giddy with excitement :D

And this is how it looks in my art journal. Painted the pages first and then applied the paint bits with Liquitex Matte Medium (my all time favorite!!).

Oh my, don't you just LOVE that awesome yummy texture??

And the completed pages:

Gauguin said: "Color! What a mysterious language, the language of dreams". How true is that?!

And it doesn't stop here! I loved this experiment so much that I decided to take it to a higher level and started working on a larger piece. From now on, every morning, I will scrape of the left over paint of the day before from my craft sheet and apply it to this canvas until it's a big happy, colorful piece!!

Thank you for your visit!

Make some art today! Happy painting!

Love,

 

Products used in this project:

 

Liquitex Acrylic Paints

Liquitex Matte Medium

Pilot PermaBall

InLinkz.com

For The Love Of Layers Workshop - YOU Can Paint Too!

Yes, you too!

On Saturday February 14 (at Revlie's Mixed Media Shop) and Saturday March 7 (in my studio) I will be teaching my "For the Love of Layers" workshop. This is a whole day workshop which runs from 10.30 until 16.30 pm.

In this class you will work with acrylic paints, stamps and stencils. You will learn how to build up a number of layers to create an interesting, playful and artsy look. You can choose your own favorite colors and create a painting in your own unique style.

When the rough work is done you will use markers, pens and ink to add details and interest. Important part of this workshop is that you let go of control and go with the flow. You will start this project without thinking and just see where the colors and shapes take you. It might sound scary but you will experience how relaxed this way of working is! And you will take home a unique and personal piece of art.

 

Saturday, February 14

Where: Revlie's Mixed Media Shop - Roelofarendsveen

Time: 10.30-16.30h

Price: € 65,= (drinks, snacks and lunch included)

What to bring: brushes, cloth or kitchen paper to clean brushes, brayer, jar for water, heat gun (optional), baby wipes. If you like you can bring your own favorite foam and or rubber stamps and stencils or you can use mine, I will bring my own stamps + a variety of Carabelle Studio stamps and stencils. Everything else you need will be there for general use.

To sign up send an e-mail to [email protected]

 

Saturday, March 7

Where: My Studio - Winsum (Gn.)

Time: 10.30-16.30h

Price: € 65,= (drinks, snacks and lunch included)

What to bring: brushes, cloth or kitchen paper to clean brushes, brayer, jar for water, heat gun (optional), baby wipes. If you like you can bring your own favorite foam and or rubber stamps and stencils or you can use mine, I will have my stamps and a large variety of Carabelle Studio stamps and stencils available. Everything else you need will be there for general use.

To sign up send an e-mail to [email protected]

 

I would love to see you there!

 

Love,

My Stamp Designs - Featured Artist Riikka Kovasin

Last week Marsha was the first featured artist here on the blog and today I want to introduce to you Riikka Kovasin and her projects using my stamp designs for Carabelle Studio.

Riikka and I "met" online when I was invited to an event in Finland a couple of years ago and she was my contact person. Since then we met several times in real at events in Helsinki, Utrecht, Paris... and she is the sweetest person!

Riikka's layouts are always full of techniques and details. Her colors go from grays and purple to bright yellows and turquoise. She adds lots of embellishments and fun little things to her work.

I love the layers in this layout (actually you will find awesome layers in all her work) and the placement of the elements leaving "white" space in the middle. I think the "I Heart Washi Tape" stamps, embossed with glitter, add beautiful texture!

On the next layout Riikka used the "French Lily Background" stamp next to the "I Heart Washi Tape" set. Love the vibrant orange and yellow and those fun wire circles!

See how beautiful the stamps look with multi colored embossing on them!

And how about this beautiful mixed media canvas?! Don't you just love the colors and the texture?

Riikka explains the technique of stamping in modeling paste on the Scrap 365 blog in a shared blog post with Marsha where you will also find a little "how to" video from her hand.

Talking about video's... Riikka has her own You Tube Channel: Paperiliitin. Check it out, you'll find 30 something inspirational video's there!!

In this last layout Riikka created her own background paper by simply stamping the "Layered Strips" over and over in different colors. I love how she stamped the "I Heart Washi Tape" on colored paper and then cut them out to incorporate them in her paper layers underneath the photo! Note the fun "water drops" she created with crackle medium! 

You can find more of Riikka's work in the Inspiration Gallery and of course on her blog: Paperiliitin.

You can also find her on Facebook and on Instagram: Paperiliitin

Stamp set's Riikka used in these projects:

     

Information on where to buy these stamps you can find in the "Where to buy my stamps" section in the navigation bar or by clicking here.

And in case YOU created something with one of my stamp sets, please drop me an e-mail with a picture or a link. I would LOVE to see!! Thank you for stopping by today! Merry Christmas!

Love,

Aladine IZink Textile Dye And Paint - Product Review

Today I want to share with you some of my experiences with IZink Textile Dye and Paint from the French manufacturer Aladine.

 

I have been working a lot with the IZink acrylic inks from Aladine over the last year and a half and I loved them, but I never used their textile paints before. I had them sitting on my table for quite some while and now it was time to sit down and experiment!

 

First thing I noticed about these paints was that they have the same bright, vibrant colors as the acrylic inks, which I love!

 

 

I got to play with a large range of colors, both the Teinture (dye) and Peinture (paint).

 

I also got some sets of foam brayers and accessories (a kit containing 3 different bottle tops to use for stenciling, stamping and drawing/writing and a spare bottle.)

Also available are specialty fabric stamping inks which I didn’t have available.

 

The only fabric I had on hand to work with was off white canvas. I love the texture of that but I was a little bit concerned that it would make the colors look dirty. That wasn’t the case; the colors are opaque enough to still be bright and vibrant on the gray fabric.

 

I first dyed the canvas with the foam brayer. This makes the dye soak into the fabric and create a nice cover. I was amazed that I didn’t need more paint but it seems like one bottle goes a long way. The dye smells a little but it is not a bad smell and certainly not irritating. 

And then I had to wait.  It takes 3 to 6 hours for the fabric to dry. That was hard on me as I am not the most patient person :) But I found out that I could speed that up a little by hanging the fabric in front or even over the central heating. I also found out that after stenciling and stamping, where the fabric doesn’t get as soaked, there is nothing wrong with using a heat tool.

 

When the background was dry I started stamping and stenciling and here is where the accessories kit comes in. You can change out the lids on the paint bottles.

 

 

Put the desired lid on the bottle and keep the bottle up side down, squeeze the bottle a little until you see the paint floating into the sponge, then dap until the whole sponge it filled with paint. There is one with a flat, circle shaped sponge that can be used for stenciling.

 

 

The second is a triangle shaped sponge that can be used either to paint directly on the fabric or to apply the paint to stamps, it works just like a stamp pad and make it easy to apply the paint evenly to the stamp. It worked great with rubber, foam and clear stamps.

 

 

 The 3^rd lid is a small tip that allows you to paint, draw and add little dots.

 

 

I worked in layers and made sure to dry the different layers in between because I didn’t want my paints to mix. This keeps the colors bright and crisp.

 

Although the sponges were quite wet, I was amazed that the paint didn’t run under the stencils more, even though I didn’t work very precise and the fabric was not completely flat.

 

 

 

To clean the brayers and sponges I just held them under hand warm running water and squeezed the sponges until the water stayed clear. This worked really well, the sponges were clean in no time and after drying could be used over and over again.

On the packaging of the accessories kit it says that the spare bottle is meant to clean the sponge lids. You have to add water and then dap until the water stays clear but I preferred holding them under running water, which was way faster. 

 

In my opinion it would have been great if there had been an extra closing lid in the kit. I would have loved to mix my own colors in the bottles and being able to close the bottles and store them.

 

After some little experiments I worked on a larger piece of fabric and I really love the result! 

When the fabric is completely dry you can iron it to fixate. After ironing, the fabric can be washed at 40*C.

NB: If you want to fixate the paint you NEED to iron it, heating it with the heat gun does NOT fixate the paint!! I used the fabric to cover a mini album:

 

 

 

Conclusions:

* Wonderful, bright colors that keep their vibrancy even on not completely white fabric.

1 bottle goes a long way, so good value for your money.

 

 * Easy to work with, the accessory kit is a great addition!

 

* The drying time is quite long but can be speeded up by hanging the fabric in front of a heater or using

        a heat tool. This does not affect the colors.

 

 * The tools are quick and easy to clean with hand warm water and can be used numerous times.

 

 *  I missed an extra lid in the kit, which would have made it possible to mix my own colors.

 

*  It would also be great if there would be a lid that closes the sponge lids. Not so much to store the 

         bottles like this but if you have to leave your project for a short time it would be nice if you don’t 

         have to clean the sponges all the time.

 

All together this is a product that I really loved working with and that I definitely want to explore more. I absolutely recommend these textile dyes and paints for any project you have in mind using fabric!

 

Where to buy:

IZink: Aladine

Stamps and stencils: Carabelle Studio

 

Thank you for stopping by today!

Happy crafting!

 

Products used:

 

    

My Stamp Designs - Featured Artist Marsha Valk

A couple of months ago I got my own stamp line released with Carabelle Studio. Six beautiful sets of rubber stamps designed to be used in mixed-media, scrapbooking, art-journaling and card making. An amazing list of talented artist friends helped me promote these stamps and created some beautiful work.

In the upcoming weeks I will place these artist in the spotlights one by one, as they deserve, and today I'm introducing to you my dear friend Marsha Valk!

Marsha is an all-rounder. She goes from painting to scrapbooking and from art journaling to altered objects. I love her use of color and her brilliant out of the box ideas! I mean, come on... turning leafs into little fish... you just gotta love that, right?!!

The Dutch quote Marsha used says: Are you going to the beach? When you come back, can I have the sand from your shoes to put on the bottom of my aquarium? :D

Aren't those fish just awesome?! For this page Marsha used the "Leafs" set, which is one of my personal favorites.

I love the colorful strips Marsha created with the "I Heart Washi Tape" set on the next layout. And of course the picture of a happy Marsha who just received the stamp sets :) And how about the cool background paper of which she stamped the bottom half with the "Punchanella Background" stamp?

Note how the colorful circles, punched from stamped leafs add a fun extra accent to the page!

 

The colors on this mixed media canvas are to die for!! Oh my, I love them!

And the texture in the background created with modeling paste and the "I Heart Washi Tape" set is so yummy!

If you want to know how this background was created you can visit the Scrap365 blog where you will find a fun little tutorial with video on this by Riikka and Marsha.

If you are just as enthusiastic about Marsha's work as I am and you would like to see more from her then don't hesitate to visit her blog here.

Or find her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marshavalk or on Instagram: Marsha Valk.

Thank you for stopping by today!

And in case YOU created something with one of my stamp sets, please drop me an e-mail with a picture or a link. I would LOVE to see!!

 

Stamp Marsha used in these projects:

   

 

Information on where to buy these stamps you can find in the "Where to buy my stamps" section in the navigation bar or by clicking here.

Happy crafting!

Love,

 

Getting Ready For The Exposition - Framing My Art Work

Maybe you remember this post from March where I talked about wanting to paint on bigger canvasses and how my former highschool art teacher triggered me to actually try it.

Because of the 150th anniversary of my highschool Kamerlingh Onnes in Groningen my art teacher is organizing an exposition in a gallery in Groningen. He tracked down more then 20 of his former students that graduated in art and are now in some way working in the art area. There are painters, photograpers, graphic designers and more... and me :)

Since that post in March I have been learning, playing, experimenting and had a lot of fun exploring acrylic painting.

So now the exposition is getting closer I have some preparations to do.

I will have space to show 6 framed layouts, 6 framed art journal pages (the benifit of having a binder/page protector art journal) and.... 2 paintings size 50x60cm.

I will also have a table to show magazines and other work.

I ordered frames and framed the paintings and the art journal pages of my choice. And I was like... woww! Unbelievable what a frame adds to a project. It totally completes it, takes it to a higher level. I had no idea that a simple frame could do this.

Here are the results, what do you think?

I am really happy with how this looks :)

And here are the art journal pages:

And now that is done I need to find 6 layouts to frame. Six!!! From the biljoen pages I have. How am I ever going to choose... sigh :)

Coming monday I have to bring everything over to the gallery and I'm very excited how it will all look haning at the wall :)

If you are interested, the exposition runs from September 9 until September 28 at Pictura in Groningen.

 

Maybe I'll see you there :)

Thank you for stopping by today!

Happy crafting!

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