Garden Inspired

 Last week I completed another tiny accordion fold book made from playing cards.

front

inside

back

The garden papers that I am using came from a miniature book of papers that I found online. It was so adorable that I had to buy it. It's about 2" x 1 3/4".

The papers are quite eclectic and there are quite a few fun ones. Some of the papers are translucent. There are so many that it will probably take me years to use them all!

Dreams of Travel

 

I enjoyed every minute that I spent creating this little accordion folded piece! I am not sure what to call it. Is it a card or perhaps just a tiny bit of art? 

Inside

 When I started to create, I envisioned an imaginary passport that would take me on a trip to France.

The core of the project was created with playing cards that I covered in gesso and then connected using bits of cloth and washi tape. The collage was created using a combination of wine bottle labels, flowers from a tiny book of papers, and stamps.

I wanted a vintage feel so on the opposite side I applied crackle paste and lightly applied a gold wax paste. I used distress ink on other areas, including the ribbon, to give it that aged appearance.

Jeff cleaned out a drawer the other day and found a few more old boxes of playing cards. He has donated them to my cause. Now I am waiting for a delivery of assorted, cancelled world postage stamps. I ordered them for $2.00 from an Etsy seller. I can't wait to start creating with them!

Art Journal Escape

 

Your probably wondering if I am still a potter? I guess you could say I am a pig making potter, since that is pretty much all that I have made since the pandemic hit. In between there have been a few mugs, cheese stones, and spoon jars. The spoon jars have been glazed and on a shelf since summer. One of these days there will be room for them in the kiln!

This week I managed to finish a spread in my little art journal. I worked on it in dribs and drabs over a period of three days. I loved building up the background with layers of gesso, old book pages, acrylic paint, and my new neo-color II pastels. This is also the first time that I experimented with modeling paste and a stencil. That is how the textured circles were created. I am definitely going to do more with that on the next spread. I already have a plan in my head.

Proudly Wear Your Crown

I thought I would share a page from my current art journal. This was done with a mix of acrylic paint, Neocolor II watersoluble pastels, colored pencil, and ink. The girl on the left got a crown because I messed up her hair and couldn't fix it. The perfect solution for a bad hair day!

 

Under The Sea with NeoColor II Pastels

 Thanks to Suzie, AKA Smartcat, I bought a small set of Caran d'Ache NeoColor II watersoluble pastels! She mentioned in the comments on my oil pastel post that they were fun to use. I have had my eye on them for over a year. Her comment was all I needed to go for it.

They really are fun to create with. Think of them as soft wax crayons that behave like watercolors when activated with water. 

The colors make for some whimsical mermaids. The mermaid in the first photo was supposed to be singing. She also looks like she might be screaming.

In most of these sketches I also combined watercolor pencil and regular colored pencil. They are also done on mixed media paper. Next up is to try them on watercolor paper.

Create without Fear!

 While the kiln was firing I spent some time with my small journal of gel printed pages.

I have been trying to let the backgrounds tell me what to do with them. There was an oval of lighter pink paint on the left side of this one that looked like it should be an elongated face.

I just took it from there. The journal is a great place form me to get in some lettering practice.

I struggled with this green and yellow print. I added some old book pages, stamped a background, then doodled the flowers using a simple sharpie marker. When I look at it now, I know what I would do differently. I would probably apply some gesso with a brayer to give it more of an "aged" look. I try not to be disappointed with end results. Journals are the place to explore and make mistakes. Create art for yourself and without fear!

I will leave you with a random butterfly. It's been great year for them.

Image Transfer

I have really enjoyed printing with a gel plate. Initially I had purchased a small 6"x 6" plate and after using it for a month, I decided to get a larger 8"x 10". I found a different brand that was a little less expensive. I haven't noticed a difference between brands, other than price.

The technique that has really intrigued me is using it for image transfers. It's taken a lot of experimenting with different acrylic paints and application thickness. I think I am getting close to success!

I rolled a layer of black on to the gel place and placed a stencil over it. I want to create some negative space to fill with color in the second layer, so I pulled a print to remove some paint before taking the stencil off.

Once the black paint has completely dried I apply some colors over the flower design. I let this layer completely dry as well. Sometimes I use a hair dryer on the cool setting to speed up the process. Don't use a heat tool on a gel plate. It gets too hot and can damage your plate. When it's dry it's time to pull your print. That's when the magic happens!
Apply a thin layer of paint over the gel plate, place your paper on top. I have had the best luck rolling over the back of the paper with a clean brayer. Slowly peel the paper off of the gel plate to reveal the print.

I didn't get a photo of the plate with the transfer coat of paint because you have to work fairly quickly during this part of the process. You want to pull the print before the paint dries.

At first I was having problems with a lot of patchy areas that didn't transfer. I have eliminated a lot of that by applying a thinner coat of paint on the transfer layer. I am still getting some spotty areas but I am okay with that. I sort of like the look. 

These are some prints I also pulled during the process. I try to not waste any paint. They are printed on cover stock that I found in my office. I am trying to use up paper that I have on hand.

These were printed on deli paper. Layered over some other prints. These can be used to make little envelopes, wrap small gifts, or incorporated into collage.

This is a "ghost" print that I did over watercolor paper that was printed with distress oxide ink. I really like how this turned out.

The prints done on heavier paper may get used to make journal covers. I have been doing some simple binding techniques. Next on my "to learn" list is to teach myself how to stitch a coptic binding!

Putting thoughts and ideas on paper

In anticipation of a slower work schedule I ordered some art supplies so that I can try some new mediums to work in. It looks like there won't be much down time this winter (a good thing) but I can do some exploring in the evenings. The alcohol inks are something I have been thinking about for more than a year. Over the holidays I spent some time watching youtube instructional videos and they inspired me to take the plunge. Another site that I find inspiring is Cloth Paper Scissors. Lots of mixed media ideas there. I bought the gesso to re-purpose an art auction catalog into an art journal.

I am experimenting with coating the pages with a couple coats of gesso, covering them entirely, or applying it thin to others, letting some images show through, or leaving them un-coated. The pages are quite wrinkly when wet, but sort of smooth out as they dry. The gesso will give me a good surface to use a variety of mediums. 

It takes quite awhile for gesso to dry. I can only coat two pages a day... it might be 2020 before I am done!

Art Journal - Circles - Round

 Michèle Hastings (me)

 Cindy Payne (journal creator)

 Cindy Payne

 J. Bossert

Cindy Payne

The missing journals were all found and I ended up with three of them in November. I have no clue how I did it during this busy season but they are all completed. This one is headed to New Jersey this afternoon. My December journal has already arrived. I think I will work on it between Christmas and New Years!