I’ve loosely used the theme of ‘strips & stripes’ for this month’s art journaling session at The Studio. I’ve plenty of stripes included, but the strip of ribbon and a strip of masking tape was as far as that side of things went once I had finished creating my layout. There was a great deal of prep for this layout… Each time I thought about what I was going to do, another idea came up and another bit of work to carry it off was needed. Happily, I have the kit to do the creating! Read on for a step-by-step making guide and some free downloads if you want to do exactly the same as I did.
Prepping for your strips and stripes layout
I used Adobe Illustrator to design all the cut files and cut the dresses from 300gsm white card using the laser. The stencils are laser cut from 250 micron mylar with blue score lines (for lining up) and red cut lines. The tissue paper was also cut out on the laser (with some degree of failure with lining up the outlines to the print. All can be manually cut out with patience and a sharp knife, or can be loaded into your digital cutting machine as SVG imports.
You will need to do the following before starting your layout:
- Die cut dressform from Tim Holtz / Sizzix Alterations Sewing Room die – if you cut a piece of kraft card 2.5″ x 7″ and snip opposite corners off, you’ll be able to run it through on the diagonal and not need to cut the whole of the die
- Die cut a piece of calico using the same die, just from the neckline to the waist
- Cut out the dress by conventional or electronic means: download the file here
- Optional: cut out the stencils for the skirt stripes (A & B) by conventional or electronic means: download the file here
- Laser print the text onto tissue paper: tape the tissue to a normal A4 sheet and run through the printer using the manual feed tray. Cut out the text by conventional or electronic means: download the file here
Step-by-step guide to art journaling strips and stripes
You’ll have done this bit already if you followed the prepping guidance above. But if you haven’t, cut a 2.5″ x 7″ piece of card and cut opposite corners off so that it sits over the dressform without overlapping the edges. Also, cut out the torso part from a piece of calico.
- Sizzix / Tim Holtz Alterations die: Sewing Room
- Sizzix Big Shot
- Kraft card
- Calico off-cut
Now to add some colour: I used Distress Oxide inks for their pigment load, but you could just as easily use acrylic paints or other pigment inks. Blend the brown over the stand for the dressform. Glue down the calico.
- Ranger / Tim Holtz Distress Oxide: Ground Espresso
Smudge a little leftover ink across the calico to dirty it up. Set aside to dry.
Now to add some dimension to the skirt… Line up stencil A over the dress cutout and apply some modelling paste through it with a palette knife. Peel away the stencil and immediately wipe down or, ideally, wash the stencil and palette knife clean. Leave the paste to dry naturally.
- DecoArt Media White Modelling Paste
I took my colour palette from the strip of ribbon I chose for the waistband of the dress. Again, using distress oxides, blend the colours to taste using a stencil. I used yellow first, moved the stencil to cover the yellow to apply the teal, and then again midway between the two to apply the brown. If you press harder from the waist to lighter at the shoulder, you will create natural-appearing shadows and some form to the figure.
- Ranger / Tim Holtz Distress Oxide:Mustard Seed / Peacock Feathers / Ground Espresso
- Stencil from DecoArt
Use stencil A to apply colour to the modelling paste (yellow). Use stencil B to apply colour to the dips (teal).
Seal everything with a couple of layers of matte spray varnish and dry.
Stick down the strip of ribbon with double-sided high-tack tape.
Glue the dress to the dressform.
Swipe some gloss varnish over the dark ‘wood’ of the stand.
[The varnish is needed here, and later, to seal the distress inks and prevent them from re-wetting with subsequent wet layers, or indeed damp fingertips.]
- DecoArt Americana Acrylic Spray Sealant: Matte
- DecoArt Triple Thick Gloss varnish (brush-on)
- Creativ Company: Deco ribbon assortment
Time to do the background. Place your completed dressform on the page to get a rough idea of the position for the base. Using a strip of low-tack masking tape, create your horizon line approximately a centimetre or two above.
Blend a layer of your chosen ‘wall’ colour distress ink across the whole page above the tape (not oxide, you want it translucent). It doesn’t matter too much if it is a bit patchy. Apply a tone-on-tone vertical stripe to the walls, blending the same ink through a striped stencil. Spritz gently with a little water and dry with a heat tool to create ‘wallpaper stains’. Blend over with the distress ink again to dull down any white spots. Finally, stamp some appropriate designs in the same ink for a subtle addition.
- Ranger / Tim Holtz Distress Ink: Antique Linen
- Pinstripe style stenci appears to be from Clearsnap
- Stampers Anonymous / Tim Holtz cling rubber stamps: Attic Treasures [CMS123] / Mini Blueprints 3 [CMS150]
We’re going to repeat the same process for the ‘floor’ with a little bit of perspective thrown in. Place a new strip of tape across the bottom of the wallpaper colour. Blending from this downwards, angle your blending tool swipes away from a centre point to create a vanishing point and the appearance of floorboards using a mid-brown colour of distress ink. Reinforce the effect with a darker shade of ink. Add a smudge of the dark brown to make the shadow where the base of the dressform is to go.
Once all the background is complete, you’ll need to seal the distress ink as before. I chose to mask the different areas and use matte sealant on the walls and gloss on the floor. Make sure everything is fully dry – you don’t want anything sticking to not-quite-dry gloss varnish (ask me how I know).
- Ranger / Tim Holtz Distress Ink: Frayed Burlap / Ground Espresso
- DecoArt Americana Acrylic Spray Varnish: Matte / Gloss
Once everything is sealed and no longer tacky, it’s time to decoupage the tissue paper text onto the page. Add a layer of decoupage medium (or matte multi medium) to the page, lightly press the tissue paper onto it and then smooth it down with a paintbrush loaded with medium. As the medium is absorbed into the tissue, it will become more translucent and blend with the page. Note that it will also be a little more fragile. Overworking with the medium can breakdown the varnish and start affecting the distress ink underneath, so be cautious. If you find the various matte finishes to be different, just spray an extra layer of varnish over the whole layout again, or add a brushed ultra matte layer over everything.
Glue the dressform to the page, remembering to place it in the shadow you made earlier.
- First Edition DecoMache Matt decoupage medium
For a final flourish, use some Liquid Pearls to add a pearl necklace to the dressform. It flows better if warm, but if it leaves peaks, you can gently tap them down with a wet palette knife.
- Ranger Liquid Pearls: White Opal
A quick video walkthrough
What’s next in our art journaling sessions
The theme for November’s session (3rd, 7:30pm) is ‘crackling campfire’ – apt for the time of year, don’t you think? For non-UK readers, 5th November is Bonfire Night when we commemorate the attempt to blow up Parliament by Guy Fawkes with fires and fireworks. We’re a bizarre nation…
If you’d like to see more art journaling, then check out previous sessions here.