For this section of the fabulous Wanderlust 2022 art journaling/mixed media online course, we’ve been looking at using modelling paste and image transfers. Each week we’ve been set a different theme with a guest teacher showing us their project ideas and techniques. My previous sessions are here. This section’s layouts are here:
July’s theme for my art journaling session (spaces are available) is ‘black and white’. This is my example art journal page… I photocopied a magazine page and used it for an image transfer on the left side with an inked vignette effect using blended archival ink. The text is stamped in white picket fence distress ink using with the ‘colour’ cut from the original magazine page. There’s not much contrast between the coloured word and the black – I’m still not sure what to do about that as I’m not keen on outlining it and distracting from the colour itself.
I’ve tried another bible journaling experiment – this time using an image transfer technique. The text and image are printed on a laser printer, and the toner is essentially glued to the page and the paper is taken off. The colouring behind the text is acrylic paint, dabbed on and off with a baby wipe. A little tweaking with coloured pencils and it’s turned out ok, I think.
I promised to share my ‘now you see me, now you don’t’ technique for acrylic covers that didn’t quite get finished on air during my last Hochanda shows for That’s Crafty!. Below are some instructions along side the pics I took prior to the shows, and below those is a short video I have done to try and explain it a little more clearly! Apologies for the outside noises on the video – they’re wind chimes and a radiator warming up, if you’re wondering.
The first Monday of the month sees my monthly art journal evening at the Studio, and next week the theme is ‘never been used’. I’ve asked studio guests to bring something from their crafty stash that they have never used, and we’ll be incorporating them into our beautiful art journal pages.
In prepping my sample for the session, I came across an embarrassment of unused kit deep in folders, drawers and baskets. I think I will need to do more of these! I know I’m not alone, so what do you think – anyone fancy a ‘never been used’ challenge blog?
Here’s my show page, worked in my very first art journal from 2011 on a background that I’d not yet used:
I chose to keep this little piece of altered art under wraps until I’d featured it on my DecoArt TV shows on Hochanda early last month. I’d also left the originals with John the floor manager/set designer to use, and had to make a second set with what was left of my prepped demos. Building on the 6½” high paper-mâché letter forms, I’ve used a lot of mixed media tricks to make this home decor piece. Continue reading
Something about this page reminds me of naff pub decor. For the anaglypta effect, I used the embossing paste through the stencil, let it dry, scumble glazed with the tan colour and then sponged the darker colours through the stencil to catch the raised areas. Napkin decoupage and an image transfer of my own typography completes the layout.
Used on this page:
There’s not many journals that won’t benefit from an undercoat of gesso. A thin layer helps seal the page, stiffen it and provides an excellent tooth for subsequent layers to stick to. A thicker layer adds texture and depth to the page.
This page is in the journal I’m testing, and started off with a gesso undercoat. Several layers of thinned Dylusions paint forms the weathered varnish, then some metallic gold paint with an image transfer over the top for the brass knocker. The ‘carved’ text is also an image transfer. Shading and ageing achieved with a combination of Pitt Artist Pens and Walnut Stain Distress Ink. Everything sealed with DecoArt Americana Spray Seal (Matte) – which just about fixes the Distress Ink enough to finish with a final sealing coat of DecoArt Media Ultra Matte Varnish.
There’s various things keeping me from my ‘me time’ in the studio, and consequently, I’m playing catch up with the Wanderlust 2016 course. The fourth prompt for our dedicated art journal is ‘the bravest moment of my life…’. The theme for the layout came fairly quickly, and the page came together just as I’d hoped – it’s the first time I have done word decoupage in a layout. In fact it took longer to retrieve accidentally deleted movie files from my iPad than it did to create the layout! Happily, with those undeleted, I’ve been able to piece together another of my time lapse videos:
Gah! It’s so frustrating when you write a blog post and then there’s a glitch and it’s gone and even the saved drafts don’t seem to exist any more… so for the second time of writing:
During the week I was invited by an online friend I got to know through the Creative Chemistry 101 classes a few years ago to join a new art journaling challenge group she was organising. The Pick A Stick Challenge Group on Facebook is open to anyone who would like to join in and is an active art journaler. The premise is simple: each month, ten sticks are drawn at random from a pot of prompts covering media, styles and techniques. The only other stipulation is that you layer your page in the order the sticks are drawn. That is where the process becomes a little more tricky!
