Thursday, September 15, 2016

Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Rustic with Canvas Corp!





The Canvas Corp was such a generous sponsor this month! We each received an amazing box of goodies ... and I am so excited to bring you a second rustic piece!!  Be sure to visit The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Blog to see the other mid-month projects!! We love Canvas Corp!


I am IN LOVE with the faux finish kit from Tattered Angels ... so much so I bought another kit because the original one was finished! I started again, just like I did with the Church project, with crazy unfinished pallet wood boards.  I glued them together and added a support board across the back.



Then I used the Tattered Angels Naturally Aged White Wash Pine Kit on the pallet wood!! LOVE!! I just love the different colors that come in this kit because they are just perfect for the aged wood look I want! I did add some of the white wash this time and seriously, just perfect!



Canvas Corp has great black and white paper.  I love the orange and shimmery gold paint on the paper because I can just see the images poking through the colors for the pumpkin. 

Then I also put the paint on light brown burlap.   (I actually attached the burlap to paper with matte medium and then painted the burlap.) I wanted to add pieces of the burlap in between the paper for some extra texture!




I pieced the pumpkin together, made a stem and some green curly paper!  


After the pumpkin was dry, I added some paint around the wood, doodles, and text!! Done!

SO.... now what .... now you should come and play with us! Make a fun rustic project and then share it with us at The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge!!!


Thursday, September 1, 2016

September Mixed Media Challenge Blog #28

Alright, September is here!!! (Please tell me that September means it is going to cool off here in Atlanta, because this summer has been a scorcher!!)  And hopefully, to help us start this cool down is this month's amazingly cool challenge ... Rustic!! Oh boy, I so love rustic farms, barns, old houses, churches, fences ... the list goes on and on!!! So come and join The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge and the Canvas Corp Brand for our amazing challenge this month!!



Canvas Corp Brand is our amazing and amazingly generous sponsor this month!! And one of our amazing challenge players will be randomly selected to win a $25 gift certificate!!  Canvas Corp Brands include .... Canvas Home Basics, Tattered Angels, 7 Gypsies and Bag Works! Be sure to visit their website and browse!!  http://canvascorpbrands.com/




Our Guest Designer is the amazing Lynne Forsythe!  So stop by and give her some love at her blog!

And my rustic project is my favorite church!! This is inspired by an old (ok, from the 1800's) church that I pass by all the time.  A couple of years ago, I sketched it in my sketchbook and made a canvas for an awesome cousin.  And just lately, when looking through my old sketchbooks, it inspired me again ...  I hope it inspires you too!! 


The base was created with pallet wood scraps. I used wood glue and clamps to join them together.  After the glue was dry, the sanding block and tack cloth finished off the job!


This pallet wood was really light, and not really all that rustic.  So, I used the Tattered Angels Naturally Aged Kits, the White Washed Pine, to faux finish my wood!  



First, all the the wood was covered with matte gel because I wanted to make sure the wood wasn't going to soak in all the product the minute it was sprayed/poured on!


After the gel was dry, I followed the directions in the kit!! So stinkin' easy!


But I have to say, when I went to spray the 'white-wash' on ... I couldn't do it!! I just loved the way it looked already!!  


After the faux finish dried, I used scrap paper to create the pieces for the church.  You can see my little sketch there too! 

I used the Canvas Corp Corrugated Cardboard paper and coated it with chalkpaint. After it was cut into the shapes, I actually dipped the edges into the 
faux wood finish paint.  It turned out really cool looking!


The steeple is canvas, part of the building is scrapbook paper and the door is blue burlap.  


The church needed a little color, so Tattered Angel Glimmer mist through a stencil onto the canvas was the perfect addition to the top of the church!




I printed out the words in different fonts onto the thick brown paper from Canvas Corp!




And then ... finishing paints, 


So come and be rustic with us!! Playing along with our challenges is such a great way to get your mixed media mojo going and to perhaps try something new!!  Can't wait to see what you create!! 

Monday, August 1, 2016

Mixed Media Monthly Challenge # 27 Travel!!



Oh yes, back again for an awesome August Challenge!!  Travel!! And our amazing guest designer and sponsor this month is Lindsay Weirich!! You might know her as the Frugal Crafter!! She has a an amazing blog and You Tube Channel!  And she has an awesome deal for us this month, if you click here, you can take her Mix It Up class for 50% off!! And I love a good deal!!





And here is my project for the month ....




I love old suitcases! So I wanted to make a couple of them for this month's challenge!!  I started off with two manilla tags and went to town with color, tissue paper and rub-ons!



The background was created with maps,  modeling paste, stamps and paint - just really got my hands super messy!




Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Just a little block ...

Just a fun summer dreaming project! It is hot outside and that makes me sleepy in the afternoons.  I was having a little tired sketching time and daydreaming about fairy gardens.  And I remembered a Mason jar fairy garden that I had done at one time. The project was sold at a school fair and I wanted to make another similiar one with this little bell jar world!  

First, I copied some vintage wallpaper for the background on my copier and glued it down to the wood block.  Then I drew on the (little bit crooked) bell jar and watercolored it blue. Finally, I played around with some fun paper to create the little world inside the jar!  Just fun to play around!!  Dream a little and create something fun and whimsical!!





Friday, July 1, 2016

Mixed Media Monthly Challenge #26 - Reach for the Stars!!

 Okay Mixed Media Fans!!! We are SO excited to bring you our fun challenge this month!!!  You are going to love it and run to your desks to get started!!


This month's Mixed Media Monthly Challenge - Reach for the Stars! And our sponsor and star this month is Seth Apter!!  And the prize for our random winner is a fantastic stamp set from Seth Apter!






And we have a brand new Mixed Media Team Member this month - please join me in welcoming Clare Messenger!!  Make sure to visit her blog and give her some love!



And finally, my project for Reach for the Stars .... 




I started with modeling paste on a piece of wood board.  I used a stencil to cover the whole board with script.  


After the modeling paste dried I painted it white with gesso.  I realized that it needed some color and found some gold paint that my kids picked up at Target.  (I know, Target craft paint ... but I LOVE this color!!)




Last month I went to the Mixed Media Night at my local scrapbook store.  Once a month, we have a night that we can get together and go Mixed Media Crazy!  So out fearless leader, Melodie, brought us a great brayer technique to create backgrounds.  I loved it.  So for this project I started it off with blue and navy paint and brayered it all over deli paper! 


After it dried, I wrinkled the deli paper and put gold paint on the raised wrinkled paper.


Then I had a night background, I just needed my stars.  So I embossed some scrapbook paper with clear and gold glitter and cut it out into stars.  


Finally I put all the pieces together! And what is better than a Peter Pan quote - love it! 



Now, come play with us at The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge - you will be glad you did!! We have so much fun seeing what everyone does and so I am completely inspired by seeing what other Mixed media artists create!! 


Wednesday, June 1, 2016

Mixed Media #25 - 2nd Anniversary!!

Welcome to the 2nd Anniversary Party for The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge!! Woohoo!! 2 awesome years of challenges, fun and tons of prizes!  And, it is never a good month until we start with our challenge and for this month, pick one of your favorite challenges and create!! So pick one of the challenges from this year, and get your month started! 


Our sponsor this month is the Funkie Junkie Boutique! This store is full of amazing items for all your "Frilly and Funkie Projects!"  And one of our amazing players this month, will randomly be drawn to win a $25 gift certificate to the Funkie Junkie Boutique! Awesome!  






And here is my project for this month!! I chose April's challenge, Dimension and went crazy.  I was trying to break out of my own box and be a little crazy.