Youthful Days

I started working on this mixed media canvas last May or June, then ran into a roadblock while choosing the embellishments.  I tried a lot of different things but nothing seemed quite right due to some issues I had with the overall composition and spacing of the piece (things I couldn't change as they were already glued down).  Since I wasn't in a real hurry to complete the project, I simply set it aside for a while. Then this past week I did a major cleaning of my work table and actually had room to display a few items; this collage was one of them.  It made me think I really should finish it.

I started by painting a 4x5 inch stretched canvas with a dark chocolate acrylic paint.  I aged the paint by dry-brushing on some white acrylic paint, sanding away some areas, and using a heat gun to "bubble" up the paint.  Next I adhered a piece of green scrapbook paper and a scrap of 1870s sheet music.  I sealed the papers with gel medium, then used gel medium to transfer the photo.  The vintage lace and buttons were also adhered with gel medium. As a final step I covered the back of the canvas with a pretty scrapbook paper.

This sweet-looking young woman was a friend of my parents.  She passed away earlier this year and this is the photo the family used on the memorial cards.  I would love to keep this collage for myself, but I think I will send it to her daughter to enjoy.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Stretched canvas (4x5 inch); chocolate and white acrylic paint; Walnut Ink antiquing solution (Java color, by Tsukineko); Golden soft gel medium; green paper by Basic Grey; old sheet music; vintage lace and buttons.

Romancing the Flaws

One thing that art students are encouraged to do is to experiment without worrying about the final result. Try a new technique, play with a different medium, stretch your boundaries. And that is exactly what I've been doing the past few nights. I have decided to call this process "Romancing the Flaws," after a phrase I found in a book.

This is a 6x8 inch canvas panel where I practiced several new techniques. This piece has its flaws, but it's not completely without merit and it gets me one step closer to one of my goals: creating larger, canvas-based, mixed-media collages. The most important thing is that I'm learning.

Have a great weekend!

Supplies:
6x8 canvas panel; ivory and white acrylic paint; vintage dictionary page and sheet music; clip art border, prayer card, and little girl photo from Green Paper Packages; butterflies from Graphics Fairy; tea dye distress ink; dark moss chalk ink; modeling paste; brass stencil; Derwent charcoal pencil; buttons and lace from my stash; text from a book by Sarah Ban Breathnach.

Happy Mother's Day

My mom grew up on a farm and has always enjoyed being outside. She even drove tractor for her dad when she became old enough.

This is a photo of her in the mid-1950s, sitting on the stone fireplace that Grampa built in their yard on the farm.

I hope you had a wonderful day. Happy Mother's Day to all you moms!

Supplies:
Stamp: Oxford Impressions; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up!; goldenrod cardstock by Bazzill; decorative paper by Cosmo Cricket; off-white canvas from the fabric store; Nestabilities; Janome Sew Mini; buttons from my stash.