I Brake for Paris

Hello all!

I have a vibrant shimmering art journal page to share with you today - this was done for a travel journal.  The quote is a J. R. R. Tolkien one - "Not all those who wander are lost."

My background has some stenciled gel medium and then splashes of acrylic paint topped with dry brushed Luminarte Silks. 

 
Dry brushing the Silks on not only gives the page some random shimmer but also highlights the raised gel medium stenciling.

Next I stamped the Large Paris Balloon Collage image on paper with Coffee ink.  I smudged across the image with Distress Inks and edged it with more Coffee Ink.  I did the same with my quote after I printed it off on my computer.  This collage image is the perfect focal piece for my page!  After adhering the quote and stamped image I stenciled on some Viva Decor Modeling Cream through a piece of sequin waste - LOVE the Viva Decor Modeling Cream!

I finished the page off by stamping a few images with one of my hand carved stamps using Luminarte Silks and then doodled around the edges with a black zig pen. Stamping with paint gives a very different look and feel to the image.

With so many fantastic collage images at IBFS you can find ones to fit any of your mixed media pages!  Remember you can get 10% off with my code SAVE10MARTI!

My Stamps...a completed piece!

Hi all!

Geez where the heck have I been???  I don't even know!   Time flies when you're having fun so I guess I must be having a blast!  hahahah!

A bit of spring fever has been setting in me thinks starting with the clean out of my pantry.  Moving on to some re-painting and cleaning things out.  I have a kids consignment sale I am participating in soon too so that is a good way to light a fire under the clean out and purge process!  I am also going to bring ALL of my patterned paper to a crop for the swap table and START OVER!  I have not bought any patterned paper in several years but I am tired of what I have!  I have been trying to pick out a new paint color for my family room but I am having a terrible time deciding!  I look at the paint chips and I love them ALL!

I am FINALLY getting around to posting the first piece I used my hand carved stamps on!  If you missed those check it out here - Hand Carved Stamps.  I did something completely different from my usual:

I worked on watercolor paper and used Twinkling H2Os for a washed shimmering background.

Next I stamped using Luminarte Silks paints.  I had a spot for each stamp so i could get a look at them all (well except Pezza's Cat).

I am loving how they turned out and can't wait to use them on more things! 

i brake for florals and leaves

Hello everyone!

So did any one else watch the grammy's?   I have not watched them in oh, about a million years but Pezza has gotten really into music and wanted to see them so we recorded it and her and I watched together.  I think I had forgotten how much I really love music!  I mean I listen to the radio of course and I am ever so slowly building up a play list on my iPod but seeing the performances was so fun!  And she loved it too!  We were dancing and singing along - makes me want to go to some concerts!  Last concert I went to was taking Trev and a friend to see P.O.D and Linkin Park about 8 or 9 years ago!  And let me just say that concert was freakin' awesome btw!

I AM going to see a band this weekend but not quite a concert I don't think.  Really I don't know - I actually have no idea what I have gotten myself into but my buddy Suzanne (Scrapbitz) wanted someone to come with so I volunteered.  we are driving to somewhere in VA i have never heard of to see a band called Love & Theft who I have also never heard of and bringing our long time friend and new momma Christine (Ever After Papercrafts) along too.  I figure regardless of what we are doing or where we are going it will be a good time because it seems whenever me and suzanne get together it turns into a show.

I have a journal page for you!  Today's style is a bit different than my usual:

This was SO much fun to create!  I chose 4 stamps from the Florals and Leaves plate from I Brake For Stamps to focus on.  These are GREAT stamps for this sort of technique!  I marked off the sizes of my boxes according to the image sizes and then I used Twinkling H2Os for a great painterly background in colors that reminded me of a sunrise.  Just look at all of that luscious sparkle!

Next I simply stamped my images using Luminarte Paint - it works with either Silks or Primary Elements powder mixed with glazing medium.  I put the paint onto the stamps with a soft sponge roller - it looks like a brayer but instead of hard rubber it is soft sponge.  This will work with any sort of acrylic paints and gives a bit more of a painterly look to your stamped image.  I think it would also look good with the images just stamped as black silhouettes too!  Browse through all of the wonderful images and pick some out for your own block printing piece!  Remember you can use my code to get 10% off!  SAVE10MARTI

found a new love...

Hiya!

I am, once again, missing my beloved Mardi Gras.  If I were to pick a favorite holiday Mardi Gras would be it but it is hard to say that now that I never get to go anymore.  However, my King Cakes did arrive:

 Thank goodness looks and taste are two very different things!  Thank you to my momma for sending these!  We will be scarfing them up!

So I was thinking I don't really have enough hobbies.....bwahhahahahhahah!!!!  Oh my poor hubby.  He cringes every time I say "I was thinking..."  But seriously, I have been wishing for some certain types of stamps and while I am SURE they are probably out there it takes TIME to hunt them down.  I have seen people talk about carving their own and I was really not thinking I was interested in all that but i have gradually been warming up to the idea and when I saw the supplies in Michaels pezza and I decided to take the plunge!

Yep!  That is what we did this weekend.  I have to say it is surprisingly therapeutic! The rubber is very easy to carve in to and I found I liked making the carvings look all nice and neat and symmetrical - almost a part of the art itself!

So far we have only done Simple, basic designs we drew ourselves.  Well Pezza did one and I did the rest!

How fun are these???  I wanted simple, bold, solid designs so that's what I made!

Can you see Pezza's little signature cat in the pile???  She has been wanting it made into a stamp for so long and now she has one!  All I had to do was draw the image with a pencil, put it face down on the stamp material and rub, it transfers right on and then just carve.  some small details are tricky but I quickly got better as I went.  The pink material reminds me of the pink erasers in school.  I can also print images out, transfer them to the pink material and carve them.  I think I will be making some more!  I will post a piece of art I did with them this week!  Has anyone else done this yet?

home...

Once upon a time, long long ago, in a land far away my OCD was allowed to function in all it's rigidly organized glory.  Now to be clear - my mental disorders are not of the useful variety.  I was not perfectly spotless and germaphobic like Monk.  HOWEVER, there were PARTS that were EXACT and they were EXACT EVERY DAY -  from routines to general household stuff.  Enter children...and it all went right out the window.  Over the years I learned to let go of some of it but not all of it.  So what happens when my stuff is all over the place?  It makes my brain crazy!  I know there was a book about this somewhere along the way in the 70s.  Case in point recently MY PANTRY.  Holy. Disaster. 

When we built this house the boys were older, I finished school and was able to keep it and myself fairly organized and neat.  My pantry was very exact - every item and shape of food had it's place.  Well it has not been kept up with in 6 years - notice how that coincides with Pezza's age!  Yesterday morning I could take it NO MORE!  I took every single thing out, threw out anything expired and then put it all back in exactly the way it is SUPPOSED to go.  It is BEAUTIFUL!  I keep the door open and every time I walk by i gaze into it to get some peace in my brain!  If I could fit in it I might go IN the pantry and just hang out for a bit....if anyone needs me......

I saw the most recent mixed media challenge posted on splitcoast stampers and plaayed with it a bit this morning.  The challenge is to use a resist technique. 

I started by using Gel Medium and a Crafter's Workshop stencil on my blank page and let it dry.  Then I misted the page with water and went over it with Twinkling H20s and let them move and blend.  This much water was once again NO PROBLEM for my Stillman & Birn journal!

The gel medium resists the Twinks and makes for a subtle pattern across the page.

I stamped one of the little houses from M's Place onto watercolor paper using Archival Ink and painted it using Twinks.  I mimicked the journal page in the background of the house and then edged it with Walnut Stain ink to make it stand out from the background.  I thought it was a great match to my quote!

cats - man's best friend!

hello!

Have you been to the coloring challenge over on Color Me Creative this week?  Suzanne has challenged us to color texture - like fur, wood, dirt.  I will admit it is not one of my strong suits but I gave it a shot with an adorable kitty (of course) in my art journal:

 I am working again in my new Stillman & Birn journal - it did NOT disappoint!  This thing is AMAZING!

The loads of shimmer are from Luminarte paints of course - Silks actually.  To get them to move and blend I misted my page with water first and then loaded on the Silks - NO problem for this journal!

Next I added some texture using Viva Decor crystal gel and a Crafter's Workshop stencil - more wet media and still no buckling and warping.  AND it was easier to do this than it is on other journal papers because despite the wet Silks the paper was still laying flat!

Once dry I sponged over everything with more Silks in Gold.  It has been overcast here and I have had a terrible time capturing the Luminarte sparkle for you!  In addition the Crystal Gel also has sparkle - love that stuff!  I added some finishing touches with a black pen and a gold Viva Decor Paper Pen.

My little image is from Stamp Fairy.  Stamp Fairy is also the sponsor for the CMC challenge so join in and you might win a $10 gift certificate for some of their cute images!

I have been working in the Stillman & Birn BETA series wirebound journal which is the best one for working with wet media.  They have 5 different Series or types of books in both wire bound and hardbound as well as various sizes.  In addition, a Zeta series will be released this month which will be even better for the wet media techniques I love.  If you want to learn more about them and decide which one(s) are right for you check out all the info on their website - Stillman & Birn.  I also have a Gamma Series hardbound book which is wonderful for sketching and drawing.  I don't actually work for them!  My brother caught a demo of them in his local art store and encouraged me to try them out and he was right about them - I have been hooked ever since!  You can find them in your local art stores OR if you are like me and have no art store for hundreds of miles you can order them online at Dick Blick!

I Brake for Leaf Flourishes!

hello all! 

my post will be quick as I have a date with my pantry - it is in desperate need of an emptying out and re-orginization!  fun and exciting life that i lead....

i have an art journal page to share with you today and it is in my brand spankin' new Stillman & Birn Beta Series journal - wowza!!!  BEST journal i have come across yet for handling loads of wetness - JUST what i needed!  the best part - they are releasing a Zeta Series which will be even better later this month!  i have done several pages in this journal over the last couple days and i am just stunned how different it is than any of the other ones i have.  grnated all my other ones came from Michaels but they SAID mixed media on them.  these pages don't bulk or warp or seep.  LOVE IT!

that being said - here is my first page:

I took a bit of a different approach with my background and began with black gesso instead of white.  Starting with a black base will give your paints and anything you put on it a very different look.

I sponged across the black with Luminarte Silks in pink and coral.  Next I stamped the Leaf Flourish LG image onto a white gesso page using the same pink Luminarte Silk paint.  I cut it into 1.5" squares.

Next I stamped the Leaf Flourish LG and the Leaf Flourish XLG using white chalk ink.  I finished the page off with a saying.  then i added a stenciled key using viva decor crystal gel and some viva decor gel pen dots. 

The detail and fanciful look of these two flourishes are just fantastic!  What would YOU create with them???  Grab them both and get 10% off with my code SAVE10MARTI!

a peek of shimmer...

hi everyone!

we have had a fun weekend with our highs barely reaching 20 degrees YIKES!  my dad has been here on a surprise visit and i have been enjoying that.  he lives in utah and we rarely get an opportunity to see each other.  I got a call from my stepmom saying my dad was in miami and had just found out he had to be on the Hill next week for meetings so he was considering coming out here early straight from miami to see us for the weekend.  next thing i know UPS dropped off a giant box containing a suitcase full of suits so we figured the visit was on!  sure enough he's here!  he hung out for the day yesterday and then took us all out to dinner for Trev's birthday last night.  i officially have two children in their twenties - seems unreal to me!  how on earth did my babies get so big?  and how did i get so OLD?!??!?  having grown kids is turning out to be harder than i thought it would be.  a real struggle for me - having the benefit of past mistakes, hindsight, whatever you want to call it i have ideas of what they SHOULD do and of course they don't listen!  i am also second guessing my parenting - i should have done this differently or i could have done that differently - none of which is productive!  i am usually pretty good about leaving the past alone but this been a struggle.  like many other moments of parenthood! 

with that thought in mind i made the following journal page:

i began by covering my page in shimmering Luminarte mists - watermelon mist, lime squeeze and golden jade to be exact.  i made my own using water, Luminarte Primary Elements and Luminarte Bind & Resist powder in a mini mister of water.  however you can buy them pre-mixed as well - they are called Radiant Rain and they are luscious!

Once the page was dry I wanted to tone it down a bit so I sponged on some cream and light pink acrylic paints across the page - do this very lightly - you don't want to completely cover your shimmering base!  Next I used the same Primary Elements colors and this time I mixed them with a different medium - Clear Acrylic Glaze Medium - to make a glaze paint.  You can also buy this type of Luminarte paint pre-mixed as well - Luminarte Silks Glaze - to DIE for!  I applied my glazes with crumpled Saran Wrap across the entire page - again LIGHTLY! Once dry I stamped over the layers using brilliance ink - see all the lovely glimmers of shimmer peeking through?  notice also that the glaze resists the stamped ink and shimmers through - LOVE that!

My punched borders are a combination of glaze and mists and I misted my quote pieces as well.  By using the same three primary elements but mixing them with different mediums I created variety in the project while still maintaining some coherence.

My image is a Sherri Baldy image - i just love these little girls!  I colored her with colored pencils - learn how in my colored pencil classes on Color Me Creative!