Whimsical Journal Cover

Finished another journal cover this week made on mixed media paper.
When I start I have no idea how the colours will end up or the design but this one just spoke to me, add a little bird. So I did and I am very pleased with it.

It will be folded in half after I stitch some papers inside.

In other news, my sister has her surgery date for Feb' 26th and she will be so happy

to get that tumour out. They will be doing a lumpectomy and taking some lymph nodes from

under her arm. I think they do this and send it all of to the lab to see what stage the cancer is at.

She will have four weeks to recoup before any other treatments as it takes this long for the test results. Its probably a good thing, gives her time to get some strength back.

Prayers appreciated as always.

Thank you, and have a great weekend.

Lynn x

Mixed Media Journal

Happy February my friends, I hope you are all well.

Just dropping in with something I actually finished. I say that because I seem to have

several unfinished projects on the go and am having a hard time deciding where to go

with them. Do you ever get like that?

This in an art journal, I insert mixed media paper, water colour paper and some of my inky papers in the journal for artsy friends to create on. Or not, doesn't matter :)

This one I am keeping for myself because I gave all my others as gifts.

I love the bright colours on this journal too, lots of layering and finished up with some

machine stitching. 

You can still take Roben Marie's workshop on her process to creating these journals. I took

it last summer and really enjoyed it, I just put my own style to the finished product  which is good, because we don't all want to look like we make the same journals or papers :)

A few more papers that may be going in another journal.
The thing is you can use these papers for backgrounds on atc's or collage, and they are a lot of fun to create using spray inks.

I have had a hard time focusing on art to be honest, maybe that's why the unfinished projects. We found out a couple of weeks ago that my sister has breast cancer and there has been a lot of different feelings and emotions flying around here. I am not sure when her surgery will be, but they are thinking a lumpectomy to start with. It's such a shock when you get news like this, then after a while you start to accept it and do what needs to be done. My sister is being really good about it, so I know she will do well :)

I am happy that January is over now, it just seemed like a very long month.

How's things with you?

A Little Whimsy

Hi again creative friends....

I thought a little whimsical art may brighten up this cloudy day.

Even if it's not cloudy where you are, it may still bring a smile to your face.

I know it did for me when I was creating these two small canvases.

I needed a hand made gift for my friend and I hadn't done any art for months so after a few attempts at other things I decided to make a very whimsical and fun canvas.

Lot's of layers, paint, stamps, doodles and rub ons , and the use of 

my "one word" for 2012 which was "GROW".

Not so much to grow a garden which I certainly did , but to grow

mentally, spiritually and creatively. I learned a lot of new things last

year including the graphics program Adobe Illustrator, and I learned

a lot about myself. 

I really enjoyed the process in creating these two pieces and that is what really is the most important part of art for me, being in the moment , and feeling that joy feeling while you play. How about you, do you enjoy the process?

All photos were taken with my iPhone5 , which as you can see has an amazing camera. I didn't add any fancy textures or effects on them.

If you are looking for a smart phone I highly recommend the iPhone and not just for the camera which I looooove....
Did I say how much I love my iphone camera?

If you are new to these kind of phones, you might not know that you don't have to buy the actual phone, you can get one through a plan you set up like I did. I upgraded my old school mobile phone to this beauty.

All photographs on this blog unless otherwise stated are copyright to me, but you are allowed to pin them with a link back to this blog. Thank you :)

Mixed Media Journals

 I recently took yet another workshop even though I keep telling myself not to, I just love to see how other artists work, and I really enjoyed Roben Marie's Art Journal Conversion class. Her videos show her working step by step and are a lot of fun. I highly recommend this workshop. Even if you are already into Mixed Media you can always learn something.
I have not played with any mixed media since the beginning of the year, and Roben really inspired me. Even my own style comes through a lot on these two layouts. I was trying to make them look like her pages, which I fell in love with at first site, then I thought, just go on and make it your own Lynn, you are always going on about being yourself, so do it :)

 So, this is what my end results were, I have two journals finished, the rest of the pages I made are still in the works. My journals I machine stitched together rather than punching holes and hand stitching, and I added some inky papers to the inside too.

I can't tell you how many layers I have here, I lost count. Can't tell you how it got to this either because that is all in the workshop, but what I did use that is different is my charcoal, I love charcoal for shading and the white charcoal for a highlight.

One of the hardest parts for me is journalling on the cover. I absolutely do not like to see my own writing and I can never think of anything to write about when the time comes to it.

Here is the front of my second journal. I was not liking it until I changed it up a bit today and made flowers from the circles I have here. Now I love it :)

 Below is a close up of the circles. Lot's of texture. Always love me some texture :)

 These journal covers are made on Mixed Media paper. I am loving the Strathmore mixed media journal. A bit pricey but if you use your coupon at Michaels, they are a great deal. I have tried another brand but the paper just seemed a bit flimsy to me.

So this is what I have been doing the last week among many other things.
 It has been so hot so I set up a huge table in the basement where I can make a mess and just walk away and leave it. I can't stand how hot it get's in my office/studio upstairs even with the a/c on.

 I am such a hotty these days, it's all part of being in your fifties, such fun isn't it?

Can you believe we are almost half way through June?
This is favourite month of the year , it's the month we were married 32 years ago, and the month our child was born, and I am feeling rather old because she will be 28 years old in another week :) What a beautiful, mature young woman she is now too, we are so very proud of her.

I hope you are enjoying your summer so far.

Until next time....
Love to you

Mixed Media Canvas

Click the logo to find out more.

 I am taking the She Art Workshop with Christy Tomlinson and she is just wonderful. Not only is Christy really cute, she offers lots and lots of detailed videos, and is so easy to listen too.

I have only completed on canvas so far. The canvas is a bit larger than I would really like to use, but it is what I had at the time.

Short post today, hope you are all enjoying your weekend.

Lynn x

A Gothic Arch Pendant

Look at this beautiful pendant and ornament. I am in awe...

I think this may be called a collaborative work of art because it was created by my new friend Lynda of Diva Designs, using one of my collages created on a Gothic Arch.

Lynda saw my work on Flickr and fell in love with my Garden Nymph Gothic Arch, so she asked if it was available in digital format for sale. Nope, never thought of doing that, I have never even seen these designs on polymer clay until I saw hers, so anyway, I told her if she makes me a pendant she can use my design. She was thrilled, and look how beautiful it is.

Below is a matching ornament for the tree, but I can keep it hanging in my studio all year long.


Lynda creates polymer focal beads, pendants and ornaments. They are one of a kind works of wearable art. She specializes in image transfers and faux work, and would love to create a custom pendant or bead for you. She also has tutorials for sale in her Etsy shop if you are already into working with polymer clay. Me? Nope, not going to get into anything else, I have so many things I love to play with I can't even find the time for.

Here is the Gothic Arch I made last year. It actually is one of my favorites which I never could part with.
I have been having a bit of trouble getting into collage work lately, not sure why, but I do enjoy it and hope to get back to it in the New Year.
I printed this image on fabric too and used it on a bookmark. This was a giveaway.


Speaking of "Giveaways", check out Lynda's blog at Diva Designs. I noticed she has an ornament giveaway on a post a few days ago, but it ends soon so hurry, it really is beautiful :)

This talented lady just opened a second Etsy shop, Diva Designs 2 where you will find genuine Vintaj natural brass, Swarovski crystal beads, Preciosa crystal beads, semi-precious gemstones and metals. You may want to have a lookie if you are a jewelry designer.

Thank you Lynda for creating this beautiful artwork with my artwork, I love it !

More Flower art and a pretty postcard I won.

Happy Labor Day weekend to my fellow Canadians and friends in the States.

I played with some more dried, pressed flowers and altered this little note book. I kept it very simple and I am really happy with it.
I doubt if I will make much more with the wildflowers as they are few and far between now and I don't have much left, but I did make a lot of bookmarks this summer :)
See below on a shelf in my studio.

I want to thank you all for the beautiful comments on all of my flower art the past few months and I am so happy a lot of you are enjoying the tutorial. I put a button at the end of the post so you can make it printer friendly.
I found this site called Print Friendly and you can put any url in there and print out that page without all the side bars and adverts etc. Check it out, I think it is really cool. You can even make a pdf file there. Maybe you already know of it but to me it's new :)
I tried adding the code to my blog so that every post I make can be printer friendly but I could not find the right spot in the html code to add it and was afraid of messing up my blog.



Speaking of flower art, my name was drawn in a giveaway recently. I won this lovely textile art postcard from Carole at Madness and Mess. It arrived a few days ago, all the way from New Zealand.
Thank you so much Carole :)

I am now working on sketching for my mermaid class with Suzi Blu, yet so far not very pleased with my work, so I have nothing to share. I have also been playing in PSE a bit, I love working with textures and I have started a page on my blog here called free textures . If you are into graphic art and would like to use them, click on the page at the top to go there.

How many things that I want to do can I fit in this month? Lot's I hope. I have books to read, graphic art, drawing, painting, sewing ideas in my head, I don't know what to do first. I also have knitting started I would like to finish and I have some stitcheries that I started, not to mention I started a Cloth clay doll many moons ago and never did get to the clay part. Oh my... I am only one person. I want to make a new Santa doll too , and a chenille quilt that is already cut out, and sew pillow covers for my house. It seems like I start a lot of things and never finish them, and I would like to but I just go with the flow when it comes to being creative. If I am in the mood for one thing, I do that, even if I don't finish. I suppose a lot of creative people are this way. Are you?

At least we could never be bored :)
Have a fun , creative day,
Lynn

Pressed Wildflower Bookmark Tutorial

I have had lot's of questions about this technique I use for my bookmarks, and also asked if I have a tutorial, well now I do.
I decided to put it all in one post for you and keep a link under "tutorials" on my side bar.

First let me say, this is a tutorial on " how I make my bookmarks", I do not claim in any way at all the wax paper and tissue technique as my own. As I have said in a previous post I found this technique in an article by Susan Hannen in the Spring 2008 issue of Somerset Life magazine. It really is a beautiful issue, I look at it over and over and never get tired of it.

Susan had found this technique in a 1950's Boy Scout handbook and then went on to fiddle with the recipe until she got it right. I have done the same thing, you may need to fiddle, or experiment with amounts of glue and water used to achieve the look you prefer.

Here are the products I use, 3 ply tissue, Aleene's tacky glue, and Reynolds wax paper which I purchase at the $1 , I hope you can find it at your dollar store too, I use wax paper all the time for working on when I am making a mess, and as a paint pallet, it's great stuff :)

The glue I have used just happened to be the brand I had at home when I first tried this, I am sure you can use any regular glue, but you will have to play with it and see how your brand works for you.

In the second stage of the bookmark I use these products, or gloss gel medium, depends what I feel like. Bits of fiber, and the ink for edging.

So let's get started. Combine a mixture of approx' 60% glue to 40% water. To be honest I just guess. You don't want it too watery and you don't want it too gluey either.
Mix it really well with an old brush. This is the one I use below just some old thing but the bristles are still soft.

For my bookmarks I use a piece of wax paper from the roll wide enough to make several at a time. Then position my pressed/dried flowers the way I want them.
You can add some fiber at this point too so it is under the glue mixture, or add it later with gel medium. I do it both ways.
I use the shinier or top side of the wax paper to lay my arrangement.
(Val has asked if freezer paper would work, but to be honest I have no idea. I have a feeling there would not be the waxiness in it, but let me know if you try it please :)

Grab a tissue from the box and separate it into 3 ply's, you are only going to use 1 ply. This part I find important because I tried using a 2 ply and I really didn't like the look, it wasn't as transparent.

Make sure you are not in a breezy room to do this, or have a fan blowing :)

Take your tissue and gently place over your arrangement. I hold a section of it lightly with a finger tip as I apply the solution to the tissue.
Dab it gently and not too much, don't over do it or the tissue with split open on you. I first do the section where the flowers are and they don't seem to move once that is done.
Then I work around the arrangement as shown below. I need enough to use as a bookmark so I cover a good area and then I will trim it later. I usually do a row of these so I can use up all the glue/water mixture.

Now you have to be patient and let it dry all day or overnight. Then it will look like this ....

Next step: If you are making a bookmark, cut out two pieces of white "watercolor paper" in the size you would like your bookmark. I am using 140lb cold press which is a heavy weight paper, and sturdy enough for bookmarks.

Using a metallic gold thread I now take it to the sewing machine and with one piece of the white watercolor paper I stitch the wax flower paper to it, around the edges.

Tidy up your threads and bring it back to your glue table :)

Turn over the piece you have stitched on and place some ribbon as shown below. Glue this to the paper and then glue your second piece of watercolor paper over top of this.

(Another option is to punch a hole in the bookmark when it is finished, then add ribbon. I do it both ways.)

Now I edge the back with the green ink and sign it if I remember. When that has dried which isn't long, turn it over the front again.

Now you can edge the front with the green ink too.
Don't forget these are just my steps, you can do whatever your little heart desires, use any ink, any thread etc etc, just do your thing :)

If you didn't add any fibers under the tissue, you can still do it now. Take a very teeny tiny amount and lay it where you like the look of it. I stick my little finger in the gel medium and rub it right on top of the bookmark. Make sure to let it dry well.
This is usually when I add "words" if I am going to, do it at the same time.




Now you have a pretty bookmark, which would make a lovely gift with a book or for a garden/nature lover, for anyone really, wouldn't you love one?

Here are two that I finished and put in plastic sleeves. I try to make them skinny enough to do this so it protects the bookmark, that way you can actually use it and not worry about it getting dirty, but sometimes the flowers I use are too wide for these plastic sleeves :)

I use a microwave flower press to dry my flowers and this is my wildflower series, but you can use whatever dries nicely for you, or has been in a flower press long enough to be dry.

Here are the links to my other posts featuring dried flower art....

Flower Art Continues
Flower Art and gifts from friends
Cut dried pressed and preserved
What are wildflowers anyway?
Microwave Flower Press

Hope you enjoyed my tutorial, and will show me what you have done with it :)
Lynn x

Mixed Media Angel Painting

Painted on a wood panel, using natural paper for her wings, and molding paste for her hair and halo. The sky is done with layers of paint and gel medium stamped, and textured more by using my heat gun. Her gown is also textured with molding paste and I carved some crosses into it just because I felt like it. I searched my heart for words over and over to add to her, and I searched my brain as to what else I could add to the painting, but it always came up as "nothing", so that is the way she will stay.

See you soon,
Lynn

Dreamer

Are you a dreamer?

I certainly am, and I always have been. I think creative people often are don't you? I always dreamed of being an artist, and for the past few years, my dreams in that area have come true, I have been able to try and test out my creative spirit in areas I never would have thought I would go. The great thing is I keep trying new techniques and new forms of art, so it is always so exciting and I just can't get enough.

I have been playing with my daughters water color papers, the ones she made in her high school years and was throwing in the trash. Remember I saved them?
This time I added some stamping and distressed edges, but left them as they were otherwise. The "dreamer" I glued on to a black card and it has gone off to a beautiful friend :)
The "nesting", I did cut to ATC size but added no extra color.

So my dear, beautiful, talented daughter, we just finished another collaboration of art work together. Now, are you not happy that I fished your papers out of the trash?


Credits:
Clip art from Paper Whimsy, The Vintage Moth, Digital Collage Sheets, Artchix Studio,
and Retro Cafe Art.

Swap with Terri

Terri from Blooming Ideas and I just finished a one on one swap, and here is what I sent her. I can show it now because she has received it :)

I do not have mine yet, it will probably be here any day now because we mailed them on the same day.
We started off by making a tag for each other then I thought, let's do a bit more. So Terri came up with the idea to do a small canvas in a Petite Doll theme or Suzi Blu theme. This is what I came up with.

Below is the tag.
We decided on Vintage girls as the theme. I made mine all fabric and trims with this beautiful girl from Itkupilli

Maybe tomorrow I will have my swap from Terri and show you what she created for me :)

Hope you had a great day, it was quite warm here and sunny so I got outside and did some cleaning up in the back yard.

On another rather sad note, I just found out that Baxter the therapy dog, passed away peacefully on Friday :( Oh, I know he was very old and in rough shape , it's still sad and his owners must miss him terribly.
I found out too, that Baxter was a rescue dog, there was signs of abuse and he had heartworm and gum disease at that time. Well, he sure did well with all the love and care from his owners, what a very special dog, my heart goes out to them.
(If you have no idea what I am talking about, view my post down the page to find out more about Baxieboo.)

Goddess of Delight ~Mixed Media Portrait

"When you least expect it, delight comes into your life"
Author unkown

I didn't think I would be back to post so soon but I finished another mixed media painting in between other things going on here at home. This is a small 5x7 canvas and I wasn't quite sure how she would turn out but I think she does look a bit Goddess like.
As always there are a few things I am not happy with, but I think that is how you learn for next time. She has been distressed again, her face is roughed up. I think I am going to have a go at a much smoother style face next, I like the distressed look, but just for a change.
Here is a close up of the turquoise, it has gold running through it. I didn't want to say turquoise hair, you could look at it as hair if you want, or a scarf on her head, maybe even a sari which my Eastern Indian neighbors wear sometimes, they are usually in the most beautiful, brightest, sheer fabrics, and this reminded me of one when I was finished so I added the beaded trim at the top. Fun, fun, fun :)
Suzi teaches us to push it and I was so afraid to drop paint down her face, but I did and it's not too bad. She's crying tears of happiness because she just brought delight into someone's life :)

I have a busy time coming up. Today I am going to the lawyers to sign the papers on a small condo we have purchased in Toronto, we take possession tomorrow and I am so excited because we are renting it to my daughter and her boyfriend. They have been living in the most horrible apartment building for over a year now and I am so happy to get her out of there and that area she is in. I will tell you more later, it is the tiniest little place, but perfect for them. Gotta go.....