Winter Birdies Art Journal Tutorial

Hello lovelies!

I was thinking about my blogging journey the other day, and how this little blog of mine has changed direction several times. Last year, due to circumstances beyond my control I wasn't able to post a single article. Therefore it makes me especially happy that I was able to pick up blogging again this year, even though not quite as often as I had hoped. 

I know that mixed media art might not be your cup of tea, but I combine this with other crafts, such as card making and gelli printing, for example. Who doesn't love those?!

Anyway, today's tutorial is a full spread in my art journal. If you are wondering what type journal I am using - it's from Hahnemühle, my favorite brand. Since it's a German brand it's readily available here, but foremost, I use it for its smooth, natural white paper quality. At 200 gsm it takes a lot of wet media surprisingly well. I also like the different formats they come in. The art journal above is a nice A5 size that opens up to an A4 spread. 

I've chosen a Winter theme and primarily use acrylic paints for this project. In this first layer I have chosen Burnt Sienna and Yellow Ochre, reflecting a bit of the colors of Autumn, which you can still see here and there. To get this interesting texture I have used a piece of sandwich paper. 

After the first layer has dried, I add another paint layer, this time with a small brayer.

I let this dry again, before adding the next layer with some stencilling. I like dabbing the paint on with a make up sponge - just be sure to pop it into a jar with water after use. Then rinse thoroughly under a tap.

You can watch the whole process from start to finish in my video tutorial here:

Be sure to give me a "thumbs uo" or leave a comment...this helps to circulate my video to a wider audience, so more people can enjoy it! All the supplies are listed in the video description.

And here's my finished spread! I have chosen an excerpt from Mary Oliver's book "Winter Hours" and printed it out, then cut out the sentences and glued them down with a glue stick. 

Let me know if you like these type of spreads or if you wish to see more card making, collage fodder type of tutorials? Thank you.

Have a beautiful day,

Tutorial: Colorful flower collage fodder

Hi everybody!

I like to make batches of floral paper embellishments - also known as collage fodder - for future mixed media projects, card making or junk journaling. 

To make these you'll need acrylic paints in the colors of your choice, a couple of text stamps, crayons and your favorite floral and leaf stamps. The process is quite simple! You can watch the whole video here:

If you're watching on YouTube, do give me a "thumbs up" - this will help my video reach more people to enjoy it. And if you have any questions you can ask them in the comment section or here. I read and appreciate every comment :) 

Have a beautiful day, wherever you may be 🌺🍃🌸

How to make Tissue Paper collage with simple tools

Hi crafty friends!

A big part of my mixed media art is incorporating collage, especially tissue papers. I've made a bunch of these in different colors for my various projects. Today I'm sharing an easy way to create your own collage with simple tools. Best part - you don't require a gel plate (these are quite expensive, I know...)!

The above photo shows an example of the simple tools I use to make my collage papers:

- a sheet of tissue paper, which I cut to a convenient A5 size

- acrylic paints in your choice of colors

- stencil to fit A5 size

- make up sponge for applying the paint

- chunky acrylic permanent paint pen

- small sponge brush

- masking tape to stick the tissue paper to a hard surface

In the above example I have dipped the sponge brush in black paint and simply made marks with the tip. You can make thin or wide marks or even use the side of the sponge brush to make larger marks. I often add pieces of these graphic marks to my art work (see below).

 

The chunky paint pen is such a fun tool to use. It has a chisel tip and comes in a big color range. I drew fat circles on my tissue paper. Keep in mind, that these paper need to dry completely, before you can use them in your mixed media projects. Below I am sharing even more ways to make handmade collage:

Using a make up sponge and a couple of stencils you can create endless patterns. After use, I always thoroughly wash the make up sponge and stencil with water and some mild soap, as I want to prevent a build-up of paint.

If you're looking for inspiration to use these handmade collage papers you can check out my new video!

Messy Art Journal Page

Hi everyone!

Those who have followed me on my art journey for a while know that I simply love mixed media and creating "messy" art in my art journal. There is nothing more satisfying than playing with paint, stamps, stencils and collage to get unique results. 

I enjoy applying acrylic paint with a brayer. This way you can quickly cover the blank surface. Create interesting texture by overlapping the paint.

Continue adding layers. Try using different tools, such as a palette knife, stencils and in the above example, a rough textured piece of string dipped in black ink! If you are curious to find out how I made this effect, you are welcome to watch the whole process in the video below:

Enjoy and have fun! And if you are watching on YouTube - a thumbs up, comment or a subscription to my channel would be massively appreciated :) 

Autumn Girl Mixed Media Art Journal Spread

Hello friends!

Autumn is upon us, with the leaves gradually changing their colors to lovely warm yellows and reds. The days are getting shorter and there is a chill in the air in the mornings. I appreciate the last golden rays of sunlight that we get!

This fall season has inspired me to create this leaf-themed art journal spread 🍂

I am sharing a free tutorial over on You Tube:

In this video I am having fun with various types of mixed media techniques: dry brushing, stencilling, stamping, collage and drawing/illustrating. While it's not difficult to create this spread, some drawing experience would be helpful. I used graphite pencils in HB/4B/6B, as I find this tool is accessible to most. All of the supplies are listed in the video description.

I chose one of my favorite Autumn quotes by Albert Camus and stamped this onto paper scraps with my silcone alphabet stamp set. Be warned - It takes quite a while to stamp, cut and glue onto the page :)

For her "hair" a simple leaf-shaped stamp works best. Just make sure it's a single leaf without any branches etc.

I hope you enjoy this tutorial. Happy Autumn 🍁🎃

Woodland themed Gift Tags • Easy DIY

Hello crafty friends,

after a scorching Summer the temperatures have dropped dramatically, and it's been quite stormy these past days with lots of rain. I guess Fall season is here!

I'm sharing a fun and easy DIY today. You can watch the YouTube video in real time here:

In step one I started by stamping one of my favorite text stamps in random areas on a plain, store-bought gift tag. You can use kraft paper ones or even cut your own. It's up to you.

I then went ahead and added the watered-down distress inks. You can see how I do this in the video.

After this has completely dried I then make some marks with wax crayons, because I just love using them, but you can use inks, markers, colored pencils etc.

I then glue down a piece of the tissue paper collage in olive green with gel medium, Mod Podge or other suitable glue.

I again let this dry completely before adding the next layer. You can use a hair-dryer to speed up the process. Then choose whatever paper embellishment you wish plus a tiny bit of cheesecloth to add some texture. This is optional or you could add a piece of jute or linen if you have that on hand.

Glue these pieces down one on top of the other and add a layer of Mod Podge on top. As you can see I have a bit of overhang to one side and some frayed edges, which I like the look of. Set this aside to dry. Tie on a gingham ribbon through the hole as the final step. Now do another one :)

Stoff Flohmarkt - Resteverkauf - Basics

[Werbung] 

Hallo, ihr Lieben!

Stoffflohmarkt, 3. Runde! Basic Stoffe - Karos, Streifen, Punkte, Ton-in-ton -

Es sind noch wenige Meter vorrätig - und diese biete ich hier zu einem sehr guten Preis an:

• Euro 5,- pro METER zzgl. Versandkosten (variiert je nach Größe/Gewicht)

• Mindestbestellmenge 1 Meter. Solange der Vorrat reicht.

• Alle gezeigten Stoffe sind hochwertige Designerstoffe aus reiner Baumwolle und circa 112 cm breit 

• Privatverkauf - Keine Rücknahme.

• Keine Stoffreservierung.

Weiter unten gibt es eine kleine Auswahl an Sonderstoffen.

Bei Interesse bitte Email an duni.buesken(at)gmx(punkt)de mit der Angabe der Nummer(n) bzw. des Buchstabens und eure Lieferadresse. Zum Vergrößern auf Bild klicken.

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Sonderstoffe

DIY Vintage Style Accordion Book

Hi crafty friends!

For the longest time I wanted to make an altered accordion booklet. Well, last weekend I set some time aside to finally make one! Patience is required to make one of these, as a lot of prep work has to be done and the drying time between each layer takes some time. I wanted mine to have a vintage feel with soft colors and plenty of floral motifs. And as an animal lover I wanted to add animal images as well.

I pulled out a bunch of art supplies...acrylic inks, paints, stamp pads, assorted collage papers, pens, stamps and stencils. I usually decide which ones to use, while I am doing the actual crafting. That's the beauty of mixed media art!

One of the first things I did was make lots of floral ephemera. I stamped a whole bunch of floral images on white drawing paper, then I colored these in with gouache paints, and once dry I fussy cut them all out. This was quite a task, but I love how these turned out!

I started by randomly stamping a grid pattern on all the pages of the booklet. While the ink was drying I then altered a mini envelope (see top left corner). I would later add this to one of the pages. It's a fun touch and you can keep some special and personal notes in there. While this isn't a full tutorial - that would take hours - you can watch the demo below:

https://youtu.be/8VPJBnTDthk

If you are watching this on YouTube, a "like" or share would be massively appreciated ♥ Happy Friday!