WOYWW #422: Permission to Get Really Messy!

Perfectionism is a trap that I've fallen into now and then. It usually puts me in a gloomy frame of mind. No more gloom!

For a chance to find out what the WOYWW fun is all about, my readers can follow the link HERE to Julia Dunnit's Stamping Ground. I'm posting quite late at night this time, and may need to wait till midday on Wednesday due to another commitment before I will be able to visit other deskers. I can hardly wait to see what's on everybody's desk this week!

I've decided to relieve a lot of pressure this year by relaxing and playing more using whatever materials may happen to inspire and please me. That is, when it is time to let go of digital art for a time and loosen up. (fussy stuff, digi artwork)

The Main Idea
This altered book project began with an idea I had gotten from some videos on reorganizing art and craft areas. Apparently, paper that gets stored on its edge tends to survive better than paper that's kept flat in stacks. I have different sizes of papers in my collection. Portfolios house my larger sheets and boards (up to 32" x 40"). I 'd already made a Steampunk scrapbook paper sized one last year that's been working for me ever since, but it is too deep for my smaller pages and sheets.

I had these two antique book covers which I'd removed from their previous book blocks (a book block is all of the pages either sewn or glued together without the cover). I'd very nearly tossed them a few years ago. These were the ideal size for smaller sheets and scraps.

The other promise that I'd made myself was to use as much existing stock this year as possible. I don't toss things very easily anymore. I've learned by past experience how reckless this can get for me. Hanging onto too much "stuff," however, seems wasteful and pointless. It's easy for me to get hung up on such a dilemma.

Coming Together

The two uninspiring old book covers belonged to books that were literally given away for free. Sometimes even books which exceed the 100 year mark in age can be worthless to collectors. I've used a number of illustrations and photos from these books for my Free Graphics blog, Plush Possum Studio, but the covers needed a chance to be of some real use. I added bottoms to both covers, then glued the two together using PVA. I chose some berry colored mulberry paper for the lining.

One Side View

I chose my old monoprinted cardstock from last year as the starting point, and vowed to allow the project to be messy looking but interesting if necessary. I think that I've succeeded! Lolz   

Nothing perfect about this side view, now is there?

:)

Unfortunately my camera does not photograph metallics or iridescent colors very well. The torn mulberry paper at the top edge has been overpainted using copper metallic acrylic paint. I used Liquitex Heavy Matte Gel Medium for the lining in order to avoid any possible tackiness from a glossier product. My final finish with all such projects that I know are bound to come in contact on wet rainy days with other acrylic-coated objects is Microglaze by Judikins. This has never failed me. 

The Icing

The spine area of my 2-book cover altered book project is a drippy mess, but I really like it. I enjoyed that part immensely. Loosely controlled chaos! The iridescent drips were made by mixing Mod Podge with Winsor and Newton's iridescent Watercolor Medium. A small amount goes a really long way!

Let the 2017 messiness continue....

#ATCAD2017 My ATC Treasure Box

I have a special fondness for useful, decorative boxes, don't you?

This year's June Artist Trading Card fest, #ATCAD2017, really got me going. Even though I am not celebrating by making any new ATCs, I have made something which can hold a whole bunch of them. Note: This is a 2-blog post, with Free Pattern Downloads at my Free Graphics blog, Plush Possum Studio.

Here's what my project's interior looked like once it was completed. As you can see, I'm already storing some ATCs inside my new creation. I hope you'll enjoy the process I went through for this project. The construction of this Treasure Box was a bit tricky at times, but overall it's a fairly easy project for just about anybody to make.

I used a 140 lb watercolor sheet from my  18"x24" Canson Montval Watercolor block, but even a single sheet of watercolor paper in the same weight will work once primed using gesso. I have often used heavier weight watercolor paper with acrylics as the results can be really interesting. For this box, every additional coat of pigment or medium really made the paper tough and a little bit on the leathery side.

The technique which I chose to try for the decorative part of my painting was acrylic paints + 91% Isopropyl Rubbing alcohol (surgical spirit in the UK, I think). The layers have to be applied and treated with speed, otherwise the effect will be minimized or simply won't occur at all.

On the watercolor block top sheet of paper I first added matte medium in 2 layers. I'd begun that project with the idea of creating something semi-transparent using colorful glazing techniques, but later chose not to. Overtop those few layers, I added my turquoise in at least 2 layers. Once it was dry, I next added a very runny but still thick layer of copper that I'd tinted slightly for an"antique" effect. I splashed drops of the alcohol all over the surface right away and watched the turquoise underneath begin to peer out in surprising ways. It still didn't work completely well enough, although I could see that I was headed in the right direction. So I let everything dry overnight, then tried it again from the beginning with first more turquoise and then more copper. This time, I had the right formula for the thickness of the copper paint!

As a finishing touch, I then added a dash more of the turquoise in 2 toned splatters using a loaded paintbrush which I tapped just inches above the surface. I allowed those paint layers a nice, relaxing drying time of (as I recall) several days.

While the paint layers were still drying, I began a first mock-up using graph paper. As a base or mold, I used a vitamin powder packet box that I noticed fits ATCs a bit snugly. The snug part was the clue. You see, this would make anything that I could make using the outside of that snug box would allow ATCs to fit much more comfortably as this would add to the size a bit on all sides. To build a brand new box with a totally different construction and lid became the goal.

Once the fit to the graph paper pattern was finalized, I carefully removed my painting from the watercolor block using a smooth edged blade to separate it from the glue edging, then traced around the pattern on the back of the painting and carefully cut it out. The orange pencil marks made everything simpler with the next step. These did not show once I'd lined the inside of my Box.

A T square ruler really came in handy for scoring. This project is the wrong size and shape for a scoring board - but then, I currently don't have one anyway. Tip: if you should decide you'd like to try making my box using your own decorative skills, please be aware that to score and fold first prior to adding the lining is essential to success.

Below is how the unassembled Box looks when marked, scored and carefully folded. There is a somewhat trickier fold than usual in the Lid area. Notice how the top of the Lid is a tiny bit broader across the top? Please do pay close attention to the dotted lines of my download when scoring. The added width is there in order to allow the Lid to fit smoothly down over the top lip of the Box.

Prior to bothering with any prep work for the lining, I paper-clipped the box at its join spots to see whether I had got the fit just right. I am delighted to say that everything about this went well.

(sighing) Lovely, creamy Mulberry paper - just the thing for when a thin layer of something decorative would work best.

Prepping the Box's interior for its lining is the next step. Notice how the folds held steady for me even after the gesso had been added. I attribute this staying power to the heft and sturdiness of the paper along with all of the many layers of pigment on the outside side of it. Though I neglected to show it, my next layer was one in the Turquoise. Once the Mulberry Paper lining was being adhered using Liquitex Heavy Matte Gel Medium, notice how the turquoise showed through. I left this to dry lying open and unassembled overnight.

The next evening, I began gluing the box together - I did this backwards, unfortunately. It would have been simpler to have begun with the back rather than the front. Lolz My enthusiasm got the better of me!

Lastly, I glued the Lid so it would hold its shape. Already, I could see the possibilities for the decorative portion.

The following morning (this past Wednesday), I was up with the lark and working on making my very first paper tassel. Although I'm not altogether pleased with how it turned out, it can always be replaced later on. I began by coating a single sheet from an approximately 3.5"x5" tiny pad of some luxurious Italian paper.  the paper is Velata by Cartiera Magnani. It's actually made for drawing, although it took the Turquoise acrylic quite well, as you can see in this photo. (BTW, I have looked it up and the Italian word, "velata" means "veiled.")

Next, it was time to play a few "dress-up" games with this box. I am still not quite satisfied with the the way in which it turned out, but I left certain areas un-glued in order to make any new changes a bit easier later on.

Next, I added a bit of embellishment to the top of the Lid, as outlined in this next photo's caption below. One bit of advice: never construct this box using 2 already decorated pieces that are joined together at the lid "hinge" fold area. Too many layers and too much stiffness would make it less usable. it really is best to make a one piece version if you choose to use my own Pattern.

For anyone who may be interested, I will be offering free downloads of the Pattern at my other blog, Plush Possum Studio which you may find by following the link HERE. I'd really enjoy your feedback as to how this project works for those among you who are into making your own approach to my #ATCAD ATC Treasure Box. 

Happy ATC creativity!

WOYWW Happy 8th Anniversary Everybody!

I'm sorry to have so very little to show for this past week's projects (projects? - try process) 

Before I go any further, I want to express my sympathy for our UK members whose lives have been disrupted recently by the bombing in Manchester, England. Our thoughts and prayers are with our UK friends during this time of disturbance, sorrow and change.

The desk is still in transitional stage. Everything is in an uproar. I've changed some of the layout of what I call my creative corner, but it is an unsightly mess and not worth viewing at all. Boxes, boxes everywhere. Drawers still yet to be reordered into workable terms. In short, sheer CHAOS. Mind the piles and stacks and do watch where you are about to walk!

To join in this week's special 8th Anniversary WOYWW, you can hop on over to Julia Dunnit's Stamping Ground where there is a Linky tool that allows her guests to join her weekly workdesk events. Thanks go to Julia for making WOYWW the best hop around and one of the longest lived!

One touch of weirdness I chose to add following last week's "glue bottle hat" adventure is this:

I guess we never really know what we will find during spring cleaning/reorganization times, do we? Last week, it was my "glue hat," while this week it's a wee tiny little "bucket" made of dried and swirly reddish orange + yellow acrylic paint from one of my set of small plastic containers. I generally work with small batches of color anyhow, preferring to keep my main colors in their tubes and jars within sealed zipper bags for freshness. That is why this little "bucket' was able to dry out in such a funny way.

I am thinking of making a Joseph Cornell style "shadow box" of some sort using this tiny "bucket." Either that, or I might cut it apart and fuse parts of it to a page or a painting. I am open to suggestions.

What do you think? Please leave me a comment with any ideas. Despite all losses and every upset for our gallant UK deskers and their friends and families,

Happy WOYWW 8th Anniversary!

WOYWW #415 Cleaning + Altered Book Breaktimes

This book that I've slowly (10 years now!) been altering needs some love.

To join in this week's WOYWW, you can hop on over to Julia Dunnit's Stamping Ground where there is a Linky tool that allows her guests to join her weekly workdesk events. 

I really like this book for altering. It's fairly good sized, has a sewn binding and sturdy plain black covers, front and back. The spine seems a bit weak, but that can always be remedied, of course.  
:)

Here's a sneak peek at a few of the details. I've only recently added some gesso to one page, overtop of which went soft lavendar with mooshed in streaks of gold Perfect Pearl Powder. The splatters are of Mod Podge original formula with some copper Perfect Pearl blended in. More on that later.

Some of you know that I've really got too small a creative space nowadays for much storage. This means keeping things as simple as I can. I live life on a budget too, so anything that I might choose to buy I'd need to think about first like this: 1) Where do I put the thing? And 2) Would it be useful in enough ways to make storing it the thing to do?

The next photo shows some of what I've been working on this past week. The clutter is all about tidying up following clearing my Mini Mister set of that messy residual pigment. The zipper bags are waiting for their new home. 

Mini mister cleaning is...well...fairly messy! That turned out to be a bit of a tough and long project in and of itself. You see, using anything gooey such as thinned paint or (as I did) acrylic ink, with a Mini Mister is bound to clog and/or collect inside of the tiny parts that you can see but that nobody could reach without breaking into them. This led me to experimenting using the leftover liquid from a canister of Clorox Wipes for soaking. (No bleach in that formula, so please don't worry)

The first step, of course, was to break everything down into the separate parts. I even removed the little interior ring from inside the mouth of each container. Everything then got a nice, leisurely soak in the leftover Clorox wipe cleaning solution. I actually forgot that I'd left things that way for a few months, I've been so busy with other things.

I followed that step by rinsing everything well, wiping out residue using a corkscrew of paper toweling (that softer kind called Viva) I next filled each one with enough water to use for a spritzing final rinse. This worked! One benefit was a soft pink sprayed blur on some scrap paper that I may use someday. They may not look brand new, but they do look a lot cleaner. It's a cleaning tip...sort of. Lolz

:)

Now back to that book altering project! The 2 pager being added to on its left hand page.

And now for something else to do with my cleaning and reorganizing project. I like good quality PVA whenever I bind books that require some gluing, don't you? This bottle I've managed to keep now for years. And years. Long time. You see, I generally use stitching and folding techniques most of the time for the making of books nowadays. I sometimes need to rest my hands, and gluing in bookbinding can be very unforgiving if one cannot remain busy for long enough to make sure that everything comes out smoothly. That's how come there's still so much of it that remains still inside this bottle!

Hahaha!! It had a "hat" on when I removed the cap! Apparently, some of it had splashed to the top of the inside of the applicator tip when I was moving to where I now reside, where it dried, forming that funny looking "hat." I simply had to take a picture of it before removing that hat. I hope you can appreciate my strange sense of humor!

:)

The part which I think really has kept that old bottle so fresh was how I made certain to keep its tiny red cap snapped into place on the applicator tip along with placing the whole kit and kaboodle inside of a zipper bag. This last I always "burped" any excess air from just prior to closing. The final step was to wind a slender rubber band very tightly around the tip, bundling the plastic of the bag in place at the same time. For ten whole years, this has worked!

But then, perhaps that accidental and funny looking little "hat" has helped a bit too. Who knew that glue could help me out in such a funny way?

:)

See you all later today and Happy WOYWW!

Rose

WOYWW #414 Rough Cut Journal Goes Messy!

(Oh my goodness! Am I too late?) I love my Rough Cut and Wrinkled cereal box + duct tape journal so much that I call it my Playtime Journal.

It's a good one to use when I really want to relax, make messes, and silence the inner critic. Silencing that inner critic can really be a challenge at times, can't it? This journal seems to help with that a bit.

Here's that project. I'll explain further below, for those who have enough time for my messy musings.

For more WOYWW fun, visitors can head for Julia Dunnit's Stamping Ground where there is a Linky tool that allows her guests to join her weekly workdesk events. 

I'm back after a year long hiatus with WOYWW, but before I took that long break I posted about the making of my Rough Cut and Wrinkled journal. If you'd care to see more about its construction and innards, you may visit that post HERE.

The Mission Inspiration prompts I chose to follow this time I first heard about from one of my favorite vloggers, Shel C of Ocotillo Studio. They may be found at her recent nautical-themed video HERE. She got them from Mike Deakin, who also has a fun channel on YouTube.

I don't know whether you can see it, but there really is a torn section of some stamped deli paper I made for a previous post at this blog ( Visit my "No Gelli Deli" HERE) in the bridge between pages. While some of it smeared owing to a pigment issue, I still enjoyed the final outcome and so have chosen to leave it as is. Besides, I figured it would add some durability to this overworked pair of brown paper pages.

The project had already been underway since last year, so I had to alter it before it would fit the prompts list. Prompt colors this time include Teal, Lavendar and/or Grey. I made my own batch of Teal to use in this case. I tend to enjoy mixing my own colors in small batches and keeping them in tightly lidded small containers as I have less space than I used to have for my creative side.

The pages were already coated with some of my experimental homemade faux "gesso" along with some blended streaks of blues and greens. The paper underneath is from a used paper bag or else from brown packing paper.  That was last year's part. 

More recent additions were reconstituted (almost ruined out of neglect on my part!) modeling paste alphabet letters. The idea at the start was to have the letters, X, Y and Z be friends playing hooky outdoors and getting caught by a sudden spring shower. I later finger painted them in orange, red and yellow, respectively. 

The "household item" I used to make a mark may be seen in the photo at the top of this post. It's an upcycled little plastic cup from a sandwich place that delivers me yummy fresh salads now and again. It used to contain a serving of parmesan cheese. It was used to make the playful and childlike sun, upper left.

Another prompt is to use graph paper or composition paper collaged into the design. I couldn't figure out what had happened to my nice green graph paper, and so fudged this bit just a smidgeon by using a greenish ledger paper sheet instead for the grass at the foot of the page. I overlaid this with a thin glaze of Mod Podge + acrylic paint. 

I like sparkle when I am being playfully creative, so naturally there has to be glitter. I mean - c'mon! Ya gotta have glitter, right?  :) 
I've used 2 types of glitter here, one in a thinned Mod Podge runny formula into which I've added superfine iridescent clear glitter. The other one is applied glitter at the end, while things were still really sticky. The tiny shaker for it may be seen in my photo, too.

For the ribbon, yarn or string part, I chose to go with a remnant of textured yarn to use as a kite string. I painted over it using my teal, but it does not show up very well in the photo, unfortunately. The kite idea allows me to fit my XYZ picture into the Prompt theme ideas, which included the idea that we are to "Reach" and to achieve.

I opted to use torn strips of scrapbooking paper to one page to use under some words done using that Teal paint that I'd mixed. I had to use a fine tipped detail brush for those letters since my fine tipped squeeze bottles appear to have gone missing. That worked out OK for me, which was a surprise since I really am not very good at hand lettering. The other letters on the facing page I made using that same brush, but in vivid yellow this time in order to create balance for my Z.

The 3 focal points are, of course, the Modeling Paste alphabet letters that are "playing hooky" from school in a sudden rain shower. The best part of it is that we were enjoying a nice thunderstorm at the time! I love a good thunderstorm, despite any possible lightning, don't you? Everything smells and sounds delightful. I'll sometimes leave my windows wide open for a storm like that as long as the rain's not windblown in the wrong direction. 

I guess that's everything on the list now. Thanks for popping over despite my being tardy. Hope everyone's having a splendid Wednesday! See you all very soon!

~Rose

P.S. Here's the Final Reveal. Definitely wrinkly and messy fun for me!
:)

WOYWW #413 (with a long hiatus)

Making time for some WOYWW fun today, even though there isn't much for you to see.

If you want to see what everybody else is doing, just follow this link HERE to Julia's Stamping Ground blog. I can hardly wait to see what everyone else is up to today!

I'm tempted to title this post "A Blob and Some Bits" lolz. The blob is a mysterious chunk of gunk which I recently dislodged from the bottom of the jar it was inhabiting. I had to soak it in water for days in order for it to soften enough. The weird thing is that I still have no idea as to exactly what form of substance it was! The good news is that I now have a cleaned out art jar to fill with some other substance - this time with a waxed paper shield between the lid and the jar! It took forever to remove that stuck-on lid.

The hunk of mystery gunk or blob I posed at my cutting and punching station so you could see what it looks like:

Far from fascinating for the viewer, but it is what's on my work desk today. I guess I'll never figure out what that was. Heaven only knows!

The "Bits" are a few of the paper tiles that I made last month and that are shown in my most recent blog post here. I've replaced my Scrabble letters in order to add some more color and pizzazz to one part of my storage + display area. The rail is resting atop a tiny doll sized chest of drawers in which are kept small items used for collage.

Now to finally get to see what all of you have been up to!

:)

At last! - something to post about!

It's been a very long while since I had either the time or the inclination to start posting once more at this secondary blog.

What got me started were a number of factors. For one thing, I kept noticing how I was being left behind out of my own lack of attention to what a number of groups and people had been doing creatively online. But it took more than that plus weeks of deliberating before I could make art again. I had to do this in steps, even though I was impatient to complete the project.

The final piece fell into place when I saw a Shemi Dixon video on making letter tiles. I'd always enjoyed her channel, her DIY videos in particular, but for some reason that one video really sparked my non-digital studio side. I'll post  a link to her video below.

She started off with her idea that it's silly to spend $6 on something a person can make themselves. $6 for a little package! Not that Tim Holtz isn't a cool designer, but sometimes it's more fun to do something custom. See? There's a reason I appreciate her DIY videos!  :)

That inspiration led me to bring out last year's (oh dear! - a whole year???) deli paper stamped collage papers along with some paint, gesso, and my favorite glue of choice, Liquitex Matte Gel Medium. For my previous post on using found objects and regular rubber stamps for that deli paper project, please go HERE.

For my own project, I chose a former Amy's frozen food box, as I felt the heft and thickness of the cardboard would work well enough. The finished product looks like this:

But it had humbler beginnings that looked like this:

I kept finding ways to work around different problems at the same time that I was experimenting. Some of my stamp inks seemed to never quite "set" on the deli paper sheets in last year's project, even when I'd heated them using a dry iron with release paper sandwiched in between to protect the iron. So I glued them face down as a precaution, sometimes using paint, and at other times using my homemade gesso (gesso experiment also in a previous post here). I sometimes wish I'd stopped at that point. I mean, they really looked kinda cute to me.

In keeping with the DIY and reuse theme, I utilized a few things I had around the house:

Next, I had to add more color, this time so the edges would look finished:

A somewhat blurred but closer look at the plain tiles:

I really think I'll be experimenting some more and soon with Shemi Dixon's fun idea, only more for a "mosaic tile" kind of look in crafts and/or books. Some don't need alphabet letters. And anyhow, I am not that strong a stenciler! lolz

:)

Here is Shemi Dixon's fab video! I really like how hers turned out, don't you? Hers are adorable! More professional looking than mine, that's for sure. 

Hmmm. Guess I could use a better stencil set and some new brushes.

I hope to be able to add more soon to this very neglected second blog of mine!

Cheers!

~Rose