Acrylic Block Stamping

This technique uses an acrylic block as the base for creating the backgrounds using either Distress Ink Pads or Distress Stains.  It makes a good compact area to apply your colour before putting down the plain white card stock to create these backgrounds.  Of course, because the Distress Inks & Stains come in so many gorgeous colours, your combination options are endless.  

You will notice that the 2nd one called "Dusk" and the last one called "Fragment" are both the same stamp with almost the same colours on them.  Dusk used the Distress Stains and Fragment was made using the Distress Ink pads.   I also did the Cracked Glass technique from the previous class over the whole of Fragment.  I also did the Cracked Glass over the top of the delectable cowboy in number 5, "Excitement".  

WARNING:   ATC number 4 called "Naked & Screaming" is showing some naked male butt.... and a very nice butt it is too!   Thought I should warn you.....  watch how many girls get whiplash of the finger scrolling that mouse wheel down to number 4 immediately!!!     :-)

"Decompose"...

"Dusk"...

"Oblivion"...

"Naked & Screaming"...

"Excitement"...

"Fragment"...

More to follow......

Cracked Glass Technique

This fortnight's technique at my ATC Classes for Artability is an old Stamping technique that's been around for a long time, Cracked Glass.  We'll be using clear UTEE (Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel - like a chunky embossing powder) to create several layers then create cracks and highlight the cracks with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

Here's the first sample:

"Artist"...

"Crystal"...

"Dance"...

"Fragment"...

"Vision"...

This one below is from the previous class, Gesso Crackle.  Love this saying!

"Kilt"...



More to come.....

GESSO CRACKLE

The technique for this fortnight I've called "Gesso Crackle".   It was purely an accidental discovery while I was doing another technique previously.  It uses Gesso (duh!), and the wonderful Golden Paints in the Fluids.  You need the Golden fluids for this technique, not the heavy body ones as they are too stiff.   Just don't go there okay?   lol

"Attack"...

"Bite Me"...

"Failure"...

 "What you see"...

This next one is just a quickie I made for my son's birthday.   Rather than make a card for him I thought I'd do an atc so he can stick it on his fridge next to the ones I've made for my daughter-in-law Elice.   As we've just bought a still, thought it was relevant.    Yes, that's a page from his old calculus book!

Finally, a last atc from the previous technique, Mini Collage with paint.

"Stargazer"...

Mini Collage & Paint

The first set of classes went off without a hitch in the new venue, the Jim Satchell Community Centre in Dianella.  The next technique that I'll be teaching is Mini Collage & Paint, Saturday's class is this week, the 12th of May and Tuesday's class is the 15th of May.  I think the girls that love playing with paint and colour will enjoy this week's technique....mini collage & paint.   It's mini collage because we're working on the atc size, 2-1/2" x 3-1/2".....kinda small so you can't overfill it like you would if you were doing a 12" x 12" canvas!    Of course I'll be using my Golden Paints but Jo Sonja's will work as well.  I just love Golden's because they are so pigment rich and you don't need much to get great depth of colour.   Natalie from Artability has some great Golden Paints for sale on the web-site as well as some other fantastic goodies - check it out!  Some samples....

"Family"...

"Melancholy"...

"Entwined"...

More samples to follow after Saturday's class.

Antique Foil Background

It seems like ages since I've posted here though it's only one class that has been missed between Scraptivate closing and the next classes starting up through the on-line store, Artability.  My first class is this Saturday, the 28th of April at the Jim Satchell Community Centre in Dianella.  I'll be teaching a technique that I've called "Antique Foil Background".   Gotta love that foil tape!   Add in some alcohol inks and some stazon ink pads and it just doesn't get any better.

"Haunt"...

"Away Often"...

"Sombreness"...

"Intimate"...

"No Head"... (get that mind out of the gutter!!!   lol)

I ummed and aaahhed over whether to put this next one in....it sort of belongs on my other xxx blog, but it doesn't really show anything so I thought, why not.  
"Be creative"...

These last two below are from my previous Canvas Painting class.

"Muse"...

and the last one...."Testicles".....

I look forward to catching up my students again on Saturday and Tuesday night of next week at the Community Centre and hope that it's going to be smooth transition for all of us.

Canvas Paper Painting

I've used Canvas Paper as a surface for atc's a few times, just love the linen-like texture that's on it. This fortnight's class is using the canvas paper and my favourite, Golden Paints for adding the colour. We'll be doing washes of colour but also using different implements to add further interest - like corrugated card, empty plastic or cardboard tubes, sequin waste etc. While I was doing my samples I discovered a happy accident which will become another class using canvas paper, gesso & Golden paints....that's for another time though.

Firstly I thought I'd show you a couple of pieces before I cut them down to atc size. The first one below is A5, so I can get 5 atc's from this sheet.

These two are both 2-1/2" wide x 7" tall so I can get 2 atc's from these pieces.

Samples now of atc using this technique for backgrounds...

"See"...

"Hope"...

"Ornament"...

"Dream"...

"Flourish"...

When I did the last technique, Paper Casting, I made a piece using my Dragonfly Legend stamp by Stampers Anonymous (a favourite of mine!) using the old fashioned method of laying the wet toilet paper directly onto the stamp and drying. This piece I made into a card front so it's larger than a normal atc.

"Dragonfly Legend"... (card)

"Mess"... (another atc using the paper casting method from the last technique)

Finally, this is a card that I made using gloss card from the technique before Paper Casting, Abstract Acetate. I still prefer the look on acetate than on gloss but for a card it's fine.

"One of a Kind"... (card)

Paper Casting

This fortnight's technique was shown to me by Mandy, one of my students (& a friend!). I had done paper casting years ago using rubber stamps and tissues with a bit of glue and water. Of course the worst thing about it is you have to wait for it to dry overnight before you can use it. Well those sort of techniques just have no place in my 2 hour classes so speeding it up by using the Cuttlebug machine and embossing folders and then drying with a heat gun is the way to get instant gratification....and I'm all about instant gratification!!! I used Glimmer Mists to spray the castings to add colour and then used Gilding Wax/Treasure Gold/Rub'n'buff to add the extra zing to the backgrounds.

"Silent language"... (on this one I used white gilding wax to add the highlights on the background)

"Industrial"... (sorry it's a poor picture, stupid jump rings just add too much depth for the scanner)

"Antisocial"...

"Chaos"...

"Ambivalent"...

More to come after I've done the 3 classes.