One Last Splash Of Glitter........

I know this cannot compare with the last post, so let's not even go there. No eye candy, just nominal art.

*SIGH*

Sorry kiddies.

Alas, a boring heart....no Pirates.....

As with most of what I do, occasionally things just take off in another direction and it is NOT what I had in mind. This is the case with the post today; the four heart stencil that seemed like a good idea but was a devil to pull.
I started with a simple scrapbook paper heart, then wanted to use the gold German Glitter for contrast. I do want to add here that the gold glitter is made up of metallic glass and yellow tinted glass, which disperses color when added to the soft gloss gel. (as I found out....)

I did tape this stencil due to wanting straight placement....I could just see it take off....NOT.

Well, first off, I almost could not get the stencil OFF. I mean, those little edges were just not nice at all. I pulled and gently wiggled, and added some spicy words to see if that would help (it did NOT, btw....), stomped my feet and threw a little fit.
After a bit more easing, I finally got the foam off and had to readjust the edges of the gel with the palette knife. Yes, you can do that. It requires a light touch. A very light touch......and yes, the temptation to throw this one in the trash occurred to me several times.

But I decided to let it dry and see what would happen. The problem was simple; I had put so much gel on, it ended up drying without the paper showing through as I had envisioned. So, lesson learned. If you want the glitter AND the background to show, don't pack it so full.

Yeah, yeah, it could be worse....maybe not.

Hmmmph.
While I was waiting and waiting (and waiting.....) for this to dry, I decided to do a very unsophisticated sample chart so everyone could see the other possibilities for additives to gel. I even remembered to write on the back what I had used.....will miracles never cease.....LOL!

1. Fine German Glass Glitter in black

2. Black glass beads (no holes)

3. Fine German Glass Glitter (black) mixed with Budgie Grit

4. Used and dried green tea from tea bags


5. Used and dried coarse loose tea

6. Crushed flakes of leftover mica sheets (they're too expensive to waste!)


7. Gold German Glass Glitter (notice the yellow bleed into the gel)

8. Commercial Golden Black Mica Gel Medium


I wanted to put one of the specialty mediums on the board to see how the other items stood up visually against the real deal. And frankly, I think they do okay. #3 probably comes the closest to the Mica Gel, but it also has a lot of the texture of the pumice gel when you touch it. I probably should have done a wash of paint over half of each sample, but remember, it's ME and I have a short attention span. (and I've been working on several other things at once too....ack!)
I will say the coarse loose tea is wonderful if you are doing a 3-D type area and want to imitate weeds, twigs, etc. Just add the right color paint afterward.
Next post, I will wrap this up with the one completely finished canvas, so that you can have an idea of where these can be taken. I am really hoping my husband does not decide to check the blog, because it is his Valentine gift and I would like to surprise him......*wink*!!!
I've had fun with this tutorial, and hopefully you have been able to learn a bit along the way.
Of course, gel medium is one of the best collage mediums out there, though I recommend matte for that purpose. I probably will do one post on the Diva Gels; the ones you cannot mess with, but are worth the cost.
It won't have cool pictures of Cap'n Jack.
Life is hard.
Sometimes you just have to deal with words. ;-D
Okay....one more piece of eye candy......

"I likes me gel additives too...Savvy???"

Now go make art!

Pax....

More Art Making On Distant Shores.......

Bloody hell...what am I doin' on this blog??? Where's me rum?

Alright Mateys, say you be shipwrecked on a spit o' land with only yer jar of gel medium and a swatch o' canvas and yer trusty dagger (a.k.a. palette knife).....

Sands and Dagger Club....

And on that same island you be shipwrecked with the lurvley Cap'n Jack, and he be runnin' out of rum. (ye knows how he gets....)

Why is all the RUM gone???

And so yer thinkin', maybe if I makes him a nice VALENTINE with me gel and some of this here SAND (Budgie Grit) and that pocketful of white sand (decorator sand) I brung back from *The Locker*, the dear Capn's humor will improve.....

The essentials for all Art Pirates....

What say ye??? AYE???

I thought so! So we be using the sands of the isles and putting two types into one heart mold.

Arrrrgggh! Where did this scurvy dog come from? Have he the Black Spot?

That little guy looks like trouble...I'll keep an eye on him.
Working with Budgie Grit or sand is one of the times you will have to mix and pack your mold quickly. The natural tendency for both items to draw moisture away from the gel means the working time is less, as is the drying time.
This is good and bad....good because I hate waiting for things to dry, bad because I need to mix each item separately and then have a bit in the middle where they meet that blends. 

Initial gel packed into mold.

Once you have something that looks like the above (and you can put the white sand at the top if you want, or one on each side...) then take a bit of the leftovers from the initial mixing and fill the middle, then use the palette knife to swish it about a bit. That will set it with the other two gel mixes, and they will be getting a bit of a crust quickly. Don't worry--this works pretty easy. Just have everything ready FIRST, savvy?
When you pull the mold, it should look like this....

Wet gel with sand and grit.

 And then when dry, you'll be able to see the different colors of the grit/sand, like this....

Nice definition of the two different additives.

 And as for this little fellow, me thinks I be keepin' an eye peeled on him. For I believe he be making another appearance with this heart before all this Piratey business be through.....

Who be lookin' at WHO??? He seems up to no good.....cursed, no doubt!

 Now head fer ye posts and don't make me keel haul ye!
ARRRRRGGGGH!!!!

Are You Gellin'??? (Uuuuuuuggghhhh!!!!)

Oh, Goldens! Oh, glass beads! Oh, JOY!!!

Ouch! Late in the studio humor, which stinks actually, as I don't like that ad! Yep, that was ripe. (channeling the Grinch here...)
Sorry....
Moving right along, we're off with the beginning of the gel mediums tutorial. First things first; I am only using soft gloss gel medium in these demos unless I should mention otherwise. The first I had heard of this was for transfers from inkjet transparencies a long time ago. It wasn't until I began mixed media work that I really discovered all the possibilities it offered.
You will need stencils to shape the gel, and I cut mine from the bottom parts of foam fruit/veggie/meat trays. All are not of the same foam, and some cut smoother than others. As long as you are using a metal cookie cutter for the shape, it will be a lot easier.

I am doing hearts, no surprise if you've been to this blog much, but mostly because I have a lot of heart cookie cutters and I knew where they were!

I use an embossing tool to heat the cookie cutter, and hold it with a pair of pliers or something to keep your fingers away from the heat of the gun. When warm enough, lay it immediately on the piece of foam and press down with the pliers, NOT YOUR FINGERS! 

Press hard!

Unless you have welding gloves (and I do somewhere, but they are lost for the moment) don't let you fingers get on the hot metal. The cutter will only go so far into the foam. 

Fingers away from the heat please! ♥

Remove the cutter, and using the embossing tool again, heat the tip of a small exacto knife, and finish slicing easily through the stencil. The heat will make the edges smoother, and give a nicer finished shape.
Now you're ready to take some gel medium and mix in glass beads. Don't add so many that you have a hard time mixing them together, just a bit at a time.

I use a glass palette--actually an old glass tray from a microwave--and then the gel stays workable longer than mixing on something absorbent. As soon as you have the two parts mixed, place your foam stencil on whatever substrate you choose to use and fill with the gel/bead mix. 

Smooth gel as much as possible--it will not be perfect and some texture is nice.

Hold the stencil firmly with your free hand so it doesn't slip and also so the gel doesn't seep under the edges. The next part is a finesse move. You want to lift the stencil off straight up---that way the sides of the gel shape are nice and clean and the gel doesn't get askew.

A well removed stencil--clean, clear edges! YES!!!

As soon as you have the stencil off, go wash it gently in cool water to remove all traces of gel so it can be used again. (and again....and again....) Save the stencils you make because with care, you can get a lot of use out of them.
This is going to take quite a while to dry thoroughly, as I found out. Mine was about a week until it was solid. While I was waiting and dabbling with other things, I took the little paperclay hearts I had and gave them a first wash of color....

Wow Anne....nothing subtle about this color.....

 ....then gave them some antiquing with a soft black to make all the little features pop out......

Oh much better; I don't need sunglasses now.....

And finally, a week later, I had a dry gel heart.

Very pretty!

The curious thing was the pink that had been on the glass beads? It came off and the color sunk to the bottom of the piece. Which is not bad~~I told you we'd be experimenting together. Obviously the acrylic affects the coloring on the beads, at least these. Had I laid them on top of the gel, it might have been different.
Soft gel in the drying process can be helped along a bit with a hairdryer, but only so much. I frequently will dry it just long enough to stabilize the top layer a bit, then set it aside somewhere safe for the remainder of the drying. A hard bonnet hair dryer works too; I have one that various art goes under besides using it for my hair......multitasking at it's best!
At this point I will close and the next post will deal with something similar to a basic mica gel. I am also doing a very bare bones sample card so there will be a photo of one commercial gel medium and then the possibilities of all the junk I save. It even surprised me.
I'm not usually that organized or far sighted!
Okay kiddies, go sling some gel!!!


Pax....

Gel Mediums; The Secret Desire Of Artists (or, How To Go Broke Quick)

Oh.....the possibilities......the yumminess.....the COST

Sorry for the delay on this, the first post on gel mediums. I have been slightly mentally distracted and figured I really needed all my faculties for this series!
Here is what I want to propose in the next couple of posts~~having a lot of gel mediums is a great thing, but when you don't use the specialty gels that often, or if you live out of the U.S. and are paying premium prices for them it is hard to pick what to buy when they ALL look so darned GOOD! (and are, I must admit)
So what I will be using, unless otherwise stated is a soft gloss gel medium. I happen to have Golden and Liquitex both, have used both a fair amount and really see little difference other than Golden has almost no *acrylic* smell and Liquitex does. If this is a factor for you, (allergies, etc) then I would say purchase the Golden Soft Gel in gloss.
Now for the fun part.
There are all those specialty mediums that look intriguing but you haven't a clue what to do with them. Or how much you would actually use even the small sampler sized jar. I loved Golden's Pumice Gel and had the tiny sampler sized jar, but found two things that I have to give it dings for.

First, I had to add a regular gel to it to make it malleable enough to knife or brush it onto a surface and get it to stick.
Second, even with the cap fixed on tight, I only got to use half of it before it dried up. 

That gave me pause before ordering a large tub and got the brain rolling on *what can I use as a substitute*??? And so it started---how can I replicate some of these?
And then there is that wonderful glass bead gel......no I have not purchased it yet. I see it in others work and wonder if I would use the tub up or have most of it lost to petrification. (not to be confused with putrification, which is another story all together, like when I tried to dry out the used coffee grounds and they grew mold instead...)
So I began scouting around the studio for things to put IN gels. Things that would add texture, simulate some of the ready made gels, but allow me to mix a tiny amount on the palette and not go broke. (and I will fess up; I'd rather be ORDERING.....there is nothing like getting a shipment of art supplies....)
Dollar stores and outlet stores are great places to look for things to put in gels. I have purchased decorative sand (floral section), tiny pebbles, glass round beads, and then my stand by from the pet supplies, Budgie Grit. 

Cheap decorative sand, glass beads, and my stand by~~Budgie Grit! A lot of bang for the buck!

I also have used well dried---and BIG EMPHASIS on the WELL DRIED part---spent loose tea. If you know someone who has a nice little cafe that serves specialty tea, especially the Jasmines, ask for a filter full of the stuff after brewing. It will take a day or so in a colander lined with toweling and a bit of stirring, but you end up with an amazing organic product that mixes well with the gels.
On line, American Science Supply is an interesting place to visit as they have arts and crafts leftovers and other odd things you just might NEED. *ahem* Yes, need. I got my assortment of glass beads from them, on sale. Their catalogs are fun too, just for evening reading and getting the thought process going, or more like, "What on God's green earth was some of this stuff ever used for?" And they have a sense of humor too.
I will do four canvasses with a stencil technique that I can claim no credit for; I found it on marianne's art blog and she does some amazing work with all different types of gels and transfers. I highly recommend giving her a good read if you want to learn more about gels in finished products, and her experiments as well.

Foam meat or vegetable tray cut down, cookie cutter  for stencil, canvas primed dark and a few leftover paperclay hearts to get this party started.

So if you want to follow along, you'll need one small tub of soft gloss gel, items to put in it, and either canvas boards (good for experiments as well as a final product) or canvas. Paints, etc.....you know, all the normal goodies.
And remember, I have been making some of this up as I have gone along, so you're seeing what happens just as I do! The only thing I have tried to clean up is the junk on my work table, and that failed miserably. LOL!!!
Now, off to the gel races.....




Pax....