Old Paper Rejuvenated

Learning from mistakes....that is how this part came to be. I kept thinking of the skulls in yesterday's post and how they had gotten all sloppy from the wash seeping into the back of the paper, and knew that OLD book paper would be much more porous.....so out came the clear gesso.

 

I completely covered the backs of the book pages with the clear gesso and let them dry. The paper does curl, so once completely dried, they got a quick ironing to flatten and then were ready for stamping on the front.
Due to the text, I chose one of my larger stamps....

Same gesso routine....spread it out even....

Stamp firmly....

PRESS....REPEAT TO COVER....

 

And your finished, stamped page should look something like this. I recommend using a dryer on this, as the foam stamps pick up more gesso and those little thick places will take quiet a while to dry on their own.
No photos of watching gesso dry...I mean, I'm sure that would provide too much excitement....LOL!

When starting to paint these, you will find that the paper absorbs the wash at a very fast rate, BUT, that gesso on the back keeps it from seeping through. So paint a section at a time and blot off as before....

....And you will end up with a very definite pattern showing and all the text and also *texture* of the original paper coming through too. And yes, the back side of the paper will be pretty clear; mine just picked up some splatters from my over aggressive paint slopping....

And this is what the paper will look like when finished.
Finished???
It was, until about 5 minutes ago I had one of those *What if....* thoughts and ran to the table.
Due to the support of the clear gesso on the back, you can add a second wash of color on this, letting it feather out with the addition of water, and blotting as usual. No, no photo....I'm fresh from my little experiment.
So, lesson learned. Preparing the BACK of the paper can be as importan as the stamping on the front.

A thought: I am not sure how well this would work on older, thin paper. Due to the nature of a thinner substrate, there would be natural show through, but I encourage experimentation, because the BACK might be more interesting in that case!

And now, for the last part:

The printed tissues.
I do not have the photos done for this section yet, and I have a full day of running today.....so what I am saying is look for this Friday or Saturday, unless some miracle happens here, and don't hold your collective breath for that one!
I am not responsible for anyone turning blue and passing out. ;-D
Go make art~~have fun!!!


Pax.... 

Papers: Part Deux

 

Let's review where we left off~~all the papers are dry from being stamped with the clear gesso, and if curled, have been ironed from the back. So now we're ready for the FUN PART! (lol!!!~~I've already had one Blogger fit, maybe getting the post up is the fun part~~hahaha!)

I am using Golden Fluid Acrylics because the colors I chose are bright and transparent and there is plenty of pigment. I picked two, put a bit on the palette and then added water for a wash.

 

This is the only part that gets tricky. You want a WASH, but you don't want a really watery wash. Get the paint moving but don't have soup. Trust me, once you do it once, this will make sense, as I found out the hard way......

Start applying quickly and liberally to the paper.

The clear gesso provides a resist to the paint, similar to batik, but to make it better defined, you'll need to remove some paint. (because the gesso is also meant to HOLD paint...)

It should look something like the above photo. Have a soft cloth handy--I use old dust cloths because, well, it's more fun than DUSTING! Because you want to lift the color OFF the gessoed area.

BLOT!!!

LIFT!!!

Blot, lift, repeat. Don't scrub or swipe, blot and lift. You can rub the gesso off and you can also rub the print off, or too much paint. Every paper will react differently, so taking a cautious approach is best, and really, takes no longer.

When I went to do the skulls, I discovered what happens when the wash is a little too generous with water....

First, paint started seeping, and the paper began to buckle. So I had to quickly paint the piece, blot the extra paint and then.....

 

...Dry the front a bit, but still I was losing the skulls because.......

.....waaaaay too much water in the mix meant the paint had seeped to the back and was spreading on the reverse of the paper. So the handy-dandy high tech drying tool was used at high heat and close, in an attempt to stop the issue at hand. 

This gives a good idea of how much the gesso resists the water, and the mistake gave birth to the idea of how to handle another type of paper....so it's all good. Mistakes, generally, are GOOD. 

The last paper, in the drying process~~a little better defined. By this piece I had a better *feel* for what it needed.

Like I said, every paper will differ. This is not a perfect science; this is a fun experiment in the works! So don't get upset if something is not *perfect*. Perfect isn't what we're aiming for; interesting texture is the goal.

And the finished pieces....sorry about the quality as I was shooting this on the ironing board quickly and the lighting was nominal. (yeah, I'm lazy)

Anyway, back to the blue paper with the skulls.

I wanted to do old book pages but after the seeping skulls, I knew it needed a different approach, soooooo.......

......I got ready for the next adventure.

I've had about as much of Blogger as I can handle today; we'll pick up here in the next installment. I'm hoping I have all the photos I need for this. The last one with the stamping and ink still needs step out photos done....I'll be hopping.

Like a bunny.

With ink.

Hmmmmmm........  ;-)

Have fun! 

Pax.... 

Altering Preprinted Papers

The goodies.....!!!

And we're OFF! (well, *I* am, at any rate....) This is a fairly simple technique for changing the appearance of any printed paper that has a matte finish. It's a great way to use up pieces of scrapbook paper that just don't appeal to you, but were in a pack.
Yes, I am a tightwad. What can I say.
I love flowers but knew I would NEVER be doing the daisies in the photo-pack I bought, so they seemed good for the demo. Remember, I'm using the less expensive, thin paper, which will have certain effects that thick, good quality paper will not. Think, ABSORBENCY.
Also, I always have my work area covered with waxed paper. When one side gets nasty, flip it over and use it again.

Stamp selections; yes-there-is-a-skull-in-there.....

I chose three different styles of stamps for this so you can see what each will do. First, the skull is a pretty *solid* stamp~~the frilly lines on it will not show. Second, the damask pattern is fairly well defined but I know I will lose some of the detail and that is okay. (really...it is!) And third, on the upper right, the small swirly clear stamp~~I have used it before, and know what it does.
So we have three different depths of texture to work with.

Batter up! The damask is first in the drink, or gesso.....

Put some clear gesso onto a waterproof surface. My palette is an old microwave tray---glass; cleans perfectly, can take a lot of stress (unlike me) and allows plenty of room for things to run without dripping to the work table.
Get your first stamp ready and then you will smooth out the gesso with whatever your tool of choice should be--a palette knife, stray piece of foam, an old credit card.....you pick. You just need it somewhat evenly dispersed.
(I discourage using a good brayer because this stuff is really hard to clean off if it dries....)

It should look something like this.....

Then pounce your stamp in and it will look somewhat like the photo below if you don't have waaaaay tooooooo much clear gesso on it!

Hmmmm, gessoed myself too---clean extra off the stamp at this point.....

Then flip the stamp over and firmly press on the paper. You will be able to see where you have stamped, and there may be some higher edges from the gesso, which is alright too. Remember, do not use REGULAR gesso!!!!

Placing another of the stamps.....

That skull looks pretty happy, I think~~ :-)

After finishing the whole area of paper you want to print (stamping at very regular intervals, or randomly~~whichever YOU prefer), wash your stamp IMMEDIATELY! I use cold water and a soft paint brush, making sure all the gesso is out of the fine details. If you are working on a larger piece of paper, it might be a good idea to clean and dry the stamp at some point so that it does not have gesso dry in tiny edges and diminish the quality of the stamp.

A note on clear gesso: It gives a slight tactile surface to whatever it is put on, so when doing normal painting, the paint has something to grab to. I don't know if it is a very fine silica mixed in the polymer, but that is why I stress keeping your stamps cleaned.

Stamped completely and ready for.....

....high tech drying! (yes, it's my blow dryer...)

I always speed things along with a blow dryer because usually the table is so full I don't have room to let it dry by itself, so consider that. Everything I have done has been heat dried. It might work different if it air dried; I honestly don't know.
Also, I tend to forget that papers fly around when the drier is running full blast so grab a paint bottle, or anything heavy and secure at least one edge. You don't want these flapping in the breeze......or flopping up onto your clothing.
Don't ask.....
When the paper is all dry, you should have something that looks like the last photo:

This is the small clear swirly stamp. Hopefully the lines show well enough for you to see.

And that is where we are stopping for today. Blogger has been good and I really don't want to push the envelope.
Plus, if you are doing this, you need time for things to dry.
Should the paper have curled in the drying process, turn it right side down and lightly press with an old iron. I have a very useless, cheap studio iron. It gets used for ironing paper, melting wax and other things you should never do with a good iron. (I still starch and iron.....I am a remnant of another world....)
Next time, the magic of what the clear gesso does!
Tune in again; Same Bat-Time, Same Bat-Channel!!!

Or something like that.

Here.  LOL!!!


Pax....

Oriental ATC.....Steps, Decisions, and Batteries!

I believe I left everyone stranded part way in the process of making my double sided ATC with a less than cooperative camera......

We all learned to get along!  >:-)

Above are the elements I was working with for the back of the card, the Geisha carefully cut out and seeing how she fit on the card blank.

At this point, I slipped some old Japanese print paper over the card back, layed on a piece leftover from a previous collage to bring up the red in the print and sized up visually where I wanted the Geisha, or if it all works. I was liking what I was seeing, so proceeded.

One thing I felt would help to seperate the Geisha from the background was to flip the paper over and add some colored pencil. This is a good way to change the tone of a print without really doing a lot to it that would change the look and flavor. I just worked with some warmer color pencils, then as shown below, I coated the back with Titan Buff, to seperate it a bit more from the text on the page. This is a neutral barrier---you can do it with white or black, or whatever works with the color of the print you are using. (yes, it is fly by the seat of your pants the first few times.......but pretty quickly you learn!)

At this point, I am still fond the text on the background but feel it is too bland colorwise. The aging of the paper is not enough, so I go in with the fluids and a stamp......

.....And I like this much better. More visual interest, more contrast, and I also brought up just a bit of color on the front of the Geisha with the colored pencils. Can't really see it? Good. That's how it should be. I want it to look like it was the original and not my hand.

These are part of the items used; a very small section of the large stamp was inked with the Distress Ink and applied. The Staz-On was used with two of the tiny stamps for the leaf side. Tacky Glue is my fix-all for putting two pieces of paper together.....and of course, letting them dry under several heavy books, to make sure they are flat.

I was still not happy with the seperation between the Geisha's face and the background, so with a very fine brush, I outlined her figure and that seemed to do the trick. A subtle little thing, but really bringing her forward more. I also used a finely sharpened colored pencil to retrace some of the fine lines in the drawing....again, not obvious. It just makes things *look better*.

And here we have the two pieces side by side. One note; the leaf had pulled away from the backing a bit, so I used the knife to lift an edge and put more heavy gel under, smoothing it with my finger. When that was dry, I coated it with a combination of acrylic glazing fluid and acrylic paint, to restoe the burgundy that had lessened some after all the manipulation and ironing.

And below, the final front image.......

And back, after being glued together. One thing I added as an after thought to the back was the small die cut maple leaves.

I felt it tied the two sides together better with that extra black. Then I edged the piece with a colored Sharpie marker and varnished both sides. The leaf side is gloss, so it appears the leaf is floating on water, and the Geisha side is satin, to give a gentle depth to the aged print.

And that's pretty much it for this piece! I still feel like I am forgetting something here....and I probably am, but it is gone for the moment.

I just cannot do things simply........pffft!

Sometimes I wish I could....but......I really do LIKE this!  :-)

Now go get creative! Happy Monday!

Pax.

Studio, Day Two: Too Cold To.......

...get anything in the studio to DRY yesterday! I am not joking; I have never had this happen since I built the studio on.

I started out with great plans and excitement and slapped down the gel medium beneath the paper hearts, as shown in the above and below photos. I like some depth on the pieces---I go back in, color the edges, things pop and it looks great. Simple technique, a bit time consuming to dry but usually in an hour or so, it is far enough along that I can work on other parts of the piece.

The caveat of that is...of course...that the gel medium is DRY or on the way to DRYING. Yes, it was cool in the studio, and I went in the house to attend to a few things, but when I came back out, the paper was cold and the medium wet. As in, really cold and really wet. And the studio did not seem as warm either. So I checked the furnace and it was okay and I wandered through the back of the basement, looking for an enclosed oil heater to plug in down in the wet studio to start getting heat there and hoping it would rise.

Alas, this was the work of the day. The wind picked up before noon, and since my one studio wall is on the west, where it was taking a full hit of frigidity, the temp dropping was again a problem. Not only for the drying (and I use that word loosely!) papers but for ME too. Body parts were being most uncooperative. Not being able to feel scissors is bad.....especially on precision cuts! LOL!!!

So at the end of the day (or as you will, this morning) I had squat to show for my good intentions other than a warmer studio---the oil heaters take a while to start getting heat going---and a nice, colorful, visually pleasing mess on the table.

Which is where I was yesterday.

At this same time.

And yes, I will try it again today, hoping that it will be warm enough to work out here. I don't even want to think about what the electric bill will be......that would definitely take me out of my *heart-y* mood and produce something much more ominous.  >:-)

If nothing else, it was fun taking some photos of the colorful bits and pieces, and maybe that was what I was suppose to be creative with instead. Sigh.....

I hope the inspiration has not frozen or been blown away during the arctic blast yesterday. And I can honestly say this is the first time in my life I am glad I cannot drive because it is too stinking cold to be out!!!

I don't know....maybe I should just crop some of the photos and print some cards and say it's done.

Frustrating.....utterly frustrating.

Well, I'm off to the tables again, after a trip to the wet studio to gather more supplies; collage medium, glitter, pens, paint.....pretty soon it will all be upstairs and then I will have to sew, and back it will go again. That is why, on days like this, I am ready to let the sewing go out of my life......

I wish you all a LOT of warmth today, to make your creativity flow and not freeze up in a big lump or require retreating to your big comfy chair with a hot cuppa and an afghan. (though that does sound GOOD!!!)

Pax.

Collage Pair Done! (unbelievable.....)

I have come to the conclusion that I am slower than the seven year itch about getting things done that I should. Such as, the simple photos of these.

They have laid on the table a couple of days, finished, waiting and while I decided it was much more entertaining to make merry with a baby pic of myself, the art was languishing in the computer, pounding and yelling at me to be posted.

Thus, for your approval, the pair. I like them. I know I should be a better critic, but, I just plain like them. The way they work side by side, the way the square sets off the odd and unequal rectangular shapes, the botanical stamps......I can't be a good judge here.

Previously, I felt the colors were too bright and everything was too rigid and straight; that the pieces did not meld into the background better. I had tried a few types of gel mediums and ended up wiping them all off--they were not *it*. Then I decided I would try one of my template marking pencils, but it was upstairs and I was lazy (okay, I did not feel physically like running up two flights of steps....) but on the table in front of me was a soft graphite pencil. I looked at it, it looked at me......I tentatively tried a tiny bit. Perfect. PERFECT! Better than the other would have been by far! The embossing was picked up, the brush strokes of medium, everything began to take on a slightly aged and lived in look, exactly like I wanted! And all due to my complete and utter sloth-dom....  ;-)  Hey, there are perks for laziness, though few.......

Or maybe this is one of those happy accidents that makes art so pleasing and exciting, and constantly a learning process. I don't know, nor do I care. They are as I mentally visualized them! What more could I ask for?

Do click the photos; they should enlarge enough to see some of the small details.

Thanks to everyone for the birthday greetings yesterday, cyber and in hand---all y'all are a fine bunch of bloggers and blog readers! But you knew that already, yes?

Content may be sparse as I prepare for surgery next week. I'm hoping to at least produce a few more ATCs but honestly, sleep seems to be what I'm doing well at the moment.

I hope everyone has a great weekend, a creative time during this festive season, and truly above all else,

I bid you......

Pax.

Again.....Art In Process.....

Well, for days I have been trying to get the simplest of photos taken and sometimes I think it is just me.....I am unwilling to sit still long enough to get something finished.

Yesterday was different. I really kicked things into gear and got packages wrapped, myself exercised, presents for the Budgie Boyz ordered, and, most importantly, photos taken.

Above are the ATCs with the two fiber ones. I lost a bit of color due to the intensity of the neighboring pieces, but do you detect a theme, either content or color??? (God forbid I get out of my red/heart rut....I'm happy there, thank-you-very-much!) They do look kinda cool all lined up....  ;-)

The collage papers I posted the other day have turned into these two pieces, which are getting closer to what I want. They are quite difficult to photograph due to the interference colors used on them, so the actual background colors are a bit more brownish/black where they seem more purpley here.

It was during the present wrapping and wailing along with a Brian Setzer Christmas CD that I knew I wanted the stamped background brought up more (see close up shot) so I ran to the wet studio, mixed some color and stamped away.

This shows the detail better, but the color is still not right. Yes, I could have tinkered with it but that would probably have meant the blog post wouldn't have gotten done.....so little time, so much distraction!
These are not my typical works, and I still like them because I have played with them, both with colors and content. Sometimes you need a vacation from the hard thinking work. Fun is a necessity.
I'd like to take credit for all I accomplished yesterday myself  but I have to admit, my day started with a beautiful web-based church service, and the second contemporary service had the most ROCKIN' version of "Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel" I have ever heard......now truly, that was what got me jumping and wailing (that's *singing* in normal terms....I have no gift of voice what so ever....but I'm LOUD). It was exceptional!
So now I'm off on my appointed rounds. Have a Happy Monday.
Do something to lift your heart and make you smile!
I bid you....

Pax.