Sending Strength Your Way - A Mixed Media Canvas of Love

Happy Stencil Sunday everyone!  today I am sharing another project showing you how easy it is to use those stencils and to encourage and hopefully inspire you to create something with one of your stencils and link it up to this month's STAMPlorations Mixed Media, Anything Goes Except A Card Challenge. 

Here is the 4x6 board canvas I created for a special friend for whom I wanted to make something more than a card...

and to whom I wanted to send some words of encouragement and to let them know that I was thinking of them ...

I used some black gesso through the ARTplorations "Some Birds" stencil to create that lovely silhouette of birds flying against a sunset sky, and don't you just love the effect?

Now for those of you who want to know here are the steps in my process:

I lightly brushed three shades of Golden fluid acrylic paint onto the background of my canvas and some black gesso through the ARTplorations "Some Birds" stencil and let it dry.

I cut several leaves and branches from 110lbs card stock using the Sizzix Tim Holtz Alterations Holly Branch Die #657468, covered them with embossing ink and dipped them into these trays full of Stampendous Heritage embossing powders and then applied the heat gun.

I love the chunky, random effect these powders create (they are full of glitter, and fine and chunky embossing powders in several complimentary colours).  You heat each piece separately and you should make sure you do this on a heat-resistant craft mat.  Each piece can be dipped and heated several times until you get the coverage you desire.

I  assembled the holly leaves and branches onto the base of my canvas and added the berries which I painted and then covered in Rangers Liquid Pearl.

Then, using the stamping on tissue paper technique I added the sentiment.  I wanted the birds in flight silhouette to show through the sentiment, but after wards I realized that this made it harder to read.

Next time I will brush a light coat of white gesso over the area where I want to apply my sentiment so that it will be more visible.

The final step was to antique the entire canvas by rubbing a thin layer of brown spray ink over the  piece and then wiping off the wet ink, and then inking the edges of the canvas in a darker brown.  

So that's it for today, except for the cutting and embossing of the holly leaves, this project came together quite quickly (less than an hour!)  And I hope it does inspire you to go create something with your own stencils.  And this being the first Sunday in December means the start of a brand new challenge so why not get in on the action?  The design team members always choose their top three favorites and there is STUFF to be won! 

 Happy Creating!
Lynne Mizera, Mixed Media Artist
for STAMPlorations Mixed Media Design Team 
 
STAMPlorations products used on this project:

Some Birds