Love Yourself... A Mixed Media Art Journal Page

Happy Sunday everyone... today for Stencil Sunday over at STAMPlorations, I am sharing this wonderful mixed media page I created in my personal Art Journal. 

 

Now before I share all my photos, let me just say... I Love working in my Art Journal because this is where ANYTHING GOES. I have given myself permission to do whatever comes to me and even to make "ugly stuff", which takes off all the pressure to create that masterpiece every single time, because, let's face it, even Rembrandt painted a few pictures that he didn't like.  And usually, if I just start and keep adding to the page and don't over think what I am doing, it gets better and better.  So here is a photo of my finished page and and a few process photos along the way.

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like more details and a step-by-step tutorial showing you how I use my Art Journal and how I created these pages, got HERE to this post where I detail all the steps in my process...

 

So thank you for popping in again to see what I am up to, and if I have inspired you to go play with your stencils consider linking up to our monthly Mixed Media Challenge where it is ALWAYS Anything Goes Except a Card as long as you use a stencil, any stencil.  (And please do leave me a comment if you like what you are seeing.)

Lynne Mizera

for the STAMPlorations Mixed Media Design Team

 

STAMPlorations Products Used:

Bloom Silhouettes

Doodled Heart

Hidden Heart

Using Your Glue Gun to Create Stencils!

Hello and happy day everyone!  Today we are starting a New Challenge over at the Sisterhood for Snarky Stampers, and Edna Says: "T" is for Technique! Now, if you are a regular visitor to my little blog space you know that I LOVE to try and share new and wonderful ways to use what you already have on hand in different, and sometimes unusual ways.

... and that is what I am going to share with you today - So raise your hand if you have one (or six?) hot glue guns hidden away in a drawer collecting dust.  I Do! I Do!

 

But I pulled them out at Christmas and discovered, totally by accident, that the hot glue on my craft mat, once dried, peels off easily and perfectly intact - and my creative brain exploded with ideas!  "Why can't I make my own stencils with hot glue?  But I CAN!"

Now I am not the first person to discover this and if you search YouTube you will find many, many videos of people sharing this technique, but for a few minutes it felt good to think that it was ME that discovered this wonderful way to make me some background stencils using stuff I already have!

So in a whole bunch of photos to follow I am sharing my process, a few of the backgrounds I created and of course a few cards I made using those backgrounds... Enjoy!!

Use a craft mat and a hot glue gun, that's pretty much it!  I sectioned off an area with masking tape to create a 6x8 inch stencil space, but it really was not necessary... I free handed the first few; circles are totally easy and for me, so are hearts... just make sure everything is attached.

 

Here is the circle stencil after it had cooled and some backgrounds I created using it with my sprays.  Usually I do not use my sprays with stencils because I am never happy with the results, but because the glue stencil is so heavy it worked beautifully with my sprays, very little seeped underneath, like it usually does.  I was quite pleased with how these backgrounds turned out.

Then I decided to get fancy and instead of winging it I drew a pattern on my craft mat with a marker. (Note: Do NOT use your alcohol ink markers if you want to remove the pattern from your craft mat after you are done.) 

It worked beautifully and I used this stencil to create a background in my art journal.  I love the lumpy, bumpy, imperfect-ness of this pattern.

I think I had the most fun with the two heart stencils I made, a vertical and a horizontal, and using all my red, pink, fuchsia and gold sprays...

I am not sure which I like better, the backgrounds I created or the inky paper towels that are left behind - SWOON!

So, if you are not hung up on perfect images, there really is really no limit to what you can create with your glue gun.   I think I will try to make some word stencils my next go around.  And now here are the cards I created using these backgrounds.

Suzi Blu - Mademoiselle

You might think that the colors are too vibrant and the patterns too loud, but actually those same colors and patterns enhance the images I painted and cut out and mounted on these card bases... Note:  All images used are Unity Stamps created by Suzi Blu.

Suzi Blu - Serenity Angel

 

Suzi Blu - Chickadee and Me

Suzi Blu - Spring Flower Chic

Suzi Blu - Gypsy Warrior

Suzi Blu - Party Love

Suzi Blu - Serenity Angel

Suzi Blu - You Are Loved

So that's it for today... quite enough for one read I think.  I hope you enjoyed this New-To-Me Technique and that it inspires you to pull out that old glue gun and give it a try.  And if it does, why not link up your New Technique-inspired project to our "T" is for Technique Challenge... you have until Friday, January 26th and we always choose a Queen of Snark and her Princesses.

As always, thank you for popping in to see what I am up to and please do leave me a comment if you like what you are seeing. 

Lynne Mizera, 

for the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers

Go HERE for Suzi Blu Unity Stamps Used:

A Mixed Media Tag for the BEST-est Friend EVER!

Hello Peeps and welcome to my first post in 2018 and a brand new Mixed Media Challenge over at STAMPlorations, where it is always Anything Goes except a card and you use a stencil, ANY stencil.  Here is my creation for this month... you can probably tell that I LOVE Valentines Day... Smile.

I created this tag for a dear friend and I am still swooning over the results.  Who knew you could get gritty texture AND a glossy, shimmery metallic background on the same bit of paper?

It is so yummy that it makes me drool!!

I will give you a tiny peek at how I created this bit of loveliness, but you really must come back for my tutorial this month to see more. (Oh My... it's just like a movie preview!)

The grit comes from using Snowflake Paste through a stencil.

It dries surprisingly quickly with a wonderful, ice-like glitter - hence the "Snowflake" handle.

I used my Pebeo glass paints to create the shimmery, metallic background. (Who says you can only use glass paints on glass?)

The hardest part of the entire making was having to WAIT for the paints to swirl and merge as they dried. I  have learned from experience that if you don't want to end up with an icky mess you really cannot hurry this process... Walk Away, Lynne, Walk AWAY! (grin)

And I finally created a project worthy of inking up my brand new STAMPlorations stamp - It's All About You, (the only red rubber stamp in the store).  And here it is one more time:

And for those of you that need to know, here are all the products I used...

So I hope this little project of mine inspires you to go play with your stencils mixed media style, and if it does please do link up your projects to this month's Mixed Media Challenge.  You have until the last day of the month and there are prizes!!  Go HERE for all the details....

As always thank you for popping by to see what I am up to and please do leave me a comment if you like what you see!
Lynne Mizera
for the STAMPlorations Mixed Media Design Team
 


STAMPlorations Products Used:

(Use this coupon for 20% off and don't forget you receive this discount even if the item is on sale and there is a BIG Sale going on right now!)

Hearts All Over-Mini

It's All About You