Imagine

Is there anyone here today who's suffering from a creative block? Doubts? Creative rut?

Well, you really need today's post!

Lately I've been struggling a little bit with my confidence, when it comes to artistic creativity. I'm sure some of you know this feeling...

One night I decided to do something different - without any scrapbooking supplies. No papers, no stamps, no stencils, no dies, no embellishments. Just the media!
I used a blank canvas as a background and created a mixed-media... well... abstract painting?
Something I made completely from scratch. Just me, my creativity and many many hours of playing with different kinds of paints, mists and inks. It's almost impossible for me to tell you exactly which colors I've used. But you can find some of them at the end of the post.

I started with creating a background with some texture - using heavy gesso and clear crackle paint. I haven't use my heat gun this time. I wanted them do dry slowly because the result is just better then.

When the base was completely dry, I started playing with colors. My technique was applying different colors of mists (mostly Glimmer Mists and Lindy's Stamp Gang) with a brush and then wiping them out with a wet baby wipe. This way I received a subtle effect and very soft colors.

Then I covered the sides of my work with some acrylic paints leaving a triangle shape in the center. I was applying them with a silicone brush and sponge, trying not to cover it completely. In some places the colors from the background are still visible, which gave me a very nice distressed look.

In the center of my canvas I created a "puzzle" pattern with a "Coral Berry" Silks paint and then added some shading with a soft pencil and a black marker with a very fine tip.
Then I added a word "imagine" (well - I've used some letter stamps here, but it's the only scrapbooking supply I've used ;) ) and some splashes with an Indian Ink.

And the last very frightening step was covering everything with a hot bees wax. :) I really love this effect and I wanted to have this amazing waxy finish. :)

I had a great time creating this painting. I spend hours and hours playing with it and I'm very happy with the result.

It was a great excercise and a new experience. I have already started another piece like this so maybe it's the beginning of a series. ;)

So my advice for you - if you're in doubt, when you feel that your creative juices left you, when you have a hard time creating anything - just find some free time, a blank canvas and try to play with your medias the way you've never done before.

Not hoping for a certain result - just go with the flow and try different techniques. And if you're not happy with it - you can still cover everything with gesso and start all over. :)

Materials from Mixed Media Place:

Magical Moment

Maybe these magical moments don't come as often as we'd wish but when they do... They are so worth the wait! ;)

These creative magical moments are just wonderful when they occur: it's when your mojo, your stash and the project you're working on are all aligned to the one and only outcome!

Because I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my Finnabair clock.

As I'm a big fan of taking vintage cuckoo clocks apart, I often have a stock of gears that can not be taken apart and are far to dimensional for paper projects or art journaling. I hoard those with lots of love!
And Finn's clock gave me a very good excuse to keep doing this, as they make the perfect filling for the clock!

I started by glueing down a layer of foam in the clock (Oasis foam) with Art Basics 3D Gloss Gel, so that I could prick my gears in the foam.

To hide the foam, I covered it with a layer of Art Extravagance Black Sand Texture Paste. I sprayed some Color Bloom over it (Glistening Waves, Soft Teal), pricked my gears in place as well as some other embellishments, then left the whole thing to dry overnight.

The next day, I glued sturdy packaging foam in the middle, higher than the gears, for the focal point.

I added a Mechanical pendant to hide the foam and to have a surface to glue the photo that I wanted to use (which is a 7 Dots Studio Cold Country die cut element). I added Art Ingredients Glitter with Art Basics Soft Matte Gel to highlight the focal point.

To create the clock face, I used Tim Holtz Weathered Clock die to die cut a piece of heavy watercolor paper. After the first layer of Art Basics Heavy Black Gesso, I added touches of 3 different Art Extravagance Texture Paste Crackle (Gold - Antique Silver - Copper) in several layers.

Once dried, I sprayed the same Color Blooms as I did for the inside of the clock. I dabbed the excess ink away and heat setted it. I applied embossing ink over the whole clock and melted clear UTEE to add a glossy dimension.

For the outside of the clock, I started in the same as for the clock face: Art Extravagance Texture Paste Crackle (Gold - Antique Silver - Copper) and Color Bloom. Then I added touches of Art Basics Soft Matte Gel and sprinkled Art Ingredients Glitter over it. I stamped a couple of Finnabair's clear stamps using black Archival ink here and there.

I stamped one line of my 'Barcode Text #2' by Stampotique on a piece of 7 Dots Studio Cold Country paper with black Archival ink, applied a thin layer of Art Extravagance Texture Paste Clear Crackle and added light touches of Art Ingredients Glitter after glueing the paper on a strip of home rusted metal. I glued it on the clock with Art Basics 3D Gloss Gel.

I loved making this project, it was such a fun journey! Thank you Finn, for giving me a good excuse to keep on dismantling old cuckoos, because I'm positively sure, I'll be filling up more of those wonderful clocks!

Materials from Mixed Media Place: