Deco Art Mixed Media Products Part 4

I loved how the paint colors seemed to blend and flow together but wasn't thrilled with the look of the white stamped circles, then decided to stamp over them with a more variegated look by stamping my round container into white and then into  the paint colors which I had used on the canvas.  At this time I also added music paper to the canvas using the Deco Art Decou-Page which I love and stamped over the top of the the music paper to incorporate it into the canvas.  I'm happy with the addition of the variegated look of the stamped circles, I knew that I wanted to keep that circle motif going and thought that the addition of color really enhanced the canvas.  I felt that the canvas had a real feeling of movement and could imagine dancers on the canvas and consequently added music papers, I love how you get the idea of rhythm.  I purchase my music scores from a second hand store for next to nothing and have a plentiful supply should I run out.  I will often pick up books which piano teachers have used and written in as I think that adds such charm and whimsy to a piece.

Did I interest you in trying the new Deco Art Media line.  I can attest to the fact that it is great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Deco Art Mixed Media Products Part 3

You can see that I've gone to town with paint mixing, blending and layering paint over my Gessoed and sprayed background.  I also began to layer Interference over portions of the paint layers, Interference is a translucent opalescent media with color suspended in it, it gave the paint a very subtle sheen which changed according to the light.  It was lovely and really enhanced the canvas.  You can also see that the stenciled area still shows between the paint layers, and harder for you to see but is still visible is the sprayed background.  

You can also see that I used a round container to stamp a variety of circles, I felt that the circles really added to the look since the stencil that I used also had that round motif!  I like to stick to motifs which seem to work together.  

Layering is one of my favorite background techniques to use in all of my painting not just mixed media, in fact in my new e-book Background Magic I go into detail as to how to layer paint and stencils to achieve a dimensional look.   

 In this photo you can see how the Interference really enhanced the look of the paint.  Love it!!!!  

Acrylic Paint is composed of  particles of plastic acrylic resin suspended in water and pigment which makes it a very strong durable paint and dries much more quickly than oils which makes it my media of choice.  

Deco Art Mixed Media Products Part 2

Once the sprays were dry I felt they were a little dark because I didn't have a plan and just used all three of the primary colors.   I decided that I wanted to lighten things up a bit and used the Deco Art Mixed Media Retro Mod stencil and Gesso to break up the background a bit.  I've used this stencil in my new book Background Magic and really love the four patterns which Deco Art has included in it.  So many options in one 12"X12" stencil!  Delightful and a good value if you want to purchase new stencils.  I like to use make-up sponges when I stencil but Deco Art has some great pouncers which I used when I stenciled this canvas, they worked really well.

In my next post I will begin the process of using some of the Media Fluid Acrylics!  Check back soon to see the next phase.

Comments???????

Deco Art Mixed Media Products Part 1

Last week I promised to begin a new series of posts using the new Deco Art Mixed Media Products and I am happy to report that they lived up to my expectations.  In fact I would put the Media Fluid Acrylics on the same par as Golden Fluid Acrylics, I'm sure that is what Deco Art was planning when they began the process of developing this line and I was impressed with the quality!

I have been patiently, or not so patiently depending on who you might talk to over at Deco Art, waiting for the  Media sprays to come out!  LOL.  I think I called every other week hoping they were coming out sooner rather than later, I wanted to use them in my book Background Magic.  Unfortunately they didn't come out in time so that I could use them in my book but I am happy to report that they lived up to my expectations.  I've used many of the other brands of sprays and loved many of them but really wanted a permanent spray which would not reactivate once dry and the Media Misters did not reactivate and believe me I put them to the test by layering over the top with paint, stamping and Decoupage.  I'm a happy camper and planning to use them on other projects.

I did not add additional Gesso to my canvas to start with instead just began by spraying the ink directly onto my surface and then sprayed clean water to encourage the inks to blend.  I used a primed canvas but adding a layer of Gesso will often change the result of the base layer and I wanted to see how the inks worked in this case.  Next time I will add a layer of Gesso to my canvas to see how the inks react in that situation.  I didn't have a plan for this canvas instead just wanted to let it all come together organically, consequently I used the three primary colored inks and black.  I did use black very sparingly however.

You can see the canvas that I am working on below.  Stop by in the next few days to see the progression of this canvas.

Deco Art Glass Paints Part 2

Ok, so I'm hooked!  I love these Deco-Art Glass Paint markers and they make glass painting so easy!!!  I've always avoided painting on glass but now I can see myself using these markers a lot.  Make sure you read the manufactures use and instructions.

I am no Zentangle artist but I do like to doodle and that is what I'm claiming to do on these.  LOL.  Seriously I do not want to insult any of the Zentangler's out there by my amateurish attempt but I am enjoying the process.  My goal was to come up with something new for my friends for birthdays and the holidays.  I found many of the white glass pieces on sale at Pier 1 which made me really happy and different styles than I found at Target. I looked in many of my local second hand stores and didn't find anything that I wanted to use but will keep a look out because that would be a cheaper option.  I did look at Target for a white teapot and found one sooooo I may have to purchase one.  I then decided that I'd love to do something on a black piece and found this mug at World Market, not on sale, bummer.  When I completed the mug I blogged about in my last post I  tried to incorporate her name into the design and did the same thing for the friend that I am planning the black mug for, personalized just a bit!

I started out by laying out my basic plan using my Stabillo pencils, both black and white, they are a great glass/paper pencil and wipe off depending on the surface with either your finger or a little water on a paper towel.  Then used my white and black markers to complete the design and of course added much of the detail free hand.  I found that it was too difficult to keep the design on the piece when I was trying to ink/paint the detailed lines if I planned too much with my Stabillo pencil, my fingers kept wiping away the line work and decided that freehand was just easier.

Each glass piece would lend itself to different designs and I tried to visualize what patterns would showcase each glass piece.  I think that I need the colored markers as well and will need to invest because I have more plans for these.  I can totally see color added to the designs.  Can't you?

Google Zentangle designs  and you will find countless ideas for inspiration, there are some amazing Zentangle artists out there.  My hat is off to all of you.  Fun!

What do you think.

Deco Art Glass Paint Markers,

I am always trying to come up with something new for my friends for gifts for their birthdays and holidays.  I will admit that I love the challenge and I have one friend in particular that I try to come up with a "theme" gift for her birthday every year.  It is fun and I truly think that I enjoy the gift more than she does.  LOL.  This year her "theme" is Travel.  She still has school age children at home and can't travel easily because she is at that stage of child-rearing where she is continually busy with kid activities and chauffeuring them to their various activities, I remember those days with nostalgia although I really love where our children are in their lives.  Needless to say I've had a blast planning her "Travel" themed gift.  My last post was all about the mixed media piece that I did as a part of the gift, this post is all about this huge mug that I found at Pier One and decorated with my rather inept version of a doodle using the Deco Art Glass Paint Markers.  OMG, they were sooooo fun to use.  I didn't realize how wonderful they are otherwise I'd have used them long ago.  

 I sat last night while watching America's Got Talent and doodled this mug and had a ball.  I was a bit worried about the result because I just free-handed the entire piece but what incredible fun.  I would not go so far as to say this is a Zentangled Piece because that might insult the true Zentanglers out there, I just doodled and played and kept adding more and more and was worried that I had added too much to the piece.  Maybe I did but I think my friend will get a kick out of the mug and of course when you return home from a trip you are always exhausted and need some comfort like a nice cup of coffee.  That is how the mug will fit into the theme.

 Have you ever used the Deco Art Glass Paint Markers?  They are so smooth and easy to use, I was incredibly impressed and will use them again.  I'm not sure which retailers carry the markers but you could google Deco Art and see where you can purchase them.  I recommend them highly.

After I finished adding all of the "doodles" I let the mug sit overnight and then heat set it in the oven in the morning.  According to the manufacturer they are dishwasher safe, I'm not going to test this one right now, I will leave that up to my friend.  As I was in Target today doing some errands I found small white glass bowls which I think will be darling doodled and used for jewelry containers.  HMMMMM!!!  Maybe a Christmas Gift?   WHAT ABOUT A DOODLED TEAPOT?   Hmmmmm.............  Target here I come!

Have you used these markers before?  So fun!!!  Leave me a comment and lets have a conversation.  

Travel Mixed Media Piece

I recently watched Christy Tomlinson on You Tube designing a mixed media piece with a Tim Holtz shadow box and loved the idea!  I so wanted to do one but was waiting for the right inspiration, fortunately for my friend, who this is going to be a gift for.  SHHHHH!!!!  Don't tell her.  She has young children and doesn't get to travel as much as she would like to so...... I designed this piece as travel inspiration for her and opted to use the shadow box idea.

 Christy Tomlinson turned the boxes around so they faced the opposite direction and could be used as a canvas which I thought was an intriguing idea.  I did glue the boxes in though so she would not have to worry about the boxes falling out.  I used acrylic paint, stamping, scrap-booking paper, and a metal word which I stained with Alcohol Inks.  

I think she will like the gift and I certainly enjoyed the process and I hope she keeps this as her travel good luck charm to keep her in the travel frame of mind.  

Background Magic: A Project Variation Part 2

 These are the Elves completed on the background that I gave instructions for in my last post.  This set of elves are paper pieced and then shading and highlighting is added using Deco-Art paints.  Super simple and especially easy if you are painting for Christmas shows.  I've shown two samples below of how I pieced the paper onto the canvas, all of the painting instructions for this project can be found in my new e-book Background Magic.

I first cut the elf shapes out of brown card stock, you would not need to do this if you were painting one of the wood blanks which can be found on my website.  I simply did this so that I had a reference place to add the clothing to the elves, much easier to get everything lined up.  Deco-Art DecouPage is a wonderful product and is my go to glue for decoupaging.  It is a wonderful product and I recommend it highly.  

You can see in this photo that I have cut out and attached the clothing and am now ready to begin the painting process.  

What do you think?  Is this something that you would be interested in trying?  Take a look at my new e-book which can be purchased on either my website or can be purchased on my Facebook page Background Magic.

I am always thrilled when you leave comments.  Painting Hugs.  

Background Magic: A Project Variation

I'm sure that many of you are like me and do not always want to paint a project on the surface that the artist has chosen.  This post is all about using a project that I have in my new e-book Background Magic but placing it on a different surface.  In this case a small canvas, this project could be scanned and turned into Christmas Cards for your friends and family, maybe painted on a smaller canvas and hung on the tree as an ornament,  or sat on an easel to display during the holiday season.  Other ideas?  I'd love to hear them.

Here are the painting instructions for painting these little canvases, the instructions for the Christmas characters are available in my new book Background Magic.  The paints used were all Deco Art Americana and Glamour Dust paints.   Enjoy and I'd love to see what clever and creative uses you come up with.

Canvas Painting: 

·         Your canvas comes prepped and ready to paint.  Load your ¾” wash brush with Snow White, dip one corner into Indian Turquoise and the other into Sapphire, using a random slip slap technique take your loaded brush directly to the canvas painting the canvas, reloading as you need to.  Continue reloading and painting until you have achieved the look that you prefer. 

·         Wash Glamour Dust Aqua randomly onto the background.   

·         Cut out a variety of miscellaneous patterned paper that you can place on either side and decoupage them onto the canvas using Deco-Art Decou-Page. The paper that I used is a Provo Craft Brand that I had in my stash of papers. 

·          Using your favorite snowflake stencil add the snowflakes to the canvas using Snow White.  Stencil Stars using your favorite stencil onto the canvas using Moon Yellow and the dots with Sour Apple.

    Add Santa and Mrs. Claus to your canvas and  you have a set to use as cards or gift giving.  You can see below the card which I made after I painted the canvas with the characters, took a photo of it, printed it out on my computer and adhered the photo to the card.  What an easy way to make a fantastic gift to give to family and friends during the holidays.  

Background Magic Complimentary Background Tutorial

I had planned for this tutorial to be included in my new e-book Background Magic, but unfortunately we ran out of room because I have so many projects in the book.  Lucky for all of you because it is now a blog post as a freebie compliments of myself.   This tutorial shows how to paint the backgrounds similar to those completed in my  e-book Background Magic,  available on my website www.chartmandesigns.com or on my Facebook page C. Hartman Designs.  The book is $9.99 which is a great value considering that there are 14 projects included in the book.  I hope you will come on over to my website and take a look.  

I began with a black piece of black card stock, this will work on either card stock or on a black painted background.  How about changing it up a bit and changing your background color?  As you can see I have also used a Deco Art Paint, Tim Holtz stencil, and a make-up sponge.  I love this technique as it allows me the freedom to layer my paint as I prefer and create a tremendous amount of depth in each piece once the design elements are layered over the background.  Everyone always asks me how I did that.  

The next two photos illustrate how to randomly stencil onto the background to achieve the pattern.  The paint color can be randomly applied so that you achieve different values applying more paint to some areas while less in others which will give you the look of light and dark areas.   

I could easily move my stencil around more achieving a more random look instead of the organized look you see here.  

Next add Glamour Dust Glitter paints randomly applied to the painted surface.  I used my fingers however you could easily use a brush if you prefer.  I feel like I have more control using my fingers.  

You can see the completed piece.  This can be used as a background for another project by overlapping a character or other design elements.  

Come take a look at the projects in my book to see how I've adapted this technique to a variety of projects and surfaces.