Mixed Media Paint Layering Workshop

We were a small but enthusiastic group for my Mixed Media Paint Layering workshop last weekend at Shake Rag Alley - they were really into it. But then what's more fun than spending an afternoon playing with collage and paint?

Some fun stuff created by the students:

Lynn's sweet collage (wouldn't it make a great card?)

Really like the layering in Christine's pomegranate piece.

Ron's piece - great combination of colors!

Some Fun With Valentines

Just can't get enough of making valentines.

Here's one with used palette paper for a background:

Here are a few little valentines with layered pieces of fabric:

Mixed Media Valentines

Every year I look forward to the Shake Rag Alley Valentine Sale.

I absolutely love making valentines for this event. Gives me the perfect excuse to haul out ALL of my supplies and play with EVERY technique I can think of. 

Here are are few of my mixed media cards with lots of layering. I use just about any sort of scrap from my stash of materials - fabric paper, muslin that I have hand stamped and colored with acrylic paints, collaged papers, old book pages, hand-made paper, package wrap...basically whatever I find in the studio that just looks great. Oh yeah, and stitching.

These two are samples of a very clean, simple design I like to do. It's so fun and easy to discover a terrific looking heart in just about any piece of fabric paper, cut it out and hand sew on an interesting old rusted washer or a bent wire metal shape. Glue the heart onto some nice paper backing, then glue that to the front of a card and the effect is quite elegant.

Art Charm Jewelry

I've been busy making little Art Charms from various junk. Here's some of what I've come up with.

The dangles on these earrings started out as a pair of semi-translucent plastic beads or buttons (not sure which) that I had in a box of buttons and old jewelry I picked up somewhere. I decoupaged them and used a couple of washes of acrylic paint. Thought they were a bit bulky for a bracelet, so added a few beads and made them into earrings. I originally intended to hang the dangles from a chain instead of a beaded wire so I could call them my Ball and Chain Earrings, but the beads are these very nice aged metal that just seemed right.

This is a mismatched pair of dangle earrings made from hairpins. I was trying out a few different designs. I think I like the longer one on the left best. The other one just doesn't want to hang as nicely.

And here's a completed charm bracelet made from a bunch of Art Charms, most of which were shown in an earlier post. The chain, like much of my raw materials, was a thrift store find. Added some buttons and wooden beads to kind of pull the whole thing together. I see many charm bracelets with widely spaced charms. Great for appreciating each individual charm, but not surprisingly, I go for the wild and totally mixed-up chunky look.

2012 Teaching Schedule Through June

I'll be teaching four classes this spring at Shake Rag Alley. Registrations are now open.

Hope you can join me!

Mixed Media Paint Layering
March 17

Altered Mint Tins
April 29

Bracelet With Handmade Beads
May 19
(Beads and Bangles Weekend)

Junk Drawer Art Charms
May 20
(Beads and Bangles Weekend)

New Class: Junk Drawer Art Charms

The Shake Rag Alley spring schedule is almost final. I'll be teaching four classes in the spring of 2012, including a new class during the Beads and Bangles weekend - Junk Drawer Art Charms. There's a complete description of all the classes I teach on my Mixed Media Workshops page.

I really had a ball making the samples for this class. I made some charms using a couple of my favorite cheapo craft materials, craft foam and vinyl tubing. Also used up some old scraps of collaged watercolor paper which I embellished with brads. But the rest were made from cast-off objects and materials - corrugated cardboard, safety pins, an old wooden ruler, speaker cable, and so on.

I have a pile of other little doodads and a raft of ideas for what to do with them. For the most part I am trying to use the objects as raw material for a design rather than just using the object itself as the charm. It's truly an "anything goes" proposition...and great fun. Hope you can join me!

I will also be teaching Mixed Media Paint Layering. Many people who like my Valentine cards have asked how I get the layered and textured papers that I use. This is it.

My other classes will be Bracelet With Handmade Beads (also on Beads and Bangles weekend) which is first and foremost about making the beads (out of unconventional and inexpensive materials, of course!), and Altered Mint Tins which I have expanded a bit since last time I taught it. There should be enough time to complete a simple assemblage figure or maybe do more than one tin if just decorating the box.

I will update my teaching schedule in the sidebar with links to the Shake Rag class listings when registrations are open. Should be in early December. In the meantime, here's a schedule of dates:

• Mar 17 - Mixed Media Paint Layering 
• Apr 29 - Altered Mint Tins
• May 19 - Bracelet With Handmade Beads
• May 20 - Junk Drawer Art Charms

Memory Wire Bracelets

Fall Art Tour is next weekend (10am - 6pm, Fri-Sun, Oct 14-16)...and I'm almost ready!

If you are in the area I hope you can stop by my studio - click the Fall Art Tour link above for the location of my studio. You can also click the Fall Art Tour tab above for a peek at our basement transformed into the "Lower Level Gallery".

I've got lots of new work this year including my memory wire bracelets.

Used to do five or six loops which was very cool but kind of a lot of bracelet. Then went to a single loop. I liked that look and found it really easy to wear, but also found that a single loop catches on clothing and comes off too easily, so now I'm doing 2 1/2 loops for extra security  - almost lost my favorite bracelet taking off my jacket!

I make many of the beads out of paper, fabric, vinyl tubing, and wire. I combine them with African trade beads, beads from deconstructed old jewelry, and commercial beads (mostly out of natural materials).

There seems to be a lot of glittery, sparkly stuff out there but I've abandoned all that in favor of a more primitive, earthy style. And, of course, being a collage/mixed media, "messy art" kind of person, I naturally go for the random, anything-but-uniform look.

New Figure Drawings

Still going to Monday night figure drawing. Here are a couple recent graphite drawings. The dreadlocks were especially fun to draw - loved the way they cast shadows on his face.

Stop by my studio on Fall Art Tour, Oct 14-16, to see more of my drawings.

Bird Collages

Fall Art Tour is around the corner - October 14-16.

Nothing like a deadline to spur activity! I've been spending more consistent time in the studio...and loving it. I've been concentrating mostly on collages - lots of layers of collage elements and paint and whatever other media seems to work.

Here are a couple pieces in a series of fanciful bird collages.

Fancy Hen

Fancy Hen has earrings made from craft foam, embellished eyes from one of my drawings, and telephone cable wire outlines.

Sandpaper Bird

I call this one Sandpaper Bird because the wings are the back side of some sandpaper I had on my work table.

Mint Tin Figures - Student Work

I taught a class in August making figures from mint tins. Here are some great pieces from students.

Sherri's figure. Gotta love the hair! Cool use of dress pattern  to cover the doll face.

Karla's figure - exterior. She calls it "Sooo Big". Fun piece.

Karla's figure - interior

Di's figure.  Is the "face" on the tin or above it? Hmmm.