Art Journaling is good for the soul

Hello Lifers! 

I haven't been blogging as much as I would like too...I'm going to try to pick it up. :)

Lately..life has been a little rough. There are a lot of outside circumstances that are weighing on my heart, but they aren't things that can be easily fixed and my personality...I'm a fix-it person. I can't stand having to stand back and watch people I love hurting. 

So...i decided to pour some of those feelings into an art journal spread. 

Why? 

Because....

Sound  familiar to your situation? 

I have a huge love for vintage music, particularly vintage hymnals, so I started looking through an old one I have and was just reading the lyrics, looking for comfort. I came across the hymn "Blessed Assurance" and the lyrics jumped off the page. 

Here is where they led me....

I used acrylic paint and Heidi Swapp Color Shine and stencil to make my background. Then I layered pieces of my hymn and allowed it to speak to me. I highlighted lines that stood out to me with a stabilo pencil. 

 

I used white gesso with a Crafter's Workshop stencil. I love this shape but once I was done, I realized it kind of looked like teeth (weird thought, I know), but then I took a closer look at the left page... 

I realized that the starburst from my Heidi Swapp stencil seems to BURST through the "teeth"...which fits perfect with the hymn title "Blessed Assurance." 

As a Christian, it's because of the Assurnace in Christ that we can break through and be triumphant no matter what the situation. 

Here is a closeup of a few other of my favorite places. 

I hope today has not only inspired you creatively, but has empowered you to take hope that no matter what the situation, you have an Assurance of victory in Christ. 

Until next time...xoxo. 

Keri 

PS. I made the quote pic using Rhonna Farrer's app, layered over a pic I took and edited with PicFX. 

Having fun with Unity Stamp Layers of Life!!

Good Day Lifers!!

I hope you are all having an amazing day!!

Today, I want to share with you a piece I made this weekend using
 Unity Stamp Company's Layer's of Life (July).

Layers of Life is a monthly subscription where you get a beautiful stamp set delivered to your door every month for only $11.99 (including shipping!) I have never been disappointed when I open my little envelope!

Here was July's Set:

I loved it so much that I sat down and made this mixed media piece the DAY I got it!

I made a Snap Guide to take you step-by-step through the entire process!

Check out How to Create a Project Using Unity Stamp July Layers by Keri Sallee on Snapguide.

I hope you enjoyed today's project!! I would love to see your take on it...leave me a link in the comments!!

Have an awesome day and remember....make your art intentional...not an after thought!

XOXO,

KERI

Tuts on Tuesday...on Wednesday?

Hello Lifers!!

Guess where I am?! I am sitting at LAX waiting to board a plane for...HAWAII!!

For Real! 

My hubby had to go on an emergency 2 week business trip there (he buys seafood...long story) and after he had been gone a few days, he was like "Wouldn't it be great if you could join me?" So only by the grace of God and Him working out a TRUCKLOAD of miracles, my mom and his mom were able to tag team our kiddos so that I could go to Hawaii with him until Sunday!

Woo Hoo!

Because of that...Tuesday tutorials are a day late, but I'm not gonna leave you hangin'!

This past weekend, I was working on a mini album project and got to play with one of my FAVORITE 2 tool: Modeling Paste and Crafter's Workshop's 12 x 12 Brick Stencil.

If you're not familiar with it, modeling paste is a white substance that is the consistency of canned frosting and when it dries, it stays 3D. You can smooth it out or leave it bumpy and you can mix it with acrylic paint to change the color (and by some voodoo magic...it doesn't change the color of your acrylic! Weird, I know.)

Here's a close up of what we will learn today 

(I will reveal the FULL project at a later date.)

This is the cover of a mini-album, but you can use the technique on canvas, burlap or even just a heavy weight paper. 

Supplies You'll Need to Duplicate this (feel free to substitute for you own needs!)

Modeling Paste 

(I used Liquitex I bought in the Art Section at Hobby Lobby)

Medium and Dark Brown Acrylic Paint

Rust Red Acrylic Paint

Tattered Angels Glaze in Saffron

Brick Stencil (again..mine is by Crafter's Workshop)

Ready? Here we go!

·       We are going to start adding some texture by mixing some light brown acrylic paint with our modeling paste and light scrapping or painting through the brick stencil.

o   You want your modeling paste/paint mixture about the consistency of canned frosting.

o   Start with a small amount..a little goes a long way and it doesn’t store well for future use.

·        Start from the top of your project and work down. Take caution when you lift up your stencil that you don’t damage you hard work!

·        If you are in a hurry, grab your heat tool and speed the drying time up!

·        Once it’s dry, let’s add a little dimension. Grab your rust red and darker brown. Using your fingertips,  lightly rub your bricks first with the red, then with the brown.

·        To add shimmer and more texture, grab your Tattered Angels glaze and your heat gun. (Make sure to shake up your glaze well!)

o   Lightly swipe your glaze over your bricks.

o   While it is still wet, hit it with your heat gun. Because of the acrylic base, the paint will bubble up and once it’s cooled, will be permanent

.

(Do as I say…not as I did! LOL! I decided-obviously-after I had done the next step...hence the blue! LOL)

There you go! You now have an easy and fun new technique in your creative toolbox!

Until next time my friends...remember...CHOOSE to make your ART intentional...not an after thought.

XOXO,

KERI

My Day...with Authentique Paper!

Jazzed...Excited...Freaked Out...Stoked...Ecstatic...

All these describe how I feel today.

I have the HONOR of being the featured Guest Designer today for on of my favorite companies Authentique Paper.

If you are a follower of scrap companies, you know that Authentique has only been around a few years, but has really made a SPLASH in a short time. Their patterns and colors are versatile, while the texture and weight of their paper makes them VERY easy to work with and do all types of crafts. Their stickers sheets (they call them "details") comes with words, alphas and every kind of embellishing sticker combo you would ever need!

For this guest spot, I was sent their "Thrilling" Collection. Full of a variety of oranges and vintage images, it was a lot of fun to play with.

For the complete post, head on over to Authentique Paper's Blog.

Here are a few more pics that didn't make it into the post and a quickie tutorial!

First UP... 

My "Thrilling" Shadow box

The "shadowbox" is actually a fake. It's just a chunky 12 x 12 canvas, turned backwards!

The frames and bow are made from dies by Vicki Chrisman for Accucut and the bottles are 7Gypsies.

Everything else is just paper, glue and Authentique Details Stickers.

Here is a couple of new closeups!

NEXT...

"Any Excuse to Dress Up" Mixed Media Canvas

I really wanted to do one piece that was just crazy and fun. 

I started out by making a 5 Origami Dresses from the Authentique 6 x 6 pad from the "Thrilling" Collection.

My original idea was a little different, but when I decided on this 20 x 10 canvas from Hobby Lobby, I decided to narrow my dresses to just 3.

Here is where I found my tutorial for my dress: Origami Dress Tutorial. It was my favorite out of all the ones I checked out.

A little tip here...during the step where you are folding up to make the bodice, flip the project over to make sure your bodice is all enough for your project. Mine was not and I actually cut the tops off my origami dress and hand-cut new ones.  Took some time...don't make my mistake! LOL. 

All of the dresses are set on a stack of corrugated cardboard scraps to give them height off the canvas.

Here is a close-up of all three dresses:

It's hard to tell in picture, but for the Peacock Dress, all the turquoise you see on the skirt is bling that I bought at Hobby Lobby. The fact that it came in long "sheets" of 10 x 60 helped fill the skirt in pretty fast. 

This skirt is made of layered ruffle ribbon, loose bling and some additional ribbon. The heart on the shirt was made with Modeling Paste and a Heidi Swapp Stencil.  

This is my favorite! Think: Couture Bride of Frankenstein. She's got her pats and spiderweb's that are covered in glitter glue, tons of loose feathers make up her skirt, along with a "diamond" waistband and orange birdie for good luck. 

For the background, I Modged Podged paper from the "Thrilling" Collection, before splattering and painting it up with glitter glue, acrylic paint, Tattered Angels and Modeling Paste colored Black through a Heidi Swapp Stencil.

Lastly....

"Monsters in the Trees"

Here is a quick tutorial on how to make this background:

1) First...paint you wooden piece with acrylic paint. I actually added a little gloss medium to my 2nd and 3rd layers because I decided I wanted more gloss. You can see the difference in the finishes:

2) I used a Forrest Stencil from Crafter's Workshop (it's one of my favorites!) The size is 6x6, so it was perfect for my 5x7 piece. 

3) The medium I used for my background is Viva Inka Gold in Gold and Silver.

4) Starting with my silver, I used a putty knife to draw my rub over my stencil. I would then occasionally grabbing a little of the gold as well. Continue this process until you have covered your whole stencil. 

5) Carefully remove your stencil and your done! Inka Gold is very good for this technique because it is so thick that it doesn't seep under your stencil. As you can see, all of the edges are very crisp.

I didn't go all the way to the top because I knew I was planning a big collage of elements up there. Once my elements were in, however, you'll see that I went back in at the very top and added a little bit more with my stencil. It made the piece more "finished." 

It has been "Thrilling" being a guest designer for Authentique Paper and hope I get to do it again sometime.

Remember...you can go here-Authentique Paper Blog-for more pictures and the full blog post.

Until next time...stay creative!

XOXO,

KERI