Mixed Media Artist

I have NOT lost my mind — I have it backed up somewhere. Image: WikimediaCommons

I love the silk fusion that I showed you last week, but the fabric is still a bit flimsey for some uses, like heavy beading. One way to solve that problem is to add more layers of roving or to use a heavier-bodied polymer medium, but I don't like either idea. Extra layers of roving just wastes roving, although I know some folks use non-dyed roving for the middle layers that won't show. Still. And making the polymer medium heavier will not only spoil the feel of the fusion, it will also make it more difficult to stitch through. So, I thought about merging an aspect of needle felting with the process of making silk fusion. What about using a piece of lutradur as the bottom layer of the silk fusion? And even further, what about adding color to it? It worked great! Using the same technique as I showed you in part two , I simply layered the roving onto a piece of pre-painted lutradur (dried). I only wet the fiber sandwich from the top and used just a bit l...

  Mo(o)re Gourd Whimsies Show-Me State Gourd Festival Baseball Photo Collage Created with a brick matte background andd Artistic (textured) Letters   Beading Arts Cyndi has been featuring wonderful wire artists all this month...take a look at what these folks are doing!   Creative Dreamer June's got another give away going! This time it's a village for your wrist... come see!   Eileen - The Artful Crafter See how Eileen used a 3D Valentine’s Day card template to make a 3D card suitable for many special occasions.   Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

  Craft Bids Craft Buds shares some tips for handmade bloggers on effective ways to host a giveaway, including how to set the rules, find new followers and work with sponsors.   Crafty Princess Diaries The Jane Austen Society becomes sensible and sensitive to stitchers at its next convention. Eileen - The Artful Crafter See how to make zero-calorie fortune cookies for your next party. Hint: they’re made in the craft room – not the kitchen.   Stefanie Girard's Sweater Surgery How to make a fallen soldier uniform pendant.   About Family Crafts Check out the graduation quilts Sherri designed and made for her kids.   Carmi's Art/Life World Carmi has a special post honouring an artist's passing. Craftside- A behind-the-scenes peek at our crafty world This week at Craftside there are tutorials on how to make a three-page spread in your art journal, the components of a page layout in grid format, how to make doll hair ...

  Cutting Across Media: Appropriation Art, Interventionist Collage, and Copyright Law by Kembrew McLeod and Rudolf Kuenzli Painted Pages: Fueling Creativity with Sketchbooks and Mixed Media by Sarah Ahearn Bellemare Meet Me at Mike's: 26 Crafty Projects and Things to Make by Pip Lincolne Surface Treatment Workshop: Explore 45 Mixed-Media Techniques by Darlene Olivia McElroy and Sandra Duran Wilson The Artist Unique: Discovering Your Creative Signature Through Inspiration and Techniques by Carmen Torbus Plaster Studio: Mixed-Media Techniques for Painting, Casting and Carving by Stephanie Lee and Judy Wise Digital Art Wonderland: Creative Techniques for Inspirational Journaling and Beautiful Blogging by Angi Sullins and Silas Toball Spunbonded Textile and Stitch by Wendy Cotterill Thread Painting With Style by Nancy Prince Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

Drawing on my fine command of the English language, I said nothing. ~ Robert Benchley Image: Zitona Qatar, Wikimedia Commons

Ok, as I showed you last week, I wasn't too excited about using soy silk roving for needle felting.  Although it worked, the fibers lost their luster, which just wasn't the look I wanted. My next attempt to use soy silk roving as a background for beadwork led me to a technique called Silk Fusion, or Silk Paper.  According to the folks at Treenway Silks (who have an excellent tutorial, by the way), using silk in felting goes back to 1989 to a felter in Holland named Inge Evers.  The idea has been expanded upon and passed about extensively now, and you can find instructions all over the place.  The first time I came across silk fusion was in Susan Stein's book Fabric Art Workshop .  1. The fibers need to be pulled from the hank and laid out on a piece of netting.  With more netting folded over the top, the fibers are moistened thoroughly.  2. After squeezing out the excess water, some sort of polymer medium is added to the fibers.  S...

Laura - Taz's Corner Art Journal Fun with Laura! Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp When spring gives you strawberries and rhubarb, you've got to make crisp!   Beading Arts And yet another chance to win a fabulous bead package giveaway! Creative Dreamer The final Creativity Invitation prompt is up... June hopes you'll all come play!   Eileen - The Artful Crafter Who doesn't recycle cards and gift bags these days? This was a real simple recycling project. Look at the card Jackie gave Eileen for her birthday; and then how Jackie received it back on hers!   Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

  Craftside- A behind-the-scenes peek at our crafty world This week at Craftside there are fun tutorials on how to make a spinning beach ball invitation greeting card, a gold leaf crackle finish on polymer clay and measuring tape and button bracelets, 6 Steampunk guns, and some "hand crafting". Crafty Princess Diaries The Crafty Princess has picked up knitting needles! Find out some resources she discovered to help you learn how to knit. Eileen - The Artful Crafter See how Eileen used a 3D Valentine's Day card template to make a 3D card suitable for many special occasions. Stefanie Girard's Sweater Surgery See how to make a two headed girl in a cage photo op.   About Family Crafts If you are looking for a great family activity, learn how to make garden stepping stones together.   Aileen's Musings Aileen was back in the kitchen again baking up Peanut Butter & Jelly Cupcakes! Stop by and snag her free printable recipe ...

Are you familiar with this online magazine?  Digital Arts Online is really worth checking out if you enjoy mixing your physical and digital media, as a lot of us here do.  You'll find profiles, tutorials, and more detailed info about the digital world than you could probably ever read and digest!   Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

  A couple of months ago I mentioned that The Artist Unique was coming out in May and that I hoped to see a copy.  The artwork that I saw on Carmen Torbus's own site made me particularly excited to read it.  Lucky lucky me, FW Media sent me a copy for review, and I'm here to tell you that this is a phenomenal book! Some of my favorite things to read about, besides new techniques, are the inspirations and creative processes that different artists enjoy.  So imagine my glee when the bulk of this book is dedicated to exactly that.  Although it is titled "Discovering Technique", this section is far more than just techniques: Carmen has interviewed 15 other artists (plus herself!) to explore what part creativity has played in their lives, what forms it has taken over the years, and what it is that moves them in creating artwork.  Artists with many many different styles.  And then they each teach a technique or two that you can apply to your own work....

As a child my family's menu consisted of two choices: take it or leave it. ~ Buddy Hackett

I've been fantasizing for some time about what all could be done with needle felting, to create a beautiful background for bead embroidery.  Recently when I was checking out some online sources for roving and needle felting supplies, I came across a fabulous material called soy silk roving.  Talk about the ultimate in recycling!  Soy silk is a fiber that is extruded from the waste products of tofu manufacturing.  It looks like silk, feels like silk, and behaves somewhat like silk.  It supposedly can be used in needle felting, and that's what I wanted to experiment with first. I bought a couple of hanks of soy silk roving from eXtremespinning on etsy.  Beginning to needle felt at the top I have to tell you right upfront that although I am in love with soy silk roving, I am not in love with the look of it when it is needle felted.  It looses all its luster, and there really doesn't seem to be much point in working with it instead of with ...

  Eileen - The Artful Crafter Believe it or not, a friend of a friend whom Eileen had never even met gave her everything she needed to explore the luscious art of silk painting. Laura - Taz's Corner A Recap of Found Poetry and Altered Text   Made By Nicole Learn how to make easy paper flowers with this step by step tutorial.   Moore (Gourd)Whimsies Put a little bling in your life!   Pinwheel Craft A fun and easy summer project for kids   Beading Arts Cyndi shares her method of making a charm necklace from a vintage button!   Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

  Carmi's Art/Life World Some days you just want to draw dolls. Carmi has a new book! Craftside- A behind-the-scenes peek at our crafty world This week at Craftside there are a couple of recycled rhinestone buckle necklaces, a pattern for knitting penguin sweaters, vintage style anchor and star embroidery patterns and some fun pictures from Unique LA Spring 2011.   Crafty Princess Diaries Come on! Stop diss-ing Red Heart Super Saver yarn. It does have its place in yarn crafting.   Eileen - The Artful Crafter Who doesn’t recycle cards and gift bags these days? This was a real simple recycling project. Look at the card Jackie gave Eileen for her birthday; and then how Jackie received it back on hers!   Mixed Media Artist Do you have spare t-shirts hanging around that need a new purpose?   About Family Crafts If you or someone you know is graduating this year, check out these fun graduation related projects.   ...

Adrienne Miller sounds just like my daughter when she talks about her life in art: neither of them can seem to remember a time when they weren't making things.  She is primarily a 2D artist, and I think you'll really like her lovely moody prints, photos, and mixed media pieces in which she explores the themes of private memories and personal experiences.   Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

SAQA: Layers of Memory Deadline: 06/15/11       Art Quilts Lowell 2011: The Sea Deadline: 06/15/11       The Art of Textiles Deadline: 06/15/11       Quilting Arts: Tag, you're it Deadline: 06/17/11      

A two-year-old is kind of like having a blender, but you don't have a top for it. ~ Jerry Seinfeld

OK, we are diving deep into flea market craft territory here, but I can't help it.  If you're like me, you probably have a large collection of oversized t-shirts, because no one ever orders enough of the right sizes!  When my kids worked at our local grocery store, one of them brought home this beauty...in a 2XL.  No one was ever going to wear it, so it went into The Pile.  You know, the pile of mis-fit shirts, not to be confused with the Island of Mis-fit Toys.  These shirts never got a musical written about them. My mother-in-law reminded us of the super-simple project where you turn your unwanted t-shirts into shopping bags.  Since this is a grocery shirt, it seemed particularly appropriate!  And super easy. Materials and Tools: T-shirt Scissors Sewing machine Thread 1. Cut off the sleeves of an old t-shirt. 2. Leaving at least 3 inches for a "handle", cut off the neck band in a scoop shape.  Try to preserve the shirt decorations! 3....

  Creative Dreamer It's a book... no, it's a frame... June has altered another book, this time into a double frame! Beading Arts Don't miss our next giveaway package from the fabulous Cherry Tree Beads!   Eileen - The Artful Crafter Need a last minute gift for mom? Check out the Mother’s Day Parade of Crafts on The Artful Crafter. You’re sure to find something to make that will put a smile on mom’s face. Kid-friendly projects are indicated by our little Miss SmArty icon.   Laura - Taz's Corner Spring Has Sprung! Postcards and An ATC   Made By Nicole Make a gorgeous spring wreath with scrap cardstock and burlap.   Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

  Aileen's Musings Aileen offers you a slide show demonstrating how to create your own vibrant deli paper backgrounds. Carmi's Art/Life World Carmi shows off three years of hand cut silhouettes! Craftside- A behind-the-scenes peek at our crafty world This week at Craftside there is a cool tutorial on how to melt foam into a cute doll basket, 10 great "shoe" themed greeting card ideas and a great list of self-portrait ideas from the new book Unfurling by Misty Mawn. Crafty Princess Diaries Find out how you can show your patriotism while you have fun crocheting.     Eileen - The Artful Crafter Who doesn’t recycle cards and gift bags these days? This was a real simple recycling project. Look at the card Jackie gave Eileen for her birthday; and then how Jackie received it back on hers!   Stefanie Girard's Sweater Surgery How to make a sock gift card.   About Family Crafts Watch these videos and learn how easy it i...

These would have been beautiful for Christmas, but I didn't have enough time.  So now I'm thinking that I may need to make some for a wedding this spring!  Wendy shares the instructions at Wisdom of the Moon .  Thanks Wendy! Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

Deep Spaces Deadline: 06/01/11   International Quilt Association: Quilts: A world of beauty Deadline: 06/02/11       Mill Fine Art: Book exhibit Deadline: 06/01/11       Technorati Tags: mixed media , collage , assemblage , digital art , photography , altered books , art journals

Those parts of the system that you can hit with a hammer (not advised) are called hardware; those program instructions that you can only curse at are called software.  ~Author Unknown Image: WikimediaCommons

A couple of months ago, I bought a beautiful piece of fabric from an artist friend who just got herself set up on Spoonflower .  We've talked about Spoonflower and other print on demand fabric services online before; I have experimented with having some things printed, but this is the first time I bought a fabric piece from someone else. It was a good experience.  Elena Malec is the artist, and here is the link to her fabric called Rock Roses .  The fabric's colors are saturated and the fabric quality is very good.  I let the fabric sit around for quite sometime before I chose my first project...just a simple beaded piece that follows the colors the best I could. 1. Pick a swatch of the fabric and mark off the area you plan to bead. 2. Starting in the middle, back stitch size 11/0 seed beads in a spiral. 3. Finish the edges by turning them under and mount the beadwork.  FREE e-BOOK CHAPTER Shows you how to do the back stitch Copyright 201...