C is for Canvas #AtoZChallenge

Canvas is my main medium these days. It's sturdy, has nice texture, 

& accepts everything I throw at it without complaint. 

I buy yards of it at a time since fabric vessels have taken over the studio.

It starts with brushing water on the fabric. Then acrylic paint I mix to the color of my choice. I add dabs of other color to get a mottled look. More water to blend.

Next it's decision time. What stencils from hand cut pile to use? As well as what colors.

This can keep me up at night or wake me up early. No joke.

 Each piece gets a fabric back & Pelon heavy interfacing between the layers for rigidity. 

Carpentry with fabric is how I categorize my creations. 

There is the occasional soft project. 

Thanks for following along on this month long adventure.

A Little Something

After the new paint job on the bedroom furniture this needed help. The above is jewelry box my husband has had forever. It just didn't look right. Old brown wood finish. I got permission to have at it with paint layers.

I wish I had taken a before picture, alas there is no before, just the steps below.

 

First layer was some left over latex paint we had from a former project. 

It took three layers to achieve the look I wanted. Glaze mixed with acrylic paint lets you add layers and partially wipe them off leaving a translucent effect. After the matte blue a dark brown layer was brushed on, made the grain stand out.

  Finally a layer of silver which had a bit of black added to darken. 

Special attention was given to the corners and edges where normal wear would occur.

The treatment was just what the old brown box needed to fit in with the new look of the furniture.

Yardage A to Z Challenge

Yardage- Term used to describe any cut length of fabric. In the U.S., fabric is measured and cut in yards (36-inch intervals). A length of fabric in an undefined amount.

It's not the official definition, which has something to do with animal pens. 

But I'm sticking with fabric as Y is a tough one.

I have lots of yardage in my studio. Stacked in cubbies and jammed in a trunk I've owned since college. In an earlier post I showed my trunk full of old fabric. Recently I discovered a local business that accepts & resells all kinds of craft stuff. Perfect! A place to obtain & pass on "yardage".

When I'm deep into a project I like to coral all the pieces in a bin.

 

I have a table set up right now for painting soem "yardage" for several

fabric containers I have in mind.

Layer one of hand painting done yesterday.

It's just another word for fabric, but it had to be my "Y"

Play Day

It's summer!  So much energy, so much day light. Spent some time in the studio yesterday just messing around to generate ideas.

 Found this cool idea using aluminum duct tape (sticky back) mesh tape (for drywall) then adding a little acrylic paint to age the surface. On Pinterest of course. I can think of all kinds of fun to have with this.

 

Also pulled out the folded pens and water color to warm up the hand for some ideas using letter forms. 

Went to friends on a small lake near by for the Fourth. This sun set picture has wood block print all over it!

Journal Page Prep

Good days for hunkering down in the studio space. Temps way below freezing for a few days. But we are hardy stock here. 

 Wanted to share some of my journal pages, hopefully to inspire others to get in there and just play!

It's always a nice jump start to getting the brain working in a creative direction. Once the hand starts moving the ideas usually flow.
My go to format is these:
 






I like the 9X12 size.  A little big for travel but I make room for it as feels the most comfortable to me.
   Then I doctor it up to my liking on the cover.

 

I dive into the scrap trunk of painted fabric or create a new piece that I sew onto the cover after
I've painted the edges with acrylic. Yes I do that on my sewing machine. Canvas seems to give the cover longevity and protection from wear.
 Over time I found it important to leave a couple pages blank at the front to create an index.It's loose but it helps me find notes, ideas, etc. I want to refer back to.

 I'm one of those people who have a hard time with a blank page, even if I am just writing to clear my head...so I embellish. Light applications of acrylic or water color allow writing on top.

 

Here I will mention one of my favorite "tools" for texture and adding lines is hardware cloth.

 

One piece I have cut to to fit my journal pages. Water down some acrylic, apply with a stencil brush and voila. A grid in which to write.
 I'll be back tomorrow with more. Time to feed the cat & get ready for my day job.