Monday, August 31, 2015

LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE Mixed Media Canvas

Hello to all my sweet creative friends.  
The end of August has arrived.  Crazy huh?!

I have a 20" x 24" stretched canvas painting for you today. 

I think of all the painting I have done this one is "me".  I love vintage, log structures of any kind, and these colors. 

The color palette was intended to be: sunny yellow, grass green and fuchsia pink but... guess what... yellow and pink make orange!!!  So the more I painted the more orange the painting became.  It was fine with me - I love it but not intentional. Happy mistake!


I began by painting a solid layer of Lemon Zest Dylusions acrylic paint on the top and sides of the canvas. 

Then I added Library Green Ranger Archival Ink with a Rubber Dance Pattern Stamp. 


Next came some more stamping using geometric style Rubber Dance Stamps "For The Birds" Collection to make some unique clouds, branches and flowers. 



Love how the Rubber Dance Stamp swirls look in the sky.  This stamp is so fun - I have used it as clouds and as waves!! 






Then it was off to paint again with Dylusions Acrylics - Grass Green and Bubble Gum Pink.  





Switching to some Stampendous "Filigree" stamps - so fun to make a unique background!




Here is how it looked when I stopped the first day! 




Beginning the next day, I decided it had to have some type of horizon line so - boo hoo - bye bye unique stamped flowers. Then hello new flowers...I just did those free hand with white gesso. 



Trying to stay with the fuchsia coloring - I began painting the new flowers.

AND... I had a Rubber Dance Stamp that was bird feet - hehehehe - so I used that for more flower stem foliage.  Love it!!! 

End of second day... and this is how it looked!!  



Well.... still didn't feel right... I really liked it alot but.... it just wasn't enough somehow.  So I started drawing in some more flowers with my white Stabilo All pencil. 




I began with yellow to give the piece some contrast... really had no idea where I was going! Just painting away.

Here I began using DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Hansa Yellow Light. Also used in this painting were: Pebeo Green Yellow, Pebeo Precious Gold, Pebeo Yellow and Pebeo Rose.




Somewhere along the line I added the little log home and it's outhouse! 





And the rest of the pictures are just some close-ups showing you how it turned out in the end.  
























All I can say is... it makes me happy!!!  
Hugs. j. 


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Thanks bunches for the opportunity to be a part of the following wonderful challenges.
  
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August Challenge
Mood Board Colors: Fuchsia Pink, Grass Green, Sunny Yellow  
Optional Theme: In the Garden

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August 2015 Creative Challenge: Anything Goes

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Explore - Came to a Fork In the Road... Scrapbook Plaque

I Came To A Fork In the Trail....
I Took The Path Less Traveled...
It Made All the Difference. 
Robert Frost (paraphrased)

Here at the ranch we have a trail that has this exact quote. You see it as you walk along. The first sign is at the fork in the trail!


Years ago... when we first came to the ranch... I painted a LOT of silly little word signs and signs to identify some of our landmarks/buildings. Here are some examples: 





So when I saw the SATW Mood Board August 2015 from SCRAP AROUND THE WORLD, I knew I wanted to scrap my pictures of our walking/riding trail.  This is "A Tranquil Travelers Mood Board".  Trust me... you won't find a more tranquil place and you travel around the many acres of trails on the ranch. We have folks that go out tenting and travel around on the acreage for several days on foot, on bicycles and in buggies.  My project uses the following things from the mood board: the trail signs, the bicycle, the color scheme, the vintage/nostalgic quality, a quote as well as the word Explore!  My project also used some of the textures on the mood board: wood, metal, paper, rust and in place of sand... I added plant life from the ranch!




Hubby prepared a piece of cedar from a dead tree here at the ranch. I added a 12x12 piece of burlap on top of the cedar back. 


Then began building my page with paper from 7 Dots Studio - Cloudy Nature Walk.

To the paper I used a Kaisercraft Stencil - Leaves with Wendy Vecchi Crackle Paste. 



When it was dry I began adding some Ranger Distress Ink Gathered Twigs and Rusty Hinge into the wonderful cracks. 



In order to highlight around the leaves - I gently added Silks Acrylics: Golden Monarch, Spiced Pumpkin, Moss Green and Autumn Leaf. I also used the Autumn Leaf on various other items throughout the layout because it gives that rustic look that is perfect. It is my favorite Silks color and I think I have them all!!!  




I used an Iced Blue Faber Castell Big Brush Pen to go around the leaves to bring in some of the blue color in the mood board.  In this picture the left side does not have the Iced Blue yet! 




Around the edges I used Ranger French Ultramarine and Walnut Stain Archival Ink .  The finished page was soooo pretty I didn't want to add anything to it!




Another piece of cedar made the back for my trail photo. There were also some small cedar pieces behind the quotes. 




Next came the branches - again - all from the nature trail! 




Lots of dried flowers - well... weeds.... are always hanging out in my studio. They were so fun to use on this project and the colors were a great match for the mood board too. 




Here is a close up of the photo hubby took of the sign on the trial.  The majority of folks like walking on the trails best but we do have four bikes that are regularly used too. 




I made the directions sign with my Vagabond using the 4x4 Sign Die from Quickutz.  It took me awhile to decide what to put on the direction signs! In the end, I thought it should be something "fun" but a bit tough to decide. For me... it would depend on my mood at the time I came to the sign.  And I think I might have to come back and try all four trails. The "take risks" would be hardest for me!  

I again used Ranger Distress Inks to color the direction sign. It was cut out of grunge board.  I also used Tim Holtz Idea-ology "Small Talk Stickers" for the choice of directions!




The deer is also a die cut but I do not know the source. Around the deer is a butterfly, a dragonfly, some metal and paper leaves. The paper leaves were die cut with the Tim Holtz Alterations Tattered Flower Garden Dies. 




You are seeing a photo of  the actual signs I painted for the trail - I just cut them out to make them look like signs!  Here is what the original photo looked like!









I wish the pictures were better so you could see all the creatures hanging out on the trail. Look closely - there is an owl and a rabbit here along with the metal butterfly and a metal leaf.  





There are Prima Fabric Leaves throughout the piece as well as metal and real leaves.











Thanks for taking a trip down the trail with me.  
Having you here helps to assure me I'm on the right path!!!  
Hugs.j. 

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Thanks bunches for the opportunity to participate in the following fabulous challenges! 

Scrap Around the World

August 2015 Challenge 28 by Jaya Raghuvanshi
A Tranquil Traveller's Mood Board

This is "A Tranquil Travelers Mood Board".  Trust me... you won't find a more tranquil place and you travel around the many acres of trails on the ranch.  We have folks that go out tenting and travel around on the acreage for several days on foot, on bicycles and in buggies. My project uses the following things from the mood board: the trail signs, the bicycle, the color scheme, the vintage/nostalgic quality, a quote as well as the word Explore!  My project also used some of the textures on the mood board: wood, metal, paper, rust and in place of sand... I added plant life from the ranch!

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Mixed Media Place


I used Finnabair's 'Flames of Love' Art Recipe such as molding paste, crackle paste, gesso, matte gel, found objects, metals and silks acrylic glazes too!

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A Vintage Journey
August 2015 Challenge
by Anne

My project includes several of Tim's products and techniques as well as: Butterflies, Dragonflies and even an Owl! 

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