Red Tape

A Side Trip At Thanksgiving

While in Pennsylvania for Thanksgiving, my daughter and I zipped down to Pittsburgh for a visit to the great Andy Warhol museum.  If you are ever in the vicinity, don't miss it!  They had an exhibit of over 80 different artists doing their take on Marilyn Monroe-amazing!

Well, don't get too worked up about seeing my photos from the museum, because I have something else to share.  Walking down the street, we spotted the largest, public tagging by Shepard Fairey, that I have ever seen!  I was pretty taken with that...so all my pics are of his peeling work, applied to the side of a crusty old building, adjacent to a parking lot.  Here are a few of them.

 
 
.......love

Learned Something More Re: Spray Inks

I wanted to be able to spray more intricate stencils (like portraits) with spray inks, but not having much success with the messy  Adirondack sprayers.  **Light bulb moment**  Ranger has some tiny spray bottles called Mini Misters, that put out a very fine spray.  I decided to use some Distress Ink reinkers and mix up some colors in these small misters, to see if they would spray more 'controllably'.  I think they do!  Still not perfect....but betta!  Here are a couple stencils I tried, using them.

You have seen my Mz. Liberty before.  I did the background in Fire Red.  Foreground was Broken China (a rather aqua blue).  Even though the red was dry, the blue sort of 'reactivated' it, and made a more 'purple-y' outline of the stencil detail. Of course, the background needs to be a lighter value than the top detail, for it to show up well.  *Because the colors are not permanent, you need to consider how a couple colors will mix to produce another color.

I did the background in Tattered Rose (muted pink).  The pattern that seems to appear on the pink layer was from rolling the paper towel over it while wet.   Then oversprayed detail in Shabby Shutter (green).  Got adventurous, and did her blouse in Broken China (blue).  I am pretty happy, even though there are spots that weren't as sharp as spray paint would be.  I think these Mini Misters are a good alternative for detail. 

Here is how I mixed them:  2 dropperfuls of reinkers to a Mini Mister, then fill to 3/4 full with water and shake.  Option:  Add a little scoop of Pearl Ex to the Mister, for glitz.  You can't  tell here, but the blue shirt on the woman above, had gold Pearl Ex mixed in.  Looks great in person!

I am planning on 'rebottling' my Adirondack inks into some of these Mini Misters, as well.  Better spraying mechanism.  Then I will have lots of colors to play with, and nothing going to waste.

Ink Stenciling

I love the colors you can get...but it is messy and unpredictable as far as spraying a mist or getting blobs of ink!  I am covered, the floor is covered, my work surface is covered....but it WAS fun!

Rays are spray inks, bird was sponged from ink pad.  As long as the stencil was sprayed with adhesive on the back, the spray inks didn't realy seep a great deal, so the edges look better than I thought they would.

 A little more challenging, to mask and use a variety of colors without a mess.

Stenciling with Inks and Paint

Most of the stenciling I have done, so far, is with spray paint.  Often, the weather here does not cooperate when I want to work on something. So I am trying paints and spray inks, which are a little trickier to work with.  But there are lots of fun colors and I am getting more familiar with what they do.

....thanks, Michelle R., for the helpful tips!

Stenciling Weekend

Fallout rain from edges of the hurricane kept me inside this weekend.  Good time to work on layers and layers and layers.  With some stencils thrown in, too.

.....sigh....

Stencil Work

Perhaps it was the rare sunshine and I could get out to spray paint.  Maybe it was the creative juices were flowing today.  But most likely, it is the excitement of going to the Shepard Fairey exhibit at the ICA in Boston this week. Can't wait!  Anyway, I have been busy cutting and testing stencils.  Below are some of the results.

                                        

                        

And here are some spraying results using the last stencil, above.

                       

                       

       ......more later

More on the stencil front....

In my recent spraying frenzy, I sprayed some of the more intricate stencils I've cut on some ledger paper.  A good way to see how the stencil looks, and also to add to my stash for use in future projects.  These are such a lot of fun to do, especially when the subject is someone/something near and dear to you.

  Head shots are my daughter at 5, bottom left is me at 3, and bottom right is Lily the Wonder Westie!

 

 Top left from a vintage photo, top right my daughter age 5, bottom left is me, and then....the striking eyes!

 

.......until later

 

*mea culpa:  I just realized I posted a few of these on an earlier post.  Well, you probably needed to see them again!!!!

 

TODAY was Stencilling Day!

Finally got a day of decent weather and I got myself together to work on some stencil pages.  Mary Ann Moss's Stencilry Class is just great.  She really gives a lot of good detail about how to do this.  After that....it's practice, man, practice! 

Here is some of what I did....remember....I am PRACTICING!

 First page.  These are about 16 X 20....big for me! These are not finished pages, just something that I may use parts of in future journal pages.

 

 Both of the above are on paint layered backgrounds then oversprayed

 

   A variety of portrait stencils sprayed on ledger paper for use in other projects.  I couldn't resist turning my Westie, Lily, into a two tone stencil!

 

 The eyes have it!  This is only one stencil (thanks Deb!) but I flipped over to get a pair of eyes.  Fun!

That's all for now folks!

_______________________________________

Every once in a while, someone will mail me a single popcorn kernel that didn't pop. I'll get out a fresh kernel, tape it to a piece of paper and mail it back to them. 
                                  - Orville Redenbacher

Ta Da!

Amazed and astounded!  Dazzled and astonished!  Well.....that may be a little over the top, but I finally was able to get started with my Stencillry Class, by Mary Ann Moss.  The weather was gorgeous on Sunday.  I set up a spray station in the wooded area behind the house, donned my respirator, (scaring the little neighbor kids ...but that's neither here nor there) and went to town spraying  everything I could.  The object for today was to get large (14" X 17") cardboard pieces covered, which will become a portfolio for the work we will do in class.  Without further ado....

 These are the outside covers.  They will be hinged together with black duct tape.

 

 .....and the inside of the portfolio covers.

It was a lot of fun trying to figure out what would make something stand out, or subdue something else.  For me the only down side, so far...having to drag everything outside, then all back inside when finished.  Our weather is just not predictable enough to leave it out in the elements. 

Would you like to see work posted by others in the class?  Here is the group's Flickr site, open to the public.  Go see!

Next session will be to spray lots of pages, making backgrounds, for further use as journal pages!

......stay tuned

I Can't Help Myself

After I just got done telling you I have several of my favorite journals stockpiled, I got another new journal this last week.  Yep.  I am powerless.  This one was made by one of my art journal heroines, Patty Van Dorin who oozes talent on a lot of levels  I was lured in by the cover:

 

Seriously.

 

The siren call to any mixed media lover.

 

The inside is….well, magic!  She used so many different papers, photos, tags, transparencies and tons of other clever inclusions, that the thing practically journals itself!  Here are some individual pages I have already done:

 

 

     

 

 

     

 

In the last 5 days, since I received it, I have logged hours and hours playing in it!  To my sheer surprise, I think the ‘fear of the blank page’ is eradicated with this journal, because the papers all have something on them already.  This is the first time I can recall being utterly fearless starting a new journal or messing it up!  I just do whatever I want on whatever page that comes up, with no real thought to theme or continuity.  Just FUN!