Just finished up the final Creative Jumpstart video and I can't say enough about what a great class it is. All 25+ talented artists are so inspiring and passionate about what they teach. Some of the artists I'd never heard of, and some are longtime favorites. I've taken many online classes and sometimes don't even finish them because I either get bored or it's information overload. I found myself anxious to see what was coming up next with CJ. The class itself is easy to maneuver through and the artists respond to question and comments in a timely manner. Although there is a link-type show and tell sharing section and comment area for each artist's video, the only thing I would add is a Facebook group for more interaction and ease of sharing. I always like those groups because it creates a sense of community. Thank you Nathalie Kalbach for putting the whole thing together!
For my own creative jumpstart I love to make backgrounds in one of my art journals, usually using a stencil. I have dozens of them and love to combine interesting color combinations by adding and subtracting and repeating the design. Sometimes I look at them and ask myself, "How did I do that?!" They turn out so cool that I don't want to add anything on top! I thought I would share some of them with you.
Today is Video Frenzy Day with Gel Press® and StencilGirl and Gel Press® designers have been working hard to inspire you with their projects. Look for the link at the end of my blog today to see the rest of the videos. Here is my project.
Thanksgiving Card Made from Masterboard
Using a Masterboard to make backgrounds is a great way to start seasonal projects. I used the 12" x 14" Large Format Gel Press® Plate and StencilGirl stencils and printed on large mixed media paper to make my Masterboard. What is a Masterboard, you ask?
Masterboard- a large mixed media background of various patterns and colors that can be cut into smaller projects.
I love StencilGirl stencils and have dozens of them. Many leading artists design their unique stencils so there is something for everyone! They even have a monthly club that I was a member of for over a year. I received 3 exclusive stencils every month, along with access to a private Facebook group and monthly video on how the artist who designed the stencils used them. Find out more about the club here.
See how I made my fall themed Masterboard in my video.
Masterboard Technique Steps
Place the stencils/masks onto the Gel Press® Plate.
Drop fluid acrylic paints on top of the stencils. I used 2 or 3 colors that would not make mud.
Remove the stencils.
Brayer one or two colors of heavy body acrylic paint onto palette paper. Make sure that the brayer is covered with a thin layer of paint.
Brayer over the fluid acrylic paint on the plate. The heavy body paint will fill in the areas where there's no fluid acrylic paint.
Pull the print.
Tips:
Overlap large patterned stencils/masks over smaller patterned ones (or vise versa) for interesting results.
Placed stencils in a tub of water to make cleanup easy.
Add a touch of metallic or luminous colors for dramatic results.
Use similar colored fluid acrylic paints and heavy body acrylic paints to avoid muddy colors.
Use contrasting colors for the different layers. Just don't brayer over the same spot in Step 5 or you could get mud and ruin the stencil pattern.
Thanksgiving Card Using StencilGirl and Gel Press@
For our blog hop today we are focusing on health and wellbeing. Make sure to check out all of the talented designers to see how they interpret our theme this month. You will find the links at the end of my post.
Health and Wellness Art Journal Page
Art journaling is my way of figuring things out in more ways than one. It's a place where I play with a new product or technique. But it's also a way of purging or recording thoughts, quotes, ideas and feelings in a visual and creative way. There is something very therapeutic about writing my thoughts and feelings onto a blank page then covering them up with paint, stamps and stencils. Here is an art journal page that I made to remind myself to keep mind, body and spirit in balance for my own health and wellbeing. For this page, I used the large format, 12" x 14" Gel Press Plate.
Balance Art Journal Page
See my process creating this page in the snapguide below.
An easy way to make a quick journal is to use Gel Press® prints and bind them using a Bind-It-All spiral binding machine. If you don't have one, office supply stores like Office Depot have inexpensive spiral binding services. Check out my video showing how I made the covers using Gel Press® Plates.
Sometimes just making backgrounds in my art journal is therapy! I loved making these pages using some of my favorite StencilGirl Stencils. Each one started out as a gel print.
The idea behind an art journal is not to make a masterpiece but to play, work out ideas or use a new product. Here are a few more pages in this art journal doing just that.
Art Journal Page Using Face Stamp
An Exercise in Letting Go of Perfection
Junque Journals
My favorite journals are the ones I learned to make while taking Julie Balzer's "Make Your Own Junque Journal Class". They have a hand-sewn binding so there is no gap between pages like on a spiral bound journal. I made five junque journals, most using gel prints and patterned paper. The covers are created using canvas panels, Gel Press® prints, stencils and stamps.
Here are some of my favorite Junque Journal pages.
Collage Art Journal Page
Collage Art Journal Page
Thank you for visiting my (long) blog post today! Here are the links to the other designers blogs:
Hi friends! Today I have a step by step tutorial on the Gel Press blog where I will show how to create a color block background using three of the small Gel Presses. I made this art journal using lots of gel prints and two pieces of cardboard and spiral bound them using my Zutter Bind-It-All. (I bought that thing a long time ago and never used it till now. I love it and want to spiral bind everything!)
Front Cover
Back Cover
I put together a short video on how I made the journal covers.
Here are some of the gel prints inside of the journal. They are unaltered aside from being trimmed to make the journal.
