Thought for the Day

Thought for the Day-
August 19, 2020
Uncontrollable events in our lives often come without warning. We don’t get a notice in the mail or a reminder on our phone. How we handle such situations depends impart on the magnitude of the uncertainty as well as our faith, character and personality. When the unexpected arrives, we need to remember that nothing takes our God by surprise. Possessing a patient spirit, know that our heavenly Father is victorious at all times, will help us to “let go and let God”.
Have a blessed day!
Cathy

Monday, July 29, 2013

Collage Art









As I have mentioned before, I am not the best blogger. I just LOVE to create art, but documenting my work is not top priority.  When I decide to tackle a new project, I like to just "jump in" and "loose" myself. 

This project was no different. 

An artist friend of mine recently attended a workshop where she learned how to do a type of collage painting which I had never seen. I got excited about the prospect of making my own mixed media artwork after witnessing her masterpiece. Since I lost the picture I took of her work (I lost all of my pictures, phone numbers etc. on my phone do to failure to “update”-valuable lesson learned), I only had written instructions from which to work.

Hopefully my partial "how-to”, which follows, will give you a pretty good idea of how to complete this project.


There are a few layers involved, but it’s actually quite a simple

to do.




Supplies needed:

-a large canvas (I used an 11x13)
-various bits of printed paper such a scrapbook paper, sheet music, dictionary pages etc.,
  torn into small pieces
-small piece of fabric, large enough to cover bottom portion of canvas
-glue (I used Mod Podge Gloss-Lustre, which worked great)
-acrylic paints
-paint samples (free from hardware store) to spread paint with instead of using s brush
-black oil pastel crayon
-stamps and/or stencils to create “texture” to background and add a possible quote           
-sponge brush



Step 1:

Glue bits of paper to canvas in a collage fashion, covering most of the surface. Glue fabric piece on bottom section of canvas.  Let dry.

Step 2:

Take your black oil pastel crayon, and draw a simple figure, such as an animal, on dried surface. 





Step 3:

Using a paint sample as your “brush”, paint everywhere except the inside of your image. By using this technique you avoid having brush marks and you can apply the paint in a thicker manner. Do NOT cover your oil pastel lines-this will give more “character” to your finished work. Let background dry.






Step 4:

Stamp or  stencil on top of first layer of paint, using a lighter shade of paint than your background, to give “depth”. Let dry.





Step 5: (optional)

 Stamp words, sayings or quotes on background.









Step 6:


Apply a top coat of Mod Podge over entire surface of work.  I don’t like a shiny surface, so I took a rag and blotted off some of the glue as I worked.  


After I finished my collaged piece, I added a “safety” eye (used for  making stuffed animals) to my chicken.  Scroll back up to the top to see completed project.

I hope you have as much fun as I did doing this whimsical piece.  I can’t wait to work on another one!



Sunday, July 28, 2013

Dragonfly Door Hanger

  I have taken a fancy to making these easy burlap door hangers.  So far, I have made an owl for the fall and a heart for Valentine’s Day.   I wanted one for the summer, but did not see anything out there that “caught my eye”. Dragonflies seem to scream summertime to me, so I started looking for door hangers that others had done.  When I found none that I liked,  I decided to Google some images.  Between pictures of dragonflies from nature and various other pics, I drew up my own rendition.   I think he turned out pretty cute!