Today I am painting this Prima Princess water color art journal page and doing a little story time. I wanted to talk about why I started Take Time to Create and what it means to me.
I am passionate about taking time to create everyday and that is what I encourage everyone to do. We are all so busy and running from here to there that we forget to stop and relax and to create. Creating can be anything from art to gardening to cooking. Whatever you need to do to feel creative.
Prima Princess Watercolor Page
Creating everyday helps keep my stress at bay and having a blog and YouTube channel keeps me on schedule and motivated to provide content to you guys. It is what works for me and I love it. I enjoy creating and sharing!
I love teaching and seeing what you guys create.
Prima Princess Watercolor Page
What do you create? What do you to keep the stress at bay?
I have always love these pictures of my Grandmother and Great Aunt. They both look so beautiful, so I wanted to honor them with this mixed media shadow box.
I found these really great square trays in my stash and I thought they would be perfect as a shadow box.
Mixed Media Shadow Box
I actually created 2 shadow boxes. One was my sample and practice box and the 2nd one was the one I actually filmed. I love both and I think they will look great on my mantle.
Mixed Media Shadow Box
By adding contrasting elements like metal and wood you create a really interesting design. I like the worm metals with the black and white photo, the contrast is interesting to look at.
Mixed Media Shadow Box
Projects like this are a great way to use up all the little bits and bobs that are in your stash, lol. These would be great gifts or perfect to keep for yourself, lol.
Mixed Media Shadow Box
Such a fun project! Do you have any old photos to use in a shadow box? Or have you used any old photos in a project?
Sometimes an experiment turns out really cool, and this just so happens to be one of those times! I did a class at ArtVenture in January of this year that taught us how to watercolor on fabric. Not quite like this example, but it got my creative juices flowing! I really wanted to explore this method and develop my own technique, and this is what I came up with- A Fabric Watercolor Landscape (actually the ocean, and it is abstract…. lol)
As always the video goes over all the steps, and it is a good companion to the blog post.
To start prep your canvas by painting it a light color, I used a slightly off white and painted the top and sides.
you will need a light gauzy fabric for the base layer. I had some in my stash, so use what you have, as long as it is a very light fabric. Take a Heavy gel and spread that all over the canvas, then coat each strip of fabric with a gloss gel. (this is the same procedure that I use on all my canvases) Once the strip is coated adhere it to the canvas. Add as many wrinkles as you want and create the texture you are going for. (I have to say I really like this stage, in fact I almost stopped here because it is so pretty, an all white fabric canvas. I might have to make one and just leave it as is. Some thing to think about, lol)
Once you are done with the fabric, let is step dry. I usually leave it over night just to make sure.
After it is dry it is time to start watercoloring! gently spray the canvas with water (this allows the watercolors to move freely on the canvas) and then start watercoloring! Slowly add colors and see where they go and blend to create new looks. You can dry in between layers if you want and just keep building until you get the look you are going for. I wanted to create a sunset on the water, it is a little abstract, but that is ok, I really like how it turned out.
Once the watercolors are dry you can start adding in texture. I added some iridescent micro bead to add some more shimmer and shine to the water. Just apply some gloss gel and pour on some beads. Let it dry over night before removing the excess beads.
Once the beads are dry you can add even more shimmer and shine by adding Metallic watercolors. I thought this would be the perfect way to add some more details. It is a little hard to see in the photos, but up close the metallic really added that perfect final touch.
Let everything dry completely and then spray it with a spray protector.
I really like how this turned out and I can’t wait to try this technique on another canvas! What should I try to watercolor next? I love experiementing with my supplies and I would love suggestions on what to do next!
