/* */ Beulah Bee: April 2014

April 29, 2014

Jaune


Not So Mellow Yellow is the Monday blog challenge at Simon Says Stamp, so...

I went looking for ideas on Pinterest, did a seach for yellow and found this house. I knew immediately that I must use it and remembered another image I had of a woman and brought the two together by way of an image transfer and a fussy-cut.

I really didn't do anything that technical but today but I thought I'd share the step-by-step process just in case anyone is curious.

  1. I have a toner-based printer (versus ink jet) and printed the house image using Photoshop in the size of the tag after reversing it.
  2. I stamped french script (Darkroom Door) on top of the tag with archival ink.
  3. Working quickly, I coated the front side of the image with polymer medium (gloss) and placed it on the tag front-side down, smoothed out any bubbles and let it air dry.
  4. I put a small dot of water on my table and dipped my finger in it to apply water to small areas of the image so I could gently rub the paper away.
  5. To avoid over-wetting/over-working (which weakens the medium), I kept moving to different areas on the photo and continued dipping and rubbing until all the paper was removed.
  6. Then I printed my woman after guessing at a size and cut her out of the photo using an Exacto knife and cutting mat.
  7. I used a brown waterproof brush marker to ink the edges which helps to blend them into the collage.
  8. I pasted the woman in place using Mod Podge.
  9. I didn't like the balance of values (lights and darks) so I added a strip of white tissue paper stamped with script to the bottom using a glue stick.
  10. I used gray acrylic paint to tint the strip, the sky, and most of the dark green values.
  11. I mixed a very transparent batch of lemon yellow acrylic paint and used it to tint the woman's dress.
I appreciate the skill of artists using photo-editing software to create digital imagery. I suppose I could learn how to do it and then create a tag like this one using only a computer and printer. But I really enjoy using my paint and glue and creating the old-fashioned way. I do admit, however, that I would be lost without my printer.

If you have any questions about my process, feel free to contact me, my email address in on the side bar.

April 23, 2014

Big Flower Little Bee

Still playing around with big stamps, this tag was made with a Jumbo Peony (Stampendous) and a bumble bee stamp from the Tiny Things stamp set (Tim Holtz), hence the title:

Big Flower Little Bee.

I also used another big stamp by Dark Room Door which is one of the largest I own, called French Script.

All I did was paste some canvas on a tag, stamped the background, the flower and the bees, tinted it with acrylic paint and oil pastels, distressed the edges and pasted on a strip of deli-wrap stamped with script.

I intentionally painted over most of the thick lines on the flower to give it a softer appearance.

I'm linking it to the Monday blog challenge at Simon Says Stamp (entry #3) where this week's theme is Big Stamps.

April 21, 2014

Apollo

This tag is courtesy of an Inkadinkado 3½" x 5" stamp called World Map and I made it for the Monday Blog Challenge at Simon Says Stamp where the theme this week is Big Stamp.

Apollo was cut from an old history book on the discovery of North America and I also used some Melange tissue paper.

What's unique here is the background and the tag itself.

A while back, I recycled some 300 lb. watercolor paper by covering it with gesso then put it away and forgot about it.

So today, when I began to apply watercolor to it (after I cut it into a tag shape), the watercolor wasn't sinking in because of the gesso. Duh!

So I sanded it down while it was still a bit damp and the edges became nicely distressed. Then I used watercolor which now absorbed into the paper more randomly than if it were a pristine surface. The blue color compelled me to use Apollo and the World Stamp because of the cloud and sea effect and, as they say, this tag is history.

Subway Shuffle


Using BIG stamps is this week's theme on the Monday blog challenge at Simon Says Stamp. Some themes really resonate with me and I'm motivated BIG time.  I just might break a record this week with the maximum number of entries!


The BIG stamp used here is called Subway by Tim Holtz which I stamped on a manila tag using Weathered Wood distress ink. I used an image cut from a magazine, some red balls cut from a Trader Joe's shopping bag, a piece of a Journaling Ticket (Idea-ology), and a very thin strip of scrapbook paper. I added a few 7-Gypsies number stamps to balance out the top right corner and trimmed the borders with a red gel pen and Black Soot distress ink.

April 18, 2014

Winged Things

A long, long time ago, when I was just a kid, me and the boy next door used to run around with butterfly nets, all summer long, because they were everywhere and it was fun to try and catch them. Thankfully, our aim was terrible and most escaped our grasp. But I rarely see butterflies anymore.

It's sad to think that today's children may be missing out on this adventure. Perhaps too much black pavement and too little green is the cause.


I made the butterflies using alcohol inks on a transparency, stamped with Archival ink, cut out and pasted to book paper then edged with Stickles.

The background is black gesso; the leaf layer made using paste medium with a hand-made stencil then tinted and distressed with acrylic paints.

The white marking was done with a very fine brush and white acrylic paint, a gelly roll made the text.

I've linked it to the Monday blog challenge at Simon Says Stamp where the theme is Winged Things.

April 15, 2014

Giselle


I was inspired to create this collage after visiting Paula Cheney's blog where she recently posted two excellent mixed media tutorials (Wonderful Adventure and Layering with Happy Colors). I love her artwork, she cuts right to the point in her tutorials and she talks about the "scary" parts. The end result has you reaching for a brush--fearlessly!

Aside from acrylic paint and paste medium, I used Melange tissue wrap, a Kaiser Craft stamp (flourish), a Crafter's Workshop stencil (mini tiles) and a hand-made stencil (frame corner). The lady was a gel medium transfer.

The Monday blog challenge at Simon Says Stamp is Winged Things, so I'm linking it there for a chance to win the weekly drawing. And I must do a shout out for design team member Andrea Ockey Parr whose creation for this week's theme is just charming!

I'm also linking to A Vintage Journey, where the theme is A Little Bit French, n'est-ce pas?

April 11, 2014

Washi Paint

Before and After


I linked this tag to the Wednesday blog challenge at Simon Says Stamp where the theme is Easter.

But, I didn't like it that much and it really didn't reflect this week's theme.

So, I peeled off the tape and washed over it with gesso and started over.

And this is the new tag:


After applying gesso, I traced the outline of the cone flowers (originally applied with a stencil) using pen and ink then traced the outline of a bunny photo. I used oil pastels for tint and applied washi tape on a few of the petals.

Click to enlarge
I really like the washi tape I used on this version. It's bright white and has good sticking power and I favor it over other brands. Here's a link if you want to know more about it.

So hopefully, I've learned a lesson here.

When I am less than satisfied with something, and it can't be rescued, then I must learn to listen to that voice inside my head and just start over.

April 07, 2014

So Far Away

I've always said, "if I won the lottery, I would travel to far and exotic places and seek out every corner of the world."

For now, I must be content to travel in my dreams and hope that, someday, I'll be able to journey somewhere farther than the grocery store.

My tag is thanks to an outstanding image, the artist unknown to me and the original source lost in the tangle of the Internet.

After printing, I made a cut-away which was pasted to a background that was stenciled and stamped.

Bundled sage, spun sugar and dried marigold Distress inks were used as tints.

I've linked this tag to the Monday blog challenge at Simon Says Stamp, where the theme is journey.

April 04, 2014

Shabby Chic a la Morocco

I love a good challenge and Tim's tag for April was just that. Not using a die cutter means working the hard way but it forces me to think outside the box and makes for more original artwork. I always try to incorporate whatever technique he highlights but make a point to put my own spin on it.


This tag went through many transformations (thank goodness for gesso, the great cover-up) and I'd be hard pressed to say exactly how it was made. But the ingredients were corrugated cardstock, a modified stencil (courtesy of Lowes), an Exacto knife, various tissue tapes, acrylic paint, Distress inks, sand paper and a fine-tipped marker. My flower was made using a technique from Clare Buswell and the leaves were cut from watercolor paper.


I really enjoy Tim's monthly feature and had so much fun working on this tag. I am grateful for his inspiration as well as the opportunity to link up and I always look forward to seeing what others will make. Thanks for stopping by!