Sunday, October 20, 2013

Door Shrine with Ice Resin


I have been itching to get back to assemblage making and that is just what I did over this past weekend. This is my favorite art form and I am not quite sure why.  I guess there is something to putting things together dimensionally that pleases my sense of creativity.





To start off I painted the whole shrine kit with black gesso.  I then added my classic touch of gilders paste in silver.




The ornament on the door of the shrine was made with Ice Resin and a few broken jewelry bits.  I had to layer the resin on twice to get the effect I was looking for.  I backed the door with text and a layer of mica to add more interest and create dimension.




The inside of the door is backed with a map and an embossed piece of Spellbinders metal sheeting, which was aged with more gilders paste.  I chose the image of the compass because for me this represents new direction.




My focals on the inside are made from a few resin creations I made this weekend as well.  Here I have used some very fun techniques to create interesting textures in the resin.  I have embedded mica and I also used perfect pearls to color the resin.

I hope you enjoyed my little Door Shrine, stay tuned for more dimensional assemblage, I was a busy bee this weekend!

Cheers,

Rhea

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Ice Resin Bee Necklace


I have been so excited to use the bezels Spellbinders sent me as they are a product partner for Graphic 45.   One of the focals I created includes this amazing Victorian bee brass stamping from Alpha Stamps.



In the background I have layered some text, which really ended up obscured by the mica I added.  I did manipulate the mica a bit to add texture, it really adds depth and dimension that is hard to see in this photo.




On the bee I used many products: gilders paste, Vintaj onyx patina, stickels and permanent marker.  The centerpiece was sealed with Ice Resin.  I had to do this in two settings to achieve the doming effect I was after, and get all of the body of the bee under resin.




I added the focal to a simple chain.  When I wore it for the first time today, this was how I styled it.  I can also chose to wear it in the center.  I tried to add several different elements, but I always ended up editing them out.  Sometimes it is good to keep things simple. 

It was so fun to get back to my jewelry roots, I suspect there is a bit more of that to come now that my dining room table has been transformed into a jewelry making station.

Cheers, 

Rhea

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Halloween Banner with Packing Tape Transfer


Today I am going to show off a basic image transfer with packing tape.  This is a very simple technique that makes for a wonderful way to layer imagery. Here is a sneak peek of the finished project.



To start you need to be sure that your color copies are toner based.  Most printers for the home are ink jet printers and this technique will not work.  You can get your images printed off at a shop, or you can order them from Alpha Stamps and they will work perfectly.




As you can see from the inside label I used Scotch Sealing Tape.  I have successfully used this with regular old packing tape as well.  A non-stick craft mat is super handy for this project, but it can be done without.




Prepare your images.  Keep in mind that if there is a colored background, this will transfer too.  Since I did not want those backgrounds, I chose to fussy cut two of my images.  Add the tape on top of the image.




Burnish your images well with a bone folder.  This step is important.




Peel your work off the mat and spritz with water.  I let the water soak in for a few moments to saturate the paper.




Begin to rub off the paper with your finger.  I typically work from the inside out.  Add more water as you go and keep the paper very wet.




Continue to rub until the paper is gone.  Magically the ink is left behind on the tape.




Add your image to your chosen background.  You can see here that some of the stamped image is showing through, which is what makes this so cool.  If you had just fussy cut the image it would not look nearly as blended in.  Now these still had enough "stick" on the tape that I burnished them onto the pennants.  I would recommend adding them with matte medium though.




Check out those lovely embossed bats I used too.  Super fun and easy. I simply embossed an image on the black chipboard bat and then finished it with a rubbing of gilders paste.




I hope you enjoyed this fun and resourceful way to add imagery to your work.

Cheers,

Rhea