More Spooky Stuff

I am still gaining inspiration in the Halloween theme in my mixed media art.  It is so fun to embrace the creepy, grungy look of the holiday.  I knew, once I had become comfortable with the creep, that I would have to do an assemblage, so here we are.



I started with one of Tim Holtz's configurations boxes.  These are a staple for the assemblage addict, like me.  I layered all kinds of scrap paper,decorative tape and ephemera before spraying the piece with lots of inks and spray webbing. While you can't see much of what is underneath, I do think it is important to layer your background in order to create interest and texture. 

I used all kinds of goodies scored at the local big box store to add to my piece.  There is so much Halloween stuff out there to gain inspiration from.  Lots of different techniques and inks were used to grunge up my stuff and make it look old.  One solution I used was given to me by someone at work and it is amazing!  I have no idea what it is as it is an old homemade Mexican antiquing solution, but I absolutely love it.  Thanks Monica!

Another element I added, and really love, is all the moss.  I have a large bag I purchased and it has really come in handy.  The texture it adds is divine, and I think it also has a tiny bit of a spooky look about it.  I had planned on putting resin over this piece as I did in the ones I blogged about recently, however, a new product called Goosebumps stopped me.  This simple spray does not achieve the same look as resin, however, it does provide a nicw glossy sheen and another great layer of texture. 

  

The feet and decorative corners are also from Tim Holtz.  The color was off and they looked too new, so I used alcohol ink in pitch black to age them a bit. It is so fun to alter things to suit your needs.   

You can see a variety of things stuffed into each compartment, sometimes in unique spots. I am always careful to look at my work in progress from several angles in order to be sure that my composition is sound.  

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I just love the focal skull.  I added a head piece to jazz it up a bit, and add a feminine touch.  I am really into the Day of the Dead art right now.  Stay tuned for another project I am working on in this theme, I can't wait to reveal that one!

I hope you enjoyed another chapter of creepy art, I know I sure did.  I am posting this on Artists in Blogland, this is a great community of inspiration.  Check it out if you are curious!

Cheers,

Rhea

Project Preview

This fall our local chapter of Michigan Altered Book Artists will be meeting in Kalamazoo.  I will be hosting a small ornament workshop and exchange during this gathering.  I wanted to post on here in order to share some inspiration with my fellow crafty pals.  Hopefully this creates some interest to come and play, all are welcome!

  

I made these ones last year and I really love how they turned out.  It is so fun to use found objects and bits of junk. I also finally found a use for some grungeboard pieces.  I really want to get the rosette die.  I think those would be great on these ornaments.  These were inspired by a project published in Cloth, Paper, Scissors last year. 

See you there!

Cheers, 

Rhea 

I love snail mail

So I recently blogged about getting my completed mail art zine here.  I just received another issue to work in and I was super inspired.  I managed to get it yesterday, and it is is the mail today.  I just love how projects like these help push me into creating. 

The theme for this little book is snail mail.  It would seem that we were all inspired with a literal translation of the theme as there are super cute snails in every entry.  As you will see, I followed suit.

 

I had cut out a different "shell" all together, my messy craft table helped a new shell to be made, and I am much happier with the outcome.  As many of you know, I love clocks and time imagery.  How fun to incorporate a snail's pace into my contribution.  The transparency clock shows some vintage ephemera below from an old adding machine workbook.  I also used a bunch of rub ons.  Super fun, easy and spontaenous work. 



Here is the front.  Please excuse the found objects keeping all the addresses confidential!  I love the stamps I used on here and how they go with the nature meets mail theme. 

When making this page I tried a new technique that I just adore.  The base color background is color wash and glimmer mists.  I wanted to add some texture, so I busted out a new stencil.  I was so inspired by stencils used at my recent creative retreat.  The one shown here was by Martha Stewart (she has bunches of new stencils at the big box stores).  Now the fun part...I used vintage photo distress stain with the stencil.  Heaven!  So easy to apply and super easy clean up.  Here is a photo before I added all the other layers...



 



I hope this post inspires you to get out those stencils.  They are so much fun!

Cheers,

Rhea