2017 #2 Sneaky Mask {by Anneke de Clerck}

 2017 Topic 2: Masks

Not only does Anneke share a great masking technique, but as ever, she creates contrasting layers with thoughtful simplicity and in doing so, highlights the perfect contrast of colour and shape.

Hi everyone Anneke here.

Great to be here on the PA blog tonight with a post about masks. I'm one of the lucky wingmen who already could work with the brand new (and not yet released!) masks designed by Kim Dellow. I'm allowed to give you a little sneak peek tonight, how cool is that!
I used one of the masks to create a background for a birthday card. Below I'll show you two ways of working with masks. As there will be a bunch of PaperArtsy masks available soon (stay tuned!) this little tutorial will come in handy, won't it :)

In my opinion, when creating a project the most important part is choosing the colors. PaperArtsy has a wide range of Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics so making a choice between all those yummie colors is often hard. Usually I'm looking for 3 colors in different shades, supplemented with white. Limiting the colors ensures unity. For color inspiration I often flip through my own art journals. 

While experimenting with the following masking techniques I experienced that a grounded background worked best. So I applied a coat of Snowflake to start with. This layer took away the porousness of the paper. I could easily remove paint and it prevented the paper from damaging while rubbing with a baby wipe.

After randomly coloring the panel with Candy Floss I started with the regular masking technique. I applied Smoked Paprika through the Kim Dellow mask with a cosmetic sponge. I made 3 prints as I'm always doing odd prints.

Next I continued by the reverse masking technique. I applied Mermaid paint first, put the mask on top...

...and rubbed away the paint around and in the mask with a baby wipe.

To finish I repeated the regular masking technique using Snowflake paint. I alternated the position of the mask while progressing and I made sure to overlap the previous prints. 

I didn't want to cover this background entirely therefore I've chosen to work with a single flower as focal piece. The moment I saw the new ETS08 stamp set by Tracy Scott I was in love with that beautiful flower! I stamped it on a sheet of paper I painted with Pixie Dust first.

I decorated the petals of the flower with Flower Soft. Flower Soft was very popular around here a few years ago. It was often used to create landscapes on cards. I applied PVA glue to the petals with a brush and sprinkled the Flower Soft on top.

Tip: When working with embossing powders or things like Flower Soft or glitter I'm always using a stencil packaging to work on. This plastic works great to collect leftovers.

Look how tactile this flower became. Love the texture! 

I often mix and match different letters and texts on my cards. For the birthday wish I combined sticky alphabet letters and a word from the JOFY 26 set.

I'm very into 'use what you have' (and never use any more) lately. So that's why I preferred to work with Flower Soft. You could easily replace it by embossing powder, glitter, glass beads....Just go through your stash, I'm sure you'll find something that can add texture!

I love what you can accomplish with just one mask and some paint. I'm very fond of this kind of layering techniques. Sometimes it's a bit scary because you have to work in layers and sacrifice some of the beauty of the layer underneath but at the end it's worth it! The layers start to interact and provide a beautiful end result.

I hope I could inspire you to grab a mask and join the challenge. I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Thanks for stopping by!

Anneke

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Wow, it is so good to see the steps of how you used Kim's new mask so well with different colours! It can be confusing when building up overlapping layers, and you have managed to merge and soften the layers perfectly! Thankyou, and how lucky to get a sneak peek of a new product too!

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