Sunday 29 November 2020

2020 Topic 21 Masterboard Mail Art with LPC (by Kate Yetter)

  2020 Topic 21: Masterboards


Masterboards don't need to be subtle- they can zing with colour and life. Kate has used her masterboard bases to add layer upon layer and with some added texture they really are something special.
~ Keren.

Hi everyone, it's Kate with you today, and I'd like to share with you my masterboard project that I used to make mail art.

I love making mail art (4x6 postcards) because they are small and perfect for layering stamped images. What better way to save time than to make backgrounds that can be cut down into several smaller ones but can be several completely different projects.


I started out by painting my cardstock with Fresco Finish Chalk Paints and Infusions before stamping repeatedly with the same image.




Next, I cut my paper down to 4x6. The extra I will save for later projects. 


In all, I made three masterboards but I was having so much fun that I completely forgot to take a picture of the other two. As a result, you will just see the finished product from each masterboard.


As you can see, I used pieces of linen, paint absorbed paper towels, embossed paper and stamped images to embellish my postcard.


My second Masterboard was made using another Lynne Perrella stamp set.




Again, I focused on using mainly stamps and texture I had on hand to embellish.



My third masterboard was made using the combined stamp sets.


For this postcard, I rotated the 4x6 card and created a pocket with some tags.



If you have paper that is splattered with paint and ink, a masterboard is the perfect way to display all that messy goodness. Just ink up a stamp or two and go to town in the background. I hope you enjoyed seeing how I used three different masterboards to create three very different pieces of mail art. Give it a try and then send it to someone in the mail. 

Until next time,
Kate

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Saturday 28 November 2020

2020 Topic 21 Fabric Covered Notebooks with ESA (by Jenny Marples)

 2020 Topic 21: Masterboards


Stitching fabric masterboard pieces in strips creates a wonderful textured new piece of fabric, perfect for new projects. With some useful ideas for applying paint and dying fabric, there's plenty to learn and be inspired by in this post.
~ Keren

Hi everyone, it's Jenny Marples with you today, and I'd like to share an idea for making fabric masterboards with the new Seth Apter stamp sets and Fresco Finish Paints. The results can then be used to decorate book covers and much more.

Creating masterboards is a great way of building confidence if you are new to stamping with paint on fabric because mistakes can easily be disguised. And when finished you end up with your own unique designs that can be stitched or sewn through. I chose to team mine with additional strips of fabric in complimentary colours.


Here's a closer look at how the first of the books, the Gold Rush version, turned out;






So now let's see how these were made, starting with the first of the masterboards. Measure the height of your book cover and cut (or tear) strips of white/natural cotton fabric that are at least 6cm longer. The width of each strip can vary in size - it's just a question of ensuring you end up with a combination of strips that are wide enough to cover your book.


In each of the photos above and below showing the fabric masterboards you'll see the Fresco Finish Paints and stamps used, all taken from Seth Apter's ESA17 and ESA18 sets. Begin by covering one of four strips with the main paint colour (eg. above it's Lilac, below Pansy, Spanish Mulberry and Squid Ink). I find that fabric can be a greedy surface, soaking up paint quickly so mixing it with a little Fabric Medium and water can help.










Next, for each of the coloured fabric strips, repeat stamp with one of Seth's stamps to create an all-over pattern. My preferred method for doing this is to create a paint 'ink pad' by adding the paint onto a piece of foam and pushing it into the foam with a spatula. This paint 'ink pad' can then be pounced over the surface of the stamp before applying it to the fabric. Be aware that you may need more paint than you think on the surface of your stamp than you might expect because that fabric is still thirsty.


Now go in with another colour of 'paint pad' and another of Seth's stamps creating a second layer of patterns over the first. You might want to go over 'mistakes' made during the first layer of stamping, though bear in mind when you tear the fabric into thinner strips those are going to disappear from focus anyway.


Cut or tear each of your fabric masterboards into even thinner strips of differing widths. Remember, the idea is to have enough to cover your notebook cover. I found I had enough to cover three notebooks when adding extra contrasting coloured strips of fabric (using Midnight, Gold Rush, Blue Bayou and Guacamole). It also helped to iron the fabric before cutting/tearing it.


Cut a new piece of fabric measuring the size of your cover with an additional 1.5cm border around the edges. Lay out your strips (the masterboard ones and some of the plain ones) and arrange over the new piece of fabric, ensuring it's covered. Trim off the excess (should be roughly 3cm) and hold on to these for later. Stitch the strips and new fabric together as shown below using coordinating thread. 


Now add trims over the top, stitching them into place. If you don't have colour coordinated ones in your stash create your own - cotton lace can be dyed with dilute paint and Infusions. I also coloured some white teabag paper with Raspberry Infusions and tore strips from that to add to the mix.


Below you can see how adding neutral trims and that pop of contrasting colour can really add to the finished look. You can also try using a combination of straight and zig zag stitches for even more interest.


Cover your notebook cover with your stitched fabric as shown below with your choice of adhesive. I used dry adhesive sheets so that none of the glue could leak through to the front of the fabric.


Stick some of those left over pieces of fabric to a piece of card and die cut some letters for the front of the notebook.


I was excited to find that the 'magic' stamp from set ESA17 perfectly fits the plaque from Eileen Hull's 'Journal' Die. Painting the plaque with Heavy Cream and stamping over with Buff gave a subtle textured look perfect for mounting the die cut letters on. Glue your plaque onto the front of your notebook and add a text block inside to finish. Even if you don't want to make your own book just use the fabric to cover a pre-made book.


Here are the other versions of the notebook starting with the Blue Bayou one;




And finally the Guacamole version;




It was fun seeing how the shades of purple used to create the fabric masterboards teamed with the contrasting coloured strips and made each one individual. Hopefully you'll have seen how easy it is to create masterboards on fabric using paints and stamps and how effectively they can be used within stitched projects.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Thursday 26 November 2020

2020 Topic 21 Collage and ATCs with EGL (by Noguchi Etsuko)

2020 Topic 21: Masterboards
 

Etsuko champions the versatility of the masterboard with so many ideas that you can create using a masterboard. She explores different ways of creating them and her collaged piece is particularly beautiful. 
~ Keren.

Hi everyone, it's Etsuko (My favorite thingswith you today, and I'd like to share with you Collage and ATCs using Gwen's fantastic stamps. 

I'm a big fan of Gwen's works and beautiful stamps. I recently made few mini-books of different shapes in her online workshop and also learned to make backgrounds, one of which is a collage-based background. Today I used that technique to create masterboards and those ATCs. Masterboards are really good for heavy layers.






First, I prepared several sheets of paper for the collage, using EGL10, EGL11 and EGL12 on these copy papers, book papers and kraft papers with some ink pads. Some of Gwen's stamps can be used to create patterns.


I collaged papers randomly using mat medium on the Smoothy Heavyweight A4 white card .


StoneEggshell and Taupe Fresco Paints are each mixed with Satin Glazing and painted on the background.




Using images from EGL02, EGL07 and EGL12 I stamped with some Archival pads then drew in some crayon. It's hard to see on the photo, but I rubbed Treasure Gold Classic in some places.

I cut the masterboard into ATC-sized pieces.



I used EGL09 to make ethnic and fun ATCs. The background colours are grayish and a little chic, so I used watercolors to calm the doll's colours down and fit in with the colour scheme.


This is the second masterboard; I used Snowflake Fresco paint to white-wash after finishing glueing these collage papers down.


Apply a thin layer of CoralButter and Byzantium. Made the color on the masterboard pop.


Finally I stenciled by Snowflake Fresco paint and stamped Seth's new ESA18 and ESA13 using Archival ink.






Using EGL02EGL05 and EGL07 to make ATCs.


I turned a large piece into the journal page. I made the sewing patch which I've been wanting to do for a while using it, and added a mandala piece to finish the page. 

It's always fun to allocate time to create a masterboard and imagine what to build and stack on top of it, and what to make in the future.
Thank you so much for visiting.
Etsuko xxx

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