Moikka moi, it's Riikka Kovasin here today with you for another With 3 Things post!
This feature on the PaperArtsy Blog is where 3 bloggers are sent 3 items in the post. We have no clue what PaperArtsy HQ is going to send us, there might be a slight variation but generally 2 of the 3 things will be identical. This time I had an inkling which designer's stamp set would be sent as it's Alison Bomber highlight!
I was sent Hawthorn Edition stamp set (EAB27), two Infusions dye stain colors and a Grey Board (GB03) this time. The Infusions were Rusty Car (CS17) and Sunset Beach (CS07). Along the materials, there was also a PaperArtsy postcard.
As the current blog topic is Alison Bomber, I decided to make a vintage style make with a watercolor look. Using the Grey Board as my background, I made a little seasonal hanging. This could be given as a gift or then just used as decoration.
On top of the materials I was sent I used a vintage photo die cut, tissue paper, twine, cardstock and corrugated cardboard. I tried to limit my materials in order to have the project easily re-done, should you wish to replicate it!
Let's take a closer look how I made the project!
I started by adding several layers of white tissue paper to my background. I used white gesso as my adhesive as well as colorant. I tore the pieces from the tissue paper so that the layers got smaller and smaller, creating this frayed looking edge. The trick with tearing tissue paper is to use a wet brush. You trace the shape you want to tear with the brush and as the paper is most delicate when it's wet, you get just the shape you want, paper tearing from the wet line.
I used a wide flat brush to cover the grey board first with a layer of gesso and then placed the first, the biggest piece of white tissue paper on top. I added gesso to the middle, not securing the edges thoroughly and added another layer. This way I was able to create some dimension and texture without any special mediums.
When the gesso layer had dried, I then added some stamping on top. I used the Hawthorn set (EAB27) I was sent and instead of ink I used Infusions Rusty Car (CS17). I sprinkled some crystals to a piece of plastic, added a lot of water and created a pool of color that way. I then dabbed the stamp to the puddle and used that watercolor like medium to add some stamping to the background. I also added some color slightly to the edges.
As some of the paper was untreated with gesso, it absorbed the color more than the gessoed areas. I found that a bit distracting, but thought the layers coming on top would then distract my eye. In the end I decided to add some gesso on top of the most harsh contrast, as it was leading the eye away from the central image. But more about that later!
Next I started to prepare the layering elements. I stamped the hawthorn branches to a piece of cardstock using an oil-based ink and then colored the images using the two Infusions I was sent, Rusty Car (CS17) and Sunset Beach (CS07). I felt that the leaves needed a touch of some other color, too, so I used a green ink pad to tweak the brown a little. I used Rusty Car (CS17) for the branches and mixed with the green ink to the leaves as well. Sunset Beach (CS07) made fabulous red berries!
On top of the stamped branches, I used the Infusions to color some other embellishments, too. I added a bit of a vintage vibe to the cut-out PaperArtsy house from the post card using Rusty Card (CS17) and turned a piece of cardstock into elf hats using Sunset Beach (CS07).
Next I cut the branches loose from the piece of cardstock and added the elf hats to the children of my vintage photo die cut. I first thought to get away by leaving a bit more white to the hawthorn branches, but needed to cut those bigger areas away in a later stage as they seemed too bulky. I prefer using scissors in my fuzzy cutting, as it's both faster and easier for me to use those instead of a craft knife.
What I also did, was to add two eyelets to the Grey Board (GB03) background. These added a little detail there but also have a functional purpose for the hanging twine.
Now that I had my elements gathered, it was time to build the scenery. Initially I thought of using just the house, the children and then branches, but the project seemed a bit too bare that way. So, I added a strip of corrugated cardboard to add a little bit of something to the background. I painted the piece with gesso, to get it snowy looking. I also added the gesso to the roof of the PaperArtsy house and muted the stark contrast of the background in places.
To get the composition a bit dimensional I used foam tape to add the initial elements in place.
A bit of more texture and detail was needed to the bottom of the piece. Before adding the kids and the branches in place I took a length of a natural twine and wrapped that several times around the background. The brown twine matched the vintage vibe, but again was too stark of a color au naturel. A bit of gesso was all it needed to match the palette better. It also made the twine a bit snowy looking.
To mount the focal elements in, I again used foam tape. I also used a craft knife to cut a little slit to the vintage photo die cut, so I could add a branch of that hawthorn to the boy's hand.
I wanted the project to have a snowy feel, so some additional white touches were needed. I used the white gesso for those and added some splashes to the project. I first covered the faces of the children as I didn't want them to have a snowball on their faces.
I also felt that a sentiment or a bot of text was needed for the project. Luckily there was a perfect way of adding it with the stamp set (EAB27)! I took the sentiment stamp, stampeded it to a piece of cardstock and cut one line loose. I then combined it to the Latin name of the hawthorn as the little poem speaks of it.
As a finishing touch I added a bit more contrast around the edges of the piece. I used a black watercolor pencil for the job. I first drew a line around the background and then used a wet brush to spread the color a little bit. This created a bit weathered, old look to the line - not too stark, but still defining the edge.
And ta-dah! Here's the finished piece then! A bit of Holiday feel to an otherwise vintage inspired make.
This was a lovely project to create. I deliberately tried to keep the list of materials limited, like I stated in the beginning and that brough an inspiring challenge to the project. I've been crafting and creating for a while now, so there's quite a lot of different tools and mediums I've accumulated along the years. But in the end, you don't need a million things to craft! This project was a lovely reminder of that.
What makes me happy in this project, on top of the limited use of materials, is the textures I was able to add there and the sense of dimension. The ingredients for that were quite simple - materials and the way they are adhered. For example corrugated cardboard is an easy solution for texture as it has it already! Just a bit of paint to highlight that and it's good to go! Twine is also dimensional on it's own right, so another easy way to build texture. The other thing is how I adhered them. Some of the elements of course lay flat, but like with the initial tissue paper layers, I didn't secure everything from edge to edge. The same with the little branch the boy is holding - only secured with a drop of glue under the hand and other wise loose.
Another element that makes me chuckle, when looking at the ready project is that cut-out PaperArtsy house. Hidden in plain sight, a fun little reference tying this project to PaperArtsy and also adding an element to the story. Maybe the children have left their home to bring greetings of a good year to a neighbor or perhaps they are on their way to that house to wish merry new year?
Although I have one more project coming up this year, I want to wish you a merry Holiday season with this project. May your November and December be filled with warmth and good times and may the new year be bright and joyous like a hawthorn berry! Like the little poem in the stamp set says "The merry year is born, Like the bright berry From the naked thorn".
Xoxo Riikka
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