Dangling Hearts

My posts of February 12 and 18 (under "Older Posts") showed step-by-step photos (with instructions) for a technique I've developed, using metallic paint and pearlized paint as background, followed by applying alcohol inks thru stencils.  I've done a small update of one of the greeting cards that I had created in this way -- the update was simply to add hearts to the tree created with my 6"X6" stencil Bonsai Tree.  You can see the hearts better by clicking on the image below.  To draw the hearts I used a Montana marker filled with Golden High Flow acrylic.

 

Asian Imagery via Stencils

In one of my two posts of earlier today, I wrote about having made a mix of Golden's Payne's Gray acrylic paint with matte medium, to use in stenciling, with Ink Sweeper as my applicator.  (Thank you, Mary C. Nasser, for having reminded me of Mary Beth Shaw recommending this applicator in her recently released book Stencil Girl -- Mixed Media Techniques for Making and Using Stencils!)

Below, you can see I used my 6"X6" Bamboo Wall stencil twice, facing in different directions and placed side-by-side to create one overall pattern.  My background was a Gelli Plate print -- but before making my stencil imprints with the Bamboo Wall stencil, I had created another layer of color on the Gelli Plat print, by making a pale blue crayon rubbing (with the help of another stencil of mine, placed under the paper.)  The reason I include this picture is to point out that, unlike oil pastel crayons, Art Bar crayons allow you to use acrylic paint over them. 

 

I used the same acrylic paint-matte medium mix in making the two fan imprints above.  Both fans were created with the use of my 9"X12" stencil Two Fans.  The top fan was made directly onto color-stained  Asian newsprint, applying the paint thru the stencil.  The lower fan is a ghost print, made with the same stencil; while the paint was still wet, I lifted it from the color-stained newsprint and placed it top-side-down onto another sheet of Asian newsprint; then I cut it out to increase the contrast between the ghost print and a white background. 

STENCILS ... plus ...

... red cardstock; paintbrush and silver acrylic paint; Ink Sweeper and heavy-body Payne's Gray acrylic paint ...

equals --

Above:  my 6"X6" stencil Bonsai Tree was used.

Above:  the stencil used was my 6"X6" Heron.

Above:  I used my 6"X6" stencil Osprey Wings.

 

Bonsai Tree, the first of the three stencils used above, bears a 3-word Chinese message, so it is best used with the bonsai leaning to the right, as shown here.  But it's not limited to Asian-themed art -- it can also be used as a Christmas tree on a 6"X6" greeting card, with dots of bright glitter glue along its branches.

Heron, the 6"X6" stencil used in the middle image above, captures the grace of these majestic, bigger-than-life waterfowl.  It's been used to make greeting cards with the blurb "HERON earth did I forget your birthday?"

Osprey Wings, third of the three above-used stencils, evokes the splendor of these majestic seahawks that soar above sunlight-glittered waters. This stencil pairs beautifully with the Feathers stencils as well as other bird stencils here at www.stencilgirlproducts.com.