Coordinate!

In a mood to buy yourself a Christmas present?  (Don't forget, "Little Christmas" comes after Christmas -- so you have plenty of time!)

http://www.artpapersonline.com/ carries papers that coordinate beautifully with stencils by STENCILGIRL(TM) Products -- look at the examples below, and just imagine how you can use these papers with your stencil-prints, in art-journaling and lots of other paper arts!

If you have the Tribal Hand stencil by Lizzie Mayne --

 http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/s180.htm

-- and/or the Arabesque stencil by Nathalie Kalbach --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/l197.htm

and/or Swirly Floral by June Pfaff Daley --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/l060.htm

--and/or my Wrought Iron Gate stencil --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/l224.htm

-- you can coordinate with any or all of these ArtPapersOnline papers:

And if you have Twist Latice by Lizzie Mayne --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/s152.htm

--and/or Net stencil by Mary Beth Shaw --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/s129.htm --

you can pair prints from them with this paper:

 

Or this:

 

 

Again: Prints made with any Connection stencil by Andrew Borloz --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/category-s/1817.htm --

and/or Web stencil by Mary Beth Shaw --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/l064.htm

and/or X & O Stencil by Andrew Borloz --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/l108.htm

-- will coordinate beautifully with this ArtPapersOnline paper:

And one last example of great pairings--

The above ArtPapersOnline paper will coordinate nicely with all the circle stencils at STENCILGIRL(TM) Products; here are only a few examples:

Stitch a Doily by Maria McGuire--

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/Stitch-A-Doily-Stencil-p/s169.htm

Border Circles by Michelle Ward --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/l003.htm

Random Circles by Mary Beth Shaw --

http://www.stencilgirlproducts.com/product-p/l071.htm

And many, many more!

As you scroll thru the ArtPapersOnline website, you will find other examples of happy pairings with prints made with stencils from STENCILGIRL(TM) Products.  Happy scrolling!



 

Just Posted at StencilGirlProducts.com -- my Stencil "Kaleid"

I'm dying to finish my first attempt at one of the techniques for stencil-use presented at Cindy Powell's blog --

http://cynthiapowell.blogspot.com/

-- but while my bottom coat of paint dries, I'll post two techniques for using Kaleid, the latest of my stencil designs (listed under "New Stencils") posted at www.StencilGirlProducts.com --

Below is a "ghost print" (the second print) I created using Kaleid and a Gelli Printing Plate.

There is a lot of online instruction on this type of monoprinting...

Using stencils is one way in which to use a Gelli Printing Plate or a homemade gelatin printing plate.   

Videos and other tutorial information can be found at these web addresses: 

Homemade Gelatin Printing Plates: 

http://printmakingwithoutapress.blogspot.com/2012/07/new-gelatin-printing-video-by-linda.html  (Note:  This video uses a variation of the technique I use.  The video mistakenly uses the word "stencil" -- and means to use the word "mask."   However, this technique-variation is worth a try -- using an actual stencil.) 

http://printmakingwithoutapress.blogspot.com/p/gelatin-printing-tips.html

(Note:  Lots of helpful info is on the above web page, if you are using a homemade gelatin printing plate.) 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WddXJAK_Fas 

http://cedarcanyontextiles.com/gelatin-printing-with-stencils-lesson-7/

(Note:  The above web address explains using stencils and gelatin printing plates with fabric.) 

youtube.com/watch?v=KRUMcgXK4UY

(Note:  In the above demo, the artist uses slow-drying acrylic extender mixed with her acrylic paints.  This is a common practice among printmakers.  Other options include "open acrylics" and printmaking inks; the latter come in oil-based versions and water-based versions.) 

Gelli Gel Printing Plates (which is what I used in creating the above example): 

http://www.gelliarts.com/ 

http://pinterest.com/noisycreek/printing-on-paper/

 

****************

Another image I'm posting today is a greeting card cover:

 

 

The Shadow Knows!  To create an image like this, you will need a strong flow of light through a window, or use another source.  Find a way to secure a stencil in a position that results in its shadow being cast.  The shadow can be cast across a flat surface as shown above -- or across someone's face, if you want to create an unusual photo portrait!

 

After taking a photo of the Kaleid stencil's cast shadow, I printed it, cut it out with fancy-cut scissors and glued it to a greeting card cover.  On the lower right (difficult to see, here) I added a simple swirl of glitter glue.

Another way to use a StencilGirl Products Stencil...

StencilGirl Products' stencils are easy to clean, even after using them with acrylic paints (if they are placed right after use into a soak basin of water) -- but since I was blessed to be accepted as one of the designers at StencilGirl Products, I receive not only each stencil itself for my own use, but also what called a proof -- a prototype, laser-cut from the same pattern I designed, using a lighter-weight and thinner sheet of acetate.  A proof can be used as a stencil -- but, being different in character from the finished product that is sent to a customer at StencilGirl Products, it will more readily retain a coating of acrylic paints, once it's been used with them.  The above proof was used in seveal applications and the proof itself has become so pretty that I've scanned it and will use the print-outs on greeting card covers.  The above image is darker and dimmer than the proof itself but serves well enough to show what I mean.

 

The latest stencil of mine to be posted at www.StencilGirlProducts.com,   this design is titled Kaleid (listed on the SCP website under "New Stencils.")  The original design appears below:

How did I arrive at this design?  My friend Mary Ann had the idea for us to create collography printing plates, so together we trooped down to Collingswood Flea Market to buy thin sheets of black foam, waste scraps from unknown industrial uses.  We cut up the foam into random shapes and (with heavy matte gel medium) adhered them to sturdy illustration board.  We used the same gel to coat the foam shapes and their backboard (on both sides) so as to make them waterproof and washable.  After they were dried, we used them to make prints; one of my prints was done in black and white, which I scanned.  I then used a program called Kaleidoscope Kreater to alter the original image.  My last step (in Photoshop) was the stencil-making process:  Removing stray pixels, creating stencil bridges, and cleaning up edges of lines.

 

Was it worth all that work?  Yes!  This has become my favorite stencil.  One of the abstract artworks that I've just finished made heavy use of this stencil and I like the results so much that this piece will be included among my 10 "portfolio pieces" to be placed in the mid-April Monmouth Festival of the Arts ...

 

www.MonmouthFestivaloftheArts.com