More TAP Paper Play and Another Round Of ATC's

We have been blessed with some really amazing. perfect weather this past week. Screaming blue skies and mild temperatures in the mid to high 60's. Haven for me! I am trying to get some things caught up before I descend in pre-surgery nerves. Thankfully this weekend I managed to get some things sent off. The image about is a transfer that I made of my grandmother, Thea, from about 1916. I used Artist Transfer Paper (TAP) from Leslie Riley - soon to be available from C&T publishing. I am especially fond of how this transfer turned out - I had wanted to covet it for myself but ended up sending it to my cousin who supplies me copies of many old family photographs.

These ATC's were made for the 'Arts In The Cards' group swap. The theme was rust/metal. These were made from very carefully shibori wrapped rice paper that was dipped into procion MX dye and then even more carefully unfolded when just damp, ironed and glazed with varnish to the texture of cloth. I used stainless steel wire to make a pattern and then couched the wire with perle cotton and finally adding some beads. I have also made a series of these to go to another great swap that I regularly participate in from Roses On My Table - with den mother Christina Zinnia Galliher running the proverbial show!

Now I think I need to go and shibori wrap some more papers - although they are fragile I really like the results - the texture, once the paper is glazed is really nice and very workable.

Hope every one has a happy rest of the weekend - filled with love, laughter and creativity!

Should have a mind to - remember that these are all available 

as larger images if you double click on the photo (I think!)

Book Review: "Image Transfer Workshop" by McElroy & Wilson

Whenever I see a new book come out on my favorite technique, image transfers, I simply cannot restrain my fingers from hitting the "buy me now" button.  Once in awhile I am disappointed but sometimes I am also totally, unabashedly, thrilled with a book. This book, "Image Transfer Workshop", looked like it was right up my alley and it is ! I LOVE this book. It explores so many different techniques and presents them so well that I would venture to say that this is a "must have" book for anyone who has an interest in image transfers, mixed media, or art quilting. I think it is one of the best books on this subject to come down the proverbial pike in a long time. "Transfers & Altered Images" by Chris Cozen is still a favorite book but is a bit more technique focused because Ms. Cozen is an artist for Golden Paints. Golden Paints are my favorite products to use but it is good to have a book that covers ALL manner of image transfer techniques. This book does that and does it very admirably.

  Just have a look at this fabulous "Table Of Contents" !

 

The variety of techniques covered in the book is phenomenal .  It's a fabulous resource and I think, should be in the library of any mixed media artist! 5 stars on this one !

Some More Digital Print Playtime

This little frame was made from paper and a napkin that attracted me -

from a meeting I attended last week. It was perfect for this!

My enthusiasm continues unabated for adventures with Golden Digital Grounds. I have made about dozen new prints on silk organza and chiffon; here are just a few from the weekends play. Not all are ready yet as cards or anything - but they will be soon!

This is a print on silk chiffon -

you can see how thin it is - and easy to write on as well .

AS always you can double click on the photos for my clarity.

The image below is printed on bleached Harem Cloth printed

on a thin acrylic base of Golden clear tar gel.

I altered my all time favorite poster (probably because I was there at too young an age, admittedly, and wish I still had the ticket stub!) This was printed on Cotton Voile from Dharmatrading - where I got all of my fabrics

If You Want To Learn More About Acrylic Paints,Mediums & Gels These Two Books Are Perfect!

These two books were written by Chris Cozen who is a Golden 'Working Artist. When I first noticed them they sounded as if they would be perfect for me - since they addressed all of the things that I was specifically interested in. I read the reviews & several people indicated that this is a very slim book - almost a pamphlet,that the photos were small & that the author did not mention that other products could be substitued (why would a Golden working artist promote another companies products though?!). After reading more I decided that I would wait to spend the money on these two books - and got some other titles instead.

The other books that I got (one of them is by another Golden working Artist Patti Bradycalled "Rethinking Acrylic") are excellent & I am glad that I added them to my library. I was still , however, drawn to these books - so I ordered them. I am SO glad that I did! These two books - and yes they really are more like 50 odd pages of a large pamphlet - are packed with exactly the information I wanted about transferring images and using the wide variety of available acrylic mediums. Yes, the photos are small - but they are quite suitable to the the information that is being presented. The lay-out is excellent. Pictures of what mediums & gels work to achieve a particular result. Clear, concise & to-the-point. I highly recommend these two titles if you want to know about using acrylic paints, mediums & gels to the best advantage. I found a "recipe" for a glaze in "Altered Surfaces" that works besutifully! Thus far each technique that I have tried using theses books for inspiration has been a success & I am far more confident in my use of mediums and gels now too! These books are available through Amazon, your local independent book seller & good art supply places.