Resource 6: Face Cast mold...more paper-making preparation....Project X

Just doing a bit of online "surfing"

And came across this You Tube video

Art Journal page

I want to be like this when I grow up!

Monday, Tues and Wednesday 

were spent cooking up more batches

of ginger pulp, saving the laundry water

to rinse the fibres, watching resource DVD's

and taking a mold from the face cast.

I also have been working on the canvas

project as well as the fabric printing

and thinking about what I'm 

going to do for my Alter Ego Mask.

Yesterday (Thursday) was my Mum's 75th Birthday. I made her a cake and decorated it. My theme was loosely fitted around her gift, a bird bath which incidentally, took way more time finding one I liked, than I bargained for! I am really happy how the cake turned out and as a family, we had a lovely evening together celebrating her life. (PICS to follow)

 Repainting the leaf printed "botch-up"

I cut in in half and painted the other side a sky blue

I have an "idea"  for this...

 I bought a second 30X30cm canvas 

and painted it with the mauve-coloured paint. 

This is for my Project X: Part 2

While that was drying I rewatched the DVD

so I could remember what to do for the cast mold

 Inside Vaselined and ready to go

 sitting on my paper "doughnut"

The Plaster of Paris
I made up half the suggested amount
as I didn't want to make up too much

 Weighing out the powder

 and measuring out the water

 The water in container the plaster will be mixed in

 I had this idea I would use a chop stick to mix the plaster...

 ..it didn't work..

 ..so it was IN with the hands, like Roger said to do!

 While the PoP was setting I rinsed out another 

batch of ginger pulp fibres for paper making..

 After an hour or so I tried releasing the mold

...it came out really easy...

 ...but, oh..it's was pretty rough-looking!

 Next time i know to spend a bit more time smoothing 

 the wet bandage to get all the creases out

 It looks terrible LOL!

 The mold and cast

..and a pretty leaf on a tree I walked past 

when I was out with Kaeli, the puppy.

I love the shape!

Time: 6 hours (1-3 April)

Resource 6: Face Cast Mold,

Paper-making pulp prep, 

Project X, Canvas,

Drawing into Paint,

Painting on Hessian

A few more drawing exercises and a canvas

It's been a busy week/weekend and

 I had hoped to get more photos up before now

but life just kept on getting in the way!

 I think it was Friday that I worked on these..

This one was done using charcoal

showing tones with just black or white.

I've used a mid-tone as well 

as it didn't look right to me!

Time: 1 hour (22 Feb)

It was my daughter's 17 th birthday on Sunday. Sarah had asked me if I could take her and some of her friends out to the beach on the Saturday while the weather was still warm enough for swimming. Though I knew I probably wouldn't get time for any art, it was lovely to get out of  "suburbia" for a few hours. I was a bit annoyed with myself as I forgot to take my camera...duh! *slaps forehead* 

Sunday was spent doing food prep and cake making.
We had family and friends over for dinner.
Sarah said it was a really nice birthday
and she had had a lovely weekend.

With all that going on though, it didn't stop me "thinking" about my canvas project. It's kind of my Project X...or another one, as I'd thought about doing this canvas project back when I had finished the Travelling Egg. I wanted to use some or all of the materials I'd used for my TEP on a canvas with a focus on New Life/New Beginnings. So all weekend I had the canvas sitting there on my desk and I came up with the idea of including a koru which I ended up cutting from this painted back-ground I did in August, last year. Every time I walked passed, I dream up a little more and by the time Monday came I was rearing to go LOL!

First, I applied a coat of Gesso.

(The paint and background paper 

had been adhered before Christmas)

I purposely left some of the paper show

through as the words represent my thoughts,

many of them...constantly "talking"..

I try to block them out, 

just like I have here with the gesso.

Blocking out the messages I received

and believed as a child...

Then I draw and cut out the koru 

from the green painted background

I just LOVE my koru...

I love the texture, colour 

and design...very happy with it!

....and I like the fabric heart

with the shell button.

But some time after this things 

started to "go wrong"

For some reason I choose black paint 

for the wording HEAL THY HEART

with ART! Then I did the stamped border,

arrows and small text to the left of the heart. 

PLUS I decided to ink the sides of the canvas.

...and SPRAY it with hairspray to seal it.

BAD MOVE...

I watched with HORROR as the ink bled! 

My heart sunk..and I just wanted to cry!

I think it's all that black that doesn't work for me.

 I wanted the colours to represent my 

emotions but I think it's over-powered 

by the wording. I don't know. 

I ended up ripping the paper off the canvas

and will repaint it and start over...

I'll be interested to hear what Rachel, 

my TLC mentor has to say.

We are going to be having a catch-up 

by phone early next week.

Time: 6 hours (25 Feb) 

(includes photo editing/uploading to blog)

Project X

My Project X is complete...

well, one of them...

I'm still working on another canvas which I want to

 incorporate the materials used for my Travelling Egg Project.

Here's how my canvas progressed over the week

 I wanted to try image transferring 

and had an idea of using this kowhai flower 

photo I took in the springtime

 The only gel medium I had was this crackle medium

 this was the image transferred on to fabric

Then I needed to go into to town, so went to 

Spotlight and bought some Modge Podge

and experimented with some 

other images on paper

It was this last image that formulated 

what I would do on one of the canvases

 I reversed the image in my photo-editing programme

and applied Modge Podge to the painted and gesso'd

canvas then use a spoon to burnish the image

 When it was completely dry I dipped my 

finger into a glass of water and carefully 

rubbed the paper to expose the 

transferred image...

 Despite taking care some of the transfer lifted off

and initially I was disappointed...

but I decided to use the "tattered effect" 

as part of the intended artwork as it

aptly reflects how battered I feel on 

this journey called LIFE! 

I've used scrap-booking paper and card-stock

 for the border and dried Artemisia absinthium

from my garden to embellish... 

and searched the Internet for quotes

 I'm REALLY happy how it has turned out!

Now to work on my "other"  Project X...

Time:12 hours (26/27/28 Nov)

 8 hours (3 Dec)

TOTAL: 20 hours

Hand-made Christmas 2012 Album...and Project X

With the new Government Legislation (that came into effect on October 2012) and as a solo mother receiving the DPB (solo parent benefit) I might be faced with losing my Right to home-educate and will be required to look for paid employment. I hope to be able to continue my Art and Creativity Certificate but I am just not sure what next year holds for me. I am struggling to concentrate on anything.. but have tried to maintain some sort of creative momentum as I find this soothing and relaxing. Over the past two days I have been working on a Christmas Album using my hand-made banana palm paper.

 I used the card-coard backing from an A3 art paper pad covered it with scrap-booking materials, decorated it and punched holes for the rings

 Another view of the album

 I've trimmed my handmade paper to fit

 ..and finally the back cover

I look forward to recording what we do as a family leading up to Christmas, purchasing and decorating the live tree and house with lights (for the first time) It's Rosie last Christmas before going away to study Vet Nursing in Hamilton and it'll her puppy's first Christmas (so I'll be out-and-about with my camera)...so no doubt there's going to be lots of tears and laughter!

I've also made attempts to start on my Project X. 

 Painted and Gesso'd...yes I KNOW your suppose to do it the other way around...but when have I done anything the "right" way LOL!

 Starting to dry

 I'm loving the texture of the cracking.

Still working on what going to happen next.

I have some ideas but they are all

jumbled up in my head.

I want to try some image transferring I think.

Time: Handmade Album - 10 hours (22/23 Nov)

Project X - 1 hour (20 Nov)

Photo editing/uploading - 1 hour

TOTAL: 12 hours (20-23 Nov)