IW 15

I've just finished Inspiration Wednesday number 15!

Not up to date but am not worried about it....I don't find it enjoyable if I take the "I can get it finished first" approach ha ha :)

Holidays, work commitments, chalet and shed building and simply having fun with my hun have caused the delay.

Love the texture I managed to achieve.

The circular pinkish leaves are embedded in some fancy organic paper I used for making cones to hold my wedding confetti in...all say aah!

Happy with how it looks.

Making a start on week 16 now ;)

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux

IW 14 She is made of star stuff!

Number 14 at Inspiration Wednesday.

One of the prompts was to use something that made you laugh out loud!

I, on the other hand, decided to use a more reflective perspective!! lol

I used my own hand drawn image that I have digitised so that I can print it out anytime I like at whatever size and any colour too.....such a boon when you are short of time ;)

I made my own quote bubbles "She is made of star stuff"...

...a misquote on my part from the wonderful Carl Sagan...so sadly missed on this planet but hopefully, somehow, still discovering the wonders of the universe :)

I've used my lovely antique typewriter for the first time in my art on the front of the inclusion :)

and again for "Gaia"

I deliberately left the number 14 uncoloured to stand out more.

Love the colours melding into each other.....teal, orange, quindachridone gold.

Back of inclusion.

Thanks for looking.....I did have fun with this.

xoxo Sioux

IW 13 - State of flux!

Inspiration Wednesday number thirteen started with not much enthusiasm!

Did I really want to stick bits of wrapping paper willy nilly on the pages again!

I'm not a fan of patterned wrapping paper.....so I have none to speak of.

Then I realised I had some gorgeous design paper from our honeymoon in Florence...

...some art nouveau paper from the Haworth art gallery in Accrington purchased some time ago...

...and so I made a start. :)

One great thing I discovered that using one of the T!m fragment dies makes a pretty fabulous substitute for American dry wall tape.....happy...happy. ;)

I ended up really liking my pages and my pages turned out very personal.

Two ways of looking at things.....the positive things I need to focus on reflected by the T!m sentiment combined with the reality of feeling "In a state of flux"...

...and being "torn asunder" due to developments in my job.

Back of double inclusion (I've reached the middle of the journal) using a handy number 3 that includes my surname taken from the car sticker to board the French ferry last month :)

These work related developments may, in the end, not be as bad as I fear...

...but unfortunately, I fear I am right in believing they will be!!

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux

IW12 Verday or not Verday!

The twelfth Inspiration Wednesday. Yikes that's halfway through already!!!

Did not have (nor indeed have any desire to buy) the special Verday paints from 10 Seconds Studio....so set about trying to make a rusted/verdigris copper finish on my own :)

I started by using some sand texture gel coloured with teal acrylic to smudge on the page for some texture.

Then a bit of a wash all over with some orange and black acrylic.

Texture paste through a brick stencil and stipple coloured with burnt umber then claret and stone fresco paints...

....an old white plastic house number

(I saved it over 5 years ago when I replaced it with a much nicer stainless steel one)

given a make over too.

Wording added above reads "Home is where the heart is"

Front of inclusion... it says "Age is but a number written on the wall of life"

Two different thoughts as this page encompasses my "not to look forward to" big birthday later this year and my love of where I live....and no.....EXCUSE ME!!! I'm not 69!

On second thoughts that could allude to something entirely different.......ROFLIA

...back of inclusion.

Various stippled layers later of burnt sienna, juniper paint dabber, more burnt umber and a touch of copper inka gold peeping through just about got me to an effect that I really like. ;)

I think I really like this for the simple reason I had to use my brain and some of the things I've already learnt to experiment and it seems to have worked....well I like it and that's what counts!!!

ROFL :)

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux

IW first stage!

The eleventh Inspiration Wednesday. first stage.

Have to say I am not totally sure what it is we are supposed to be achieving with this one....lol

Think one of the fast forward sections could have been a little less speeded up!

I've watched it about 6 times and still a bit in the dark ;)

I am going to have to go with my own thoughts on how it is going to resemble what Donna did with the colours!!

ROFL

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux

IW #10 the joy of art

Inspiration Wednesday 10 done and dusted.

Although limited supplies 'cos I'm on holiday, it's turned out O.K.!

The squiggly writing says "Art is a subjective thing, unless we try we will never know the joy it can bring"

Page before the black and white added.

Rear of inclusion

Front of inclusion.

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux

IW 9 Man in Black!

Had some fun again for the ninth Inspiration Wednesday.

Did not have a face stencil so I made my own :)
Wasn't prepared to spend extra money on some special medium that, when painted over gesso, makes watered down acrylic react like watercolours....I just attached some watercolour paper to the pages and hoped for the best, in the end it was not quite a watercolour reaction...why I did not just use watercolours I don't know! ;) lol

Front of inclusion

Back of inclusion

What did I learn this time?
1. Love the contrast between the colourful side and the dark side! ROFL

2. I need to make more of my own stencils.

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux
P.S. I've been trying to get this published via my phone but it wasn't having it! It's been saying it's publishing it for over 40 mins!!!
I am off out to meet my honey (it's the second anniversary of our meeting each other ;))
I'll sort it when I get back if there are two posts!!!!

IW First stage

Inspiration Wednesday number 8 9!.

I don't think I can give this the time it deserves until the weekend!

However, I have made a start on making a stencil of a face as I don't possess any face stencils!

This is something I have been meaning to do for a while ;)

I wish I could cut the image I did more intricately (I had to simplify it somewhat) but my scalpel knife won't allow it!!! LOL

Thanks for looking

xoxo Sioux

IW #8 Searching for the answer!

The eighth Inspiration Wednesday. is done.

I had been hoarding the wooden letters for ages....to use in what heaven only knows!
Just for good measure I added some hoarded wooden star shapes too! lol :)
Front of inclusion...

Back of inclusion...

I did love the old series on the BBC of Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy ;)

This time round I learnt...
1. It's good to use some of those things we hoard!
2. It's also not a bad idea to buy two of something if it only cost you 99p (there was only one of each letter of the alphabet in the pack...not much chance of making something else that makes sense from what is left!!) rofl
3. I like building up the layers of texture and paint ;)

4. If you have not got many colours of Golden acrylic like me, Ranger Adirondack dimensional acrylic (it's pearlescent) works well in conjunction with the gesso as a sort of wash...
...don't think they make it any more but I've got a stash hoard of one bottle of each colour ;)

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux

IW #6 Bloom and grow

The seventh Inspiration Wednesday. is coming up this Wednesday and I have only just finished week 6.....a long weekend away at a wedding and having a rotten cold on my return put me behind!
Still it's not a race.....but I do like to keep up! LOL :)

What did I learn this time?
1. Embedding stuff onto your page with texture paste can make some fabulous effects.

2. It's very messy painting with your fingers! :)

 
3. Must use my vibrant india inks more often....I chose to use the words "Bloom and Grow"....sort of went with the tree like shapes and the seed pod stencil on the inclusion.

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux

IW #5 She rose like a phoenix!

The fifth Inspiration Wednesday had me wondering if I'd complete it...
...or for that matter even start it!
But as I got stuck in and started making the masks I began to enjoy the journey :)
Front view of inclusion

Rear view of inclusion 

As I started to put the strips of material down to make a nest like Donna did they just sort of turned into flames instead...
...it helped that I had cut up bits that were in the red spectrum ;)...
...I added some Viva copper crackle stuff to the flames too, but only thinly so there was no crackle but that's O.K.

Next time I do the masking/stamping of the bird thing I need to make a thicker layer of modelling paste as the outline got a little lost so I lightly coloured the whole bird with some Viva Inca Gold copper and outlined it with a black pen.

Sentiment "Light your own fire!" (my own design) from The Artistic Stamper
Flowers also from The Artistic Stamper along with Tim Holtz ones.
"She rose like a phoenix" printed out on paper and glued with multi matte medium (Ranger)

What did I learn this time?
1. Making the masks for the bird and wings was great fun (although it was not part of the lesson!)
2. Making a skin...?! What the....? Well that was fun too! Definitely going to do that bit again :)

3. Adding cloth to a page makes some great texture.

4. Galeria sand texture gel does not hide anything underneath it as it dries clear...you have to mix colour into it or as I did quickly dollop more texture paste over the top!

e.g. The yellow colour here is the sand gel and not any other colour on top.
But if I had actually read the label it would have told me this!!! ROFL !

It came out O.K. very nicely thank you, even if I do say so myself!
At least I don't have to plait sawdust now!!! ROFL
Although I can't get that idea out of my head and who knows I just might end up trying it!!! ;)

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux

IW #5 stage 2!

The second stage of Inspiration Wednesday.!

Lots of texture to create with the material I cut up...with lots of drying time too!

Colouring some of the previous stuff that has dried.

Masking with my hand cut stencil....like it ;)

Stamping too ;)
And some colouring now the material has dried at last.

I'll be back with the finished page.

Thanks for looking.

xoxo Sioux