Friday, May 20, 2016

India





 As I work my way through the destinations on the Amazing Race Art Journaling Project, I find myself going back to my favorite techniques to create these spreads.  Because I am usually working in an altered book as part of a round robin, so few of my creations end up in my own book.  This challenge has allowed me to work in my own book for a welcome change!

For India, there were so many ideas running through my head.  More than anything, when I think of India, rich, vibrant colors come to mind. I don't quite remember how I settled on using the peacock as my subject for my India page.  The peacock is the national bird of India.  I knew I had a feather stencil and wanted to experiment and play with it to see what kind of effect I could create.

The feathers you see here in the background were made using Distress Inks which I applied through the stencil using a blending tool.  The color changed dramatically once I applied the stenciled feathers onto the pink background (Dylusion Spray).  I added glitter pen accents to give them more pop and definition.

Now for the fun part!  I used one of my favorite pop-up techniques to create the body of the peacock.  As you open the book from a closed position, the head of the peacock rises up.  When the book is opened all the way, the peacock is displayed in its full glory.  I added glitter glue to the feathers of the body and topped him off with some real feathers.



Saturday, May 7, 2016

The Art of Graffiti






 I am really enjoying this Amazing Race of Art Journaling Challenge, but I'm running at the back of the pack!  I am finding so much inspiration--not just from the wonderful prompts--but also from the artwork posted by the others who are running this race!  I think it was a bit too fast-paced for the way I work.  After I complete the 5 destinations in this challenge, the prompts will come at a more manageable pace.

Germany was actually the fourth destination in this race, but since I already had an idea for my pages, I decided to skip Italy and tackle Germany first. 

I created an accordion fold out page (a total of 7 panels, decorated front and back) to represent the Berlin Wall.  I took images of the wall, pieced them together for a coherent look, then made several packing tape transfers.  The artwork is so colorful and expressive.  To top off my wall, I used 28 gauge wire to simulate barbed wire along the top edge.    

Money Lei




In June, we will be attending the graduation ceremony at the Air Force Academy.  I decided to make a lei of origami fighter jets folded from dollar bills.  Thank you Hope for helping me fold all those origami airplanes!!