Technique #20 Painted fusible interfacing

This is the last of the official techniques. I may post "completed" pages at other times. Most of the book is finished and I am very happy with the results. It doesn't take much to make me happy. I have to admit I not only enjoyed completing this book but found it a bit addictive. The really good part about the addiction is that it kept my mind and creativity going the entire month. I completed many more pages than are shown here.

Here is a sheet of painted fusible interfacing. I used my newly made circle stencil to cut the shapes

Here are shapes ironed on to the sketchbook pages. The original marks on the page are the dark circle on the left as well as that eye shape. This is before removing the paper backing just after ironing them on to the sketchbook pages.

Here is the first one as I remove the paper backing

All the backings removed and I like the way the lines on the painted fusible echo the lines across the eye shaped stamp on the left.

I do hope you liked following along. Most of these techniques are adaptable to fabric as well. If you have made pages along with me, please send them to me at beth dot from dot maine at gmail dot com.  I will showcase all of the pictures I receive in a special post.

Technique #19 - blending the pages

This is Pentel Correction Fluid. It's like white-out and it works faster and much better than white India ink or acrylics. It's VERY opaque.

The circles on the right page have very faint purple circles so I extended the circles to the left and completed the circle on the fold. Then I added new dark purple circles.

These pages just had the spirals. When I was painting the quited paper I had some paint left and used it to unify these two sheets 

Again, green spots to try to unify the spread

Two of the circles had faint purple circles so I drew  three more circles and painted faint lavender dots.

The left page had this stamp so I extended the marks to the right page and unified with the tiny lines between arches. I thought about painting the extensions but I really like the hash marks beter than plain boring paint.

The right page had two dark circles so I added a few more plus the squares in permanent ink and filled them with Caron D'Ache water soluble pastels.

More completed pages

The only marks on the page were the black leaves of the stamp

Painted with watercolors

I think I'll do a bit more here  but I like what I've done so far

I did a bit more and I am satisfied now.

All the yellow and orange was added plus brown splatter to unify the pages.

Just some general info

I saw this on an online workshop and I loved the idea. I frequently stop at the glass store and ask for "scraps" of Plexiglas. These are two "scraps" I got and I am using them to protect my desk and work table. Thank you workshop!!

This is a big bugaboo of mine - BRUSH CARE. This brush is almost 40 years old but I am a nut about care. The most important thing I learned about brush care are these: Always wet the brush so that the feral (metal bit clamping down the hairs) is thoroughly wet. This way the paint or what have you doesn't travel into the feral hardening it. I also DON'T let the brush soak for hours in water. I try to wash it with soap and water as soon as I am done with it gently squeezing out the water and straightening the hairs. I may seem a bit nutty about this but good brushes are expensive. I do buy cheap ones if I know they will be ruined while in use.

I hope you are working along with me.

Technique # 18 Quilting with paper

Sorry about the blurry image. For some reason my camera wouldn't focus.

A rectangular sheet the size of a two-page spread is under the needle with my first triangle of folded paper

Here it is with all the shapes sewn on to the backing rectangle.

I know it is hard to see but this is the sheet gessoed and with the stitches covered with oil pastel

I missed a step in pictures. This is the spread colored with watercolors and a few acrylic painted spots.

Here is the finished spread with colored pencil marks and dots and x's in correction fluid.

This is the back.

Technique #17 - Using Negative space

I thought this would be a really interesting experiment. It's an experiment when you have no idea what you are doing. I started out painting the spread black.

You can see the faint pencil lines which I soon lost track of. This was a huge failure

Not that I am trying to shift blame but I think I might have had more success if I had thicker more lightly pigmented paints. Maybe I am kidding myself. I am going to give it another try using pastels on black paper. We'll see how that works....then I give up.

Technique #16 I have no idea what to call it - maybe coloring graphic sketches

I got this idea from some IKEA fabric I bought years ago and used to cover a bulletin board

Here is the paper with the sketches roughly done in pencil.

The stetches done in permanent ink. Then I erased my pencil lines.

Credit card to the rescue. I am MAD about acrylic paint and credit cards. Help me I can't stop!!!!

Technique #15 Free motion stitching plus

I started out just to do a sheet of free motion stitching and got carried away. I started with a light  pencil mark just denoting what direction I should be moving.  After doing the leaves I decided to add the berries. This was a separate sheet I had to paste in when I was done.

I think you can see the light pencil mark

Close up of the stitching

Oil pastels added because I couldn't stop myself

Wash of watercolors. I know, OK now I'm done for today

Technique #14 Stamp collage

I keep thinking up techniques to try and I am running out of days. This is a quickie made from used stamps. It's a bit tedious and fiddly but worth at least one page.

more finished pages

Just a few more finished pages

This is a cautionary tale. When using water soluble pencils or pastels don't spray them with a mister. Chaos ensues.

Water soluble oil pastels.

After a hopeless attempt to mop up running color. Things didn't have to end this way. A wet brush would have produced good results.

I even darkened the colors a bit more after this picture. They looked a bit anemic.

VERY happy with these results. These are stamps I carved years ago.

More finished pages

I used my "bacon plastic" stencil to use up some pink and purple paint before I washed out the round foam pouncer.

Below are rubbings that I "fixed" with hairspray so they wouldn't smear.

I like the swirly background in watery watercolors.