Fabric layout

I

recently made a layout for The Scrapbook Magazine. We were asked to make a layout using something which we normally avoid. For me, this was fabric. I have quite a bit of fabric hanging around my house but I have never used any on a layout-well apart from ribbon!

So I decided not just to use fabric, but instead to try to make the entire layout from fabric.

I started with a 12x12 piece of canvas as my base. I distressed the edges of the canvas, then sewed some patchwork squares to the canvas. Then I sewed a square of lace over the top, and inked the edges of the canvas.

I printed my photo onto organza fabric and stitched it onto a canvas matt. This was sewn to the base, leaving an opening at the top to slip a journalling tag under. Then I began embellishing the layout. I used various trims-lace, leaves and sticky back felt flowers.

I painted some leaves and prima flowers to knock back the colour a bit.

I think my favourite bit is the tulle overlay, which I melted holes in with my heat gun.

The butterflies and some flowers have been cut from old net curtains, and the round flowers were made from the same net curtains. The pearl and gem flower centres are from Kaisercrafts, as are the flourishes.

The title is not fabric-The chipboard letters have been painted, stamed and glazed with Glossy Accents.

I added some gold stickles around the edge for a bit of a lift.

Here are some details-you can click on the images for a closer view.

I am pretty happy with this layout. It has a lovely dreamy quality, and is so very tactile too!

Hot Hot Hot-Blog Hop

What's hot?

Gauche Alchemy and Bombshell Stamps are having a blog hop!!
That's what's hot- and if you join in and leave comments on the blogs you're in with a chance of some hot prizes!
Follow the link at the bottom of this post to hop from blog to blog to discover lots and lots of creativity! It's a bit like a magical mystery tour-you never know what you might discover!
*********

What else is hot? Robert Maloney-that's what! Well I don't actually know if Robert Maloney is hot-but his art certainly is!
In a recent edition of Cloth, Paper and Scissors, I came across the work of Robert Maloney. Robert is a digital artist and his work just blew me away! Take a look at his web site.
There is a lot to love about his work-the complex layers, the colour palettes, the texture and the strong horizontal and vertical lines within his work.
Robert's work inspired me to experiment with a small canvas for my wall. I am no digital artist-I like getting messy with ink and paint too much to go digi!

So here's what I did:
1. Mask off areas using masking tape and plasterer's tape.

2. Spread texture paste over surface. When dryish remove the tape.

3. Paint over using watered down acrylic paint. The texture paste stripes can clearly be seen.
4. Collage on some paper. I chose a vintage advertisement and some strips of braille print from Gauche Alchemy.

5. Spread on a layer of gesso, and when dry add some stamps using Stazon ink.

6. Spread a thin layer of cream coloured paint. When dry add some colour using a texture background stamp (I used a brick pattern stamp) and Stazon ink. I used three colours-mustard, olive green and rusty brown. Just stamp randomly , and quickly to add some hints of colour. I then stamped some lines in black.Now, here's a dilemma- When do you know your piece is finished? I rather liked the canvas at this stage, and thought it was finished-a bit like a Rothko painting-it's all about the colour

But the next day I looked again and felt it needed something more, so I decided to add an image.

7. I printed out one of my favorite photos-a derelict factory, and made an image transfer, using acrylic gel medium. You can see how you need to rub quite hard to get rid of all the backing paper.8. So after that, I decided to add even more images-a gel transfer of a birdcage; some olive branches, and the small swallow cut from a paper napkins; the egg and yellow bird image just cut and pasted to the canvas, and some random stamped foliage in the bottom left corner.

Then I added some shading around various elements.So now I have a canvas, inspired by Robert Maloney, but looking nothing like his work!

So that's my canvas-only problem is, I'm not sure if it's finished! I do like it as is, but am wondering if maybe it needs some words.....mmm...

What do you think?

Thanks for visiting and I hope you'll hop on over to the next blog on the blog hop!

Meredith


Don't forget to leave comments on all the posts for a chance to win some great prizes!

Back again..

I'm back from my 5 weeks in Australia, and keen to get scrapping some of the many holiday photos I took.
Also keen to get going with Gauche Alchemy, as I am now on their Design Team. GA produce very quirky kits with lots of different bit and bobs that you wouldn't normally think to use on scrapbook pages. They have a great blog, with lots of inspiring idea, so do yourself a favour and take a look?

It will be so different to designing for Kaisercrafts, with their beautifully coordinated ranges.
GA is really going to challenge me creatively-let's hope I'm up to it!!
Meanwhile I still have lots of Kaisercrafts project that I didn't upload before I went on holiday.
Here's a couple:
First a layout using KONSTRUCT-a great range for the the budding builders and decoraters in your life.

Secondly, a minibook using LE CHATEAU- possibly my favourite range from Kaisercrafts