Tutorial Thursday: Winter Village

What a fun project.

I know...you all are sick of seeing the same project over and over. 

I  apologize. I really do work hard to not over share myself, but if I don't promote my stuff, whose responsibility does it become?

So, please just smile, roll your eyes and go forth with your day. I really do understand! 

I also want to thank you all for your support and encouragement. It means so much to me. I Hope that I somehow, return the love!

I thought I would show my finished box. It has taken me since Saturday to finish it...good grief, right?!

I have painted crooked houses...wonky windows and then, just as the villagers were settling their lawsuits against the contractor, what happens, but that a GIANT SNOWMAN builds his Church on top of the box!!

The Winter Village is a pattern for the Puddles of Paint Club (POP) by Susan Kelley. It is a fun group...we get a pattern each month a year before any one else--how cool! Click here to go to Susan's website.

I am not the best Saltbox painter, but it still turned out pretty adorable, despite me...lol

I designed the snowman to go on top of the box. 

All of this was a fun paint, and now the pattern for the snowman and the actual painted Box is available in my etsy shop By clicking here for the box and by Clicking here for the pattern.


I used DecoArt Glass Texture for the snowman and for the icicles. I'm not sure how I feel about it. Honestly, I need to work with it some more...anybody out there got any ideas how to better use it?? Lol.

I  do like how shiny it was. I like the texture it created.

 I added white paint to mine. I really didn’t see much difference between it and the dimensional effects, so time will tell. It could be one of those things that I will learn that I can't live without! Lol

So, I am not sure that I have been very helpful today!

Grab your paints, or scissors, or crochet needles, or knitting needles and create!!

If you want to learn something that I know, please ask...I will do my best to help...

I am simply blessed to create~charlotte ♡

YES, I am RUSTY and LOVING it! Tuesday, June9, 2015

 I am SO EXCITED!  I never dreamed how EASY it would be to make paper mache look as though it is RUSTED!  Sure, I've painted surfaces to get a similar look, but this is AMAZING to me how simple it is and how much it really does look rusted in real life.  

I will apologize right up front for the poor quality photos.  I was so excited to try this that I got out of bed and went directly to painting without even turning on the lights!

Last night, as I was attempting to go to sleep, I had this idea, so I watched the DecoArt video by Andy Skinner, again, and decided what I would use and I just started painting.  With the use of my hairdryer, I had this process finished in about 30 minutes!

To find the videos, go to YouTube and search: DecoArt Mixed Media Rust

I used the 4 products listed above: Quinacridone Gold, Carbon Mister, Black Modeling Paste and Ultra Matte Varnish.

These products are in the new line of DecoArt Media...The fluid acrylics are strongly pigmented, so they take very little paint.  They are transparent, which gives them versatility.  They are SO MUCH fun to play with!

IF you are one of THOSE PEOPLE who think they have no use for these products, PLEASE go watch some videos and you might be surprised at what they can do to help you stretch those creative juices!  I will admit, I had NO CLUE what they were when they were introduced, but now, I have most all of the products and I plan to get MORE!

I would suggest buying the starter kit to begin your journey.  Go to DecoArt (click on the blue) to see what they offer.  While you are there, CHECK OUT the hundreds of FREE PATTERNS that are available to you...I think you will be quite pleased with the variety.
 
 I didn't have the exact products that were used in the video, so I did my own thing...I sure had nothing to lose.  I took the BLACK MODELING PASTE and spread it on the paper mache box randomly....I did this with my finger.  If you don't have black, then use white or even use gesso...The goal is to get some texture.  You get texture simply by stamping, so see what you have and use what you've got!

I used the Carbon (BLACK) mister to cover the box.  Don't cover it completely and leave some BLOBS...the misters leave blobs...

When this dried, I painted it with Quinacridone Gold (QG)

and THAT was IT!

To get rid of the "shine" of the paints,

 I covered them with Ultra Matte Varnish.

Look at this picture...isn't that the COOLEST THING? 

 I know, it is JUST PAINT,

 but this Paint is making me VERY HAPPY.

What would I do differently?  I would leave more of the paper mache showing because see that light brown in the pictures...it looks AMAZING!!  That light color is where I left the paper mache uncovered with paste or paint BEFORE I painted it with the QG!

I am MORE than pleased with my first attempt at doing this and I can't wait until my mind gives me more ideas...but I only hope it is NOT before I am about to fall asleep...

I used DecoArt Chalky Finish TREASURE to paint the bottom of the box.  I sanded it to give it a worn look to match the rust.

 I wanted to show how nicely you can transfer your pattern on top of the Ultra Matte Varnish.

Note to self:  Turn the transfer paper to the RIGHT SIDE because, really, tracing a pattern ONTO the BACK of the pattern does NOBODY any good...sigh...

HURRY, if you would like to buy this pattern for $1.00, go visit Susan Kelley at PUDDLES OF PAINT (click on this to take you to the site).  The sale ends on June 10, 2015!  You will WANT to buy more than ONLY one!!  CHOP CHOP...times a tickin'

 This painting, called CLASSY CHICK, is dedicated to ALL of my CLASSY CHICKS...you KNOW who you are Susan, Kathy, Lynn, Ramona, Nancy, 3 Lisa's, Michele, Suzie Q, Wendy, Mindy, Sheila, Kat, Diane, Lois, Jan, Karalee, Anne, Gloria, Judy, Margaret and WELL, I'm going to stop naming names because there are DOZENS of YOU....REALLY...LOTS of YOU and I wouldn't trade YOUR friendship for all the riches of the world, because YOU make my world RICH!

I put English Red Oxide Antiquing Creme on the bottom of the box to carry out the aged look...I really do LIKE this!  I HOPE you will give this technique a TRY..

ALWAYS embrace new opportunities...new products...new ideas...CHANGE can be your friend!  Don't be afraid and by all means, don't feed the old demon of I'VE NEVER DONE IT THAT WAY BEFORE AND I DON'T WANT TO CHANGE...you are robbing your creativity of endless possibilities!

Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the world.

Embrace Life...CELEBRATE EVERY DAY...Blessings to YOU...~charlotte

Puddle of Paint Spring Challenge, Wednesday, May 27, 2015

WHEW...I got it finished!  I belong to a FUN CLUB called PUDDLES OF PAINT.  Designer, Susan Kelley, provides 2 patterns each month, JUST FOR US and then will give us some challenges to create throughout the year.

Susan has been WONDERFUL.  I have been lucky to get to know her a bit, and she is so helpful, friendly and down to earth....and FUNNY!!  I LOVE her!  She has become a friend and a mentor who is always willing to answer any questions that I may have...She inspires me and encourages me.  I am THANKFUL for getting to cross her path!

When I first got on FB, I was afraid to chat with anyone who had LOTS of likes on their pages, and talking to a BIG BRUSH was so out of the question, but then, I remembered something that Mother taught me growing up...ALL PEOPLE put their britches on one leg at a time!

I have gotten more opportunities than I could ever dream possible...MANY of these dreams are things I never knew to dream...

I have met some wonderfully helpful people in my fb journey, and I have soaked up as much knowledge as I could!

I am a Helping Artist through DecoArt~~another dream I had no idea was a possibility, but because of a friend sharing and encouraging me, I was accepted into the program.  I have used DecoArt products in my painting for over 20 years and I LOVE them.

DecoArt has recently come out with a new line of products especially for mixed media.  I have been fascinated with this, because I LOVE to learn new techniques. I recently saw a post from a person asking WHAT is the big deal with MIXED MEDIA...she went on to say she had NO IDEA what people did with the "stuff" they made...I was SO DISAPPOINTED in this person...Reminds me of the old CHURCH saying, "We've NEVER done it THAT WAY before and WHY change something that works!" ...heavy sigh...

I don't understand WHY people feel the need to attempt to BASH things they don't like, especially if it causes no harm...IF you don't prefer to DO SOMETHING, then DON'T...People really don't CARE and by all means, don't be so condescending to others who ENJOY EMBRACING CREATIVITY in other forms!  OK...off of my soap box for a little while...

I thought this challenge was a perfect time to use some of these wonderful products and to step out of my comfort zone that I know so well.  I really had FUN with this...SO, I took a few pictures along the way and thought I would share what I did...

First, I used a stamp to put on a piece of paper and then I printed the words I wanted to use on this piece...

 I Then used the Misters to spray on the background...These are SO MUCH FUN...I put the paint on fairly thick and then took a crumpled up piece of packing bubbles and picked off some of the paint to get a texture...I had so much paint, that it kept seeping back over the texture, so I worked quickly and then blasted it with my hairdryer...HA...can't defeat ME!

I painted the face, arms and legs with the media fluid acrylics.  It takes very little paint since they are highly pigments...You will see in the top right, that I cut the dress and purse from scrapbook paper.  I used Decou-Page Matte to glue it in place!

I added some color around the dress, purse, ears and nose!!  Isn't she SWEET!!  Anyone who follows me might have noticed that I paint my bunnies grey...WHY?  Because I HAVE GREY HARE, um, Hair!  teeheheeeheeeee

I painted 4 wooden butterflies that I had bought at JoAnn's in the mixed media aisle...Yes, I have a habit of buying things with NO CLUE what I will do with them, but SEEEEEEE...they were JUST WHAT I NEEDED!

This is the finished piece...I printed the words on my computer onto the stamped paper...I gued on the butterflies, painted the grass and flowers...I went around the flowers with a Dimensional Writer.

I LOVE it!  The message is JUST what I needed to see.  We ALL need to follow our dreams...we ALL need to live the life we have imagined...It is ok if your imagination changes a few times along the way.  Sometimes, we have to adapt and there is nothing wrong with that!

I thought I would share the Cake I made when I Celebrated Daddy's birthday.  It was nice to remember good things about him, not that that is any different from most days.

Mother and Miss Stella made this cake DOZENS of times.  It is so easy and light.  It is wonderful with fruit over it or just with some cool whip OR with Ice Cream!  A GREAT summer dessert!

Take an Angel Food Cake and a can of crushed pineapple

 Mix the two together. Pour in a 9x13 pan. 

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

YUMMY!! Served on Mother and Daddy's wedding China that Uncle J.P. (daddy's brother) bought them as a wedding present when he was stationed in Japan.  It is Noritake, Orient.

Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the world...

I HOPE that I have inspired you in some small way

...Blessings to YOU...~charlotte

Go CONFIDENTLY in the direction of your dreams,

Live the life you've imagined.

~~Thoreau

Choosing Colors for a Design...Friday, August 8, 2014

I recently joined the Puddles of Paint Club…Click  HERE to go to Susan's site.

Susan Kelly sent us a line drawing and asked us to put OUR TWIST to it…WELL, I didn’t twist TOO much, but I did decide to use Scrapbook Paper as my background since I had a piece with lily pads on it!

I really do like Frogs…I painted them long ago and stopped because THAT wasn’t what I had time to paint, BUT in the past few years, I started painting them again…SO this line drawing had me HOPPING to paint it…

After I chose my back ground, I had to choose the colors that I wanted to use…WELL, the frog was going to be GREEN, but I had to find a green that would stand out, so I chose Sour Apple.  WHEN I chose the MAIN color, I had to get a color that I could use to SHADE and to Highlight…I decided to go to the DecoArt’s website to find the colors that they suggested that I could use…Click  HERE  to visit this HELPFUL site…You will want to bookmark this link for future reference.

I went through this process several more times as I decided WHICH colors that I wanted to use…OFTEN we choose the colors we want to paint with BEFORE we decide on a background, but since I had my background chosen, I was working somewhat backwards...

 I have been working on painting backgrounds the past few months.  I painted SHAPES for so long that I never had to put any thought into a background  AND I also thought that IF I painted a design well, then the background would NOT matter…WRONG!!

Choosing a background is the same process as choosing a wall color or a piece of furniture…I think of the background as the PILLOWS on the couch…the Couch is often what we spend the most time with, BUT it is the PILLOWS that give it that POP when we add different textures, colors, shapes and designs…

I think it is important to carry the colors of your design ONTO the background so that your eye will be drawn into the painting.  Since I had my background, I decided that the mushrooms in my painting needed to coordinate with the flowers, SO I chose a Raspberry color for the BIG CENTRAL mushroom…The other colors were chosen in the same intensity, or hue, as the Raspberry…Once I had chosen my colors, then it was on to painting…

Charcoal says: REAL BOY DOGS chew PINK (French Mauve) Paint Bottles!!  LOL

I painted the edge of my wooden piece with Avocado, which was a main color in the paper.  I used Decou-Page to glue the paper to my wood…I didn’t worry about cutting the paper to fit exactly because once it was dry, I used a piece of sandpaper to trim the paper to fit~~just sand along the edge...you might need to reapply your paint on the wood, OR leave as is for a worn look...when this happens, I often antique it.

I coated the paper with  Satin Decou-Page again…NOW this is where I am not certain that I did the right thing…MAYBE I should have painted directly on the paper, but I didn’t…it MIGHT not have taken as many coats of paint to get a smooth coverage…I will be experimenting with this.

I added several coats of white paint to the design to cover the design from the paper…THEN I started building the colors…

I based everything…

Then I added the details…

AND more details…

I will be adding two coats of the Satin Decou-Page to seal the design and I THINK I will be sending this plaque down the road to a friend who ALSO loves frogs…It will need to HOP in the mail SOON…

I hope that you will take some designs and be unafraid to make the colors YOUR own…We as designers do what WE LIKE…we are just instruments to spark YOUR creativity…

Enjoy…Blessings to YOU…~charlotte♥ 

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