LOVE: Index-Card-A-Day 2012: 6/28/12

For so long I have been blown away by some scrapbook pages - the kind with the sort of minimalist use of space with a lot of design and embellishment in one area around the photo. Particularly the work of Finnabair makes my brain pop. It's amazing, and I would love to speak to this artist about her work. 

After several attempts at this type of collage, I had kind of given up on getting it how I wanted. But I am not one to give up that easily. So I studied her work and the work of her peers. I studied the composition, layers, and colors. I deconstructed the pieces in my head and put them back together.

Of course this made for a good Index-Card-A-Day 2012 challenge. I'm trying NEW things for #icad2 and using up supplies I haven't even touched or have been saving forever. Time to open the scrap box...

... and pull everything out but the kitchen sink! Here we have random book pages, tickets, a cardboard coffee sleeve, tags, baker's twine, staples, stars, old paper from books and ledgers, sheet music, a paper clip, envelopes, a money band, washi tape, canvas, embroidery trim, a star brad, hangtag packaging, and stitching. 

I literally spent hours and hours fiddling, and that turned into about three days of pushing bits and bobs around to get this done. I simply had to walk away from it several times to clear my head. At one point, all of it finally "clicked into place" - the layers, the arrangement, colors, and textures. 

A lot of this was experimentation. Not knowing where I'm going with something can be very freeing to me. I asked things of my paper punches that only a mad scientist would try. I added some collage. Then went to the sewing machine. Then to the paint, and on and on until basically I made a tour of my studio in supplies and paper ephemera. 

My goal was to use these things in an "as is" condition as much as possible. I love how the ledger paper holes look as a design element. The letters for "LOVE" are stamped on the edge of a vintage dictionary page; I wanted to preserve the red edges as well as take advantage of the natural patina of the old paper.  

I'm happy with the result. Even more though, I am happy that I TRIED this. Even if it had turned out to be a total FAIL, I still faced the edges of my comfort zone with courage and smashed those barriers to smithereens. I cannot recommend anything more highly than getting off your duff and doing that thing which scares you most in your art. 

Just. Do. It.

It's just paper, after all. Right? 

Right.  

- Vickie

"Home Sweet Home" ICAD2 for 6/21/12

Ok, I might be making the Index-Card-A-Day Challenge a little more challenging than I hoped and/or planned. I've just been so inspired! I didn't realize my brain needed a little discipline to work on something everyday, and now I am hungry, hungry, hungry for art all the time. I LOVE this!
This card is from June 21, 2012. It definitely took me more than one day to do this. I'm not getting a card a day done -  and I gave myself permission to do that at the start. However, I do believe I am still benefitting from this challenge like crazy. If I'm not getting one card a day done then I am at least working on one (or two or three at a time) each day. AND THAT COUNTS.


This house, bird, and nest image is something I've worked on before in different formats - for domino pendants and ATCs. Now I felt it needed an ICAD2 work-up. 
I started by making a house shaped template that fit the index card. I cut the house out of another index card, pasted scrapbook paper over it, and added the tissue tape. Then I stitched around the edges on my sewing machine.  
The sky is layered torn dictionary pages secured with matte medium. I added some watered down blue paint then splattered really watery gesso over it. I left the torn edges because they reminded me of deckled edges on handmade paper. The edge was then shaded with a darker blue Copic marker. 
The lettering is hand stamped in red pigment ink - which I had to stamp a billion times because I always mess up the last letter and ruin it. It's matted with dark red cardstock. The edges are inked to "age" and soften them. 


The bird and nest images are from flickr's collage images group. I love the detail and texture in these pieces. My printer went light on the ink for this printing - not sure why. I went back over the pictures with colored pencils to bring out the color more. The gleaming highlight in the bird's eye is a dot of white gel pen. I also highlighted the eggs with white gel pen. 


After I adhered the bird and nest to the background it all looked very flat. I used colored pencils to shade around the bird and nest for some dimension. It really perked the piece up. I also ran a thin line of dark brown pencil to the very edges of the paper of the collage images to bring them out more. 


Oh, how I love using foreign postage stamps in my collage! I have about 20 pounds of old stamps (anyone need any?). I chose this one for the color and the country of origin - France - so it would tie in with the tissue tape behind it that has French on it.  


The back of the index card has the stitching I did with my sewing machine. I love sewing on paper. I'm stamping the date the card is finished on the back. I should go back and add some more details to the information of the piece. 

"home sweet home" Index-Card-A-Day2
Mixed media & paper collage on index card
3"x 5"
© 2012 Victoria Porter/In My Head Studios

This ICAD2 looks adorable on a tiny easel I found at the craft store! 

I am a bit behind on posting more ICADs that I have finished. There's much more to come!

- Vickie

What's On My Worktable? : Wednesday

It's Wednesday! Time to peek at my work table for "What's On Your Worktable Wednesday" over at The Stamping Ground blog! 

Today I am working on another Index-Card-A-Day (ICAD2). I'm going to use the red thread to sew around the house shape - which is my ICAD for today. The postage stamp, bird, and nest will be going on the house. For the buttons, I am still undecided. They sure do look good with the colors in the ICAD. Might have to get them into the design somehow.  

The paper covered spool is part of a gift for my bestie so I cannot say more about it just yet. :)

I just noticed in the photo that you can see the back of my scrap paper - an old unused coupon from my favorite craft store! Seriously folks, I recycle everything. 

Also of interest, the amount of space on my table shown here is pretty much all that is cleared off enough to work in. Hello, Six Inch Square Club! 

- Vickie

Butterfly: Index-Card-A-Day for June 10, 2012

“Experience is not what happens to you. It’s what you do with what happens to you.”

Rochester in the spring is lush lush lush. Flowers, trees, and everything else are blooming and verdant. It’s like the Garden of Eden around here lately complete with budding raspberry bushes right next to my driveway. 

The colors in the Spring 2012 Distress Ink palette were calling to me amidst the yellow, teal, and lavender of my neighbors’ gardens. 

I’ll admit I'm a newbie when it comes to working with Distress Inks. I’m an old-school stamper and still prefer my pigment inks for their brightness and colorfastness. As a mixed media artist I rarely plan which medium will be next in my work, and I often have to plan for something wet – like watery paint, matte medium or Mod Podge – to be spread across all or part of a piece. Using inks that are water-reactive like Distress Inks have only led to heartbreak learning this lesson the hard way. Bleeds. Smears. Oh, and tears.* 

So I’ve shied away from them. However, I must admit that I adore the color palette of the whole line and the amazingly inspiring Tim Holtz. I figure I better learn how to use them properly since I bought several pads. 

So I goofed around with them on my Index-Card-A-Day for June 10th! If I messed it up – it’s JUST an index card (plus hours of work – but, hey, that’s part of the artistic process, right?). 

I started out with the colors Squeezed Lemonade, Peacock Feathers, and Shaded Lilac. Using a foam blending tool I shaded the index card starting with the yellow, then on to the teal, and then the lilac. The yellow and teal blended to make a lovely greenish color. The teal and lilac made a shade of blue like the sky at twilight – an impossible ultramarine blue. The lilac ink wasn’t quite as dark as I wanted so I added some Dusty Concord. 

The butterflies were stamped with Peacock Feathers ink to keep the color scheme balanced. I inked the text stamp behind the sentiment with both Peacock Feathers and Shaded Lilac being careful to not get too much ink contamination between the pads. I wanted the text to blend in with the two colors I already laid down. That worked way better than I thought it would. These inks were beginning to score + points at this stage. I even splattered some water on the background to take advantage of the effect that creates. 

To make the 3D butterfly I inked part of an index card scrap with Squeezed Lemonade to match the background. Then I stamped the same butterfly in Peacock Feathers and cut it out. Using my extra sparkly gel pen I drew in lines and dots on the wings. Using the foam blending tool I inked the edges of the wings with teal and a bit of the Dusty Concord to give it dimension. I carefully folded the wings up and made the body curve a bit. The antennae are repurposed fake flower middles! 

The sentiment is stamped on an index card, as well. How lucky is it that the lines kind of matched up well?! The edges of this were inked with lilac. Next I added brads to anchor this piece. There’s a bit of tissue tape behind the sentiment and under the key embellishment. I tied a little purple ribbon to the key before gluing it down with Glossy Accents. That stuff is amazing as glue. 

The yellow flowers started as white flowers I bought in a giant glass milk bottle. Again with the foam blending tool I inked them with Squeezed Lemonade to match the card. They are adorned with a sparkly brads and adhered with Glossy Accents. Each flower is made of three flowers. 

For a little more texture I distressed the edges of the whole card. I love how much that adds in such a simple way. 

I am quite thrilled I took the time to learn more about Distress Inks this way. There’s no learning without some mad scientist experimentation, right? 

Did I know what I was doing? NOT REALLY! That’s why I went ahead and did it anyway! 

I encourage you to go try something new – something you have no idea how to use that has been in your crafty stash for a while. Grab an index card and JUST DO IT! Whether it works out or not I guarantee you will most certainly learn something. 

My mantra: “It’s just paper!” 

* If you happen to know what I could use to put over these Distress Inks so they don't smear or bleed into my next layers of work, I would be very happy to hear it!

- Vickie

Shopping Trip: Index-Card-A-Day 2012

My Index-Card-A-Day 2012 for June 11th, chronicles my shopping trip to the craft store with my beloved mom. 

I really just needed ONE white gel pen after mine went missing. So that was the plan when we went into the craft store. I employed the no cart or basket "if I can't carry it in my arms to the checkout then I don't need it" tactic. Otherwise I spend way too much on all the lovely goodies there. I was also hoping to find some embellishments for my travel journal - but not too many. 

I thought my index card for that day should be made with just the supplies I bought that day. I got some Tim Holtz tissue tape, alpha-cards and vial labels, Smash tape, K&Co borders (the tickets), and two white gel pens. The only things on here not purchased that day are the black paper, alpha stamps for the date, ink, and the adhesives used. 

The only white gel pen that's ever worked for me is the Sakura Gelly Roll. I know others swear by the Inkssentials and/or the Uni-ball Signo. Those just frustrate me by not laying down ink and have to be reworked more than I care for.  

The "M" card stands for my mom and the store name Michael's. I tried using most of the lime green part of the tape to tell the story that Mom wore a bright lime green shirt and - as always - matching bright lime green flip flops. That woman owns a pair of matching flip flops for every color shirt she owns, which is on the loooong list of things I love about my mom. 

Also, she actually said "I don't want to hear you lament the loss of your favorite white pen all week. Let's go get one."

She totally GETS me. <3

- Vickie

Challenge! Index-Card-A-Day 2012

I am jumping into the water over at DaisyYellow for the 2012 Index-Card-A-Day Challenge! What am I talking about? Here are the details!

The 2012 Index-Card-A-Day challenge runs June 1 to July 31, 2012. Make something on an index card every day for 61 days. If you start after June 1st you do not need to catch up, really, truly, seriously, just start. This is not a fancy schmancy challenge. You don't have to be on twitter or flickr or facebook or have a blog. Just index cards!

61 days, you say? That sounded like quite the commitment... until I realized...

It doesn't have to be the Mona Lisa every day for 61 days!  

Just do something!

Well, that sounds better. All I have to do is SOMETHING. Particularly a 3" x 5" something on an index card - because that's the size I have handy. And, since I am working on practicing more kindness towards myself, there will be no beating up of my self-esteem if I miss a day. (Got that, brain? I'm talking to you.)

I can always catch back up. After all, this is a CHALLENGE! So, yeah, it's sort of going to be a challenge for me to spit out something everyday - especially on days where I can't even lift my own head. 

Plus I am starting late due to my vacation and I absolutely do not feel the need to try to catch up on 7 cards unless the mood strikes me. And that's OK! 

The card pictured above is my card for yesterday - Saturday, June 9, 2012. It was created with watercolor, colored pencils, inks, stamps, stencils, and a bit of gel pen. I like the colors on this one. It had me craving mango smoothies later that night! 

   

My Index-Card-A-Day 2012 for June 8, 2012. Created with watercolor, Pitt pens, and Copic marker. I intended to keep this one simple to start with, but the juicy watercolors were calling me and I painted this with a small waterbrush. Now I am glad I took the extra time on it.  

An amazing number of folks are getting involved! Check out the flickr group! 

I hope you will join us! Get your friends and family involved - even if it's for just one card. You will most certainly have a fun time with them making art!

I am now off for a lazy Sunday with Mr. M and hopefully more mango smoothies!

- Vickie