Dig out your art books

sketchbook ideas / /

I usually get my books from the library. But I do have a few that I purchased.

Art books for inspiration

Today I pulled out a few in search for sketchbook inspiration. I got a few ideas right away and did not get through the whole stack.  So I encourage you to gather a few art books that have been on the shelf for a while and flip through them for fresh ideas.

Poetry

I was reminded that I like to do black out poems and collage poems.

collage poem

I am not sure I should even call them “poems”. They are a collection of words that moved me and they may not make sense. But they are fun to do.

found words poem

I like to do black out poems in large print books. It is easier to highlight the words.

black out poem

REX RAY

inspired collage was project number 2 that I chose to do. I really love his early magazine collage project.

REX RAY

I like the simple shapes and non-precious material. I think the sheer volume of his collages is part of the impact. I did a couple of simple collages. I tried to embrace the less is more approach.

rex ray inspired collage

So I encourage you to gather a few art books and look for sketchbook ideas. And as soon as you have one idea stop looking through the books and execute the idea. Jump right into action. Or you can check out the classes that I have available as self-study. Enjoy!

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Get the most from your drawings

drawings / /

Lately I have been using my older sketchbooks as reference for drawings in my current sketchbooks. This works well for me since I don’t love to draw and often I am searching for a subject.

photocopy drawings and add to sketchbook

In the example above I simply glued in a photocopy of the original sketch. I printed it on cream colored paper.

copy your own drawings into your current sketchbook

I this second example I drew a fresh copy of the original sketchbook entries. I am not aiming for exact duplicates, just inspired replicas.

tea bag and sharpie drawingsBut I am most excited to share with you the tea bag and sharpie process that I used above. I get 2 new “originals” for the effort of one.

  • My reference drawing is then in the middle with pink cheeks.
  • I layered and taped the tea bag to the small piece of white drawing paper.
  • Then drew the face with a black sharpie.
  • The sharpie bleeds through, with varies intensity to the white paper and
  • I get the second copy for free!

A couple of tips:

  • Use an ultra fine tip sharpie or a fine tip for bolder marks
  • Don’t pause or you will get heavy spots of ink
  • Add color after
  • Use fresh tea bag for a white drawing

Check out the current classes available online.

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Make unique fabric for your projects

fabric prints, gelatin prints on fabric, monotype print / /

I have piles of hand printed fabric. I have actually stopped making more until I use up some of what I already have.

piles of gelatin printed fabric ready for projects

I have made a few quilts and now have more quilts than I can use.

piecing together a quilt

I covered some bricks with hand printed cloth to use as book weights. I do use these quite a bit and I think 6 big book weights is  enough for my little studio.

book weights covered with fabric

I used heat-n-bond to transform some of the monoprinted fabric into book cloth. The heat-n-bond is applied to the fabric then thin rice paper is stuck to the other side. This creates a barrier so the glue does not seep through the fabric. Then I covered a few artists books.

notebook covered with gelatin printed fabric

I love composition notebooks. I covered a few with the hand printed fabric.

I love bags. I am definitely a bag lady. And yet surprisingly I have only stitched up one little shoulder bag.  I think a big beach bag may be my next project.

crossbody bag made with hand printed fabric

If  you are wanting to make some unique hand printed fabric, then check out the workshop, Monoprinted Fabric.

I am offering a 25% discount on this class for the next few weeks. It is a comprehensive class with 12 different techniques for gelatin printing on fabric.

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Try Gelatin printing on Fabric

gelatin prints on fabric / /

I first gel printed on paper and loved the detailed impressions that I was able to capture.

delicate gelatin print on paper

Then I started to experiment with printing on fabric. Quickly I realized that I needed to adjust my approach and techniques.

piles of hand printed fabric
piles of hand printed fabric

The first thing I changed was the inks. I have experimented with  a lot of inks and paints and choose to use screen printing ink.

inks for make monoprints on fabric with the gelatin plate

Another adaptation was to work on dampened fabric to encourage the transfer of ink.

make marks on fabric

Then I had to adjust my expectations and embrace the unique nature of the process.  I found that I could pick up adjunct types of marks that were not directly from the gelatin plate. I was learning  to make the most of the process.

Use gelatin printed fabric for sewing projects

That is why I put together the Monoprint Fabric, online course. It is a comprehensive class that includes 12 different techniques.

This class is for you if you want to create a stash of one of a kind fabric for your sewing projects.

make a quilt with gelatin printed fabric

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Ebb and flow of creating

inspiration / /

It has been a good summer for small boat sailing, here in New England. There are a lot of factors that affect the decision to sail:

  • the wind speed and direction
  • the timing of the tides
  • and for me whether my brothers are willing to drag the boat over the beach to the shore.sunfish sailing

Creating is like sailing. Some days are better than others, but even on a “bad” day I can find something good about it.

I do the best I can given the conditions. Sometimes:

  • It is hard to get started, but after I do start I find myself enjoying it
  • The conditions are not ideal, like the studio is 90 degrees, so I print in short bursts of time.
  • There could be factors beyond my control and I just need to take a day off from creating.

doodling in sketchbook

I have created little travel kits, so I can create at home, in my car, or at the beach. This way I increase my chances of finding the time and energy to create. I can roll with the ebb and flow of my energy.

My travel kits are nothing special, just a baggie of markers, a pen, some small stamps and a journal.sketch travel kit

I have tried the more complex sketchbook kits, with watercolors and such, but they were too much for me and I never used them. We need to try lots of options and then do what works for each of us individually.

stamps sketchbook page

I find taking an art class can help with the ebb and flow of creation. I am following a couple of classes right now. I don’t always do the lessons as assigned. I try to take what is offered and tweak it to my style.

For example, the assignment was to collage in found images, as a background.  I adjusted it and collaged in photocopies of my own images. This feels more meaningful to me.

collage in sketchbook

So I encourage you to:

  • be open to the ebb and flow of making stuff
  • try a small travel kit specific to you
  • maybe take a class and tweak the lessons to your needs

If you like self paced online classes, then check out the classes I have to offer. Enjoy!

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