good friday triptych

Hi everyone, today I am on the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts blog sharing this special piece.
I can't quite believe that Easter is almost here. I know that many people celebrate in various ways; my family is very traditional. We attend religious services during holy week, including the sacred triduum. One of the most powerful services, for me, is on Good Friday. I have created this triptych to honor the sacrifice that took place on that day.

I began with Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts arch top triptych. This consists of 6 pieces, 3 solid backs and 3 decorative open fronts. I want the piece to have the look of an antique icon; many of the ones I have seen are gilded with undertones of red.

In order to achieve this look, I first paint the pieces with Distress Paint in candied apple.

Once the paint is dry, I coat the front panels with embossing ink and sprinkle it with ancient amber Baked Texture embossing powder. Baked Texture is a collaboration between artist, Seth Apter and Emerald Creek Craft Supplies, and I love the finishes it creates. I use a heat gun to melt the powder.

I search the internet and find the perfect image to put into my piece. I download The Crucifixion with the Virgin, Saint John, Saint Jerome, and Saint Mary Magdalene from useum.org. The image is perfect for my project and also free of copyrights.

 

I print the image three times and cut each section to fit on its respective panel. The right and left side images are slightly narrower than their openings. I extend each side image by painting along the right and left edges with Distress Paint in tarnished brass and set aside to dry. While this is drying, I align and attach hinges to the three panels. Although the hinges have mini screws that can be used for attachment, these will be sandwiched between the front and back panels so I use collage medium to hold them in place. I allow the adhesive to dry completely.

I would like the back sides  of the triptych to look aged and somewhat decorative. Using a Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz gothic stencil, I apply embossing ink through the stencil onto the painted back side and sprinkle with more Ancient Amber Baked Texture and heat emboss to the desired finish. This same procedure is completed on each of the three panels. I die cut a bible verse and edge the piece with the Ancient Amber as well. This is adhered to the bottom area of the middle panel and allowed to dry overnight. 

 Each image adhered to their respective panels is coated with a generous  layer of Distress Collage Medium Crazing. When dry, this creates a cracked appearance typical of an old painting. 

The last step is adhering the top frames to each panel. I use collage medium on the underside of each frame and put it into place. Each frame is weighted down to ensure it remains flat until it is completely dry. 

Once dry the triptych is ready for display.

Wishing everyone a blessed Easter!

 May the coming spring inspire you to create something wonderful! 

~Ann

liberty paper doll

Hi everyone, I was recently invited to join a paper doll swap group by one of my artist friends, 

Jackie P Neal. She is wonderfully creative; if you aren't familiar with her work,

 a stop by her blog Creating Without Crayons is a great place to start. 

I was so happy that Jackie invited me to be a part of this group. I look forward to sharing my creations, as well as their respective swaps, so along with my usual posts, these will pop up occasionally and hopefully you will find other artists that may inspire you.

The theme for the first swap was artist choice.

Using some of my favorite Character Constructions doll stamps, by Catherine Moore,  I created Liberty. She is made up of stamps from the paris flea, and french laundry collections. I have always had a love of all things patriotic and wanted to create my doll with that in mind. I chose papers in that color theme (red, white, and blue) and a stamp that I felt expressed strength and pride. Her crown and necklace charm are finished with some of my new favorite, Baked Texture, embossing powders in Deep Sea with a bit of ancient amber sprinkled in. I added red rhinestones around her neck for the charm to hang from. With a name like Liberty, she needed a torch, so I created one to fit in her hand. Here are a few more close-up pictures:

            

            

Swap partners in the group are chosen randomly. I am so fortunate, this initial exchange, to be swapping with another artist whose work I have admired for quite a while, Linda Edkins Wyatt. If you haven't seen her work, her blog is wonderful, definitely take a minute to check it out! Here are some pictures of the fabulous doll I received from Linda:

She arrived without a name, and I haven't had a chance to give her one yet, I have been too excited to consider what name might suit her best. She is is outfitted with the most gorgeous skirting, and all the beautiful patterns and textures that make her limbs add to her beauty. Another one of my favorite parts is her torso, the embossing of the word "seek" and that cool reclaimed watch piece are amazing. 

                         

                                         

I just love how she is jointed in so many places. Especially at her knees and elbows so she can do these cool yoga poses. How awesome are those funky shoes! She is so much fun, I really love her.

I hope you have enjoyed seeing our creations. If you are interested in joining the group, please don't hesitate to ask here, in the comments, or head over to the Paper Doll tab on Jackie's site to find out all the details!

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Enjoy your day, I hope it's a creative one!

~Ann

giraffe's gilly

 Hi everyone, today I am on the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Blog sharing "giraffe's gilly" my vintage circus wagon.
I was recently fortunate enough to see The Greatest Showman at the theatre. Wow, I was completely in awe of the incredible sets and costumes, and most amazing music. I found myself wondering how I could alter one of my Gypsy Soul Laser Cut boxes into a vintage circus wagon; as a multitude of fabulous visions from the film were playing through my head, I could not wait to get started.

I began with the ATC Shrine Box. This box arrives flat and contains five pieces. It is easiest to figure out how the pieces fit together before adhering paper or any adhesive. This box will form the cart portion of the wagon. The cart will sit on four 1" Wheels. 

Using a quick grab tacky glue, I assemble the box and set it aside. While it is drying, I consider papers for the exterior and interior of the piece that will be rich in color and convey the circus theme I have in mind. I select a red and white striped paper for the interior.  I cut an eight inch long strip of paper that equals the interior height of the box. I measure the interior of the box from left to right for depth and width and mark those measurements on the strip of paper. It is always best to measure twice and cut once, so I double check that I have the correct measurements and then cut the strip the appropriate length. I score the strip at 7/8" from each end to wrap the interior.

I envision a wagon that transports circus animals from city to city. This type of wagon requires a caged opening.  The front/caged side of the wagon will have a decorative opening for the cage to attach to. I first cut a piece of red Distress cardstock that covers the entire opening. Using a Tim Holtz Sizzix labels die, I center it where I would like the opening to be and run it through the die cutting machine. A modified Tim Holtz Gothic Gate die cut will create the cage. This cage piece is covered with embossing ink and coated with Emerald Creek charred gold embossing powder and heat set.

All of the remaining exterior sides of the box are painted with Distress Paint in fired brick and candied apple. Once the red coat has completely dried, I apply  Distress Paint in walnut stain and black soot with a stiff dry brush to create the a time worn patina.  This process is also used to paint the wheel housings. The interior ceiling of the wagon is painted with a coat of antique linen and the floor is painted with a mixture of antique linen and walnut stain. The floor will be covered later with a thin layer of straw pieces.

After the paint has completely dried, I adhere the paper to the interior. I add a metallic remnant rub in each upper corner. I resize a piece of Tim Holtz "traveler" ephemera, and add details with a gold gelly roll pen. This is inked around the edges and adhered to the back wall. Once the interior is complete, the caged panel frame is applied to the open face of the box. Ideology stars are added in each upper corner and a fussy cut CIRCUS banner is attached to the topmost center. 
When attaching the wheels to the wagon, I want the wheels to be situated apart from the housing. To do this I place a very small wooden bead between the wheel and the housing with hot glue. A brass nail serves as an axle to align and hold all the pieces together and another wooden bead is located one the inside of the housing. After assembling all four wheels and housings, I attach them to each side of the wagon.

The back side of the wagon is covered with circus posters. I searched for images of vintage circus signs and resized them to be a compatible scale for the wagon. Once they were printed, I cut them out, distressed the edges with ink, crumpled them, and rolled the corners to make them look authentic. I arranged the pieces to create a desirable layout and adhered them to the box.  I also added a pennant banner punched from Tim Holtz paper and strung on jute string.

 My wagon would not be complete without an occupant. I found wonderfully vintage circus giraffe and elephant images that I fussy cut. The giraffe stands inside his gilly, eager to arrive at the next destination.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog today,
 I hope that you have an experience that inspires you to create something.
~Ann