spring discoveries

Hi everyone,

I am so excited this share my Pinworthy Guest post project for A Vintage Journey. 

I created this piece for their May Challenge: Words and Music,

 which is currently underway.

Coming off a winter season that has seemed to be never-ending this year, I knew in my heart that spring was on its way, the morning I awoke to the glorious sounds of birds singing. It brought joy to my heart and peace to my soul. This was the inspiration behind my "words and music" piece. I have created a panel covered with vintage sheet music that has been coated with vintage beeswax embossing powder to create a faux encaustic appearance. I am in love with the new Baked Textures Embossing Powders by Seth Apter/Emerald Creek. The Vintage Beeswax is the perfect translucency. After coating the paper with embossing ink, I sprinkled the powder and heated it. This process should be completed multiple times to create the faux encaustic look. Each time you add another layer, the depth and richness get better.

 In my excitement to start, I embossed the paper with two layers before I realized I should have adhered it to the panel first. Using collage medium, I adhered the paper to a canvas board that had been painted with black paint. I weighed it down to assure that it would lay flat and set aside to dry. While that is drying, I select my focal image from the Tim Holtz Wallflower paper stash. I fussy cut the image of birds on a branch. This piece is inked around the edges with distress ink in walnut stain.

 I select a scrap of burlap, then select some alpha chips and label letters to form the words that will be placed at the top of the panel. Using distress ink, I ink the Alpha Chips around the edges to give them a more vintage appearance. While trying different layouts, I decide to replace the printed branch with a clipping from a real pussy willow.

Envisioning the birds gathering bits and fibers to create their nests for spring, I embed the scrap of burlap along the left side of the panel using the embossing powder while I add the final layers of embossing on the sheet music. I attach the bird's claw to the pussy willow.

I then add the birds, letters and words to the panel. Another clipping of pussy willow that has catkins, is attached on top of the burlap using the embedding method.   

 An Idea-ology "DISCOVERIES" word band, that has black soot distress crayon rubbed into the crevices, is adhered to the bottom of the panel.

I am so thankful for this opportunity to be a Pinworthy Guest for A Vintage Journey.

 I hope that you are inspired to create something for this month's challenge. 

You have until the end of May to submit your project on their site.