Mechanical Elements

I arranged and stuck down an array of different resin elements with nothing in mind of what I was going to do with the rest of the project!!

I added a steampunk industrial paper to the bottom and then stencilled over the top of it with 3d gel so it would be clear when dry. I used various different types of paints on the resin pieces until I got what I liked.

I printed, cut out the added the AHW image. I printed it out quite large to fit in the bottom corner.

I added some metal cogs to the image.

I added some gold coloured wax to bring the background out as I'd used clear 3d gel.

Close up of the coloured resin and metal embellishments using acrylic paints, metallic paints and sparks.

Outlined the image with midnight blue Art bar and added a sentiment.

Ray Ray’s Creative Circus Class of 2024 - Part 2 - Finnabair

 

After a mammoth task of trying to find a supermarket to buy some lunch and being run off the road by a fire chief in an unmarked car, we finally got back to the hotel in order to make a canvas like the one above with Anna (Finnabair).

So Anna's style of teaching is completely different and she has everyone come up to the top table so that she can demo what to do.  

So the plan was to gesso the wood, then use three different colours of acrylic, water them down and create a sort of wood effect on one half.  The more water, the more streaks.

Next we added tissue paper to the top half and dried it thoroughly because the next step was to add guilding flakes. I chose to use all 3 available colours (gold, silver and copper) and on the wings of the moth.

There were lots of different colour combos going on.

Everyone still having fun.

Next step was to create the composition and unfortunately I totally forgot to take any more photos, so here is what I ended up with.

 

I used the same 3 colours of acrylic (avocado, umber and ink black) that I used for the bottom half. We then used white gesso and gesso'd all of the elements.  I took the black acrylic and painted around the outside of all the elements and used lots and lots of water to get the drip lines on the bottom half and dried each time between the spritzing.  Now the next thing we did is totally new to me, I used a matt wax (sage leaves) but like paint and totally covered all the elements.  Next I used a green metallic paint and randomly painted over the waxed areas using lots and lots of water, sort of washing the paint away but leaving the mica behind.  This also created more drips for me. I kept drying between adding more water.  Once happy with this, I chose the silver metallic wax and used it to bring back the highlights on the elements for a contrast.  I still have to stick the moth and add some pebbles.

And a huge thank you to Anna for bringing my prize with her from the latest patreons party.  This is so generous because there is only half of it here, I shared the paper with Janet.

I absolutely love these sticker sheets.

I am happy to say that the drive home was much less eventful than the journey down there. In fact, nothing happened at all - lol.

Elivs - Decorated Vinyl

 

As I am one of Finnabair patreons, I had to try out this fab idea that she showed on one of her live sessions.  So off I went to the car boot to find a vinyl LP. It was dead easy as there were loads for sale, but I settled for Elvis.

I added some stencilling to the background using icing paste.

Next I added some woodland finds, random twigs and poppy seeds.

Next I added some chipboard circles and cogs.

I started to play around with the placement of some moulds, new and old.

This is the finished piece. Not my usual colours.

I decided to challenge myself to mainly pink and red, but a bit of blue and purple crept in too.

I can't tell you what I used as I just kept going until I liked it.

I used mica powders, paints and sprays.

I added splatters to the places where there were no embellishments.

Love how the colours just mixed and ran into each other.

And the final piece again and apologies for my arms at the bottom, but there was glare from the vinyl.

Industrial Style Plaque

 

I painted a piece of recycled wood with black gesso. I pulled a few bits and bobs out to go with the circuit board.

I stencilled on the substrate and started to stick the elements down with heavy body gel.

Gave everything a couple of coats of white gesso.

Next I added paint, I used burnt sienna, raw umber, watered down.

I then went on to use Prussian blue and sap green, again spraying with water and drying as I went along.

I then went over some areas again with white gesso to calm some of the colour down.

I literally just carried on until I was happy with the look.

And lastly I used some Finn waxes to high-light some areas and to add depth.

I also tried to create a rustic grungy look.

I also tried to create a patina look to the piece.

Up-cycled Skeleton Plaque

This is the front of a kitchen drawer that was being thrown out.

Painted it with black gesso then used grunge paste through a couple of stencils.

Once dried, I painted over it in black gesso.

I made a mould from a skeleton that I was given by a friend. Then I cast it in fast cast resin.

Got a few more bits and bobs out and started to build a composition.

Dry brushed the background with silver to bring out the texture from the stencils.

I used various purples and blues to paint the background pieces.

Close up of the top of the composition.

The skeleton clothing is coloured with pewter treasure gold and the bones of the skelly are coloured with old white matte wax by Finn.

I painted the cross gold as I wanted it to stand out.

Another close up of the various elements.

And finally, the finished piece.

I usually paint all the different embellishments / elements before I stick them down, but this time I glued them down, painted everything black and then added colour.