Magazine Paper transfer onto Wax

I have tons of fashion magazine at the house. I was a 7th Ave. Fashion Designer and a Retail Executive for a famous department store, and I admit that I LUV FASHION.  I grew up in the “garment center” and yes I am what you would call an original “Garmento”.   I had my dream and career and now I can focus on other things, like art.  But I still cannot resist going through all the glossy magazines and looking at all those red bottom shoes.

So what do I do with all the magazines. Recycle them into my artwork. Since I do not like images in my work, but I like mosaic, patterns and colors.

This video will show you how to use glossy magazines and transfer the color into encaustic wax.

How to transfer magazine paper onto wax

Experimenting with transfers

I get bored very easily with my work. I start a piece, thinking it would become a series and then I complete one piece and decide I don’t want to do another in the series. Or I start the second piece and it just is not like the first piece. I think I just fall in love with the first piece and that is that. So I thought back in my art career and the only time that I never got tired of similar techniques is when I work in shapes or collage type pieces. So I thought to combine 2 things, collage of shapes, with transfers of solid color from magazines.

As a former “fashion” person I still get every fashion and decor magazine to my house. I love them. My husband says that I would never be alone, as long as they keep publishing Vogue. I love my rainy days with my big cup of coffee and my fashion mags. Sorry but once a fashion girl, always a fashion girl. So I have tons of media to work with.

I teach encaustics and always demo transfers to the students, but I never loved it. Part is that I don’t like using anothers image in my work. But transfering color from the magazine is almost like when I did the citrasolve on the magazine paper.

So here is the start of it. Just cutting shapes of color and seeing how to apply it. So far so good. May not lead to anything, but this is sure great for my OCD.

I am in LUV with these boards

Finally was able to work in the studio today and tried out the Ampersand Encausticbord.  I filmed the video at 3pm and I have not stopped working in the studio 6 hours later.

In the video I used the small boards, but I also have a 24×24 board and when I unwrapped the board, I could not stop rubbing my hands over the surface. WOW!!! Ampersand and R&F really made a great product. I no longer will have to prep my clayboards with encaustic gesso.

So I started working on the large board and all I can say is that I finally felt that my work and the board are now one.  I know that may sound odd, but I always felt that my wax was just laying on top of my boards. No matter how much I fused.

I also like the white finish, as I always use a white ground in my work.

Besides the texture, the wax and the surface just work together. For those who have ever worked on a board that you would layer and fuse, and fuse and fuse, you may know what I am talking about.

My only problem is that there is not a local distributor in South Florida. I just hate paying for shipping.

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New Encaustic Boards…

So I huge box shows up at my house on my birthday. What could it be.

 

Ampersand Art sent me a box filled with their new encaustic panels. I cannot wait to try them out. So thank you Ampersand for the panels (the best birthday gift ever)

 

So heating up the wax, stay tuned for the review….

Started a scrapbook for inspiration

Years ago I kept scrapbooks. I would call them inspiration books. Since I was a fashion director I would always be tearing, cutting sketching and taping things into sketchbooks. I had over the years about 15 books filled. It was always fun to go back thru them and see what inspired me. Then I moved to Florida 16 years ago and the box that held all my books had been ruined by a broken water heater and out they went.
I really miss those books as I would always go back for inspiration.
So over the years I kept a file box abs would toss pictures and things in the box but it was not the same. I miss turning the pages and sketching in the margins and just looking for inspiration.

So back to basics and starting my inspiration books again.

Years ago I kept scrapbooks. I would call them inspiration books. Since I was a fashion director I would always be tearing, cutting sketching and taping things into sketchbooks. I had over the years about 15 books filled. It was always fun to go back thru them and see what inspired me. Then I moved to Florida 16 years ago and the box that held all my books had been ruined by a broken water heater and out they went.
I really miss those books as I would always go back for inspiration.
So over the years I kept a file box abs would toss pictures and things in the box but it was not the same. I miss turning the pages and sketching in the margins and just looking for inspiration.

So back to basics and starting my inspiration books again.

 

 

 

How to use Excel to create an art inventory…

When I was researching art software to purchase to keep track of my inventory, my husband reminded me that I could use Excel to create an inventory.

I use all word, excel, access, PowerPoint for my day job and never thought of using if for my art.

So I sat down at Excel and in 30 minutes had my inventory up and running. The hardest part is to just keep it up. But I found it to work well and also to work well for my graphic design business and also to inventory all the valuables in my house (even though I did videotape my house)

So I made a video and since I am an advance user in excel, I may have worked too fast for some. Please email me with any questions and I can help you or send you a starter template for this.

Good Luck!!!

Time to get focused…

as usual, I cannot focus and the nothing gets done. I go from drawing/sketching, to my encaustics to my quilting to the computer and then at the end of the week I get nothing finished. I guess I have art ADD.

So I decided to create a process for myself. I am going to create a series- sketch+sew+ paint. Originally I was going to call it Paint & Stitch (just may still call it that) but this way I can sketch out the painting, then I am going to sew it (probably needlepoint or embroidery, maybe quilting of some sort????) and then I am going to paint it (not sure it it will be in encaustic or acrylic)

I actually love to sew and as a child my mom taught me needlepoint and embroidery; I find it the most relaxing thing in the world. I have been know to needlepoint an entire square in one color.  Since my blood pressure has been going up again, I think it would be therapeutic and better then taking the meds.

I also needed a way to get out of the house, so the sketching and sewing part can be done at the coffee shop and the painting can be in the studio.

If this doesn’t fix my focus, I am not sure what will.