Hello everyone!
It´s Melina here today with an art journal spread to share.
I have a lot of emotions to work through right now, and I really needed and enjoyed creating this spread.
I have a photo tutorial for you today with quite a lot of steps, so I hope you stay with me until the end ;)
I´m working in my smaller coptic binded watercolour paper journal (one spread is 15x21 cm).
Glue down scrap pieces of paper with gel medium. Use different lenghts and layer them for extra texture. Cover the whole spread with white gesso.
Apply modeling paste through France Papillon stencil Crackles (the small one) and let dry.
Blend Cobalt Teal Hue with tinting base and apply over the scrap pieces of paper. (I wanted the teal colour to be more opaque to cover my black scrap pieces, that is why I blended it with the tinting base). When dry, apply crackle medium on top of the teal colour.
While waiting for the crackle medium to dry, work on your focal point.
Use a Tim Holtz paper doll (or any stamped/cut out image). Stamp the dragonfly from Illusionary Artists stamp set Creepers and Crawlers onto watercolour paper.
Colour the wings with diluted Raw Umber and Quinacridone Gold. Add some Quina. Gold on the hat, hair and shoes of the paper doll to make them work together with the wings.
Go over the teal colour with Green Gold and wait for the cracks to appear. When dry, dilute the Green Gold and go over the modeling paste areas to make the texture visible.
Make splashes with diluted Cobalt Teal Hue and Quinacridone Gold.
The crackle medium is really glossy and shows though the cracks (which I don´t like). Go over the crackled area with ultra matte varnish to take the shine away.
Use a text stamp from Illusionary Artists stamp set London New York and do some background stamping with Archival ink Sepia. Go roughly around the edges with the same ink pad and also lay it flat on top of the raised modeling paste areas to enhance the texture.
Make some splashes with diluted white gesso to make the white space in the middle work with the rest. Glue down your focal point. Stamp a sentiment/word of your choice from the Illusionary Artists stamp set Perfect words and adhere to your spread. Draw a boarder to frame your spread. If you, like me, like to add some journaling you do that too, and the spread is finished.
Here are some close-up photos for you.
Thank you so much for your time, hope you enjoyed!
Take care, hugs
Melina
Products used:
DecoArt media: White gesso, Matte medium, Tinting base, Modeling paste, Ultra matte varnish DecoArt Fluid Acrylics: Cobalt teal hue, Green gold, Quin.gold, Raw umber
DecoArt Americana: Weathered wood
Archival ink Sepia
Tim Holtz paper doll
Black fineliner pen
Stamps: Illusionary Artists "Perfect Words", "London New York", "Creepers and crawlers". Click on the images to shop!
France Papillon stencils: "Crackles" Click on the images to shop!
