Craftside

Collaborative Art Journals and Shared Visions in Mixed Media by L.K. Ludwig

It's super sneak peek time! I just got my Be-u-ti-ful advance copy (available for pre-order) of:

Collaborative Art Journals and Shared Visions in Mixed Media
By

LK Ludwig

Using a variety of formats, collaborative art projects result in wonderfully complex pieces, and often provide the glue between artists within a community. Heavy on visual inspiration, Collaborative Art Journals and Shared Adventures in Mixed Media covers various organizational structures for collaborative art projects, offers instructions and tips for organizing such ventures, and includes interviews with organizers and participants of collaborative projects, as well as a healthy smattering of techniques including how to create books that can be added to as they travel and how to devise various binding structures for different paper projects.

L.K. Ludwig (Zelienople, PA) creates art and chases her three small children around in a Victorian Foursquare in a very small town (pop. 4,023) in Western Pennsylvania. Many weekends are spent in the woods and at the river where family memories and art are made. With a strong belief in creating around what she knows nature, parenting, love, and life these elements seep deeply into L.K.'s artwork. Her work has been featured in a number of books and magazines and shown in various galleries. She is author of True Vision.

Collaborative Art Journals and Shared Visions in Mixed Media will be available in June, just in case you were wondering when you would be able to share in all the creativity!

I know you are dying to see the sneak peek, well here ya go:

 

Click on the image to read all about The Spring Secrets Collaborative project organized by Julie Collings.

 

This collaborative journal, Sing at the Party, contains work from Lilia Meredith, Julie Collings, and Kari Ramstrom.

And it is where I drew my inspiration for my card,

Rattle The Cage

Here is how I made my applique, stitched and cut paper bird cage card:

First I ironed on some double side iron on adhesive.

I cut the bird out of the fabric before I pealed away the paper, I find this make the cutting easier.

I then pealed the backing paper away and ironed the bird onto the card stock.

I drew the cage onto the card with a light pencil line.

 

Off to the sewing machine! I set the length to the max-5, and used a universal needle.

Then I chalked the background a bit to make the cage pop.

My final step was to do my ransom style lettering with cut out letters from a magazine.

There you have it!

Let me just say Collaborative Art Journals and Shared Visions in Mixed Media is packed full of some of the most magical art and you will savor every page and, as I did draw inspiration for your own creations.

I have officially put my thinking cap on to figure out what kind of collaborative creative endeavor I can put together with people I know.

That brings me to my question:

What kind of collaborative projects have you been a part of, heard of, or would like to participate in?

Leave a note in the comments and you'll be entered to win a free book!

Embroidered Barbed Wire ATC using a backstitch how to from the book: Greeting Cards In Stitches

My two favorite things come together in this super fun book:

Greeting Cards in Stitches: 30 Designs with Hand-Embroidered Embellishments
by
Sharon and Kristin Jankowicz

Clever greeting cards, embellished with hand stitching, are so unique they'll become keepsakes!

The fabulous mother-daughter design duo has created 30 original cards for all occasions, including holidays, birthdays, births, graduations, anniversaries, get well, thank you, congratulations, and general note cards.

A detailed basics section includes general embroidery information plus an overview of all the techniques and tools necessary for embroidering on paper. Embroidery stitches are taught with watercolor how-to illustrations, step-by-step instructions, and close-up photos. Full-size patterns for all projects are provided for easy transfer.

Also included is a website link to download the patterns so you can print them directly on your special paper.

Embroidering on paper and card stock is a relatively new idea, and this book hits the market as the cross-over craft gains momentum.
Fresh, original card designs have wide appeal.
Only book available dedicated to cards that feature hand-embroidery.
Link to site for downloading patterns

Sharon and Kristin Jankowicz, mother and daughter, are also the authors of  Embroidery to Embellish Everything and Say It with Stitches. Their designs are clever and very creative! Sharon and Kristin design for the craft industry. Each a graphic artist and passionate needle-crafter, together they are a creative collaboration between Baby Boom and Generation X.

Not only is full of great projects, there are some great tips and techniques. There is one about using plastic canvas as a template to make perfectly spaced stitches is beyond fabulous posted here. I love when a simple item from the craft stash can be repurposed into a super-useful tool to make crafting easier!

So today I had an idea about stitching a barbed wire ATC and so off to what else? Why my copy of Greeting Cards in Stitches: 30 Designs with Hand-Embroidered Embellishments

Click on this image to see how to sew a backstitch. In addition to the backstitch how-to, there is a how-to to sew a woven backstitch.

Here is my barbed wire embroidered ATC:

How I did it:
First I drew a light pencil line on the back and front of the card in the same place. I did this because the backstitch requires you to put the needle through the paper from both sides and when you are stitching paper the hole is permanent, not like with fabric.

I then sewed the backstitch along the line.

With a new piece of floss (I am using 3 strands of gray) I made two random stitches in a "V" shape, with one leg of the "V" on each side of the backstitch line.

I then did 4-5 satin stitches, satin stitches are simply horizontal stitches parellel to each other.

Then I did another "V' stitch in the opposite direction.

I repeated this two more times.

I then die cut a tag and then the letter B attaching it with a brad.

Then I stamped the rest of the word with tiny letter stamps.

So if you are any kind of paper crafter and like your stitching too, this book is for you! (oooh I made a rhyme, a bit of a departure from the bad puns for me!)

You know what's coming next, the question:

What is the wackiest thing you have stitched, thought of stitching, or would like to stitch?

And as usual, our thanks for sharing and leaving a comment, you'll be entered to win a free book!

Don't want to miss any of the crafty goodness I share with you each day? Subscribe to this here blog and have it in your "in box" each day.

But wait there's more, subscribe to the newsletter for more inside peeks and free projects.

OK, off to go make something.....as always I'll keep you in the loop!

How to cut and clean Acrylic from the Outstanding New Book: The Complete Photo Guide to Framing & Displaying Artwork

I've got a sneak peek into the soon to be released (May 2009):

The Complete Photo Guide to Framing and Displaying Artwork
By
Vivian Carli Kistler

Step-by-step color photos for all areas of matting and framing; the information is complete, accurate, and up-to-date. The Complete Photo Guide to Framing and Displaying Artwork includes top-notch instructions for archival framing—the correct methods and materials for preserving photos and artwork for posterity. The author also provides inspiration and helpful examples to show people how to display their artwork using basic design principles in a manner that is easily grasped. There are important techniques to follow for success—even the basic mechanics of hanging a picture.

Vivian Carli Kistler (Akron, OH) is a leading picture framing expert and in worldwide demand. She owned and operated a large retail gallery and frame shop for over twenty years. Vivian is the author of numerous books and videos, including the seven volume Library of Professional Picture Framing. Her monthly articles appear in Art World News, Picture Framing Magazine and Profile magazine.

 

Click on the image to enlarge and read all the details on how to clean Acrylic and how to Repair scratches in Acrylic.

Click on the image to enlarge and read how to cut Acrylic.

This is a bit similar to cutting glass but the tool is very different. I have done a lot of glass cutting but any time I needed to cut Acrylic I always just roughed it and use one of my power saws, so I am just tickled to learn the right way and it looks so simple and easy to cut Acrylic this way.

On to today's question,

How do you protect your art?

Do you frame it yourself with off the rack stuff or make your own?

and bonus question,

Do you know how to cut Acrylic?

And as we continue with our free book a week, leave an answer and you'll be entered to win one!

Some Outstanding Crafty Blogger links

The Impatient Crafter
Madge shares her three pronged approach to success and a link to her CraftCast interview with Alison Lee.

About Family Crafts
Find a wide variety of egg related projects! Everything from creative Easter egg coloring to cute egg crafts

Aileen's Musings
Aileen's offering freebie Spring images for you to download and use in your art. Happy Spring!

Alexa Westerfield a.k.a. Swelldesigner
Swelldesigner shows you how to make rainbow tie-dye rosettes!

Blisstree Arts
Unexpected results abound when you use this easy method to create background papers for your work.

Cathie Filian
Cathie Filian is having a spring fling with 11 different spring projects.

Crafty Princess Diaries
ArtFire Crafty Princess Shop is Live! Tammy is kicking the tires, testing the waters, and basically, trying to figure out what the deal is over at Artfire.com.

CraftyPod
Sister Diane offers lots of creative ways to use Sharpie Paint Markers.

Naughty Secretary Club
This week Jen explores using fabric to make jewelry.

Stefanie Girard's Sweater Surgery
Martha Stewart's New Encyclopedia of Crafts is my muse this week to create a Hoppin' cute Easter Card

"N" is for Neat Faux Finishing- how to make a perfect checked floor

And I mean that in both ways! Neat as in cool and neat as in tidy.

Designer Faux Finishing
Ideas and Inspiration for Sophisticated Surfaces
By
Victor DeMasi

Faux finishing, or decorative painting, is the process of applying multiple layers of interior house paint and glaze to craft a textured or photorealistic pattern, such as wood grain, marbling, a cloudscape, and onward to more complex murals and trompe l’oeil. Most of the other faux-painting titles in the market focus on either room shots *or* finished paint swatches but do not successfully evoke both inspirational and hard-working images. Designer Faux Finishing fills that empty niche.

Designer Faux Finishing will inspire homeowners to transform their homes into leather-worn libraries, ancient grottos, or French streetscapes with just a little help from paint. Chapters provide color, design, and lighting inspiration, enabling readers to make design decisions when working on their own or with interior designers.

Victor DeMasi (West Redding, CT) owns Monarch Painting and Monarch School of Decorative Painting in West Redding, Connecticut. A successful painting contractor for more than 20 years, he has found even greater success with decorative painting techniques. His work has appeared in the New York Times, Yankee Magazine, American Painting Contractor, and The Faux Finisher.

 

Click on the image to enlarge and read how to tape off a checkerboard floor.

 

Click on image to enlarge and read the full instructions on how to paint the faux marble checkerboard floor.

Today's question:

Do you faux finish? And if you do what kinds of designs do you do and on what surface?