It is Well Mixed-Media Canvas

Hi friends!  It's time for Day 3 of Verve's Spotlight Hops and today the Divas are shining their spotlights on Surely Goodness and the Happy Anniversary Plain Jane.  If you've already been hopping you should have arrived from Jen Shults' blog.  If not, why not hop right in!?  The master hop list is at the bottom of this post and you can check out all the prize details (YES, you can win free stamps for commenting on the Diva blogs!) over on the Verve Blog.  All of the stamps & dies you see previewed will be available in the Verve Store on Friday, February 22  (only one more sleep)!

Today I have a mixed-media canvas to share with you.  The stamping is very simple... just the It is well with my soul sentiment and the word peace in the background (both from the Surely Goodness set).  I had intended on making a card to really showcase this set, but between twins and business and taxes and trying to get the website ready for release I just didn't have time to make a card.  However, I know the girls will be showcasing the fun flowers in this set, so be sure to hop around and see it all.  Instead you get to see a canvas I made just for fun.

The flowers on my 5 x 7" canvas board are made with the Donna Downey Poppies & Peonies stencil.  After applying gesso to the canvas, I used the stencil with some clear tar gel, then added acrylic paints and gelatos for the background.  I was going for a resist technique, but I didn't let the tar gel dry enough so the resist wasn't as apparent as I would have liked.  After a little shading with a Faber-Castell big brush pen and the stamping of the sentiment, here's what the work in progress photo looked like.  See how my yellows bled into my resist and my flowers are not-so-white?

Not to worry!  Since it was a stencil, I was able to just line the stencil back up over my canvas and add a thick layer of light modeling paste.  Then I waited a good long time to make sure everything was dry this time!  I did a little touch up of the grey big brush shadowing around the flowers, then lined up my sentiment and stamped it again and embossed it so it would stand out.

Next I pulled out the Koi watercolors that Mark got me for my birthday this year and I still hadn't had a chance to use.  I had a lot of fun coloring in the flowers and stems with the watercolors.  It was so cool to see how the pigment moved on the texture of the modeling paste.  I think that's what I love most about mixed-media... the discovery!

Anyhow, I just love they hymn It is Well and was singing it all the while I made this canvas.  The song reminds me of my Grandpa.  I sang this song constantly for several weeks after he passed away it was the on thing that kept the grief at bay.  So I decided that peace was  the perfect thing to put in the background to add a little "texture" to the piece.  I stamped the sentiment in Pumice Stone distress ink randomly on the canvas, trying to make it darker in some parts and lighter in others.

My final addition was working a bit of Mint Julep spray onto the corners and waterbrushing into the stems to give a richer color contrast to the piece and tie the colors together.  I finished with a bit more grey big brush shading around the edges, then sealed with a workable fixative.

Okay, there's still lots of eye candy to go, so I'll just leave you with the hop list and enabler's list.  Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you back here tomorrow for our release day hop!  Next up on the hop is my fabulous friend, Laurie!

1. Amber 7. Julee 2. Andrea 8. Laurie S. 3. Charmaine 9. Laurie W. 4. Christyne 10. Marisa 5. Janelle 11. Maureen 6. Jen S. 12. Teresa

Enabler's List
Stamps: Surely Goodness (Verve Stamps)
Paper: 5 x 7" canvas board (Art Advantage)
Ink: Archival black, Pumice Stone Distress (Ranger), Big Brush Pens, Gelatos (Faber-castell)
Accessories: Poppies & Peonies Donna Downey stencil, light modeling paste, clear tar gel, acrylic paints, gesso, Koi watercolors, waterbrush, Mr. Huey Mint Julep spray (Studio Calico), clear embossing powder