WHAT I BELIEVE MIXED MEDIA TO BE

So how do I interpret Mixed Media?

I love the thought of making use of several different mediums and making a right old mess!!! LOL....so....lets be honest, its pretty much, grown up playing, with grown up tools and mediums!

Like paints, acrylics, oils, heat guns, hot glue, and ironing (I do need to interject here that no actual ironing of 'clothes' is undertaken, cause lets be brutally honest here, that would be totally criminal, yeah?)
It seems to me that mixed media is exactly what it says, mixed media! So pretty much anything and everything that you have in at that moment in time and want to add. So adding to the list above may be, wax, fibres, inks, stamps, paper, card, plastic, ribbon, lace, fabric, cheesecloth, bitumen, sand, metal, crayon, burlap/hessian, oils, embossing pastes & powders, whatever your heart desires. And add lots of layers, I've noticed that mixed media projects such as boxes, journals, book covers and canvasses have many layers on them, and I think this is to add colour texture and interest to the piece, or that's how&why I would do it! And also that a lot of work and personal artistic licence has gone into their making.
So, along with this and Altered Art, I love the precious time I spend around my arty, crafty things, and because of illness its a lot less time than I would want to have! however, the illness and disabilities were really the main reason why I got into this kind of crafting, in the first place, although I have always crafted in some form or another since the age of 6 when I was taught by my mum how to embroider.
I find that crafting eases my mind, slows my breathing and helps block out the constant barrage of pain I am in on a daily basis, its' my therapy, my saviour at times and my way of not becoming totally insane, well maybe there isn't any hope for me with the latter in mind, I think I was there a long long time ago!! But hey, crafting is fun! when it goes right! and if it doesn't? its what Bob Ross called a happy accident, and he was right!! I rarely throw away mistakes, cause I can always paint over them, rip them into something else, add something on top, whatever, cause I hate waste!! I am also the biggest skin flint miser going where my crafty stash is concerned, I hoard it all the time and have a vault the size of a house!!!!  LOL!!! I don't like parting with anything!
I don't know about you lot, but my projects very rarely turn out how I envisaged them in the beginning, that's if I actually get an idea at the beginning!!! the projects usually just emerge as I continue to 'play' and there is no rhyme or reason to it, it just 'is'.

So, on my pc hard drive and in my head, I've indulged into Mixed Media & Altered Art many moons ago, after discovering my favourite artist, in this field, Finnabair/Anna Dabrowski ( I do hope I have spelt that correctly, can't be bothered to check online)  you can find her amazing self and blog HERE
I have actually made little embellies and things that can be added to a project of that Mixed Media & Altered Art ilk but not actually made anything until now. There are so many great experts out there in blogland and on Youtube to watch and drool over, another mentor&idol of mine is a lovely lady on Youtube called MsLiberty25 (Miranda) she is absolutely awesome and I adore her, & everything she makes! She loves all things altered and her work is out of this world, she loves metal and can do things with it I would never have even thought of, let alone actually try! You can find Miranda's channel HERE

So, there you go, that's my thoughts on what Mixed Media is, and I hope one day, like me, you get the bug and try something new! If you do? make sure to drop me a line so I can check it out
Hugs, Blessings and much crafty love, Vick xxx

 

MY FIRST JOURNAL COVER

Hey there,

This is the first journal cover I have done and it will become a techniques/design journal, with all my ideas for creating projects!
I used Graphic 45 embossed Coredinations black card, backed with chipboard, I sanded it back and added gilding waxes, in 'Amethyst' and 'Vintage Plum' from Sam Poole's shop HERE I added my favourite colours of Aubergine and Purple, rose trim, flowers & embellies from my own stash from Wild Orchid Crafts..

***PHOTO HEAVY POST***
The full journal cover

Close up of my clay handmade key and crackled stamps

Close up of embossed wax background

close up of clay handmade key & frame

Close up of handmade cameo

the professional (haha) angled shot

The cameo, frame and key are all made by me from air dry clay, in my handmade silicone moulds from shop bought embellishments that I made myself. They are then painted with black acrylic paint, and then waxed with several different colours, 'vintage plum' 'pewter' 'lilac gold' and 'amethyst'. The metal corner isn't a corner at all, it is a square that I have bent over the corner and glued down with acrylic glue. Some of the flowers are made by me and the rest are shop bought and waxed from my stash.
I hope you like it, thanks for looking, hugs,

Vick xx

SHABBY CHIC TO A 'T'

And today children we will be playing with the letter 'T' LOL........hey there folks, a couple of weeks ago whilst at a craft fair with my best friend Theresa, we bought some bits and pieces of MDF shapes and some other goodies too, and Theresa, gave me this 'T' to decorate for her cause she wasn't sure how to go about it and knew I would do something nice for her so I took it off her hands and decorated it like it is below here!
I went for the shabby chic style as I love it im sure Theresa does too, but her favourite colour is blues and turquoises so I thought, go with a sky blue pink (shabby chic shades) theme.
So I painted the whole letter in cream acrylic paint and then mixed some Kroma Crackle that you can buy HERE with sky blue acrylic paint in one mixing pot, and the same KC with a pale pink, I then added them to the 'T' with a palette knife in a random fashion.
After that had got to the state of crackle that I wanted I added a clear acrylic seal (as this stops further cracking & protects your work by adding a seal) you can use your own but if you don't have any you can buy that too from the same place its called 'Slap it On' then when that was dry I sprayed over it with pink glitter spray and varnish spray.
I added cream satin ribbon to all the sides, and on top of that laid down a natural crocheted lace, i added my embellishments with my glue gun where I wanted them, and voila!! we have the loveliness below, I hope you like it, im sure my friend 'T' will, hugs x V