Lotus on Canvas

I am always looking for new and messy mixed media techniques to try so when I discovered the wonderful world of Andy Skinner I got very excited!

My dear friend and wonderfully creative enabler, Nicole aka Canadian Nickel Scrap'n, recently started using the Mixed Media line of product from Deco Arts. Lucky girl! I have yet to find a Canadian retailer that sells it. *insert sad face here*. (If you know of where it can found in Canada - let me know!)

Shortly after ooooooohing & aaaaaaaaahing over all the yummy products she was sent I went to the Deco Arts blog and discovered the amazing Andy Skinner! Check out his blog, You Tube Channel & Pinterest for amazing crafty inspiration.

Yesterday I watched Andy's Media Media Background on YouTube and I just had to try them out.

I don't have any of the Deco Art products that Andy uses in his video but I didn't let that stop me! 

I started with a couple of 8"x10" canvases that I picked up at the dollar store. One I had used previously to try a photo transfer technique that didn't quite work out as planned so I just covered it in a couple layers of gesso. 

Acrylic & Alcohol Layer

I used Grumbacher Academy Acrylic paint for all my paint colours. This layer was cadmium yellow deep. I painted both canvases then used rubbing alcohol as suggested by Andy. The effect wasn't quite the same as shown in the video but after rolling my paper towel over the alcohol it did leave me with a cool effect. (sorry - forgot to take a photo) 

Splash Technique Layer

 This layer was Grumbacher Red and since I didn't have the Deco Art Easy Float I needed to get creative. In his tutorial, Andy suggested water as an alternative but I looked around and saw my bottle of airbrush medium and decided to try that. I splattered that onto the canvas, let it sit for a moments then placed a sheet of paper over top and gently rubbed. This lefted the airbrush medium off the canvas, leaving exposed areas of the first layer. I liked the effect but probably won't use the airbrush medium again.

I won't go into detail for the stamping as Andy does explain that in the video. The next 2 layers used a medium to cover up parts of the canvas that you want to remain exposed. I used petroleum jelly and it worked really well. I did 2 layers using this technique - first with a layer of yellow green acrylic paint, followed by a layer of turquoise green. 

Paint & Petroleum jelly layer

The next technique was probably my favorite and one that I can see myself using over & over.

The torn paper technique used titanium white paint & stamped images with archival ink.

Again, petroleum jelly was used to cover up the parts of the canvas that you want to be exposed later on. 

Torn Paper Technique

I wish I had covered up more of the canvas with petroleum jelly so that more of the lotus image showed through but it is all about learning. Over all I am very happy with the results and plan on using these techniques in the future.

Here is the finished canvas. I used a black oil pastel around the edges to give it more of a 'framed' look.

Thank so much for looking! I appreciate your comments, feedback & suggestions!

Have a wonderful day & stay crafty!

~~julia~~

p.s. the Lotus stamp is from Limor Webber Designs