Tree bookmark

Well...I've just finished the sample piece for the Nature Challenge at my art site for the month of Feb. It'll be posted on Monday. This time it's going to be a bookmark done in a tree theme.

The sample I've done here was first done on bristol with a drawing in ink and the neg space done with watercolor pencil and colored pencil. On top of that it had been layered with clear acatate treated with alcohol inks. I kept the tree white when I drew it so that the colors of the inks would be the tree's main color. I've backed it with a nice decorative paper and gave it a bit of a yarn topper. I like the final effect quite a bit. Hope the players will as well!

Christmas Postcards

Whew...finally a bit of art. Not that there hasn't been anything "art related" going on. I've been up to my ears in trying to prepare for an upcoming show in just under two weeks. Lots of framing to finish and things to be done.

Sometimes, however, I need to step back and do "other" art. Something on the smaller side.

I'm involved in a Christmas postcard swap in a private group I belong to. The postcards I've been working on started by way of a stamp I carved. It's a stamp of a pine cone....and I'm pretty pleased at how it came out.

At first I wasn't sure what I'd do for the background...but then I realized that the cardstock I wanted to use had a very slick surface....perfect for taking on alcohol ink. I had a fun time mushing up the colors on that.

I also had gotten a new thing to play with....Martha Stewart glitter. It is sooo fine and sooo beautiful in the range of colors it comes in. I used a beautiful bronze color to edge the pinecones and a lovely antique silver green shade on the needles.

They are really striking...but I'm afraid that the pictures do them no justice.

I also decide when I'd finished that I wanted to try to protect the surface a bit so the glitter wouldn't take too much abuse, since we mail them "naked" (without an envelope), so I tried a spray sealer. I wasn't sure what would happen by doing that and if it would play nicely with the alcohol ink...but it did!!!

I'm having such fun with these that I may send some off to friends this year as well.