acrylic

Cards from Gelli Plate Prints

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A couple of months ago, I made my first Gelli Plate prints and had a blast. I decided to try making some cards using inspiration from a site I found through Pinterest.

Card using Gelli Plate print circles

I enjoy the abstract look of this card. The circles look like flowers to me, but I also think they look like balloons. Either way, it is fun and the colors are happy.

The other thing I really like about this card is each card turned out to be a bit unique. (Quick side note… I usually pick a design each year and everyone gets the same card. Lazy? Perhaps. I think of it as practical, because time to sit and make cards can be scarce.) All five of the cards I made have the same design, but the flowers have their own colors and patterns and are in slightly different arrangements.

These cards were easy to make, but a little time-consuming because of all of the circle punching. I used three different sizes of circle punches on the prints I had made. The punches were made in different areas of the prints to try and get a variety in colors and patterns. Then the circles were put together with roll-tape adhesive. Continue reading →

Painting Abstracts – Exercise 1

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Recently I shared my first attempt at painting and it inspired me to learn more about abstract painting. So I grabbed my copy of Painting Abstracts by Rolina van Vilet and decided to start going through the exercises.

Abstract Painting Exercise 1

I had already read through the first set of introductions, which provided an overview of abstract painting. The first exercise was intended to introduce expressive shapes and to just get used to putting paint on canvas/paper. I picked 5 different colors and 5 different palette knives (cheap plastic pack from Michaels,  but they worked).

The main goal was to start going through the exercises because I kept putting it off for a variety of reasons. I was super excited to have finally started going through these exercises. Continue reading →

First Attempt at Painting

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A picture of the ground - the inspiration for my paintingPainting is something I had always wanted to try. So a while ago I grabbed some paint, brushes, and paper and decided to just do it.

Knowing that my skills for drawing something that looks real are an opportunity for improvement, I decided to paint something more abstract. I had taken a picture of the ground while on a walk because the tree roots and rocks looked interesting, and that seemed like good inspiration for an abstract painting.

Another thing I know about myself is that I tend to work better under a little pressure. Otherwise, I will try to perfect every little detail and never finish. So I got the supplies ready and gave myself 2 hours, which seemed reasonable for a painting on a half sheet of paper. Continue reading →