Saturday, June 21, 2014

COMPENDIUM OF CURIOSITIES III CHALLENGE NUMBER 5 ~ DISTRESS WATERCOLORING PART 1

Hello all of you Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge lovers! It's Saturday and time for a new challenge from Tim's Compendium of Curiosities III. If you are one of the very few who have not received your autographed copy of Tim's book, you can click HERE to order it now!

I totally LOVE doing these challenges with Linda and the rest of the Curiosity Crew. I want to thank EVERYONE who leaves such uplifting and sweet comments on my blog. You make my day with your thoughts! So, thank you so much!!

This challenge is taken from page 39.  It is all about Distress Watercoloring, Part 1.  The Curiosity Crew has some amazing art to share with you using this technique but we won't give away the actual technique. That is what this challenge is all about ... teaching you to use Tim's book as your reference guide to all sorts of fun techniques and use of his products.  So, get out your books, turn to page 39 for the actual technique instructions and we're off!


I created this 6x6 board that evolved into ...

  
into this wall hanging. 


 I began by stamping this beautiful nest from Tim's Bird Feather stamp set using a combination of mainly Coffee but with touches of Jet Black Archival Inks in the lower left hand corner of a piece of 6x6 Manila Cardstock. I used a secondary stamp of just the nest portion as a mask over the original one stamped onto the cardstock. Then I began creating the cloudy sky background using some cut out cloud patterns, some Broken China and Stormy Sky Distress Ink and my ink blending tools. I began at the top and one by one, randomly placed some cloud patterns and inked around each of them using the blue tones and my ink blending tools. The result is a pretty cool looking fluffy cloudy sky.


Next I added the three branch to the other side of my 6x6 background using the branch minus the bird from Tim's Urban Tapestry stamp set. Again, I stamped the image with Coffee Archival Ink. 


I created my own leaves on the bird branch using a Micro Pen in brown permanent ink and colored in all of the leaves on both stamped images using Tim's Detailer Water Brush and various shades of green Distress Ink: Peeled Paint, Shabby Shutters and a little Forest Moss. Then I heat set those.  Next I added some random black speckles to add some more depth to the piece by flicking a little watered down Pitch Black Paint Dabber paint onto the paper.  I used an old toothbrush to pick up the paint and then flicked it with my finger to create the random splattered pattern.


Here you see the end results of my adding the leaves to the branch on the right and then coloring all of them in using Tim's watercolor technique. I then sprayed this background with some Workable Fixative spray (clear sealer) to seal my work.  Distress Inks are water reactive so if I wanted my background to stay looking exactly like this, no matter what other layers of inks or fabric or whatever I might choose to add, I needed to seal it.


Next I stamped this sweet little winged girl from Tim's Winged Things stamp set onto a piece of Specialty Stamping Paper and using Tim's watercolor technique, I brought her to life. The colors of Distress Ink I used on her are:  Wild Honey, Peeled Paint, Tattered Rose, Scattered Straw, Antique Linen, and Worn Lipstick.  She is stamped with Jet Black Archival Ink.  After coloring her, I lightly went over her with Antique Linen and my ink applicator.  I love the way that Antique Linen seems to "set" the colors and give them a more soft, vintage look. Then I cut her out and edged all of my cut edges with a Gathered Twigs Distress Marker.


I cut a slit in the nest, using my Tim Holtz Tonic Craft Knife and slipped the winged girl in place in the nest. When I permamently put her in place, I glued her legs on the underside of the 6x6 paper and I used pop dots on her upper body to give her more dimension.


Next I stamped some of these lovely birds from Tim's Nature Walk stamp set onto a piece of Specialty Stamping Paper.  I combined predominantly Coffee Archival Ink with a touch of Jet Black onto the stamp before stamping the images.  The first bird on the lower left has too much Coffee Ink on the stamp and I lost some of the fine details of the bird's body.  So, I stamped two more images and I ended up using the bird at the center top in my piece. I used Tim's watercolor technique to color in the bird's body using Wild Honey and Worn Lipstick Distress Inks.  I cut him out and added him to the bird branch using pop dots on his upper body to give him more dimension.


Next I added a little more textural interest to the piece with a trick that Andrea Ockey Parr taught me.  She is the queen of using fabric in her art. I added some strips of black and white fabric to the 6x6 board using Matte Multi Medium.  Then I painted over them with white Gesso so that I could stamp a sentiment onto them and it would be seen easily. When the Gesso was dry, I stamped my sentiment from Tim's Just Thoughts stamp set onto a piece of white tissue paper and then tore around it.  I added the sentiment on top of the fabric strips using Matte Multi Medium.  The torn edges of the tissue paper just melt into the background. 


After the Matte Medium dried, I added some dark shadows around the sentiment using Black Soot Distress Ink and my Detailer Water Brush.  Here is the background before I permanently added my little winged girl to the nest. Once I had added the winged girl, I glued this background on top of a 6x6 piece of chipboard and distressed around the edges with Gathered Twigs and Black Soot Distress Inks. 


Then I added Tim's Symphony Tissue Tape in various places on the canvas. I love how all of the different black patterns work together in the background. Next I added the Word Band using a sort of twine like piece and finally I added to two Ideaology metal Foliage flowers.  I painted them with Scattered Straw (outer petals), Spiced Marmalade (inner petals) and Picked Raspberry (center) Distress Paints and let them dry before stacking them and adding them to the branch. I really liked this 6x6 board but I felt like it needed something else to really complete it.  So ...


I dug out an 8x8 stretched canvas, painted it with white Gesso, let it dry and repeated the cloudy background I'd originally done on the 6x6 Manila Cardstock background.  I added a little Antique Linen to the cloudy background to soften the white clouds.  Then I sprayed the canvas with Workable Fixative to seal the Distress Inks colors.


Next I added some random harlequin patterns from Tim's Harlequin Stencil using Wendy Vecchi's Black Embossing Paste. Then I distressed around all of the edges of the canvas using Gathered Twigs and Black Soot. 




I added the predominantly black Tissue Tape from Tim's Commute Tissue Tape collection around all of the sides of the canvas.


I wanted my 6x6 board to pop off of the 8x8 canvas so I added bottle caps underneath the 6x6 board and hot glued it in place on the center of the 8x8 canvas.


I found this 6" sort of rusty metal hanger in my stash of "stuff" and thought it would finish off my canvas perfectly.  So, I screwed two large metal eye screws, centered in the top of my canvas in place so that the hanging clamps could fit right over them. 


So...here is my finished Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor, Part 1 project. I hope you enjoyed seeing the step by step and that something here or that one of the other Curiosity Crew has made has inspired you to join in on our challenge. 

You could win a VERY generous prize package of all sorts of Tim Holtz goodies donated by Tim and Mario or win a

http://www.inspirationemporium.com/

$50.00 gift certificate that the lovely people at Inspiration Emporium have waiting for you. Just create your art and link it up at the lovely Linda Ledbetter's Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge Blog

GOOD LUCK!!  I can't wait to see your watercolor wonders!

112 comments:

  1. Candy, I love this! The girl from the winged things stamp collection goes perfect with the nest and bird! What a cute and clever wall hanging. Thank you for sharing such a beautiful and inspiring piece with all us players!

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  2. Beautiful - I love the layers and your watercoloring.

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  3. Love your creation and thanks for the clear explanation! Very helpful! X

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  4. Your canvas is gorgeous, Candy! I love the extra details, especially the splattered paint. I too use an old toothbrush to splatter paint with!

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  5. What a delight of a canvas, Candy - quirky, fun and so beautifully executed. The little girl perched in the nest is beyond cute, and beautifully tinted with the "watercolours", and I love the splatters and the fab dimension you've created. Wonderful!
    Alison xx
    (PS Have just succumbed to the Winged Things and The Girls - largely because I always love them when I see them here!!)

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  6. OMG, this is stunning. And you give a great tutorial. I am going to have to make one of these for me!

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  7. Your example of watercolouring is amazing Candy. I love all your attention to detail and oh how pretty it all pulls together. I LOVE watercolouring all my projects. Cannot wait to play. You are a big favorite of mine!!!!

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  8. What a fabulous piece of art! The tutorial is really great too!

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  9. I love it! I just received my Compendium of Curiosities III, but I got it from Simon Says, so it's not signed. :( However, can I still take part in the challenge even though I didn't start from the beginning?

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  10. Candy this is wonderfully created and so very appealing to the eye... sheer EYE CANDY... get it??? Oh well.. I do love it, and it is a really fun wall hanging... love to have it in my home... Love, Light and Peace...Bonnie

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  11. What a delightful wall hanging! Very fitting for the first day of summer, too! Love the stepxstep info...so informative!

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  12. Love your canvas!!! The sentiment is fabulous and the little girl in the nest is so whimsy! You always rock it girl! This is no exception! LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!

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  13. oh Candy - this is wonderful - so many techniques - a real beauty! Hugs rachel x

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  14. Fabulous Candy! I love it so! The cloud background, the girl, the nest, and the tip on the Fixative Spray. I need some of that. Do you have a favorite brand?

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  15. This is stunning Candy, creative, original and beautifully done. Chris xxx

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  16. A gorgeous creation Candy! Thanks for showing us all the little techniques you used along the way - love the hand drawn leaves on your branch - the wonderful coloring on your winged girl and the last minute extra border with the larger canvas piece! That rusted hanger is perfect as a way to hang this lovely piece!

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  17. Girl!!! I so love this. I want to drop everything right now and go to my desk and create. You inspire me so much. Of course that little girl should sit in the nest, how did I not think of this? I wish I had your creative brain. Love!!!

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  18. I lost count of how many times I said "Oh! WOW!" when reading your post and discovering all the amazing layers of your fun and inspiring canvas. Love It!

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  19. Candy, Candy so many layers and great niches of details!!! I love this! I love how you added all the little details of points to this piece of colors and how well it all blends to make the final piece.
    Very, very nice. Love it.

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  20. What a great canvas. I love all the details and the photos detailing each step. I especially love the sentiment on top and the cloud background. Isn't it great when you find something perfect in your stash to use on a project. I don't usually do much multimedia or canvas work but just bought a multi-pack canvas set today so I can venture into this area. I am going to try some of the techniques you used on this great piece.

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  21. Really nicely done, I love the way you used the bottle caps to make your piece pop off the canvas. Love it!

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  22. I so loved watching this piece come to LIFE...amazing work ...love those winged thing stamps; my goodness so many beautiful techniques here...great inspiration !

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  23. Ok so my comment went somewhere who knows where (hope this isn't a duplicate) someone was talking to me and I looked away and it went away... what did I do ??
    ANYWAY ... I loved watching this piece come to LIFE so many fun details and lots of inspiration; love the winged things stamp :) so many cool techniques I LOVE IT !!

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  24. This is a great wall hanging!! I love the vintage feel.

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  25. Beautifully designed and put together Candy, love everything about it xx

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  26. What a fabulous project, Candy! Love the girl in the nest and your beautiful coloring job with the distress markers. The piece is wonderful and the way you raised it up is so clever and effective. Love it!

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  27. So much creative with this project; your winged girl in the nest is so clever. Great clouds and specks of paint splattered on with the old toothbrush. Your watercoloring is beautiful, I am inspired and must start on a project.

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  28. This is one of my favorites you have made. Super cool!

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  29. Good morning Candy, fabulous creation from you, I love this the colours are beautiful.
    Enjoy your Sunday
    Hugs Teresa x

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  30. You have done it again, Candy! I love how creative you are! What a sweet and happy scene with beautiful watercoloring throughout! I love it!

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  31. thank you for a fab demonstration Candy and the finished result is beautiful. Love the quote you used as well. Have a brilliant week, hugs Annette xx

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  32. LOVE that saying, Candy,

    and the whimsical feel there is to your make! Such an enchanting creation!

    Hugs,
    Claudia x

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  33. Candy, this is just fun! Love the bird looking at the girl in the nest.

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  34. Love, love, LOVE this! I always think, "That's my favorite project yet!" and then I see another of your creations and think the same thing all over again. You are so innovative and your creativity is boundless. The thing I like the most about this piece is the eclectic nature of the images you combined. You have the sophisticated bird and realistic nest next to this fun whimsical fairy child. Brilliant!! You always make things work together so beautifully, even if the elements are from different artistic genres. I adore this piece and love the music fragments and the dimensional flowers on the branch. This is another stunner!

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  35. Your canvas and tutorial are wonderful. I especially like the cloth and tissue paper tip. Thank you

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  36. Great project, Candy! I love the inky cloud sky. Gorgeous!

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  37. Always loved those winged people with hats on but I have never managed to pull the theme off. Its loveley

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  38. Fabulous piece, I adore that little nest too! I have to do some catching up this week, I spent the last week somewhat internet free, visiting with my daughter who came home for a visit. ~Diane

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  39. Hi Candy! Hope you're well and WOW to this amazing creation, as always I'm inspired and love every little detail. Chris x

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  40. Another beautiful creation, Candy. I love your work, your style, and your process. I also love that I learn from you. That fabric/gesso/stamped tissue technique is great! The sentiment is especially nice. What a lovely piece.

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  41. WOW what a piece of art! Thank you for the tutorial it was fascinating.

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  42. Thanks for sharing your creative process -- I really enjoyed reading how the piece evolved.

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  43. A fabulous work of art Candy! I truly love it! Brilliantly put together with wonderful step x step. Clever use of the little toothbrush too!! Nicola x

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  44. You had me at the clouds and splatting! I love how you placed the child in the nest and your colouring, as ever, is beautiful. A wonderful composition, it has such a whimsical feel to it. Anne :) xx

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  45. Brilliantly composed...love it...have rejoined your blog.xxx ♥aNNie


    The Journey is the Start

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  46. I'm really speechless! One word, only one word: breathtaking! BArbarayaya

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  47. WOW this is so very creative, and artistic too. Love your work! Judy x

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  48. What a fabulous piece of wall art. Just goes to show it can start out as a card and morph into something completely different...i love crafting!

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  49. Don't you just love crafting, you start out with one thing and it morphs into something else, fabulous!

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  50. Lovely home decoration, thanks for sharing all the details, I loved the trick with the bottle cup, of course after the coloring!

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  51. Wow1 Fabulous piece. Thanks for the detailed description.

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  52. LOVE LOVE LOVE Everything about this Gorgeous creation, Candy!! OMG!!! WOW!! That's about all I can get out :) Thanks for creating this AWESOME inspiration piece for the CC3#5 challenge! Totally Fabulous!! XOXO-Shari (I love that little winged girl image, too--one of my all time favs!) :)

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  53. Candy, I absolutely Adore this piece!! Love the quote, the elements and learned something new on how you used those bottle caps,I have tons of! xo

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  54. So many incredibly imaginative technique and design ideas combine to create a beautiful hanging here Candy. Love that idea of putting the fabric in the corner to overlay stamped tissue onto. Jenny x

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  55. Absolutely beautiful piece, just WOW!

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  56. really a very beautiful canvas, many thanks for your tutorial. I especially like the cloth and tissue paper tip. Hugs, Kerstin

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  57. Fabulous canvas.. Love the design.. The items used work so well,I shall endeavour to get my entry made ASAP.. Brilliant inspiration as ever, thank you Px

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  58. Candy, your canvas is a total work of art! Love the clouds and putting that cutie in the nest was such a great touch. Love that bird on the branch! Gorgeous watercoloring. Hugs!

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  59. Candy, she is lovely! I just love the whimsical element you add to all of your work. I want this to hang on my wall :)
    Jess

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  60. This is wonderful; I love the simplicity and the sentiment. Also love the use of the Harlequin stencil; I recently bought the stamp in two sizes; it's so versatile! Love to see new ideas for using it. Thank you for sharing this!

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  61. I just don't know what to say about this genius art because it's blown me away

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  62. I have picked up so many exciting tips from this stunning creation

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  63. What a really great detailed tutorial, love the idea of the little girl sitting in the nest.

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  64. GORGEOUS work of art Candy! Love the beautiful scene that you created! Thanks for the never ending inspiration!

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  65. Oh my goodness!!! Your work just gets cooler and cooler, better and better. This is amazing; from the little bottle caps on the back, to the embossed sides, you've left no detail to chance. The end result is just fabulous!!!

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  66. Candy.....what can I say...this is heavenly in a certain way. Love the amazing sky/clouds and the winged thing stamp looks amazing in the nest. Great quirky make. Love it!!! Sending my best wishes to you and yours

    Annie x x

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  67. What can I say but "WOW!"? The details are fabulous!

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  68. Candy, this wall hanging is just AMAZING! LOVE that you popped it out with bottle caps! LOVE your clouds and fabric and FAB sentiment and the diamonds - LOVE all of it!

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  69. Oh my goodness, Candy! This just captures my heart! I love your cloudy blue sky and the wonderful contrast of the stamped diamonds. The vignette you created with the bird stamp and fairy stamp is just so precious. Love that you placed the fairy in the nest. The sentiment on the metal tag and stamped ribbon are just perfect. Everything about this piece sings! Thanks for the wonderful step by step!

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  70. Wow!! Thanks about these tutorials.. So amazingly beautiful!!

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  71. Gorgeous hanging piece, Candy! The watercoloring is stunning! So realistic! Hugs, Sandra

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  72. Candy - I am running out of superlatives when commenting on your work. Can I just be your biggest fan? I might make a badge for my blog... Candy's No 1 Fan!! LOL. Hope things ok with you. Nikki xxx

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  73. Love your canvas and now understand about your artwork evolving thank you for the tips too

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  74. This is so whimsical! I love it. =)

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  75. HI Candy! I love your canvas, it is gorgeous and so detailed! I wonder what the bird is thinking seeing a stranger in her nest? Great fun! Thanks so much for the smiles and inspiration. Have a super week! ~kim

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  76. I love this Candy! Love the images you've used and the way you have mounted them on the canvas to give dimension. Thank you for showing how you did the sky I really want to try this! Totally gorgeous piece x

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  77. While yes, your hanging is lovely, thank you for 1) the toothbrush 2) the way you did the sky, and 3) the bottlecaps!!!! Yup....fantastic inspiration....I know I have an old toothbrush stashed somewhere!

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  78. Lovely. Thanks for letting me play along!

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  79. What a beautiful little world you have created in your project! The sky is so fluffy. I love all the different elements that make it so sweet and interesting! I love your projects! Thanks for teaching us! Love the textures and levels too!

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  80. So many fun touches on your canvas! Love your watercoloring - it all looks perfect!

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  81. this is so beautifully done I'm speechless. The background with the clouds is absolutely amazing. I have a few things I wanted to enter into the challenge but this makes me want to go back to my desk and start all over again. just amazing. Definitely going on my list of favorite blogs. Thank you

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  82. Beuatiful piece. Love the fabric that you added for more texture. Get use for the bottle caps too.

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  83. Hi Candy, great wall art. Great texture and detail.
    Happy crafting, Angela x

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  84. Where do you think these things up? I just love all the different layers.

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  85. This made me chuckle. Ingenious use of bottle caps, I have always struggled with silicone glue, thanks

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  86. This is so pretty Candy! Love how you placed the girl in the nest and the background is gorgeous.

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  87. Oh Candy...your canvas is delightful ...such a fun a quirky piece... LOVE the little girl in the nest ! ....and beautifully water coloured too...Gorgeous creation! :)

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  88. I love the girl in the nest. Using the toothbrush is an informative new tip.

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  89. Your clouds are AMAZINGLY perfect .. WOW ! I love the project .. the girl is too cute. Awesome hanging. I just noticed your a Missouri girl too .. I'm from St. Louis :)

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  90. I love the harlequin embossed background Candy and how she is sitting in the nest. This is fabulous and beautifully colored as well! Thanks for the inspiration!!

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  91. Another WOW project! Love all the layers and details.

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  92. brilliant piece!! fabulous details!! =)

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  93. Beautiful project, thank for sharing Candy!

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  94. This is pretty amazing Candy! Love the little girl in the nest!

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  95. Candy, I just love this. It is soooo creative

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  96. Candy, what a fun wall hanging. The coloring on the nest is excellent. Love how you put all the different elements together. Nice work!

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  97. I love this. It is sooo gorgeous

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  98. Wow Candy I love this wall hanging it is so good, I really need to get this stamp set as I love it so much.

    Denise x

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  99. Oh my goodness Candy, I love this piece!!! So many wonderful layers and beautiful detail!!! I really like the girl in the nest too :)

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  100. Love the whimsy of this piece.....Reminds me of hot summer days gone by.....like what you did with the bottle caps adds a nice unexpected dimension to the piece. Love the work!

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  101. Candy- My hat's off to you again! I thought you had repurposed an old frame. I was so impressed by the matching harlequin on the "frame" and on the little girls "wings". I really loved your use of the tissue tape too. I think I'm a Candy-Fan!

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  102. Wonderful canvas, lots of texture and layers.

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  103. Candy, I love your canvas. Your watercoloring of the flying girl really brought her to life...she looks leery of the bird. What fun!

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  104. Candy,
    Beautiful home decor piece... Love the techniques

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  105. Such a creative project Candy. The girl in the nest is really clever and fun. It is amazing how you incorporate all these wonderful techniques, thanks for sharing.
    Hugs, Katie

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  106. Another beautiful project and great idea with the toothbrush. Away to join up as a follower.
    Have a lovely weekend.
    Julie

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  107. Your wall hanging is gorgeous, my favourite of this challenge. There's lots of different textures that all come together perfectly. I especially love the over stamped ribbon and partial harlequin stamp. It's just fabulous (gush gush gush). Sorry I couldn't play this challenge, I was on holiday in England, but can't wait to get inky again. :)

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  108. So amazing..I think I swallowed my tongue...OMGosh...so beautiful!

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