Hello friends! How was your weekend? We actually had a pretty quiet one, which was a welcome treat. I even got to do some collaging with a friend on Sunday afternoon – so much fun!
I’ve been wanting to share this project with you for some time but I made it for a friend as a gift and I couldn’t risk her seeing it on here. :) She received it on Friday so now I can show you!
I love these little 4″ x 4″ canvases because they are super affordable, easy to hang and you can usually finish up the project in a couple of hours depending on how elaborate you get.
I started by collaging vintage papers – covering all sides of the canvas. Then using chalk pastels and scrapbooking paper I added a second layer of color. Followed by a couple of doilies and some white acrylic paint applied with a brayer.
To get that yummy encaustic look I love so much, I coated the piece with a layer of heavy gel medium, using wet fingers to smooth it all out.
It hasn’t quite dried yet in this shot…so when it does it will be a little bit more transparent.
After the gel dried I added these lovely words and a vintage butterfly. My dear friend has been through a lot and has recently found love again (yah!) so I found these words inspiring for her. They come from a poem by Alfred Tennyson entitled “Summer is Coming“.
I couldn’t resist adding some details with my fav white gel pen…
For more contrast, I added color to the butterflies’ wings with acrylic paint.
It was so wonderful to create something special for a good friend. I think I will be making more art as gifts in the future. As always, please let me know if you have any questions about this process. I am happy to help!
Being inspired to create something for someone you love is great motivation to get your ART on! Try it and surprise someone with a one of a kind treasure. :)
Have a lovely week!
xo,
Ivy
Beautiful and a great gift!
cute!
Ivy, this is lovely. I always love seeing your artwork! Thank you for sharing :)
I love the blue on the butterfly and the soft washed back ground. Beautiful!
Really neat. I had been doing some collage on canvas but in a painstaking way. This looks much more creative friendly and I’ll have to give it a go. Thanks!
Very creative! Loved it!
Very nice….anyone would be lucky to receive such a beautiful gift. Creativity and thoughtfulness add that “something extra” to gift giving.
http://www.honelylemontea.com
So cute! You inspired me to create something with heavy gel medium.
sounds fun
I recently started doing this as well… art as gifts. It’s fun and meaningful and people really seem to appreciate it. Very nest idea! I will definitely be pinning this.
Lové everything altered, and mix-media, paper ephemera, paints, glue and anything I can create something beautiful with that tells its own story.
Come visit, I have just posted my French wire crowns and wire whimsy figures.
Perhaps they will inspire you in another way :)
Beautiful days
Xx
Doré
Ps. Oooop’s…. I Forget to mention this pièce is just divinly inspiring.
Love it.
Xx
Doré
Hi Doré,
Thanks so much for visiting me and leaving such a lovely comment. I just went to your gorgeous blog! It’s absolutely dreamy! I will check out your French wire crowns for sure. They are beautiful! Glad to have found you.
xo,
Ivy
This is such a beautiful project…thanks for sharing with us!!
this is beautiful! would love to know how you applied the collage, doilies first…before you added the medium. I would like to make something like this for a friend…but unsure what type of glue or paste that you would use for those first layers….and did you just paint some of the chalk paints onto the collage next? appreciate your advice/help!
Hi Jeanette,
Thank you so much for visiting my blog and leaving this sweet comment. I use Matt Medium by Golden for all the layers and as my glue. I first collaged the vintage papers with Matt Medium onto the canvas, wait till it dries. Then add the chalk pastels. Coat that layer with more Matt Medium. Continue in this way. I did the doilies next…etc. Does that make sense? Let me know if you need more specific info and I’m happy to help. Good luck and have fun creating! xo, Ivy
Ivy,
You’re a sweetheart….thanks so much for the wonderful info. I went to Michael’s store and have bought all my goods….plan to work on some of this on the weekend! Wish me luck! (I even scored a fun craft table on Craigslist, so I’m even more inspired to start)
xo, Jeanette
My pleasure, Jeanette. Have fun and enjoy! Xo!