Relaxed or…Art Journal Page with Photos

May 22, 2013 By 6 Comments

NathalieKalbach_BalticSeaAJ01

Thank you all for your amazing and wonderful words about my move to the U.S. As some of you stated, it is a scary yet pretty exciting thing ahead. I have been a bit tense the last couple weeks as there is just so much to organize and do for the move, and one of the things that totally relaxed me for a couple of days was my workshop event at the Baltic Sea. Walking at the beach in the morning for a couple of hours was one fo the best things I have done for just calming down and actually also getting my mantra back into my head “Everything will work out perfectly” .

NathalieKalbach_BalticSeaAJ02

 

The crazy background is a result of several things that I was showing in classes or where I tried things out in my art journal page. Lot’s of layers and different paint media and materials, tied together with my new Circuit Stencil and Crackle Stencil :)

NathalieKalbach_BalticSeaAJ03

 

I usually do not use photos in my art journal- but somehow this was telling me I should because the photos in this case would speak more to me then the background or the journaling and remind me on how relaxing this all was :)

NathalieKalbach_BalticSeaAJ04

 

Are you using photos in your art journals?

 

Have a gorgeous day

Nat

 

 

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Whatevers #11 or Times Are Changing

May 15, 2013 By 7 Comments

Are you ready for the 9th Whatevers? If you missed what the Whatevers is all about…check it out here.

Click here to see what Cat made out of this photo and which story she tells

Click here to see what Vicki made out of this photo and which story she tells

This photo is actually indeed a family photo and I even know who those people are…but I do not know the story behind the photo …so..well…I gave it out to see what everyone comes up with as a story ;)

Times Are Changing

NathalieKalbach_Whatever11_01

Grandfather was always non approving. Him and grandma had just no patience for the young people. “Too young and full of nonsense”. But grandpa was loosing his fearful influence – Matthias and George didn’t care that he thought the new car was a useless purchase. Their business thrived. So clowning around with the bottle of wine at the family shoot was just their way showing grandpa that his say was over.

NathalieKalbach_Whatever11_02

Their names: Matthias and Georg – Wilhelms grandsons

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I played with my new Oldtimer Stencil :) and Spraypaints and Markers.

NathalieKalbach_Whatever11_04

And here is the photo of this month’s Whatever for you:

11_April2013

Here is how it works if you want to play along:

  • Vicki, Cat and I have made a one-year commitment to each other and picked twelve photos with Whatevers whom we will give a story.
  • Every month – if possible always on the 15th –  each of us will do a post with an individual story that goes along for us with the same photo.
  • If you want you can play along and we will have the photo for you – just right-click on it to safe it to download and show us your version of The Whatevers.
  • There is no rules to the story itself- it can be funny, sad, uplifting, breathtaking WHATEVER
  • There is no rules on the length or the form of the story- it can be a short sentence, an essay, a poem or a soap opera – WHATEVER
  • There is no rules on the artwork you choose – it can be a scrapbook layout, an altered art project, an art journal page – WHATEVER
  • Here is a rule though: if you take the photo you have to link back to us andshow us your story.
  • These pictures are from our personal stash and are for personal use for you only! If you want to use them for a publication whether a book or magazine in print or digital form please ask for permission!
  • If you want to participate post in the comment section .
  • You can also join our The Whatevers -Facebook Page

You can grab the blinkie here if you want to add it to your sidebar

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have a wonderful day
Nat

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Filed Under: Art Journal, Stencils and Masks, The Whatevers - Creative Storytelling Tagged With: ,

My new Crackle Stencil with Stencil Girl Products

May 6, 2013 By 26 Comments

Yeahhhh – my next two stencils are out with Stencil Girl Products. Let me show you the one I am the most excited about- it is my dream stencil- the one I always wanted to have – my Crackle Stencil

NathalieKalbach_CrackleStencil

Here is an art journal page using the stencil with light modeling paste

NathalieKalbach_CrackleRH01

It dries quick and it is a great way to apply the crackle effect to all kinds of surfaces and not just acrylic painted surfaces.

NathalieKalbach_CrackleRH02

The stencil is 9×12 inches and I love that you can use it the size as is or just parts as I did to add some texture and a layer here and there.

NathalieKalbach_CrackleRH03

I so hope you like it too :) Here is what I used to create the art journal spread:

nSupplies

Thank you for letting me share my crazy excitement. Huge hugs and a wonderful day – I cannot wait to show you more!

Nat

 

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Stencil Test Drive Cascading Leaves or…Forget Perfection

May 2, 2013 By 17 Comments

Jessica Sporn asked me  and some other artists to be part of her Stencil Test Drive featuring her amazing new stencils for Stencil Girl Products.

Stencil Test Drive Logo

Today along with some others I will show you the use of the Cascading Leaves Stencil. I love this stencil. You can either use it as it is in whole or use little parts of it here and there or even make a frame.

Perfection_NatKalbach

In my art journal spread I used it for the background several times layered up with acrylic spray paints and I loved how beautifully the stencil created a deep dimensional feel. I touched it up with some letterpress images, oil based inks and markers. Then I used the stencil for framing the spread.

Have No Fear Of Perfection. You’ll Never Reach It

Salvador Dali.

PerfectionDetail_NatKalbach

Supplies: Stencil Girl Productions Cascading Leaves Stencil, Letterpress Blocks, Tissue Paper, Liquitex Acrylic Paint, Liquitex Professional Spray Paints, Liquitex Professional Paint Markers, Louise Nelson Feather Stamp, Speedball Oil Base Block Print Ink.

Don’t forget to check what all the other artists created with the stencil and also get the chance to win a giveaway on Jessica’s Blog.

Jessica Sporn

Michelle La Point Rydell

Judy Shea

Roben-Marie Smith

Have a wonderful day

Nat

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Filed Under: Art Journal, General Announcements, Spraypaint, Stencils and Masks Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Inspired by Shane Koyczan or…for the bullied and beautiful

April 30, 2013 By 4 Comments

NathalieKalbach_Luggage01

I saw this TED talk by Shane Koyczan. I think it is amazing. Shane Koyczan makes spoken-word poetry and music. This video is powerful and touching!

From “To This Day”

“…and if you can’t see anything beautiful about yourself
get a better mirror
look a little closer
stare a little longer
because there’s something inside you
that made you keep trying
despite everyone who told you to quit…”

And he said something else on his website which I loved so much that it inspired me to this art journal page.

“Don’t let your luggage define your travels, each life unravels differently.”

NathalieKalbach_Luggage02

So true!

NathalieKalbach_Luggage03

Thank you Shane for this amazing inspiration and for being such an enrichment and encouragement to other people’s life through your art!

Have a wonderful day!
huge hugs
Nat

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Take a Shower Art Journal Page…or Negative Circuit Stencil

April 25, 2013 By 12 Comments

Loved creating this art journal page using my new Stencil Girl Product Circuit Stencil

NathalieKalbach_CircuitShower01

The Journaling says “Shower in the good things of life and your heart will shine”.

I had created a background with Dylusions Spray Paints and had it in my art journal for later usage. Something I do often when I spray a stencil is using the excess paint on top of the stencil for a different project as a negative.

Here I had sprayed  onto a different page in the art journal with Liquitex Professional Spray paint

IMG_4611

I then simply flip the stencil over to a different page- either already prepared with a painted background or onto a white one – and brayer over it to get the excess paint over.

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Which can then result in something like this

NathalieKalbach_CircuitShower03

And then I took it from there to create my art journal page. And yes…I might be I am biased regarding my own stencil but boy do I love the negative outcome of it too. So basically you get a pretty cool two-in-one design.

NathalieKalbach_CircuitShower02

BTW…did you spy something else on the page? ;) ;) ;)

nSupplies

Have a wonderful day!
huge hugs
Nat

 

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I am soooo excited…and I just can’t hide it or Stencil Girl Products

April 18, 2013 By 46 Comments

Stencilgirl logo120x120

Today I can reveal a big secret- and boy have I been excited to finally do this …I am so happy to join Stencil Girl Products as a stencil designer. Stencil Girl Products is a wonderful company by the Mixed Media Artist Mary Beth Shaw and I am thrilled to be alongside her, Pam Carriker, Michelle Ward, Sue Pelletier , Joanne Sharpe, Jessica Sporn and many more amazing artists.

Ad

I have a couple different stencils coming out and I am so stoked- but here is the first one that I can finally share with you :)

NathalieKalbach_CircuitStencil04

My Circuit Stencil

Circuit Stencil S161

I love it so much- you can use it for so many different projects and with so many different media. I will show you more coming up. Here is an art journal page I created with it

NathalieKalbach_CircuitStencil01

I wanted to have a stencil that you can use like a frame but where you can also use different parts of the stencils to highlight and add interest to your backgrounds. I am a bit geeky- can you tell – LOL

NathalieKalbach_CircuitStencil02

I used the Circuit Stencil with Liquitex Professional Spray paints –  Liquitex Professional Spray Paint 12-oz, Quinacridone Magenta and Liquitex Professional Spray Paint 12-oz, Neutral Grey 3

NathalieKalbach_CircuitStencil03

You can purchase the stencil directly at Stencil Girl Products. The size is 9×12 inches. I will post updates as soon as I know about certain stores that carry my designs. If you are a store owner who will carry them- let me know :)

I cannot wait to show you my other designs soon too :) Thank you so much for letting me share :)

Huge hugs

Nat

Filed Under: Art Journal, Spraypaint, Stencils and Masks Tagged With: , , , , ,

Whatevers #10 or The Herblady

April 15, 2013 By 9 Comments

Are you ready for the 9th Whatevers? If you missed what the Whatevers is all about…check it out here.

Click here to see what Cat made out of this photo and which story she tells

Click here to see what Vicki made out of this photo and which story she tells

Here is my twinkling eye- take on it – I think my Whatevers all have a bit of a dark twist to them LOL

The Herblady

NathalieKalbach_Mama04

There was no doubt, without Hermaline nothing would work in this family. Daughter, grand-daughter and great grand-daughter, all living in her house. The remains of the three husbands…unknown. Behind the glasses were the knowingly eyes. “They are, where they belong!” The herblady she was called by some, Mama by others.

NathalieKalbach_Mama01

Her Name: Hermaline – Mama (what else ;) ) to Margariete

NathalieKalbach_Mama03

I played with some Liquitex Professional Spray Paints and Paint Markers and with some Luminarte Silks I just received. Love the way you can add layers.

NathalieKalbach_Mama05

And here is the photo of this month’s Whatever for you:

NathalieKalbach_AprilWhatever

Here is how it works if you want to play along:

  • Vicki, Cat and I have made a one-year commitment to each other and picked twelve photos with Whatevers whom we will give a story.
  • Every month – if possible always on the 15th –  each of us will do a post with an individual story that goes along for us with the same photo.
  • If you want you can play along and we will have the photo for you – just right-click on it to safe it to download and show us your version of The Whatevers.
  • There is no rules to the story itself- it can be funny, sad, uplifting, breathtaking WHATEVER
  • There is no rules on the length or the form of the story- it can be a short sentence, an essay, a poem or a soap opera – WHATEVER
  • There is no rules on the artwork you choose – it can be a scrapbook layout, an altered art project, an art journal page – WHATEVER
  • Here is a rule though: if you take the photo you have to link back to us andshow us your story.
  • These pictures are from our personal stash and are for personal use for you only! If you want to use them for a publication whether a book or magazine in print or digital form please ask for permission!
  • If you want to participate post in the comment section .
  • You can also join our The Whatevers -Facebook Page

You can grab the blinkie here if you want to add it to your sidebar



Nat

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Filed Under: Art Journal, The Whatevers - Creative Storytelling Tagged With: , , , , ,

Breathe in the Chaos or..From Quote to Artjournal

April 11, 2013 By 11 Comments

I know I showed the quote before…but I want to show it to you again, now used in an art journal page.

 

NathalieKalbach_Parachute

 

Other than that this quote needs to be my constant reminder right now- LOL – I guess I should turn it into an art journal page too.

NathalieKalbach_Breathe

 

What quote should you use as a note to yourself right now?

Huge hugs and have an amazing day

Nat

 

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Filed Under: Art Journal, Spraypaint, Stencils and Masks Tagged With: , , ,

Announcement: ArtFusion in The Netherlands Changes of Location and Date

April 4, 2013 By Leave a Comment

We Heard You!!

Yes, we did! On our announcement of the Artfusion Event we planned we got a lot of comments about the location. Many of you asked us why we didn’t plan it somewhere in the middle of the Netherlands. It would be easier for you to get there and it would also increase the travel distance/time for a lot of you. Also we heard that April was already so full of events and stuff.
And we agree! So we decided to postpone the event and find a better location. We think we found the perfect place!

Artfusion will now take place June 15-16 in the middle of the lovely city of Utrecht. Being a big railways junction in the Netherlands and only 45 minutes by train from Schiphol airport we think Utrecht is one of the best places we could have chosen.

The facility (Kade Ateliers) is a canal house at the Leidsekade 17, near the center of Utrecht where we have the availability of 2 lovely, light rooms. As we see it, we have all the ingredients for an amazing creative weekend on hand here.

Here are some pictures of the location:

kade alteliers atelier 2

atelier

We also made some changes in the workshops. You will find the schedule, the workshops and prices below:

SATURDAY, JUNE 15:

9.30 – 13.00 – Season Canvas Workshop by Nathalie Kalbach

In this Workshop with Nathalie Kalbach, you will create a stunning and unique canvas that will be a wonderful home décor item.

Learn how to create dimension and texture with tissue paper, items of daily life, acrylic paint, lace, burlap, and gesso.

Learn how to reveal the interesting and eye-catching texture with acrylic paints and acrylic inks and add some fun stamping techniques on top.

We will be adding lots of layers and dimension to make this a spring, summer, fall or winter canvas… just as you like. All the techniques can easily be applied to future projects.

14.00 – 17.30 Embossing and Beyond Mini Album Workshop by Birgit Koopsen

Embossing and beyond.banner

SUNDAY, JUNE 16:

10.00 – 12.30 Mixed Media Meets Scrapbooking, a layout workshop by Birgit Koopsen

mixed media layout workshop banner

13.30 – 16.00 Chalk on The Wild Side Mini-Album Workshop by Nathalie Kalbach

chalkAdwDiscription

Artfusion – Early Bird Packages:

Sign up before May 15 -2013 and the packages will be as followed

Saturday Package: 2 Workshops including lunch, drinks and snacks – 85 EUR

(signing up after May 15 – 95 EUR)

Sunday Package: 2 Workshops including lunch, drinks and snacks – 85 EUR

(signing up after May 15 – 95 EUR)

Weekend Package: 4 Workshops (2 on Saturday/2 on Sunday) including lunch, drinks and snacks – 160 EUR

(signing up after May 15 – 190 EUR)

On Saturday evening we also have a room available for those of you who just can’t stop and want to crop for a couple of hours.

You can sign up by emailing Birgit to  info@birgitkoopsen.nl  She will sent you the information and the requirements. Until upon payment you are on a waiting list. Your space is secured once your payment was received.

We are very much looking forward to see you for some Artfusion :)

Birgit & Nat

Filed Under: Mixed Media Workshop, Prima Marketing Workshop, Workshop Schedule Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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