nathalie-kalbach

Über*Media Acrylic INK Online Workshop is here & a Winner of the Class

It is here :) It was so fun to read your guesses on what this class is going to be about and a lot of you had the right guess. So before I will reveal the winner – let’s  have a further peak about the class.

[vimeo 50011999 w=400 h=300]

In this Über*Media Acrylic Ink Online Workshop I want you to learn how to use Acrylic Inks in your Scrapbooking and Mixed Media Projects! This class is a reference guide for you, showing all kinds of possibilities and techniques using Acrylic Inks with different surfaces and media.

Most results of the techniques of this class can be also archived by using India Inks. I use Acrylic Inks because they are more versatile and can be mixed more with other acrylic media. I will cover the differences in the first week.

In this Acrylic Ink online workshop we will start with the basics of the medium. In four lessons over four weeks  we will make our way up to more advanced techniques. The class starts with thefirst lesson on October 8th, 2012 and then each following lesson goes online the following monday.

I will share with you my favorite Acrylic Ink techniques.

What you get:

  • Intensive knowledge about acrylic ink
  • How to incorporate this affordable paint medium into your Scrapbooks and Mixed Media Projects
  • A big amount of techniques with acrylic inks
  • Photo manipulation with acrylic inks
  • Using it with inexpensive house hold items
  • How to layer dimensions and create textures
  • Numerous resist techniques
  • Masking/Stenciling techniques
  • Transfer technique
  • How you can use other media with acrylic inks
  • about two-and-a-half hours of video material
  • Flickr Group for sharing your work with me and other students
  • Personal feedback
  • Quick support

You can sign up here for the cost of 39 US-Dollars (about 30 EUR). It is a cool deal :)

You will find all the details and can sign up here

———————-

AND THE WINNER OF THE Acrylic INK Online Workshop who guessed right and who was drawn is

 

Marisa already received an email by me.

Thank you all for playing along- it was so much fun!

Huge Hugs

nat

Nat

Comments (7)

  • selena

    |

    hello,
    is it easy for me, because i don’t understand the englisgh very well?

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

      |

      Hi Selena, I don’t know how well your english is. As it is videos, it might be easy- because you see most of the things….but I can’t really promise that you will understand everything. My english is very easy, I think, because it is not my mother language either :) hugs nat

      Reply

  • Sue Clarke

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    Looks like another fun time!

    Reply

  • Marsha.

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    Oh man… You made this one especially for me, right? Because you somehow sensed that I’m only petting my beautiful Liquitex inks right now? How did you do that?!

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

      |

      LOL- that is what I did the first couple months I had those too – I loved them too much to use them ;) But hey hey- you need to break them in!!!

      Reply

  • Jenny Palmer

    |

    Congratulations Marisa looks like a lot of fun

    Reply

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Peek Inside the n*Studio – Prepping Workshops

I thought it might be interesting to take a peek inside my studio once in a while. A lot of my daily work is dedicated to prepping workshops …let me show you how this process works in the n*Studio :)

In the beginning stands an idea for a workshop which I start to write down, gathering some ideas for it. Sometimes the title idea is coming right away, sometimes a bit later.

Then comes the gathering of supplies I want to use, creating the prototype and jotting down every single step, calculating how much time it might really take in a bigger group with explanation time and thinking of what might work or not work….it is the favorite part of mine of prepping the workshops :)

Once I got it all figured out I take photos of the project and start writing up the description and create a sneak collage for it.

And then comes writing lists of supplies etc and to do lists and more lists….in English and in German….

After this comes ordering. Usually for several workshops at once. Which takes a bit time as it involves often several companies and you also have to calculate quite a bit. Most companies want you to order in bulk, which means for example you have to order 25 pieces of one paper, but you can order alphabets in packages of 6. So there is a bit of thinking involved ;)

Next comes waiting for the packages to arrive and most times also clearing the packages at customs involving paperwork, waiting time and unpacking and explaining items, paying the customs bill.

The best part of that…and probably the only good part is,  that customs in Hamburg is located in a beautiful area in the harbor city :)

As soon as the package is hauled up the six flights it get’s unpacked, checked and stored. I usually get rid of the packaging of the items too and recycle paper and plastic, as it makes the kits for further shipping too heavy.

Now when all the boxes arrived, the most time-consuming part starts…kitting. It usually takes several hours, sometimes even a couple days…and takes up a lot of space. It is basically like working on the assembly line. Every item is a station and you start filling the bag. I would say it is my least favorite part of preparing the workshops …lol. I know, I am not supposed to say this…but hey…no lying here – this is not called “a glorious peek inside the n*Studio* ;)

Counting buttons is fine…but counting stuff like paper butterflies…SNORE ;)

My favorite part is when everything is packed and ready to go :)

Ready to be packed alongside tools and paint media into a box to ship out to the place I will be teaching at :)

And after the prepping the workshop- the real fun begins for me. The teaching :)

I hope you enjoyed this little peek. I am thinking of doing some more of this in the future. Anything you might be interested in peeking?

Have a gorgeous day

Huge Hugs

nat

n*Studio Workshops

Nat

Comments (17)

  • Milagros

    |

    Nath Hello! liked me to this post about as you prepare workshops, takes a lot of work to prepare each workshop, now I have to prepare some proposals for workshops and I have done very well the explanation of your post.
    hugs
    Mila

    Reply

  • AnnaB

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    I loved this post Nat! It’s so interesting to get a glimpse of all the hard work behind each workshop!

    Reply

  • sandra

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    Love the look @your desk, is it always that neat?
    you are right, we never think about the person that puts it all together
    we only think about the teacher in front of us, and when do we get to play with the supplies

    Reply

  • lynnmcmvt

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    Thanks for the sneak peek, and I’d love to see more! It’s good to remind people what goes on ‘behind the scenes’ to prep for classes and presentations as it’s easy to get the idea that being a teaching artist is all play and no counting butterflies. ;)

    Reply

  • Jessica

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    I don’t think most students realize how much work goes into these classes. Amazing! Love this peek!

    Reply

  • mjmarmo

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    Fun to see what goes on!

    Reply

  • Riikka

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    This was so great, thank you for sharing! (My favourite part is the kitting, but hey, I’m in totally different clas than you are :D)

    Reply

  • mlepitts

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    Looks like an interesting process Nat, thanks for sharing it with us!

    Reply

  • emily

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    Fun to see what you do to create a workshop, looks like an interesting process! thanks :)

    Reply

  • lisa

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    Love this peek in to your life Nat. Thanks for sharing x

    Reply

  • Lisa Flaherty

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    A lot of behind the scenes work! I enjoyed the peek, and look forward to more. I think Sue C. is right, some folks just don’t think about all the background prep that goes into class, from inception of the idea for the workshop all the way through building the supply kits.

    Reply

  • Isabel LopezDel RinconTroussel

    |

    Very interesting… thanks for allowing us to take a peek inside your studio and see how you work!
    I don’t know which workshop you were preppin’ for, but I WANT IN!!!! Looks fun!
    Lots of hugs,
    Isabel

    Reply

  • Anne

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    Hallo Nathalie,
    danke! Hat Spaß gemacht und ich muss sagen, Hut ab!
    Bin sehr gespannt auf den Workshop…

    Reply

  • Sandi McLean

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    Having prepped just for small LSS classes in the past, I know how folks have NO idea of the work and love that goes into it. No one WANTS to count paper butterflies LOL I love the peek into your studio.

    Reply

  • Sue Clarke

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    I really like the graphic you used for the “Peek Inside The N*Studio”…
    interesting and good for folks to see that the price of a workshop (which is usually reasonable) needs to include paying the teacher for all her prep time as well.

    Reply

  • Jenny Palmer

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    Hi Nat
    That was really interesting thanks for the insight
    Jenny
    waves from Tassie

    Reply

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Upcoming Workshops in Munich, Germany- October – München Workshops

So can’t wait to come back to the Scrappies in Munich, Germany on October 19-20, 2012.

Ich freue mich riesig wieder zu Workshops bei den Scrappies in München geben zu können. Vom 19.-20. Oktober gebe ich folgende Workshops:

1. Chalk on The Wild Side – Mixed Media-Scrapbooking Minialbum Workshop – 35 EUR
In diesem Prima Mini-Album Workshop mit Nathalie Kalbach, wirst Du ein individuelles, schönes Minialbum kreieren, dass Scrapbooking mit Mixed Media verbindet. In diesem Workshop werden wir mit flüssigen Prima Kreiden und trocknem PanPastel arbeiten. In spielerischer Weise werden wir die Unterschiede dieser beiden Farbmedien herausarbeiten und eine Vielzahl von Techniken anwenden, die auch für zukünftige Projekte angewendet werden können. Stempeln, Malen, Highlighting und das Kreieren von Hintergründen, werdet
ihr nach diesem Workshop aus dem Ärmel schütteln. Du arbeitest mit unterschiedlichen Untergründen wie Leinwand, Holz, Papier und Verpackungsmaterial. Let’s go and Chalk on the Wild Side in diesem 3 Stunden langen Workshop!

2. Portrait of a Lady – Mixed Media Keilrahmen Workshop – 35 EUR
Portraitzeichnen? Überall sieht man zur Zeit gemalte Gesichter auf Mixed Media Projekten, Papieren und Schablonen. Was aber wenn man nicht so gut zeichnen kann? Macht mit bei Nathalie Kalbachs witzigen DIN A4-Keilrahmen Workshop und lerne, wie man in kürzester Zeit ein Portrait zeichnen kann. Du gestaltest ein Dekostück in Deinen Lieblingsfarben entweder für Dich oder als ein Geschenk.
In diesem Workshop zeigt Nat viele Mixed Media Techniken mit Gesso: Wie man einen Hintergrund, Textur, Stempelabdrücke, unter zur Hilfenahme von Farbmedien etc. verwendet. Lerne wie man tolle Künstlerfarbmedien in verschiedenen Ebenen aufträgt und Elemente zusammenfügt. Entdecke wie man Scrapbooking Embellishments verändert und damit dem eigenen individuellen Stil und dem eigenen Projekt anpasst. Verwende schöne Prima Papiere und Embellishments um dem Portrait je nach Gusto ladylike zu gestalten. Und das Beste? Alle die Techniken, die in diesem Workshop angewendet werden, sind wunderbar auch für andere Mixed Media und Scrapbooking-Projekte verwendbar. Komm und mach mit bei diesem 3,5 Stunden langen Workshop.

3. Tag You Are It – Technik und Layout Workshop – 35 EUR
Experimentier mit Nathalie Kalbach in diesem witzigem Technik- und Layout Workshop, um die vielen Möglichkeiten der farbenfrohen PanPastel zu entdecken.
In der 1. Hälfte des Workshops werden verschiedene Tags in Deinen Lieblingsfarben mit allerlei Techniken gestalten. Du wirst sehen wie vielseitig PanPastels für Hintergründe, Farblagen, Stenciling und mehr einsetzbar sind.
In der 2. Hälfte des Workshops werdet ihr dann noch ein Photo manipulieren und Nat zeigt euch, wie man PanPastel auch mit Scrapbooking Materialien z.B. der Firma Prima und Pink Paislee verwenden kann.
Dann werden die Lieblingstags aus der 1. Hälfte des Workshops in ein schönes, individuelles Layout eingebunden.
Nach diesem Workshop wirst Du ein weiteres tolles Farbmedium in Deine zukünftigen Scrapbooking und Mixed Media Projekte einbinden können. Kommt und macht mit in diesem 3,5 Stunden langem Workshop.

Mehr Informationen hier

Wer sich gleich anmelden möchte, kann dies natürlich gleich tun.

Hier könnt ihr euch gleich anmelden

Have an amazing and wonderful day

Nat

Comments (1)

  • mjmarmo

    |

    Looks like wonderful classes!

    Reply

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(Re)touching Lives Through Photos

The following video by Becci Manson made me tear up. Photos are dear to my heart. I just had this conversation with my grand-aunt Waltraud who couldn’t understand why I would redo a new photo album for my grand-aunt Margot, who just recently had to move to an elderly home. “She doesn’t care about those old photos”. I said “Yes she does, she actually asked for them!” Looking at those old photos was a big part of my visits with my aunt Margot – it is one of my fondest childhood memories. I can totally understand that for aunt Margot after being taken away from her home, those photos will give her a feeling of home and consolation.

But listen and see yourself how Becci talks about how she, together with local volunteers and a global group of colleagues recruited online, helped to restore memories after the Tsunami in Japan.

[ted id=1532]

I am touched by the willingness of Becci Manson and other volunteers to help with their skills- it amazes me and makes me remember that help, consolation and hope can have many faces! Thank you Becci Manson and the volunteers for this reminder!

“[Photos are] our memory-keepers and our histories, the last thing we would grab [in a crisis], and the first thing you’d go back to look for.” (Becci Manson)

Nat

Nat

Comments (4)

  • Sue Clarke

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    I always say that after my son, hubby and dog…I would grab my scrapbooks (if my house were on fire). Maybe I should just grab the computer though…it’s lighter and has most of the photos on it.

    Reply

  • Martha Richardson

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    OH I so agree Nat!My grandfather on my Dad’s side was a professional photographer and every once in awhile we are able to locate one of the postcards created from his work. I love that you are redoing your Aunt’s album ;)

    Reply

  • mjmarmo

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    What a wonderful thing! Those old photos are treasures to be cherished.

    Reply

  • Pearl Maple

    |

    Nat thank you for sharing
    Such a beautiful message of how we can use our skills to make good
    And how important our photos are, today folks take 100s of pics in a day, for those of us who have lost everything in a war or disaster, every image is precious

    Reply

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Second Floor Challenge #9: Embossing Powder

Are you ready to take the second floor this time? If you have no clue what I am talking about- read all about it here :) The Second Floor Challenge

So today is our 8th Second Floor Challenge: Embossing Powder

Click here to see what Julie did

Whatever that means to you or however it inspires you.  The prompt is simply meant to get you started.  The level of challenge you aim for is entirely internal and up to you

Embossing Powder- cool – I love Embossing Powder. I use it in many different ways and I love to try out all kinds of different media as embossing agents. If you have ever been at one of my life workshops you know that ;) You have used all kinds of stuff for it…Acrylic Paints was one of them. So started like this on a small tiny canvas

I spread black gesso over since I know I wanted different colored embossing powders on top of it and I hoped the black gesso would make the colors pop more.

It was like cooking …BAM! some more spicy embossing powder right into the kisser wet gesso.

Next was heating, and I had a suspicion already that this mixture would be a bit dangerous in case of the fumes…and boy was I right…yikes. I bet this is highly unhealthy and recommend almost a mask and a well ventilated area. But still I was pleased with the result.

Time to take it to the second floor – I sprayed it with water based spray paints

and BAM! sprinkled some golden embossing powder over it here and there – off heating again

Loved the results….and then used it right away for a present for a special girl

here is a close up of the Gesso-Embossing

What I learned from this challenge:

  1. I love the texture and patina aged look the embossing powder with the black gesso created. Actually to tell you the truth it makes me giddy :)
  2. this is NOT healthy! not something I would teach in a workshop. Black Gesso by Golden already has on their lable that it contains chemicals that are known to cause cancer…and embossing powder is essentially plastic, so melting it together like crazy is obviously a crazy nut case’s idea! I will wear a mask next if I do it again!
  3. I love that through the combination of those two media the heat resulted extra dimension stayed once it was dried. Pretty pretty cool.
  4. If you reheat colored gesso again and put the heat too long on it, it can loose its color at parts and gets white spots. Which in this case was cool! But something to keep in mind.
  5. I liked working on a smaller surface for this technique – first it was out of economic reasons as to not waste a huge amount of embossing powder if that technique would not work, but then it also was fun to incorporate this in a bigger project using different techniques then again.

If you’d like to leave a link showing off what you did in response to this challenge, here’s the linky list:


hugs

Nat

Nat

Comments (24)

  • scrappegal

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    AWESOME!!!!! :)

    Reply

  • msmathey

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    WOW – you are amazing – this project is awesome!

    Reply

  • marjiekemper

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    Thanks for experimenting and sharing… I think I’ll pass on heating up my cancer agent, lmao…. but I do appreciate seeing your beautiful results!

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      hi jessica, love your post. i already visited. sorry for the linkz mistake, we changed it to the right date.

      Reply

  • Carrie

    |

    WOW! That really looks fabulous. What a shame that it’s so toxic… Well, we could just be like Michelle Ward and not worry about it. She uses all kinds of toxic stuff! Is that black gesso super thick? It looks really dimensional, which just makes the project even cooler :)

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

      |

      HI Carrie, yes the black Gesso is really thick….it is like melted marshmellows- LOL .Have a wonderful day ! Nat

      Reply

  • Riikka

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    Oh my gosh how gorgeous is that! <3

    Reply

  • osmancm@comcast.net

    |

    I would not of thought to use black gesso. thanks for sharing your process….I really liked the results.

    Reply

  • Geles

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    Oh Nath, I like this work, and Cuchy is a special woman!!. Thank you for the explain it….. I don’t know if I write well. Kisses

    Reply

  • ruby t

    |

    I love these experiments and the spirit with which you and Julie do them.
    Perhaps put black gesso down, let dry and put on the clear embossing ink so the fumes will not get too bad.
    Can you also tell us about the background of the finished piece-the blue lettering and the misting technique? I know that was not part of the project but curious about the stamping of the lettering look.
    thanks

    Reply

  • Kathy Gledsdale

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    Really lovely!

    Reply

  • lizmaynz

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    I’m sorry but I just read the part where Nat tells us Black Gesso by Golden already has on their label that it contains chemicals that are known to cause cancer!
    I mean should we be worried especially those of us that use our fingers to paint with? I already get cancer in the bladder every so often and have to get that taken out each time with out endangering myself with using a product that could essentially put me at risk again. Sorry but my health is under so much stress as it is with out this added worry.

    Reply

  • Mag&scrap

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    Wonderful Work with these embossing powder !

    Reply

  • Cuchy

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    ohhhh it’s me, it’s me!!!! and you even took a risk with the fumes!! ;)
    Thank you sweetie. You made my day! Can’t wait to touch it.
    Loves

    Reply

  • SusanJane

    |

    Because of the dust and fumes I have always worked in small areas only. I guess you could tackle larger pieces by standing back and doing the same with breaks between each section. With good lighting you can tell if the powder has hardened and not have your face in it.

    Reply

  • peg

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    wow, that looks so cool, gonna have to give it a go.
    Thanks for the inspo :-*

    Reply

  • Sue Clarke

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    Please don’t inhale too many fumes while creating Nat.
    Good to see that Julie posted the same day as you did;-O
    I love the texture that you got.

    Reply

  • Mary M.

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    Love this technique Nat! Gotta get some black gesso and try this!

    Reply

  • Maggie M

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    AWESOME Nat! I’m going to definitely give this a try:)

    Reply

  • Andrene

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    Gorgeous!! The colors definitely pop with the black gesso and the background is divine too!!

    Reply

  • mjmarmo

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    How cool is that. I do not have any black gesso. I do have some embossing powders though…….MIght have to try something like this!

    Reply

  • Alicia

    |

    Muy bonito Nat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    Besos

    Reply

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Announcing a NEW Über*Media Online Workshop

There is a new Über*Media Online Workshop coming in October and let’s see if you can guess what it is about. And to make it even more fun…if you guess it right, you might even win a spot in this new class.

So let’s see…so far we had…

Check it out here

Check it out here

Check it out here

Check it out here

mhhhh- Ok…so WHAT could be the topic of the new Über*Media Online Workshop?

So let me give you a hint on the topic with this video…. :)

[vimeo 49465967 w=400 h=300]

Did you get it? I am sure you did…

You can win a spot in this workshop by leaving a comment here on this blog post and letting me know what you think it is going to be about. Comments must be posted to this blog post until Sunday 23rd, 2012 – noon CET. I will draw one winner in the following week and also reveal the new workshop topic and sign up :)

Have a gorgeous colorful day

Nat

Nat

Comments (46)

  • Anastasia Dupont

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    I think the class is about watercolors….looks like fun!

    Reply

  • Cindy from Holland

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    Lovely video, it is too short. I think the next class will be about primary colours.

    Reply

  • Jenny Palmer

    |

    Nat
    I said ink earlier what about neocolor 2 watercolor crayons?

    Reply

  • Lisa Flaherty

    |

    Hmm. I am thrown because the colors were not mixing with each other as each was added…the magenta looked very watery, but the green seemed more viscous. Is the class about medium mixatives? Like gel medium, pouring medium, etc? As a chemistry nerd, I have to say it looks like fun!

    Reply

    • Michele Parish

      |

      i HOPE i AM NOT TOO LATE FOR THIS AWSOME GIVE AWAY. YOUR WEBSITE HELPS ME SO MUCH IN THE PROCESS OF MIXED MEDIA ART. I HAVE SOOOO MUCH TO LEARN. THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY FOR SHOWING ME THE STEPS ON HOW TO CREATE.

      Reply

  • Ange

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    Hello Nat just recently found your blog and love it! I would guess: Uber media: Inktense Blocks!!!!! Thanks for the great posts and I am definitely taking some of your online classes in the very near future! Cheers!

    Reply

  • Angelika Westermann

    |

    This video is just great! My first guess was watercolor, however the colors were too intense, so inks is my more or less educated guess! I am still following the class for acrylic paints, however, naturally I would be delighted to win access to this new class as well. Thank you very much for offering this to us.
    Angelika

    Reply

  • tesa

    |

    ummm watercolors?. The video is plenty of colours. I love your über media class.

    Reply

  • Karishma

    |

    Hmmm
    Seeing acrylic paint in water…..
    Foam stamp from above
    So guessing that is what the class is about
    Would love to win a spot!
    Thanks …

    Reply

  • TeedeJee

    |

    Wait, wait, something with foam stamps too I think….. X

    Reply

  • TeedeJee

    |

    Hmmm…. difficult… My guess is something with colors. Well that was an easy one lol. And fabric!!!!! With gesso of course…… XXX

    Reply

  • Maria Schmidt

    |

    Wow! Ein geniales Video! So schön wie die Farben ineinander verlaufen! DAs können ja fast nur Spray Farben sein, oder? Also von Dylusions oder die Acrylspray Farben…. :-) Bin auf jeden Fall sehr gespannt!
    xo maria

    Reply

  • Olive

    |

    WOW! Loved the amazing video, the music sounded like the song Blue Heaven. My guess is the workshop is about acrylic inks or stamp pad reinkers. Thank you for the chance to win.

    Reply

  • Marisa

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    My guess would be ink…either acrylic ink or just ink in general.

    Reply

  • Sylvie

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    It has to be something to do with inks. Spray or bottled would be my guess. Love the video. I loved your acrylic class so bring it on.

    Reply

  • canadianrn

    |

    Über Sprays and Mists…maybe even ÜBER Dylusions??!!

    Reply

  • Jessica

    |

    I’m going to go with inks too… all I can say is that I wanted to jump into your video and swim with all those colors — they looked like beautiful undersea water scarves. Yum.

    Reply

  • Maria

    |

    I think it’s about liquid acrylic ink like liquitex or dr ph martins indian ink…I’m not sure but I’m sure that I need to know it!!!! ;) Kisses

    Reply

  • Sorken

    |

    I’m not sure what it’s called in english, but I thought about ‘marblelizing’ paper when I saw the video. But then it looked more like watersoluble colours… Hmm, hard to guess. :-)

    Reply

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The Whatevers #4 or Deep Down His Heart

Are you ready for the 3rd Whatevers? If you missed the 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 take on it

Deep Down His Heart

Deep down his heart, he knew Claire wasn’t his child – but in the end all that counted was that Francine decided to be with him. He never told her he knew and he loved her and Claire more than anything. He would never tell anyone. His brother would never understand, he already despised Francine. The only person who would understand was his sister in law Myrtle. But oh well…just don’t tell!

Hi Name: Marco –  Myrtle‘s brother in law and Maria and Mathias‘ uncle

I played a lot of mono printing this time – it was fun – I added the prints on tissue paper to my background. It is a bit wild and deep, layered…deep down ;)

I gave myself permission to do whatever with my whatever art journal- so there is a lot experimenting- and it is fun – even though I know that people will see it in the end ;)

And here is the photo for you:

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 artform you choose – it can be a scrapbook layout, an altered art project, an artjournal 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 we’ll have a linky list for each Whatever Post.
  • You can also join our The Whatevers -Facebook Page

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

You can share your work with us by submitting here:

Nat

Nat

Comments (12)

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My Favorite Mixed Media Essentials: 3. Markers & Pens

I wouldn’t necessarily say that Pens and Markers come at third place- but I would say that this is what I get the most questions about “What kind of marker/pen do you use on your projects with x? And so I will talk about my favorite ones now :)

If you missed the other posts in this series – you can catch up here 

I would say these are my top seven- always go to pens and markers.

What I always keep in mind when I use pens and markers is:

  • There is a right pen or marker for every surface
  • Make sure your paint media- all media on your surface is completely dry before you start writing on it…otherwise you ruin your pen.
  • Avoid the “fat” areas – meaning those areas – that you treated with oily and waxy paint media when you use felt markers or acrylic markers in general.
  • Be careful when you use an oil based marker or pen over water-soluble surfaces. Oftentimes the medium underneath reacts and the oil based marker bleeds into it. If that is what you want…you are good to go ;)

Which pens and markers I use:

This pen is awesome – that is why I have it…well…kidding aside – LOL. This permanent marker can be used on all kinds of surfaces including glass and acrylic and CD’s. I write with it on paper, as long as it is smooth paper, otherwise it tends to bleed. I use it because I love how it writes. When I write something on a transparency– I use it- it is the best on transparencies. I use it on smooth acrylic surfaces – it works like a charm. Not so good to use on textured surfaces- you ruin your pen…and believe me…hehehehe- I tried ;)  It comes with different tip sizes and it has an eraser in the back for the slick surfaces.

This is an ink pencil and when you write with it or make marks, they are pretty prominent as the pencil itself is highly pigmented and firm. You can also use water on it and then wash the pigments out. Once it is dried…it is permanent! YES…you heard right. As I lack the impressive Julie-Fei-Fan-Balzer-handpainted-brush-title-ing – I use this pencil to highly fake this ;) I write with the pencil in a what I think artsyfartsy way my title and then use water and a small brush and just go over it so it looks more like a brush painted title. Of course…as the description has given it away already, you should not use wet media on top of it without intention…you will activate and smear your writing otherwise.

A classic white gel pen. I love how fluidly the ink comes out. It is for me the best white pen I have tried. It covers black perfectly – which means it covers all colors and it is amazing with most surfaces – unless it is the super scratchy one. Gets ruined very quick if you use it on “fat” surfaces or not “dry” surfaces. I used to be able to find refills at my local office supply store which was actually making this a bargain and made me happy for eco-friendly reasons. I need to check out where I can find them now.

This is a soft  water soluble graphite stick and I love this for sketching or mostly making marks into painted dried and wet surfaces. Well- if the surface is wet you make texture and need to clean the tip of the stick right away with a dry towel. It is paper wrapped and you can take the wrapper off as you use it.

These are my secret weapons…LOL. You could say…the Dumbledores under the Markers ;) . The Posca water based paint marker has in the size of 0.9-1.3 mm a bullet shape tip and I tend to love this as I find myself writing easily with this. I love how the paint comes flowing out and I can use it – as well as the Molotow marker on tricky surfaces…well set aside super waxy or oily surfaces of course. On acrylic paint it looks shiny – I love it! I am not a fan though of the white Posca Marker – it doesn’t cover the way I would like it.

The Molotow Marker is a bit pricier, but it can be also refilled and I would say it can be used on even trickier surfaces than the Posca Marker…you can write on the most uneven stoney surfaces with it, without ruining the tip right away and you can use it for outdoor projects too. Ahem..if you think of Molotow Graffiti Spray Paints you might get why this marker is so good with struggling surfaces ;) . The white Molotow Marker is better than the white Posca Marker.

Both markers are awesome as you can use them also on fabric and wood and they do not bleed. The colors are intense and highly pigmented, they don’t fade too quick….I love love love them. I have markers of both companies for YEARS and they are still good to go and not dried out.  If you ever want to make me happy with a present… DEAR FAMILY ….just give me a package of one of those :)

This marker is fun- I don’t have it that long but it makes me smile and I love to use it on large-scale projects to write my own title or for bigger marks. It has this very wide angled tip which makes it easy to use it for calligraphy like writing in a graffiti style ;) And hey…who can resist a marker that says: “waterproof on almost every material. recap after use and be on the run!” and is manufactured by a company called ON THE RUN.

nSupplies

I hope you liked this post- let me know what you think. Next up is ….mmh surprise ;)

huge hugs

Nat

Nat

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