I often get emails asking me about my favorite tools or supplies and I actually love those emails because they make me think of why I tend to use some things all the time.

Is it laziness? What is it about these items that make me grab for them whenever I create a Mixed Media Project?

One of the answers that came up for almost all of them is “I use them because of their versatility of usage” . That is an easy guess for an answer- LOL- since I named my favorite Online Workshop series Über*Media playing on the fact that you can use some items so MANY different ways.

But let me take you the next couple weeks on a little journey on my favorite Mixed Media essentials and explain why I could bathe in them and show you where I used them. I hope you will enjoy my new little series starting tomorrow :)

Wishing you a creative monday !

Nat

Nat

9 ….years it is that my husband and I are married. 9 years ago in Hamburg, Germany surrounded by a semi-small group of family members and friends. Well…semi small because we were actually planning on maybe 10 peeps and then a bigger wedding the next years in the States. It ended kind of semi big…because nobody wanted to be left out although a lot of them were coming to the States for the wedding there anyway ;) And it was AWESOME both times !!! :)

We celebrated this year at the harbor here in the city…we were in a posh place for some cocktails…the view was paying off the snobby semi-friendly peeps working there and then we went for a wonderful dinner and nice little walk back home. Perfect!

So, why you might ask, do I have to throw psychedelic circles onto this beautiful, romantic music paper? Because I can….LOL-

NOOOOO – just kidding ;) Because hubs studied music and loves to spent his free time playing and composing music and I love to spent my free time playing with paint. So …there you go ;)

I created the circles with Liquitex Pouring Medium- so much fun! I teach this technique in the Über*Media Acrylic Paint Online Workshop and these were some of the samples I made and I finally wanted to use :)

Supplies: Heidi Swapp Vintage Chick Beautiful Songs paper, Liquitex Acrylic Paints, Liquitex Acrylic Inks, Liquitex Pouring Medium, Manila Shipping Tags, Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L Crafty Power Tape and MyStik Permanent

Which two elements/embellishments or media on a project could reflect you and your loved one? 

Nat

Nat

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: Use 3 different stamps

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.

Ha – I was looking forward to this challenge to use 3 different stamps- not because I thought I would be really challenged, but because I had just bought a couple stamps in July that I haven’t used yet. Time to get those out.

I decided to take it to the second floor by using different ways using those stamps. so first I stamped on paper colored with an Derwent Inktense Block.

Then I stamped on grey tissue paper which I later applied to the above background with gel medium.

I stamped the coffee mug on top of a piece of Scrapbooking paper, colored it in with Liquitex Inks and Derwent Artbars.

Then I cut out the cup of coffee, and created a heart on the background paper, which I cut out and created this Scrapbooking layout.

It was a quick layout but I had fun using some techniques with it – it felt of like art journaling but instead of painting on a piece of paper it was creating a layout.

Supplies: Pink Paislee Paper, Watercolor Paper, Tissue Paper, myStampBox Stamps created by Karen Ellis, Stampers Anonymous Stamps, Liquitex Gel Medium, Derwent Inktense Block, Derwent Inktense Pencil, Liquitex Acrylic Inks, Derwent Artbars, Ranger’s Archival Inks, Posca black marker, Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L MyStik and 3D Foam Pads

What I learned from this challenge:

1. Sometimes when I create for a manufacturer it bothers me that I have to be triggered by the product for an idea for a project. But as I had bought those stamps because I surely loved them when I saw them, it felt totally ok to be triggered for an idea by the coffee mug created by Karen Ellis for myStampBox.

2. I usually use white tissue paper for the infusing technique when I stamp – I really like the grey tissue paper for this technique I learned- it tones the colors down but of course…it just makes it a shade – nice one- with some texture.

3. You really need to mix the Liquitex inks– otherwise you get an smudge image- which is not really bothering me here on the coffee mug- but I need to keep that in mind. Why be so lazy with a tiny bit of shaking (gosh..I ‘m so lazy sometimes- LOL)

4. I forced myself using unusual colors for me and I liked it. I need to get more out of my color box  again – I used to do it … why did I stop? :)

5. Stamps always give an handmade feel to a layout, even if you use them in small amounts- I love that. I need to use stamps more on my work- and not solely for backgrounds ;)

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

“It took them a while, but finally they realized it was time to enjoy the flowers they had planted”.

I love this photo that I also found at a flea market and if you read my recent post about my auntie, I am sure you get the message ;)

For this canvas I tried out my new Liquitex Professional Spray Pain which were just released in Germany. You know I love love love spray paints…and acrylic paints.

I have been on the look out for acrylic paint sprays that you can use inside and that are of a nice quality- so when I got my little paws on those I had to try them right away…inside my studio…huge plus for spray paints in my opinion, as those are odorless :) It took me a couple attempts to get used to them…because they react a bit different from Graffiti Spray Paints I had used before or from other water based spray paints- but it was worth the tries. I love the colors- they are so vibrant- it makes my heart sing and the way how you can use them and mix them with Acrylic Paints and other media.

supplies: Liquitex Professional Spray Paints, Liquitex Gel Medium, Liquitex Acrylic Inks, Utee, Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L Photocorners, Ribbon and Canvas Fabric

Liquitex was so nice to give me five mini sprays for a giveaway in Germany, Switzerland and Austria – sorry my other friends- this time it is for those peeps only :) but you could still check in on the REVitup Postcard set – so leave me a message there .

So the following shortly in German:

Hinterlasst mir einfach einen Kommentar bis Freitag und lass mich wissen, dass Ihr in Deutschland, der Schweiz oder in Österreich wohnt und erzählt mir was Ihr mit diesen Sprays ausprobieren würdet :) Das Los entscheidet.

Are you enjoying the flowers you have planted?

huge hugs

Nat

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Nat

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 7th Second Floor Challenge: Use Five Supplies

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.

You might have noticed that Julie and I didn’t post a Second Floor Challenge in July. We were simply out of breath with assignments and CHA stuff…and sometimes the challenge is to let go of a challenge ;) So we decided to just leave July out- and I am sure that is fine ;)

So – Use Five Supplies…this was fun…it was for me a constant mixture between: “ha, piece of a cake” and “oh brother, really?” LOL

So starting with the task I picked these five supplies in the beginning:

Heidi Swapp – Vintage Chic Bookkeeping Paper

Washi Tape

Crafter’s Workshop Templates Deco Doily Stencil

Liquitex Spray Paint

MyStik Permanent by Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L

So first I added some Washi Tape to the Paper.

I placed the stencil over the washi tape and started spraying using the Liquitex Spray Paint- love it- it is acrylic based and it is brand new on the German market. I will post more about it later and I also have some give-aways coming up ;)

When I lifted the stencils up- I realized that the page looked a bit unbalanced with just a big focus on the right bottom corner- so I decided to use up the additional paint on the stencil and flipped it over to make a small mark on the upper left corner of the page.

I also layered some more Washi Tape over the spray painted areas.

Then I decided I needed another supply, so I decided to mount the photo with the washi tape (which will probably not hold forever like the MyStik though) and exchange the MyStik for a brush.

I sprayed some of the Liquitex spray in a puddle and then used the brush to handwrite my title on the page. I would say that was my take to step up the second floor :)

Actually our sweet friend Julie Fei Fan Balzer is missing on that photo- cause she belongs in it too!!!

Here is a close up of the photo and text underneath

What I learned from this challenge:

1. six is the new five. I actually used a photo too- one could argue that using that…or using photoshop to add the journaling is another supply. So there…six is the new five ;)
2. I was done in 10 minutes, which felt weird…I do really enjoy the process of a layout- for me it is not the outcome and it feels if something is not done yet.
3. I like the outcome though and I like the style- I might go more into this – it still feels like me but needs more diving into..with more supplies- LOL
4. It was good to just use five supplies, it made me think more how you could utilize the products more- something I always like to do. For example not only using the spray paints as spray paints but also for writing the title.
5. I have a huge to do list, limiting myself to five supplies made it easy for me to spent some time in the studio without feeling I leave my other stuff undone. Spending 10 minutes in the studio is doable- it doesn’t always have to be a huge task and hours to make you happy and get inky being creative ;)

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

have a wonderful day

hugs

Nat

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Nat

A couple weeks ago Janna asked me if I would like to work on a project with her and I was thrilled- I love her work :) Her style is pretty cool. Since we are both in Northern Germany and there are quite some things said about us Northern Germans (Fishheads is one of the them ;) ) we agreed on creating something towards this theme and sharing each others creations on our blogs.

Here is Janna’s AMAZING! project – I did not translate her writing word by word, there will be too much getting lost in translation. Essentially she says we Northern Germans are pretty direct, we love to drink either tea or coffee and talk things through, even though we do not talk too much – LOL- we like it short. But once we like you – we love to chat with you ;) And Janna loves that the country is wide and the water is close – she could not imagine living without those attributes.

“Typisch Norddeutsch

Nat