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Never Stop Dreaming – Tania Ahmed

  

Welcome to a post from my Creative Squad! Today we have a gorgeously layered art journal page from Tania Ahmed – showing off some of my rubber stamps including my new Actually I Can set and an oldie but a goodie – my Marks set. Tania was inspired by the new theme for this month: Never Stop Dreaming – This month we’re sending a message of confidence and empowerment to all those in the world (near and far and maybe even you!) who have been told “You can’t”, “That’s not possible”, or “Not you”. Actually we can and we will! And we’ll never stop dreaming either :)

It can be incredibly hard in today’s world with all its demands and expectations to make time to do what is right for ourselves and this is something that I personally struggle with. The theme this month for the Creative Squad was “Never Stop Dreaming” and to me this, coupled with working hard to achieve those dreams, has proved a powerful motivator for change.

I’ve had many conversations with people in my life and artists about what stops them from going for their dreams … there is fear of failure, disappointing others and the expectation that one must live a “conventional” life. I have lately discovered that the biggest motivator for me to go out and work hard to achieve my dreams is the consequences of not doing it! Life is too short for regrets, so I have learnt to do more of what makes me happy, look after myself and occasionally agree to do things that scare me or put me out of my comfort zone, haha!

I made an art journal page for my disc bound journal to celebrate and remind myself that yes, I can do anything I can dream of as long as I work hard for it and keep learning from the inevitable failures that come my way.

I hope you enjoy the video that I made using Nat’s stamps (I must confess I am in love with the Millie and Maiko stamps!) Please do let me know if you have any questions about the page that I made and I apologize for the strobing effect in my video which was caused by the craft mat. You might see me using Millie and Maiko in future projects as well :)

Thanks for popping by, and have a great day!

Thank you Tania for sharing with us – it’s always fun to see the process of a page coming together and to know the important ideas behind it :) To get your hands on my Millie stamp, just visit my online store. Here are some of the other supplies that Tania used today:



Feel inspired? Working on something yourself that you’d like to share?  I love to see how you interpret our monthly themes. Email me how you used my stencils and stamps with the theme and email me an image – I would love to share your projects in my next  “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.

Nat

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Be Positive – Art Journal

“Be positive, patient and persistent”

I used my new Maiko Stamp from the Actually I Can Rubber Stamp Set and stamped it on a piece of painted and stamped deli paper. Then I cut it out and pasted it to the background with fluid medium. It is such a fun and easy way to add a colorful focal point to an art journal spread.

For the background I used my Clam Hex Foam Stamp and rolled with a brayer different green tones on top and then created a pattern.

And last but not least I also added the “Actually, I can ! ” Stamp from the set with the same name .)

Here are some of the supplies I used besides the acrylic paints:


Nat

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Currently Digging – September 2018 AIT

Once in a while I thought I would share with you some nifty finds – like an Artist who’s work caught my eye…, some Inspiration or the what, when and where that caught my eye and got my creative juices flowing, and Tools & Techniques I am currently digging like a new way to use a material or an application that I’m taking away. Hope you enjoy this.

In the book, I talk below as Inspiration, I was pointed to Ben Shahn.

“Liberation”

“Unemployment”

Illustrations above and below

I was especially curious to learn that Ben Shahn was a huge inspiration for Andy Warhol – and if you look at Warhols dotted line drawings you can actually see that. I always find it interesting to learn or see which other artist have been an inspiration for some well known artist.

I did enjoy reading “Old in Art School” by artist Nell Irvin Painter.

Painter, who is a Princeton historian, writes about her view and experience of going to art school at the age of 64 to become an artist. I enjoyed reading about her experiences in school, her challenges of seeing art with 20th century eyes and of letting go of the idea that if she follows her dream to be an artist, something she truly loves and wants to do, it doesn’t mean she has to be as good and successful in this new adventure as she was in her profession as an historian. “Old In Art School” challenges you to think about the role of race in the art world as well as the role of women but …on top of it all…the role of age as well. There were some areas in the book which I didn’t like that much as I felt she was getting a bit too much on about how accomplished and successful she is as an historian but I tried to get over that and also thought -well – why should she not brag about it, it is pretty cool. The book is a thought provoking read with passages that truly resonated as well with some references to artists which I enjoyed learning about.

A couple weeks ago I bought some new acrylic paint colors by Golden and I cannot get enough of them!

It is a pretty unusual color combo for me and yet I cannot stop using them:

You might recognize me using them in this art journal spread

and in this painting “Behind the Museum”

and more…I love mixing them with other colors or making tints, tones and shades with them. Especially the Titan paints are a bit challenging but I enjoy just getting it to a point where I like the mixture. I think I would like to do this more often -going into the store to buy certain colors that look great as a palette and then just roll with it for a while and make a lot of stuff in the same scheme.

What do you think about these Currently Digging finds?

Nat

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This Too Shall Pass – Painting

Just finished this painting last week. This scene is inspired by the scene upon exiting the Grove Street PATH train station in my Jersey City hood.

Tidy rows of shops and apartment buildings set the stage for a massive Shepard Fairey mural titled “The Jersey City Wave”, striking a pose above the bustle of the town.

The meaning of the subject and title is up to the viewer to decide.

I used acrylic paint, ink, marker and graphite on this 10″x8″ canvas. “This too shall pass” is available  here and would love to find a loving home.

 

Nat

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Thinking in Circles- Art Journal

Thinking in Circles- ughhhh -…LOL. But I had fun making this art journal spread using some of my new and old Rubberstamps.

 

I stamped the background texture with the Torn Layers Stamp from my Cardboard set and then stamped on top in red with the positive and negative Circle Drive Stamp from my Large and Small Circle Jumble Set.

I stamped Millie from the Actually I can set on top of a piece of deli paper on which as you can see, I had stamped before and also used some left over paint on. I do that a lot and use the deli paper as collage elements. I cut out the image and then adhered it to the spread with gel medium using a layer underneath and on top of the deli paper to totally fuse it into the background.

Added some journaling and to brighten things a bit up I added some yellow to the blouse with a marker as well as some sprinkles by taping on the marker.

This was fun. You can find my rubberstamps in my store – and here are some of the supplies I used for this spread:


Nat

Comments (2)

  • Jill

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    Circles are totally my thing too! I love them! I think I pretty much use them in everything I do. I love what you did with yours. Thanks for the constant inspiration!

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      thank you so much Jill! Yeah circles are so versatile and fun – hand drawn, stamped, stenciled …ha I love them all :)

      Reply

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Raiders of the Lost Stash – Maura Hibbitts

  

Hello from the Creative Squad! Today we have a post from Maura Hibbitts who is sharing a beautiful little notebook that she has personalized using a collection of supplies from her stash, as well as my Van Vorst foam stamp, Antique Tile foam stamp, Santiago stencil, and Small Circle Jumble rubber stamps. This month’s theme is: Raiders of the Lost Stash – It’s time to raid your stash of art making stuff. Pick a few things you’ve tucked away for later and use them NOW. Maybe you have some leftover scraps or deli papers that you couldn’t bear to part with. Maybe you’ve squirreled away a new product that you’ve been meaning to try. The time is now! Raid your stash and try it :)

I’m feeling a bit like Indiana Jones this month with our theme! First, I raided my stash to find something to work on – I was looking for a notebook I could alter, and found a small canvas covered one I use for notes on projects.  Then, because I was channeling Indiana Jones, I wanted to find something exotic to use, and came up with some great trims from India, Turkmen jewelry pieces and an head that reminds me of a deity.

I started by stenciling both covers with the mini Santiago stencil, using Pale Gold paint and a cosmetic sponge for a very subtle layer.

Next I added Ultramarine Blue to the gel plate and rolled it out with a brayer, so I could stamp on it to pick up the paint. I angled the Van Vorst Negative around all corners of the notebook.

I attempted to line up the positive Van Vorst Art Foamie with a corner section, and was totally off kilter, so decided to go with imperfection. I also stamped this image in the center of each cover over the gold, using the Cobalt Teal Hue.

Time for a contrasting color, so once again, I rolled out the paint on the gel plate with a brayer (this is a great way to “ink” up the art foamie stamps) and stamped the orange into the center using the Antique Tile pattern.

Now that I feel like I am on a global journey with my notebook it’s time to add in some more gold. I have found that gold adds a hint of the mysterious and exotic, so I stamped more onto the canvas using the Grove Street Small Circle stamp.

I tied bits of sari ribbon onto the notebook spiral.

Now that my background is done, it’s time to add the cover embellishments. I glued down the fabric trims, added the dangly bits to the metal piece, and glued that in place with the head. It’s almost like having a small shrine on my notebook.

Since I use this notebook for jotting down ideas, perhaps my little shrine will act like my muse and keep sending me creative vibes. It will certainly be colorful and fun to pull out and use!

Thank you Maura – I love the idea of creating a notebook that is a shrine to creativity! And this certainly is one that is so lovely to look at :) You can find the foam stamps, stencils, and rubber stamps that Maura used in her project right here in my online shop. And in addition to the canvas notebook and various embellishments from her stash, here are some of the other supplies that Maura used:




Be sure to check out all the Creative Squad projects on the Creative Squad webpage and if you feel inspired, share your projects with us! We love to see what you’re working on. I post projects almost every month in my Inspiration From Around the Globe posts!

Nat

Comments (2)

  • Claudia

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    Love the stamping and stencilling on the rough fabric cover, Maura, and the beautiful layers you have created! It all comes together so beautifully!

    Claudia xxx

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When was the last time you just played? Art Journal

The last couple weeks I was working on a lot of “schtuff” that was kind of deadline infused and when I was looking at the page here and wondered where I should take it- I decided I would just play and do whatever …

I had used my Versailles Positive and Negative Foam Stamp Set and layered them on top of each other

as well as the Van Vorst Positive and Negative Foam Stamp Set.

I played with some colors and wax paste , new graphite sticks and weathering areas- and had a really good time. And that is all that counts.

Now…when was the last time you just played? :)

Here are some of the supplies I used for the spread:


Nat

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Back to School: Watercolor Class at JCAS

Last Sunday was the last lesson of six in a Watercolor class with John Duval at the Jersey City Art School. As some of you might know I have taken two printmaking classes already there and I really love being able to do something different over several weeks, and just being able to walk there.

This was the first time I took a Sunday morning class and I have to say, despite my first hesitance of getting up early on a Sunday it was really awesome – having my friend Mary join helped ;)

What drew me in taking the class were several factors – I really suck in painting with watercolors and I love John’s loose expressionistic style depicting urban landscapes. Here are three gorgeous samples of John’s work- check out his website for more or follow him on instagram!

John started with explaining and showing the different applications of watercolor he uses for his watercolor paintings- from very wet application (wash), to medium wet and sticky watercolor application, to dry brush application.

He talked about the importance of planning a painting and how to not shift your plan. You can imagine that was a tough one for me ;)

Above one of my first attempts …gosh …sigh …but hey- it was fun and I learned a lot

One of my favorite aspects of the class was his usage of a limited color palette (yeah I know guys- awkward right?) and how to play with alternating warm and then cool colors and vice versa in the layers.

Me trying out the one tone approach – there are areas that I like and some I am like “WTH”?

I loved seeing his demos of painting from start to finish and talking through his process as well as how he chooses a subject to paint. At first I was really itchy to get back to the easel and paint myself, but I realized very soon that a lot of what he talked about and went through sticked in my head and was helpful for my own process. Very dear to my heart was his approach of not being afraid of changing up the scene so that it looks interesting or reflects how you feel rather than the actual depiction of the place.

John about to start after sketching a rough scene from a photo.

John’s finished piece piece from one of the demos- you can actually see a bit of the original photo on the left.

As we progressed in the class we picked our own images and I loved seeing what everyone was doing and talk through it.

I focused on the house and the water …as you can tell trees and foliage …not so much ;)

Love the beach scene of one of the fellow students- especially her shadows.

Such a great water texture here and I love the color scheme.

And I really loved the mood in this one- so gorgeous!

John is a great teacher, he is very good in explaining what he does and why he does it and he is good showing students why and where things work and where not. I loved taking a class from him and I will def. do so again …yes in watercolor —gasp ;)

If you are in the Jersey City – NYC area- take a class with John Duval – I am sure he sends out class informations through his newsletter !

What I learned in this class:

  • Watercolor is fun and sometimes you just need it to let it do it’s own thing
  • “Never say die until it’s dry” – John Duval – meaning once it is dry you cannot fix things so be quick
  • think about warm and cool colors more and how this can create visual interest and contrast
  • The watercolor consistency is defined by the water in the brush not on the palette – so don’t dip your paint brush all the time into the water (I only learned this so far in theory- still working on it)
  • Don’t give too much visual information – our little brains do a lot to fill in the gaps

What I take away for the future:

  • Why not add some “people” into a painting to make the scene more lively
  • Change scenes up – you can take a photo if you are going for reality
  • Have the wash or underpainting in my acrylic paintings look through a bit more often
  • Work with a limited color palette or even just one color and play with the tones, tints and shades for a study
  • Why not paint a bit more in watercolor – it is quick and it is just paper and I can actually only improve ;)
Nat

Comments (2)

  • Sue Clarke

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    What a fun post! I love the limited colors that you used in that first piece that you did (I do bet that it killed you to use limited colors).
    The beach piece is delightful.
    He really is talented and I just don’t know how artists can do so much with watercolors.

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      ha. you know me well -yes it was really challenging to only use a limited palate but it was really good to do so . :)

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