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Layers of Love – Tania Ahmed

  

Today is a special Creative Squad day because we are welcoming the very talented Tania Ahmed to the team! Tania’s fresh style will be a great addition to our lovely little group :) You can read more about Tania in this Nice to Meet You post from last week. Today she brings us a beautiful little book that totally rocks my Santiago and What’s the Point stencils. She’s working from our new theme: Layers of Love – We love layers and all the juicy yummy goodness they bring to mixed media. This month we’re layering it up and letting viewers discover all the different strata of our artistic mark making.

Hi Everyone, this is my first post as part of the Creative Squad! Thank you to dear Nathalie and Kim for inviting me to join the team, I am so pleased, thrilled and honoured! I am so excited to be kicking off this month’s challenge: the theme is Layers of Love and there’s nothing better to demonstrate this than Stencils!

I adore stencils and love to incorporate them into my work. There are so many ways to use them, you can sponge paint or medium through them, stamp with them, use mists with, the list is endless. At the moment I am really obsessed with gel plate printing and I thought what better way to demonstrate layering than with monoprinting!

I created a variety of prints and I started by centring my Gelli Arts plate on a piece of A4 sized paper. This will help you create a register for your print so that you can line up the pattern stencils each time you pull a print.

I started by spreading Permanent Light Blue and Cobalt Blue acrylic paint with a brayer on my gel printing plate. I lined the 9 x 12 Santiago Stencil with the paper under my gel plate along the bottom left corner. This will be my register every time I place either my stencil or my paper:

I then pulled a print:

I removed my stencil let the paint dry on my gel plate. I then brayered white acrylic paint all over the plate and pulled another print with new paper. This will be my ghost print:

I cleaned my gel plate off and then applied Process Magena and Opera Rose acrylic paint with my brayer and lined up the stencil again and pulled a print on the ghost printed paper. I made sure to line up my print with the paper under the gel plate!

I removed the stencil and quickly pulled another print using the first gel printed paper, making sure to line it up with the paper under the plate:

I repeat this using the same colours with other stencils until I had a few prints to choose from.

I then die cut some mount board (or you can use light chipboard sheets) using the Eileen Hull’s Passport Sizzix Die, and added my printed papers to the cover. I painted the spine with black chalk acrylic paint. I also die cut some pages for the journal using the same die. I assembled the journal, added some beads to the spine, elastic and a brad for the closure. I am really looking forward to filling this little mini album with photos and journaling!

Thank you so much for stopping by, I had a blast making this project :)

Thank YOU Tania! So glad to have you and absolutely loving this first project from you! Here are some of the supplies that Tania used:



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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Home is Where you Launch – Art Journal

“But home isn’t where you land, home is where you launch!” (from An American Marriage by Tayari Jones) Even though I love living in the States and call it my home and I do not see myself going back to Germany and even though I do feel more like a European than being German…I guess home is still a city in Germany called Hamburg :) I think this is a feeling I share with a lot of immigrants and when I read this quote it really resonated with me and I knew I had to use it for an art journal spread.

I used one of my drypoint prints with the lady as a collage element – you can read more about the drypoint etching class I took here.

I stamped and layered my Stroll Through the Hood and Stroll Around the Block stamps and then colored them in with watercolor.

I painted the top of the background with golden gesso – and I really love how the gold and the watercolor play together.

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


Nat

Comments (4)

  • Janene

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    I understand what you’re saying. I grew up in Southern California and still consider it my “home” even though I haven’t lived there in over 40 years (and I’ve lived in a couple of other places in between then and where I live now). When I visit California, I’m flooded with good memories of my early life there. But my new home is fantastic in an entirely different way. Kinda like the difference between chocolate and vanilla – both are delicious, but I’d never mistake one flavor for the other!

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      I love your comparison with the flavors – that is beautifully put! thank you for sharing Janene!

      Reply

    • Donna B.

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      I feel the same way. I’d never thought about it before, but I also have strong feelings about the place where I grew up. In my case, I don’t even know anyone who lives back in my old home town or the surrounding area anymore, but if I were to go back there, I suspect it would still feel like my home.

      Reply

      • nathalie-kalbach

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        Thank you for sharing Donna- I totally understand what you mean about that it would be different but still feel like home.

        Reply

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Currently Digging – April 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…, Inspiration and the what, when and where that caught my eye and got my creative juices flowing and Tools & Techniques I am currently digging and what did they do that was so cool or the application that I’m taking away. Hope you enjoy this.

Here we go for this month:

I talked about Isamu Noguchi in my blog post yesterday as I went to the Noguchi Museum for an Art Stroll recently.

Isamu Noguchi, one of the most important sculptors and designers of the 20th century, was born in 1904 in the the U.S to an American mother and a Japanese father. His father was a well known poet who went back to Japan before Isamu was born. Isamu grew up partly in the States and in Japan. When he and his mother were living in Japan, he drew a house when he was 8 years old. The house combined western and eastern elements and his mother decided to have him oversee the design and construction of their new house. He became an apprentice of a carpenter and that is when he started learning how to work with wood and other materials.

His sculptures are beautiful and emotional to look at and his light sculptures are such a wonderful way of combining traditional with modern design, art with craft, and west with east. I am equally inspired by his interesting life as well as his work.

“We are a landscape of all we have seen.” – Isamu Noguchi

And this leads me to the next point on my list:

I had watched the movie “Leonie” several years ago and remember I enjoyed it, but after going to the Noguchi Museum and traveling to Japan, I rewatched it and this time it totally sparked inspiration and lots of thoughts.

The movie actually tells the story of Isamu Noguchi’s mother and her fascinating and interesting life- what a powerful woman. I also enjoyed the pictures and sceneries of the movie. Of course a lot of the plot is speculation, but maybe you find it as interesting and inspiring as I did- so I highly recommend watching it.

Currently I am totally obsessed with my inkstone and inkstick.

Inksticks are a type of solid ink used traditionally in several East Asian cultures for calligraphy and brush painting. There is so practical for traveling since you do not have to worry that an ink bottle might break and they are small and light. You basically take a little bit of water and add it to the inkstone and then grind the inkstick on top of it until you get ink that is thick and deep black. The amount of water determines how much ink you make.

I love the different gray shades that the ink from the stick creates when using it on paper. I used it for some line and mark making as well as sketching out those two ladies above. I am still practicing but I am already deeply in love with my new tools :)

See you soon again with some new nifty finds that I am currently digging !

Nat

Comments (2)

  • ARHuelsenbeck

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    I put Leonie on my watchlist on your recommendation.

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Art Stroll: Noguchi Museum, NYC

A couple weeks ago my friends and I went to the Noguchi Museum in NYC . Isamu Noguchi was an American Japanese artist (1904-1988) who is most known for his sculptures and later mass produced lamps.

Especially his lamp designs are known to many because of Ikea’s take on it – be assured though that his original lamps are so much more beautiful than Ikeas.

Loved this cloud of lamps above! the lamps are made of handmade paper on bamboo frames and they give a beautiful warm light.

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It was wonderful to see his sketchbook of lamp designs

as well as some of his molds for his lamp -they are beautiful designs by itself.

Noguchi broke the mold for the lamp sculpture below so that only one would exist- it is stunning.

Here is a video on how those lamps are to this days are handmade:

Love it!

And here you see me actually in a lamp – that was such a cool feeling the light and the paper made you feel super cocooned. I want this as my reading area- wouldn’t that be something?

 

My friend Heather “needed” to see how the foot was attached

I loved Noguchi’s sculptures – some are amazingly textured- some are smooth.

I also loved the sculpture garden – I can only imagine how beautiful it will be in the summer.

While we were at the museum there was also an exhibition of the work of Gonzalo Fonseca (1922–97), an Uruguayan sculptor.

His work was so intriguing and I loved looking at the little niches and engravings.

A wonderful Art Stroll through a gem of a Museum – I highly recommend it. It is a bit of a hike from Manhattan since it is on Long Island – but if you are close by- check it out! Hope you enjoyed this Art Stroll!

Nat

Comments (2)

  • Donna B.

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    I also enjoyed watching the video! Thanks for sharing that!! It was amazing …

    Reply

  • Sue Clarke

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    Noguchi’s lights are so delicate. I really enjoyed watching the video and what patience he used.
    The sculptors made by Fonseca were fun to see and the details would make me want to study them for a while if seen in person.

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Born To Sparkle ! Art Journal

Well….this was a failed attempt of trying out some foil that I had laying around forever. I applied some gel medium through my Art Deco Wallpaper Stencil and then burnished the foil on top. I was way too impatient and took off the foil too early so it didn’t apply everywhere and after a short disapproving snort I decided it wasn’t too bad – I like the sparkly mess ;)

For me creating is problem solving and if you decide there is no problem- problem solved ;) That doesn’t work always of course- LOL- but in this case it did ;)

Here are some of the supplies I used for the spread


Have a sparkling day :)

Nat

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Nice to Meet You! with Tania Ahmed

It’s time to get to know an artist with… Nice to Meet You! Today I’d like to introduce you to the inspiring art and story of my newest Creative Squad member Tania Ahmed! I are so happy to have her on the team and I thought this would be a great way for all of us to get to know her :)

Please introduce yourself to our readers and tell us where you live:

Hi! I’m Tania Ahmed a crafts tutor, blogger and creative from Hertfordshire, UK. I’ve been actively working in the crafts industry for over 6 years now. I am grateful to be able to contribute to the industry in my own little way. I love working with people and at the moment I produce creative content for magazines and craft manufacturers and teach at independent stores, craft shows and for local charities. I also work part time as a professional interpreter and I do financial administration for an interpreting agency. I am originally from Pakistan and have lived in the UK for 10 years. My work in the creative industry has introduced me to many new hobbies and the sweetest of people including Nat!

How do you make time to be creative?

I have to make time to be creative to flourish and function as it is so deeply entrenched in me. I have been creative all my life so I feel the need to express my creativity regularly. I can be found either crafting, enjoying (amateur) photography, writing, gardening or cooking. I try and incorporate some sort of “arting” into my daily routine. I either craft on days when I am at home or craft at night which suits me as I am a night owl!

What are some of your favorite n*Studio stamps / stencils? 

All of the ArtFoamies and the Stroll Around the Block Cling Rubber Stamp Set.

Nat’s ArtFoamies
Stroll Around the Block Set

 

 

 

 

 

 

How do you love to use them?

I sometimes teach block printing which I adore as I love building patterns. I find it very relaxing! I am really looking forward to using Nat’s designs on fabric and stitching on them. I also love Nat’s sketch style building stamps which are perfect for colouring in which appeals to the intricate-detail-crafter in me, haha!

What is your favorite medium to work in?

Embossing powder and acrylic paints. No question! Basically anything that will make my hands looks like a rainbow at the end of a craft session, the messier the better. At the moment I am really into mixed media and papercrafts.

What inspires you to be creative?

I am inspired by nature, bright colours, good conversations, textures and trying new creative techniques. And tea … lots of tea! I also love focusing on individual products and discovering unique ways to use them. I would highly recommend Creative Jumpstart to someone looking for inspiration as it is an awesome introduction to many different artists, techniques and new kinds of art!

Do you have a favorite artist?

I have far too many favourites, but if I am pressed to name one it would be Frida Kahlo.

How did you get into art-making?

I have been crafting all my life and growing up have been surrounded by creative people. My aunts and grandmothers either knitted or sewed or embroidered. I grew up wearing dresses my mother lovingly sewed and played with a giant doll house that my father made from scratch. He is a very talented carpenter. I never thought I would pursue creativity as a profession until a few years ago when I was encouraged by friends and family to pursue my passion.

In three words, how does art-making make you feel?

Uplifted, nurtured, wondrous.

Thank you Tania and a BIG Welcome to you from the Creative Squad! We can’t wait to see what creations you dream up beginning in April :) Here are some of my stamps and stencils that Tania used:



And if you had fun learning about Tania, be sure to check out all of my Nice to Meet You features on the blog – they are super inspiring! And join the Creative Squad on Instagram for weekly project ideas.

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Nat

Comments (1)

  • Sue Clarke

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    Welcome Tania!
    I am not so good with embossing powder so I look forward to your projects using it.
    Love the little house.

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Vacation Mode – Maura Hibbitts

  

Happy Tuesday from the Creative Squad! Today we are excited to share with you a wonderful little upcycled travel bag from Maura Hibbitts. She is using my Versailles foam stamp set and my Urban Scribble stamp set (no longer available but if you’re looking for building stamps here is a good place to start) along with this month’s theme: Vacation Mode – Here in the Northern Hemisphere, we are slogging through winter with only one thing on our minds – vacation! Whether it’s Spring Break, a weekend getaway, or an hour with a good book, everyone needs an escape to Vacation Mode now and again.

When I go on vacation, I like to take along an art project or travel journal to capture my experiences. I up cycled a small canvas bag that came filled with some yummy tamales for my project. You could use a purchased canvas bag, or sew one yourself if desired. (Mine is about 8 x 10 inches/20.5 x 25.5 cm) I like how the printing peeks through my stamped design. Now I have a fun bag I can fill with art supplies, or use to fill with found treasures on my vacation.

Start by inserting a piece of cardboard into the canvas bag. This will keep the paint from leaching through the other side.

I found the best way for me to get good paint coverage on the Versailles ArtFoamies stamps was to use my gel plate and a brayer to adhere the Quinacridone Gold paint onto the foam. You could also use a palette instead of the gel plate. Do both sides of the bag, and be sure this paint layer is completely dry.

Through trial and error, I discovered I was able to match the stamped images up better if I started with the negative impression, and then stamped the positive with the Cobalt Turquoise Hue acrylic paint. Let dry. As you can see, there are a lot of imperfections in matching the images, but I’m ok with that.

I used a gold pen, and a Posca metallic orange pen to add some doodles to the bag on both sides. I don’t plan to wash this bag, so did not worry about using washable pens, but take that into consideration if you plan to wash your bag.

Now, it’s time to add some embroidery. I used turquoise thread and stitched the bottom of the bag with a Blanket Stitch. Next, on the front panel, I added French Knots inside the circles I’d drawn with the pens, using a yellow orange thread.

I wanted to make a charm to add to the bag, so I stamped the Urban Scribble image onto Shrink Plastic with archival black ink, and cut a section of it to use. Punch a hole into the plastic, then heat it and shrink it with your heat gun.

My final touches on the bag were to add the shrink and metal charms with embroidery thread, and tie loops of bright orange and yellow orange threads to each section of my blanket stitch at the bottom. Once I’d tied the loops on, I trimmed them to the same length. Now I just have to plan my next trip and decide what to fill my artsy travel bag with!

Thank you Maura! I could see using this bag for a fun evening out too! I just love the bold colors and the embroidered details – so cool!! In addition to an upcycled canvas bag (there are some possible choices in the list below) and some cardboard, Maura used the following supplies for her project :



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“.

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Nat

Comments (1)

  • Sue Clarke

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    I absolutely love this Maura! The color and the tag you made are awesome.

    Reply

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Stroll Through The Hood – March 2018

Time for a Stroll Through the Hood . Strolls through my hood get me out of my studio, they help me unstuck and often I get inspired by what I see and to get new ideas to create something. It is part of my philosophy about Artful Adventures in Mixed Media – which is the subject of my book. Here are some photos that I gathered in the last couple weeks.

This is a photo my friend Heather took of our cat Niles when she was over for dinner. We laughed so much about it – how would you caption the photo? I was thinking “Eh, excuse me, but I think I ordered the Chardonnay!”

A night out with my girlfriends is always inspiring – love those ladies :)

I was working on a “secret” task which I will tell you all about very soon – it was a lot of work and included some work out of the box for me- and that for sure was inspiring – doing something different, hanging out with other creative people can be so revitalizing for your creative process.

Some flowers on those branches- Kim and I were wondering if those are dogwood? I have no clue since dogwood is not something native to Germany- so I wouldn’t know – but maybe you do? In any event – tiny pink flowers on a branch – absolutely inspiring :)

This made me laugh at a pub’s restroom. I actually also love the way the text is displayed – I might keep this in mind for an art journal spread.

The award for the cutest drinking container at a restaurant goes to this honey bear filled with orange juice. Love the idea for recycling !


And the snow storm here last week lead to this pretty evening view out of our window. That would be actually really cool turned into visual texture on a canvas, don’t you think?

Hope you enjoyed my little stroll through the hood this month – let’s see what the next month will bring :)

Nat

Comments (8)

  • Janene

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    Oh, and the kitty is asking for a glass of Purr-lot.

    Reply

  • Caroline

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    Your cat is sooo funny – I think the quote should be “C’mon, fill it up properly!” I think the flowers are probably cherry or apple (trees and shrubs are my job)

    Reply

  • Janene

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    The pink flower is a Flowering Quince. It, along with the yellow-flowered Forsythia, is a harbinger of spring.

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      oh cool- thank you Janene- When I googled Flowering Quince that is exactly what came up as to what this looks like. Cool!!! I like it

      Reply

  • Karen Bearse

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    Nice. Hehee kitty is so cute. That quote fits great!

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      Thank you Karen- he knows he is cute- LOL. He is a little spoiled kitty.

      Reply

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