Blog: Liquitex Heavy Body Paint

Typewriter or…New Stencil with Stencil Girl Products

TypewriterStencil

Time to show you my new 6×6 Typewriter Stencil :)
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Typewriter …just love them..especially vintage ones. When I was in highschool I owned a huge office typewriter from the 40s. I wanted to be a writer or study journalism when I was a teenager and so my uncle and aunt gave me this typewriter and I hacked on it (you won’t believe how loud this thing was!) and started several books…they usually contained about 5 pages until I thought I would move on and write a different story- LOL. Anyway I knew I wanted to design a typewriter stencil since especially with art journals, vintage photos etc. I saw how it would be so much fun to use it.

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I used Wendi Vecchi’s Black Embossing Paste over the stencil which is 6×6 inches – love the fluffy consistency the paste has and once it was dried I dabbed some Liquitex Markers over. The black of the paste makes the colors really pop off ad add even more dimension to the typewriter. Love it.

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I used the heavy body acrylic paints for the background because I do love the texture I can create with it.

nSupplies


Hope you like it :)

Have a beautiful day
Nat

Comments (8)

  • marjiekemper

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    Very cool pages! And a great new design… congrats!

    Reply

    • Nathalie Kalbach

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      it is in the envie that went out yesterday to you :) Hopefully will arrive in latest 10 days. hugs nat

      Reply

  • Donna

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    I really like your message AND the typewriter stencil, absolutely fabulous!

    Reply

  • Sue Clarke

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    Vintage fun! Love the typewriter Nat.

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  • fran

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    hi Nat, Just love that ,”it’s never too late………. So true, and reminds us that it is so Thks

    Reply

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Yes, I Can or…Yes, I can

Sometimes it is good to affirm yourself with a little tongue in cheek approach ;)..besides the title is meant to be true ;)

YesICan01

Pretty big canvas I worked on – at least for me and it was a bit hard to adjust…I think a bigger me would have been better design wise – but for my first time working on such a scale I am ok with it ;) …because yes I can…hehehe.

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So many things are on my plate right now- in my professional life and my private life…it is good to do something for fun and tell myself that I can do it.

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And now it is dooming off my studio wall as a constant reminder…hope it doesn’t fall of the wall- LOL ;)

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Have a gorgeous day and don’t forget …YES, YOU CAN!

Nat


uberMedia
Über*Media is my series of online workshops that is dedicated to different kinds of media that cross a variety of materials. I also teach project based online workshops which you can find here.

Comments (9)

  • Sue Clarke

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    YES you CAN Rosie…I mean Nat!

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  • Sara

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    Oooh, love this one! Cool colors and love the photo!!
    Thank you for the awesome workshop today!! Will make a hell of a lot of portraits of ladies… :-D

    Reply

  • Estella Magnuson

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    Thank you for your inspiration of art and strength.

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  • muriel

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    Great canvas! And your wall is great too!

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  • mjmarmo

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    Yes – perfect reminder! You can and so can I!

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  • Debi

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    Luv it! Great color and You Can Do It!

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  • Diana

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    i love it!! and for sure YES YOU CAN!!! love your art wall by the way!! NICE!!

    Reply

  • Rose

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    love it! Yay for Rosie the Riveter!

    Reply

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Weckruf (Wake-Up Call) or…A FAST Forward Making off a Canvas

The image of this window with some landmarks of Hamburg kept coming up when I was sketching things in my art journal and on my iPad. So I figured it was time to finally just put it on a canvas.

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Here is a FAST Forward Movie of the Making off (it is not a step by step tutorial- although most steps are extensively in there ;) ) – I hope you enjoy it. I have a List of all Supplies used below

I had lot’s of fun playing with the new Liquitex Professional Paint Markers – loved that there are so many ways to use them and the colors are just to die for .

nSupplies

 

and
24cmx30cm Canvas
Loads of old Book Paper

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I have some other ideas for this image – color wise etc…so you might see this coming up again in a different look :)

Would you like to see more fast-foward videos in the future?

Have a wonderful day :)

Nat

If you want to learn different techniques for art journals and mixed media canvases using Acrylic Paints, Gesso or Acrylic Inks come and take my Über*Media Online Workshops.

  

Comments (20)

  • Lea Fritts

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    Oh my goodness, Nat, I love watching you create! I could sit and watch your videos all day long and just soak up your creativity. Please create more videos and never stop! LOL! Looking forward to “Jumping” again!

    Reply

  • Lisa Flaherty

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    I loved watching your process, seeing your artwork come to life, Nat! So cool to see you make choices while adding different layers of media to the piece. Love it!

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  • cal8007

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    Always love watching your process!! Paint markers, mmh!

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  • Eeva Hall

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    Love the canvas!! I love videos.

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  • Cyndi

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    Brilliant! Much fun! Yes..you can make more :)

    Reply

  • petyvic

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    Hi, Nat! i love the music used! it goes with the theme. Pls., continue with these kind of fast forward videos….they keep me awake!… lovely idea…TFS!

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  • Laura S

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    Loved it, Nathalie! The paint markers look fun. More fast forward videos would be great. TFS! Did you title your canvas, “Starry Starry Night in Hamburg”? :)

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  • andrenesmith

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    Beautiful canvas! The video was alot of fun to watch so yes to more!!

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  • Teresa

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    Thank you very much for this video! very simplicity do wonderful work! I love these videos fast forward! thank you!

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  • rains

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    So much fun! I love the music. And you are so talented. Thanks for sharing your process.

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  • elderscrapper

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    I loved watching this. It is great to see the way you show and name the products so that we have most of our questions answered before we even need to ask them. Thanks, Ami

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  • Kathy P

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    Oh, Nat, I can’t tell you how helpful this type of video is for me, as a newbie mixed media person! Seeing how you pull it all together really helps me to ‘get it’. And love your finger work! Can’t wait to try this out in my art journal!

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  • Heidi

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    Yes, Please more videos! Thank You!

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  • Ann Powell

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    Yes please do more of these videos! And are there faces in the windows? Love this whole thing! Thanks Nathalie!

    Reply

  • mjmarmo

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    So fun! I love seeing backgrounds! I love how you did yours. I am too ocd and need to lay the pieces very straight and even. I need to learn to let go!

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  • Sue Clarke

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    Must have paint markers!
    Wow, can you teach me how to make my hands work that fast Nat? LOL

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  • Gerd

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    Thank you for the morning entertainment! Your final canvas is fabulous and I love the music!

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  • Charlotte

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    Oh, imagine the fun you could have with those paint markers!! Never seen them before, but there’s another thing added to the looooooong list of arty desires. They look cool! Great canvas, too! Looks great. Can’t wait to see what you might do with it. x

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  • melanie reed

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    very cute video… I’ve seen these paint markers in my art supply store – they look interesting, but I don’t know what to do with them. I’d love to see more fast-forward videos!

    Reply

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Enough Feathers Lost – Art Journal Page

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I got these amazing self carved feather stamps and stencils by the super talented Louise Nelson at CHA. Love her so much for this present and I am playing with them ever since like a happy little kid :)

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Enough Feathers Lost – Time to Take a Birds Bath . You always get your feathers ruffled in different stages of your life, right, but there is a point where you have to say ….and move on. chirp chirp ;)

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Playing with Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylic Paints, Derwent Artbars . I also put a bird on it …now it is trendy- LOL

I am still in Love with feathers. I just asked on Twitter a couple of days ago though which of the trends in craft/home decor and fashion you are tired of seeing?

For me it would be Washi Tape, Chevron and Sandal-Roman-Ancle Boots (if you love any of the three- please please don’t take it personally- when you use it, decorate it or wear it – I am sure it is awesome – take the statement as a tongue in cheek comment ;) !)

Have a gorgeous day

Nat

Comments (27)

  • cal8007

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    I took a stamp making class with Julie Fei-Fan Blazzer, but I need lots and lots more practice! I’m having fun making the simple one now it’s time to try the more difficutlt ones.

    Reply

  • Carrie

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    Ooh this is beautiful, and I love your new feather stamps! I’m a big fan of feathers and birds. I guess I’m trendy too ;) But I find them perfect for Spring. I totally agree with you about washi tape and chevrons, though!

    Reply

  • Lisa Flaherty

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    Beautiful spread, Nat! The colors and the layering, and the stamps are gorgeous! What a lovely gift from the lovely Louise! The water spilling over the birdbaths is dreamy. Love it! Had to chuckle at “I put a bird on it…now it’s trendy!” Thumbs up for Portlandia!

    Reply

    • Nathalie Kalbach

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      LOL I know…actually Nancy would tell you that I made this artjournal page especially for you ;) As far as the owls go….yeahhhh – I still kind of like them…but I never really used them

      Reply

  • Jocelyn Turner

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    Love these feathers and colours are amazing!

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  • loolabelle

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    Oooh Nat I so so love what you have created with the stamps and mask :) thank you so much!!!!! xxx and a big squisshy aussie hug!

    Reply

  • Kathy P

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    This is beautiful, Nat! Love the feathers, and the cute bird just finishes it! I don’t like the sheerness of the washi…you can’t put it over anything with a pattern. And I am totally over plastic journaling spots and calendars.

    Reply

  • Sue Clarke

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    Ahh, the greens that I’ve come to expect from you Nat. Nice LO.
    I am still loving washi tape so I won’t take it personally.

    Reply

  • rains

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    The first thing I thought of when I saw your beautiful layout was real birds losing their feathers as they hit my studio windows! I love having so many windows but that is the bad side. I need to get my kids to make more window gel designs to protect them.

    I am sick of seeing chevron and yet really love the chunky chevron stencil and want it. So depends on the chevron. Hate those sandals. And don’t get me started on super low riding jeans…

    Reply

    • Nathalie Kalbach

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      Oh no- those poor birds! LOL- yes more gel designs ;)

      Reply

  • SusanJane

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    Washi tape? I am not ready to let go of that one, yet. I was tired of “collage” rubber stamps after the first few but I do dislike them now. I can’t imagine spending full price for a stamp that is so complex and unchangeable.

    Reply

    • Nathalie Kalbach

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      LOL- I just put my one collage rubber stamp out for a flea market- I just never got to enjoy them…

      Reply

  • Kathy Gledsdale

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    Really lovely!

    Reply

  • Nurse Ratchet

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    Love this ,Nat!! Wore those ankle boots, oh and Go Go boots too….bell bottoms twice in a lifetime..didn’t wear a bra for a bit….had Twiggy eye lashes.. Wow I am an old girl!!! ..just got a few Washi tapes….have nothing chevron except some paper in a pack!! Only injustice ruffles my feathers now!!

    Reply

      • Nurse Ratchet

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        Ditto…my sweet little German lady!!!!! :o)

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  • Susan

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    Haha, Oh I like your posts. Hihi. I’ve never liked the Sandal-Roman thingies. Probably because I don’t like my toes. But I’m still very much in love with my Washi Tapes. Althought I like to make them myself too.
    I love the featherstamp and the page you made with it. The little birdie is the cherrie on top :)

    Reply

  • Maaike

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    looks amazing Nathalie!!!

    Reply

  • Gunvor

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    Lovely pages!
    I dont like the Sandal-Roman-Ancle Boots now, and I didn’t like them in the 70s either (yes, I’m sooooo old!), chevrons have never been a favourite but I only just discovered how to use tha washi (thanks to CJS) so I’ll give it a chance

    Reply

    • Nathalie Kalbach

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      Washi tape is cool – I won’t deny it- it is just pretty crazy that it is like EVERYwhere now ;) I am guilty myself of having piles of roles ;)

      Reply

  • Laura S

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    Hate those sandles, but I have ugly ankles. Lol. Love the Chevron, though. You can play with so many colors to get so many different styles and it looks cool on a wall or furniture. Washi tape is over rated and overpriced. 2 out of 3 aint bad. :) Lov ya lots, Nat! And Love your feather art. Very cool.

    Reply

    • Nathalie Kalbach

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      LOL- it is not that I do not see the cool things you can do with Chevron…it is just Tooooo much- LOL

      Reply

  • Michelle Guest

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    Oh my! I didn’t know about artbars… Just watched a u-tube video about them. I think I need some to play with.

    Reply

  • Beatriz Helton

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    I don’t like the Sandal-Roman-Ancle Boots either, am glad to know I’m not the only one : )

    Reply

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My Favorite Mixed Media Essentials: 1. Acrylic Paints

Hands down my all time Mixed Media Essential is Acrylic Paint.

I had a very intense acrylic paint phase a couple of years ago and then I guess I needed a break and neglected those beauties for spray paints for a while. But I am so glad I came back to them!

What I love about Acrylic Paints is:

  • they are fast drying
  • generally cheap – or at least long-lasting even if it is a bit more pricey
  • they have a plastic like surface (due to the plastic polymer emulsion)
  • they can be thinned with water and that could make them almost look like water-color in some cases
  • they are permanent once dried
  • they cover surfaces if opaque
  • you can use other paint media on top of acrylic paints
  • you can use some fun media with them for amazing backgrounds and textures
  • you can create amazing backgrounds and texture with solely acrylic paints

Here are some examples:

beautiful easy background – that can be also used for a scrapbooking layout:

background and texture with acrylic paints:

background and texture using other media and cheap supplies:

texture creating on a scrapbooking layout:

creating some fun handmade embellishments and use it for some accents on a layout:

using them with other acrylic media

using it on difficult surface – like acrylic pages of a minialbum

using acrylic paint to make embellishments your own

Pretty amazing what you can do with acrylic paints, isn’t it? And there is way more!!! So yes – just because of it’s versatility it knocks me off my socks and is my all time favorite essential :)

Which acrylic paints I use:

Here comes a saying that I learned when studying law : “It depends” – LOL. Nice one, huh?

Well, I used a lot of acrylic paints. And over the last couple years I learned what I like and what I do not like.What I like, doesn’t have to be necessary what you like.  so just take it as my thoughts and my preferences, ok?

  • So first of all let’s state that I like good quality artist paints. Because I learned over the years that especially when working in an art journal for example that they aren’t that tacky as a lot of the cheaper non artist ones.
  • I also love good quality artist paints because the color shift between wet and dry is not that high. I love to see how my work might look like when it is dry while I’m still working with my paints. I had many disappointments in the past where I was thinking a nice bright red was rocking my socks and then it was dry and a dark bloody mess as the paint shifted a lot when it dried.
  • Highly pigmented colors go a longer way and they are usually also more beautiful. They also can be buffed for a great glossy finish- which for me also is mostly true for more expensive artist paints.
  • I love texture and I love to create texture with paints – so I prefer thicker colors – I can also just thin them down if I want – and so I am a big Lover of Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylic Paints. I also like Winsor & Newton especially when it comes to their translucent acrylic paints. A good bargain and a very good quality are alos the Liquitex Basic Acrylic Paints.

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I hope you liked this post- let me know what you think. Next up is Gesso.

huge hugs

Nat

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If you want to learn more about acrylic paints- check out my Über*Media Acrylic Paint Online Workshop

Comments (4)

  • scrappegal

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    Lovely inspiration projects you are showing! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  • Sue Clarke

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    Easter 1928 is such an elegant LO Nat.
    Thanks for the paint info. I believe that you were the first to inspire me to even try using paint on a LO. Tons of fun and extra special in my art journal. I love the Liquitex tubes since they come in small sizes which are good for travel.

    Reply

  • Jessica Sporn

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    I used to favor watercolor over everything else but have fallen in love with acrylic paint — especially since discovering Golden Fluid acrylics. xo

    Reply

  • mjmarmo

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    Love the many ways you use the paint!

    Reply

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Sgraffito or Make Your Mark Video

Sgraffito is an art term describing a technique used e.g in plaster, pottery, glass or paint. Basically one or several layers of the medium are revealed by scratching into the top surface. The term comes from the Italian word sgraffiare and means to scratch. Not sure if that will help me with my next Italian vacation but hey… you never know ;)

Now why is that something that might interest me? It is cool because you can create TEXTURE- yum yum! Do you need to have more reasons?

You actually saw some stuff already where I used the sgraffito technique- like on this piece from a post here playing with the Derwent Artbars. I used a tool that Derwent especially made for this, called the scraper.

But there is more…Scratching into still wet acrylic paint – Texture heaven. You can use all kinds of tools for it – like a plastic fork, the end of your brush, palette knifes…ah there are many many possibilities.

It is fun to add some sgraffito marks to your backgrounds or art journal pages – Let’s do a quick background video – I have a list of all supplies used below :) :

I love to use Liquitex Heavy Body Paint with the Sgraffito techniques, because they are – as the name might give it away ;) – heavy bodied paint.

I already have something in mind where I will use this background as a foundation – you will see it soon.

And if you want to learn more about acrylic paint techniques and a LOT of background techniques with them…

well….;) I can recommend my Über*Media Acrylic Paint Workshop. You don’t have to have Heavy Body Acrylic Paints….but I will show you how you can overcome that problem of having none anyway so you can still do sgraffito. But hey- Sgraffito is only one of more than a 100 techniques in that workshop :)

I just love Acrylic Paint :)

nSupplies

Hope you enjoyed the little video :)

Nat

Comments (24)

  • windinn

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    What fun to watch this, and wonderful results. That background ROCKS!

    Reply

  • Connie Permenter

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    Wonderful Techinques and I am going to purchase some of those Liquidtex Heavybody paints … Could you tell the the colors you used ? Thanks so much for sharing!

    Reply

  • Denise

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    Great technique, even better your use of color. Thank you

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  • Jo Murray

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    WOW!!!! That is gorgeous…. how could you possibly improve it?

    Reply

  • pamplamoussejuice

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    Background?! I would have been done with it after all that! I think it looks fabulous all by itself!

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  • ajsartjournal

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    Great video Nathalie, thanks for sharing.
    AJ

    Reply

  • Lisa crofts

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    what a fabulous video. Nathalie I love the look of all the liquetex paint and tools. I “need” that splatter brush too.

    Reply

  • Daniela

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    Danke für den tollen Artikel – und den Tipp mit dem kostenlosen Muster :-)
    LG Danny

    Reply

  • Lisa Flaherty

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    What a great technique, Nat! I love the possibilities of the different things you could use to scratch through the paint. The printed tissue paper layer adds nice depth to your wonderfully colored and textured piece! Also, I wanted to tell you how I much I enjoy your videos. Your fun, whimsical nature comes through in the production. Also, how amazingly clear the close-ups of your work are! What is the video camera that you use? Can’t wait to see more!

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      Lisa, I use a Logitech Camera Vision Pro – it is a really good camera- I like it a lot.

      Reply

  • jjsobeyj

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    Well, now I need to go look for one of those splatter brushes – that made me all kinds of happy watching that! (I’ve tried with regular brushes, and wasn’t that excited about the effect)

    Reply

  • kittybg

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    I went to a WS on Friday and we did sgrafitto with Golden Open acrylics. If you like sgrafitto, you’ll love Golden Open. (No, Golden doesn’t pay me :D Also, I prefer liquids better because I need my acrylics to dry quickly and open takes a whole day.)
    Bye, Kitty

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      Interesting :) I do know Golden Open Acrylics – but I feel the effect that I want to archive texture wise is more beautiful and more me with the Liquitex Heavy Body. And I do use all kinds of acrylic paints too ;) They do dry quick- but that is then when you can use a Retarder to mix in for longer opening time. I guess every artist has their own loves ;) Thanks for your comment, Kitty
      nat

      Reply

  • Dottie

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    Love this piece!! The colors and the texture are wonderful and fun. Need some heavy bodied acrylic paints. Thanks again for sharing you expertise.

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  • Bev W.

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    I’m in acrylic heaven:) Thanks for the vid Nat!! Your such an inspiration!

    Reply

  • Irma

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    Danke für den Link! Ich habe die Probe einfach mal angefordert und hoffe jetzt ganz dolle, dass ich zu den Glücklichen gehöre…
    Sonnige Grüße – Irma

    Reply

  • Jan B

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    Gah! I just LOVE your videos, love watching you work. Amazing piece! (I’m loving your Acrylics class by the way…working through at my own pace and having fun playing with paint and color.) You’re SO inspiring! :)

    Reply

  • Anne Porretta

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    This looks like so much fun! I have lots of acrylic paint but not heavy body. Off to the store and off to creativity. Thanks for great post, Nathalie!

    Reply

  • france papillon

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    i’m in love. once more! girl your productivity amazes me!!!
    one question: what surface are you working on? doesn’t seem to be paper…

    off to get inky!!!

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      I used a paper block for acrylic and gouache painting with 250g. It is block made for the art supply store in my hood. I love that it is still thin enough that you can use it in an artjournal- but total sturdy and it is adhered on all four sides to the block- so you have to cut it off, which prevents wrapping. Not sure which real paper company stands behind it.

      Reply

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