Oh yeah! I’m a mixed media artist.
That’s what you should be telling your friends and family. We don’t just craft. We create art using a variety of mediums. So far this week, I’ve used distress markers, distress crayons, watercolor paints, dye and pigment inks, embossing powders, perfect pearls, metallic elements, canvas, paper and lots of adhesives! Phew! That’s mixed media.
I especially love my project share for today. I created it yesterday, but didn’t have time to complete the video. My husband and I decided to have a nice chimenea fire on the deck with a nice bottle of wine. First things first, right?! It was truly a relaxing evening of wonderful quality time. That’s what happens when your kids are grown up…you get quality time together. Just the two of you. It’s nice!
Now let me tell you about my project and I am embracing the imperfections of this one. I think the imperfections make me love it even more!
Years ago, Stampin’ Up! had a product called Watercolor Wonder Crayons. My Stampin’ Up! demonstrator, Peggy Parpan, made beautiful cards. She would invite a bunch of us over and we would make 8 or 10 cards and it was always a wonderful afternoon. Peggy always had a new technique to teach us and I truly loved that I was learning, having a fun time with the crafty ladies, and getting time away for myself. My kids were small at that time.
One day, she pulled out the watercolor wonder crayons and I was HOOKED! I still have them, or what’s left of them after many years of creating projects with them. Stampin’ Up! discontinued them many years ago, but not to worry! Ranger has the Distress Crayon which works the same way with one HUGE improvement…they are in a marker-like housing that turns like a lipstick. This keeps the crayon from breaking. That was the one issue I had with the watercolor wonder crayons. They were like water soluble creamy crayons wrapped in paper and they did break. Of course I could still use the pieces, but not as easily. The distress crayon solved that problem and they are creamy and water soluble so you can do all kinds of watercolor techniques with this fun medium.
Check out my project:
If you’ve been visiting my blog for a while, you know that last month I shared that I had to take my son’s car in for a bunch of recall repairs on one of my days off and I spent the time (hours!) watching videos on distress inks and alcohol inks. A distress crayon video snuck in and I had to order a few of these to see if they were like the old Stampin’ Up! ones that I had used way back in the day. I believe the video I watched was a Simon Says Stamps video about distress crayons on canvas. The artist created a super fun and playful project on one of these little canvas pieces.
This is a 4 x 4″ solid little canvas that came in a package of 5 for less than $3. I did not Gesso this before I used it, but I know you should. I usually only buy pre-gessoed canvases so I don’t have to buy Gesso because it is pricey. I always buy my canvas pieces when they have sales and in bulk packages. You never know when the mood will strike to create on canvas. They aren’t very expensive, but they make for a fun project afternoon every now and then.
I stamped the sunflower image in Staz-On ink directly on to the canvas. You will see in the video that I did not get a perfectly stamped image. Perhaps I should have used my MISTI so I could stamp it twice.
The sunflower was inspired by the First Friday gallery walk my husband and I did in town on Friday evening. On the First Friday of every month, the art galleries in town stay open until 9 so people can have a wonderful evening of wine, cheese, walking and art appreciation. I saw an artist paint a giant sunflower with watercolors and I felt inspired to create a sunflower!
This one came from Gina K Designs A Year of Flowers which also has a coordinating die set.
The sentiment is from Altenew’s Thoughts and Reminders stamp set. Altenew has so many stamp sets filled with inspiring sentiments that are perfect for projects like this or for scrapbook pages. If I need an inspiring sentiment, my Altenew box is the first place that I look.
I also used a Dylusions stencil that looks like a mixed size of small bubbles. It actually came with a stamp set as well. I have no idea what it is called, but it’s a fun stencil.
Not perfect. But FUN, right?!
If you are a real artist, I’m not attempting to create shading techniques. I’m trying to see how these distress crayons work on canvas and what I can do with them. It’s a project to test out a new medium and see how it behaves. I will work out perfecting my technique as I use them more. I’m a work in progress and I’m loving every moment!
Here is a link to the video that I created to show you the process.
Here is my supply list with my affiliate links:
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Thank you so much for stopping by today! I hope you enjoyed this project share and I hope you are inspired to try a little canvas project with a fun medium! Have a fabulous day!
Hello! I am catching up with your blog since I haven’t had much time. I am now hooked on ordering these crayons and mini canvas boards. This is just so pretty. What cute little gifts these can be. Your colors came out beautiful. I am excited to try something new. I will probably have a ton of questions once I get started. Is there any difference between using a paint brush instead of an aqua painter? Also did you have to prep the canvas or are they good to go? Once again thanks for sharing your talents.
Hi Anita!
These distress crayons are really fun to use. I did not prep the canvas, but you can gesso it to make it go on more smoothly. I had no issues without the gesso. There is no difference between using an aqua painter and a paint brush. It is a matter of what you like to use best. I’ve just gotten into the habit of using the brushes lately. I will be sharing more techniques with the crayons as well. They are quite versatile.