Sunday, January 20, 2013

Paris Collage


Inspired by Anna Dabrowska aka Finnabair, I decided to try my hand at her style of collage.  She is a genius whom I have admired for some time now.  I'm a hacker but I have to say that I did have a blast getting inky with this.  She has a great how-to video on her style, very long but worth it if you have an interest in creating in her style.

First of all, I have no stencils and no Glimmer Mists so I had to improvise in a major way.  I cut a stencil/mask with the On The Edge Iron Gate die and some of Tim Holtz's mask sheets.  I created some sprays with Mini Misters and Distress Stains like Tim showed on his blog last week.  I do have Dylusions sprays and Adirondack Color Wash sprays available but their colors are so intense that I was afraid to use them.

Having set the stage, I took the plunge.  My stenciling and masking was done with Bundled Sage and Faded Jeans DS/misted and then I sponged a little Black Soot using the stencil.  I then added stamps from Paris Exposition stamped in Jet Black archival and then a few more from Ephemera Backgrounds stamped in Sepia archival.  The three main photo stamps were stamped in Jet Black archival and deckle cut the edges making them look like old time photos, then sponged with Vintage Photo to age them.

I made a little embellishment using the Spellbinders cross die and some soda can aluminum plus some Vintaj patinas, used the TH Hardware die to cut fasteners, which were painted with black acrylic and then run through the Damask TF, coated with UTEE and finally I rubbed a little gold paint over them.  I used some black Vintaj patina paint to coat some filigree metal and also rubbed them with the gold paint.  And then found a couple of old rusty keys in my flea market finds stash.

Now comes the hard part for me.  Anna then sprays her masterpieces with Glimmer mist, including a final shot or two of black - that scared the crap out of me!!!  First, what color should I mist it with?  I finally decided to use some alcohol ink that I have had tucked away in Mini Misters.  When I first started using the alcohol ink, I put them into Mini Misters and used them that way.  Then I took Tim Holtz's Creative Chemistry last year and learned that you should NEVER put alcohol inks in Mini Misters, so they have been sitting pushed to the back of my shelf.  I pulled out Current and added a bit of rubbing alcohol to water it down and gave my collage a couple of mists.  Then I put some Tarnished Brass DS into a mini mister, added a bit of water to dilute it a bit and gave the piece a few sprays of that.  I was not impressed with the look of it.  I hemmed and hawed for about 30 minutes about adding a spray or two of black mist.  I wasn't happy with how the piece looked after the first couple of mistings so I finally thought what the heck and gave it a couple of sprays with Black Soot in a Mini Mister.  I still wasn't happy.  After studying it and mulling it over, I found a tiny, very stiff paint brush and used it to apply some shading with Black Soot DI.  That helped making things pop a bit.

The jury is still out on this.  I sort of like it, but am not satisfied.  I guess it is a first step and I did have a lot of fun with it so it is probably something I will try again.  But now what do I do with it?  It's not a card, and not really a wall hanging.  This one will probably sit on my shelf for a few months and then go in the trash, after I pluck off all the metal parts to be recycled.  Or maybe I should keep it to compare to later pieces so I can track my improvement...humm??  We'll see...

Oh, almost forgot - here is a quick shot I took of the stamping/stenciling collage before I mucked it all up.  I really like how that part came out.
I hope you are having a great weekend.  I've listed below all of the products I used here that are available at The Funkie Junkie Boutique.








These products used in this piece are available at The Funkie Junkie Boutique.  Ranger/Tim Holtz brand products are always 20% off MSRP!

25 comments:

Craft Addicts - Tracy Evans said...

Beautiful collaged piece Linda, inspired by Ana but with Linda's special touches. Love the background and your eclectic mix of embellishments. Love your use of AO images and your flower is stunning. Tracy x x

TAM said...

Stunning piece of work - I think its fabulous. Well done for your improvisation with masks/mists - you've done a brilliant job

Words and Pictures said...

I thought this was amazing over at AO, particularly the distressing - achieving a really convincing antique-y look, especially on the images. Fascinating to hear how it was done with your improvised spraying - and your journey with it. And I think the collaging is gorgeous!

Also interested to hear that you do sometimes break your pieces down and recycle elements... been arguing with myself about doing that with one or two of mine!
Alison xx

Maryanne said...

I'm also a big fan of Finnabar's but I'm too chicken to try her style, even though I love it. I think you did a great job and I think you should keep it for comparison later on. Its really beautiful.

The Sparkly Fairy said...

Wow! I love this - amazing detail.

Silvia(Barnie) said...

Wow, that's a gorgeous collage card.

Astrid Maclean said...

Stunning projects, love how you have used all the different stamps and combined them into a perfect whole. Great embellishments too!!

Hettie said...

Oh My! This is WONDERFUL Linda. Sometimes you have to step outside the box and have a go and you have done a brilliant job. C@est Magnifique indeed!
FYI I sometimes put some colourwash in the mini misters and water it down a bit to get away from the intensity a bit and have been known to add Perfect Pearls too. Just a thought!
Love this piece.
Hugs
xx

Brenda Brown said...

Wow Linda, this is a fantastic mix of masks, sprays, images and embellishments. I love the arty vintage result of your experimentation and I certainly think you should hold onto it until you feel you have moved on from what you achieved here. Thanks for sharing the process, it's great to see how you worked to complete it. TFS x0x
(I just opened this packet of stamps yesterday that I got from the boutique before Christmas - too many choices lol).

Jenny Marples said...

Way to go Linda!! Anna's style looks easy on her video's but in practice takes a heck of a lot of practice - I scrapped my first attempt at those journalling pages posted for the first challenge because it got confused with too much going on. Don't be afraid of the sprays. How about using Walnut Stain rather than Black Soot? And you can also mix your own sprays by decanting a little of your Dylusions and adding a drop or two of re-inker (again, maybe working up from Antique Linen?) Whatever you do enjoy! (and write down what you like:) Looking forward to seeing your next one of these. Hugs, Jenny x

Hanneke said...

Wow Linda, what a wonderful creation! It is a really nice vintage style! Hugs, Hanneke

Anonymous said...

Fabulous collage piece Linda. I love all the stamping and spraying to bring it all together. I love Anna D's work too, and I think you've done her proud ! Sue C x

Kate Yetter said...

I saw this on AO andbfell In love! Its stunning, Linda. And I love the shot of just your background. You have done an awesome job of taking finnibair's techniques and incorporating it into your style! I am off to watch that video and get some more inspiration.
Kate

Sophie said...

Meine Güte, was für ein Prachtstück ist das denn?!
Das ist ja unglaublich, was du da gezaubert hast.
Ich bin überwältigt und sehr beeindruckt.
Chapeau!

Herzlichst Sophie

craftytrog said...

Wow! Simply amazing artwork Linda! Looks like you had lots of fun creating it!
Alison x

Kathy/NorthCarolina said...

Don't you dare throw it away! It's gorgeous! Collage is addictive...and a wonderful way to make a statement, too. You did a great job!

Grethe said...

Wow!! Love this!!

Laurart said...

WOW!!!! WOW!!! WOW!!! This is amazing....really truly absolutely wonderful. I might give this a go one day. Thanks for sharing from Laura xxx

Marjie Kemper said...

I love it! I'm a huge Finnabair fan too... love her style! You've made a gorgeous piece here. Thanks for sharing that pre-pic, too!

Cec said...

I love this and think you did a FAAB-U-LOUS job. I am so anxious to try something like this and if you think you are a hacker - well forget what I will be :) Only think is I will need to go shopping for more stuff - don't tell my DH.
Hugs!
Cec

marda said...

Obviously I'm not the only one who immediately thought "WOW"! This is definitely a WOW piece Linda.. Like the previous comment... YOU'RE a hacker???? I don't think so...that's my category. I also love what Finnabair creates..and you are equal to the task.

Anita Houston The Artful Maven said...

Magnifique! I love all the fabby layers and images...YUMMY! This is a little different for you...and I love where you are heading...lol! Gorgeous work!

Susan said...

I love it! I meant to comment sooner but best laid(?) plans.....Don't throw it away, list on the Funkies Junk when it opens again.

Susan said...

I love it! I meant to comment sooner but best laid(?) plans.....Don't throw it away, list on the Funkies Junk when it opens again.

Anonymous said...

Just gorgeous Linda. What a wonderful piece you've created.

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