I was recently introduced to
the world of beeswax collage. Since I’m most familiar with paper and scissors,
I thought it would be fun to add a new medium to my artist’s toolbox. I was
giddy with delight when I found a class at my local art supply store.
Beeswax is not as scary as
it looks. It’s actually quite easy to work with and gives your work a
dream-like quality, along with a fabulous textural effect. Beeswax can be used
to adhere various bits of paper, ephemera and botanicals within a collage surface and
its soft nature makes it easy to alter images and colors.
On this small 4" x
6" (10cm x 15cm) canvas, I first painted the exterior with a few swipes of
a rich royal blue acrylic paint. Once dry, I applied a thin coat of wax to the
surface as a base and then selected a few pieces of ephemera to layer on my
background. Since all the materials in the class were provided, I had to select
my ephemera from the clippings and cut outs provided. It was a bit of a
challenge to find pieces that I found both visually appealing as well as
symbolic of my own unique character and persona. But it proved to be a good
exercise in thinking outside the “hive” and letting my creativity flow.
I layered my paper ephemera
and then applied a few more thin coats of melted wax to the surface. I then
used a heat iron to embed a few dried botanicals into the wax. The heat iron
also came in handy for adding additional color. I simply used the iron to heat
the tip of crayon and then blended the resulting color into the wax for a
dreamy mixture of blue and raspberry tones. My beeswax collage is my Valentine
to myself this year. I love my own fresh color scheme and floral images, which
to me symbolize hope and renewal.
I’m always looking for ways to give my photos a little
something extra for my layouts.I
recently learned an easy technique for giving photos a vintage look.When I think vintage, I think soft and romantic,
the perfect look for Valentine’s Day projects.Here’s what I did to give my photo a romantic glow, using Photoshop
Elements 5.
1. Open
your photo in Photoshop. Go to Layer>Duplicate Layer.
2. At the
top of the Layers palette (on the right side of the screen), click on the
drop down menu that says Normal and change it to Soft Light.
3. In the
Layers palette, click the eyeball icon next to your Background layer. Then
click on the Backgroud copy layer and go to Layer>Duplicate layer. You
should now have three copies of your photo in the Layers palette.
4. Click
on the middle layer in your Layers palette and go to Enhance>Adjust
Color>Remove Color to make it black and white. Duplicate that middle
layer (Layer>Duplicate layer). You should now have a top color layer, two
middle black and white layers and a bottom hidden background layer.
5. Then
go to Layer>Flatten image. Adjust the brightness and contrast in your
photo as needed (Enhance>Adjust lighting>Brightness/Contrast. To
soften your photo a bit more, go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur and
adjust the pixels until you achieve your desired look.
Want more photo tips and tricks?Check out the digital scrapbooking forum to
discuss all things digital.And don’t forget
about the free techniques and projects available on the S+P homepage.Come back next Tuesday for more techniques and tips.
I love a good challenge. It energizes me and gets my creative juices
flowing. I’m a creature of habit, so a good challenge is the perfect
antidote to staying in my crafty comfort zone.
Because we’ll
bet you love a challenge too, every Monday we’ll post a new
scrapbooking or papercrafting challenge for you. Use the challenge to
share new ideas with the community, to step your creative process up a
notch, or get out of a creative rut.
Weekly Challenge #1: Do Something Different This
week’s challenge is a simple one: Do something you don’t normally do.
You can take that to mean whatever you want. If you’re typically a
traditional scrapbooker, try a digital page. If you usually scrapbook,
make a card or home décor project. Or try a technique or product you’ve
never have before.
A fan of Scrap Simple,
I tend to shy away from using lots of elements and embellishments on a
page. I love clean lines and modern, graphic designs. But I’m also
afraid of adding embellishments; I’m never quite sure how to use them
effectively. So for this challenge, I decided to create a special
Valentine’s Day page using lots of embellishments (relatively speaking)
with a decidedly feminine flair:
Credits: Digital metal tag by Katie Pertiet, available exclusively with Paper + Pixels All other digital elements by Michelle Coleman, available for free from Memory Makers. Beedey font available for free at Scrappinfun Photos courtesy Jennifer Disney Photography
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This week, share your challenge creations in the gallery. And come back next Monday for another challenge.
elcome to the Scrapbooking + Papercrafting (S+P) blog! Here, we hope to share what’s going on in the world of scrapbooking and papercrafts as well as a little insight into the book departments at Memory Makers, North Light and David & Charles. Visit the blog often for weekly challenges, book features, tips and techniques, and posts about the team’s own projects and things we’re loving. And be sure to check out the S+P group page to view tip and techniques and free projects from our books.
Kristin, Associate Editor, Memory Makers Books
“When I joined the MM Books team, I was astonished to learn about the amazing inspiration, ideas and talent in the scrapbooking community. I’m thrilled that my job involves poring over gorgeous scrapbook layouts and keeping in touch with the papercrafting world. I started scrapbooking back in junior high when I made an “all about me” album for my grandparents. My albums escalated to slightly more sophisticated endeavors with patterned paper, photo corners and handwritten captions. But it wasn’t until I came to MM that I really began loving scrapbooking and all the yummy product out there (my favorites are letter stickers). I’ve also recently discovered the art of digital scrapbooking, so you’re likely to see quite a number of digital projects from me. Aside from scrapbooking, I love sewing and decorating my new house, and I also try to make time for reading, watching Project Runway, planning a trip to Italy, and spending time with my new husband.”
Stay tuned to meet the third member of the team in the coming weeks. In the meantime, happy crafting!
