Today sees the start of a new challenge over at A Vintage Journey and I had lots of fun art journaling for Astrid’s fabulous Tissue Paper challenge.
Here’s what we would like you to do this month:
“As the title suggests, use tissue paper. There are many different ways you can incorporate tissue paper into your project – create texture by scrunching it up, stain it, paint it, wax it, stamp on it, emboss on it. You could use cheap tissue from the supermarket, recycle gift wrapping tissue, or even use old dressmaking patterns. Just remember to create in one of our preferred styles of vintage, shabby, mixed media, art journaling, industrial, timeworn or steampunk”.
Inspired by a beautiful display of flowers in my garden, I used a couple of new techniques with tissue paper to create the background as well as all the foliage and flowers on this page – I hope you like it!
For my tissue paper background, I started by stamping Mowed Lawn, Chipped Sapphire, Twisted Citron and Peacock Feathers Distress Inks onto a blending mat, spritzing with water.
I pressed the tissue paper onto the blending mat and spritzed with more water to disperse the colour. Then I lifted the tissue paper off the blending mat and dried it with my heat gun.
Next I scrunched the tissue paper into a ball, unravelled it so it still retained most of the creases, stuck it onto my art journal page using a UHU Stic and trimmed off the excess tissue to fit the page. Then I brushed a Watermark stamp pad over the raised creases on the page, applied silver embossing powder and heated it using a heat gun; this was a fun new technique for me.
I love the veins of silver that resulted. I chose the silver as it depicts the backdrop of silver-leafed plants that are in the flower bed in my garden.
Next I selected tissue papers from my craft stash, I was actually surprised by how many different coloured tissue papers I had as they are all recycled from gift wrapping (grin!). I cut the green and beige tissue paper into strips to create some of the foliage and also layered some tissue papers 5 pieces thick and die cut it using Wildflower Stems Tim Holtz thinlets and my Big Shot machine to create more foliage and flowers for my page.
I gradually built up the foliage first by layering the strips of light green, dark green and beige tissue paper and the cream die cut tissue paper pieces onto the page using matte gel medium. When the gel medium was dry I outlined the strips with a black fine line marker and then coloured them using Sea Green, Evergreen and Dessert Spectrum Aqua markers. For the cream pieces I outlined them with a white gel pen and shaded them using a Cold Grey Big Brush marker.
To create my pink flowers, I used a flower die cut and turned it upside down so they were the same shape as the ones in my garden. To create different looking flowers and a 3D effect, I also cut the die cut flower shape into individual petals so that I could build up the layers on each flower.
The yellow centres are created using rolled up tissue paper which I cut into small pieces using scissors and stuck in place like all these tissue elements using matte gel medium, when dry I added more detail using a black fine line marker and white gel pen. I also built up layers of the die cut green tissue paper for their stems and leaves and once the gel medium was dry, I outlined everything using a black fine line marker and added more detail to the leaves with this marker too. As the flowers in my garden are so bold and beautiful, I added the words “Live your life out loud” which is a Kaisercraft sticker edged with the Cold Grey Big Brush marker; this finished the page.
As some of you may be aware we replanted our flower beds last year, so we have lots of new flowers in our garden. These bright pink Tanacetum Coccineum flowers have grown beautifully this year and are definitely a favourite of mine so I wanted to capture their beauty on my art journal page (grin!).
Here’s a view of the flowers with the silver-leafed plants in the background which inspired the silver embossing powder background of my page (double grin!).
There’s lots more inspiration at A Vintage Journey, so please pop over to see the amazing creations made by my fellow Creative Guides.
Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.
Challenges
I’m pleased to join the lovely Halle of Halle’s Hobbies and her Words to live by challenge over at Art Journal Journey with the words that I included on my page.
Over at Simon Says Stamp Work it Wednesday, their challenge is Summer Vibes! So I’m joining this challenge too my summery flowered art journal page.
Here is a list of all the materials used to create this art journal page:
- Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Mowed Lawn, Chipped Sapphire, Twisted Citron, Peacock Feathers)
- Recycled tissue paper (White, Light Green, Dark Green, Beige, Cream, Pink, Yellow)
- Tsukineko Versamark (Watermark Stamp Pad)
- Papermania Embossing Powder (Silver)
- Sizzix Thinlets Tim Holtz Alterations (Wildflower Stems #2 661808)
- Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
- Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Sea Green, Evergreen, Dessert)
- Uniball Signo Gel Pen (White)
- Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233)
- Kaiercraft Sticker Sheet (Fly Free SS289)
- UHU Stic
- Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
- Ranger Heat Gun
What a gorgeous page Jo. You outdid yourself. And you really caught the beauty of the flowers in your garden. Your garden, by the way, is looks really great also. happy Friday. Hugs-Erika
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This journal page is out of this world, Jo. As always I was so impressed with this jaw dropping beauty. I love how you layered the tissue paper and even used some as a background. You have certainly provided a genuinely lovely example of how to use tissue paper to your advantage. Thanks, too, for sharing this with us at Art Journal Journey, using Halle’s theme. I’m just SO in love with this, and your garden is looking fabulous, too!!
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Gorgeous page, Jo, and bravo for die cutting the tissue paper! The leaves and stems look so soft and natural, xoxo.
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Totally brilliant Jo, from the fun way you created the background to the amazing flowers, this looks fantastic. The pink blossoms made from tissue, have turned out fantastic and really echo the beauty of the flowers in your garden.
Thanks so much for playing in the challenge!
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Looks so vulnerable yet beautiful! really love the texture! Happy Friday Jo!
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Thank you Mel! I had so much fun playing around with the tissue paper 😉. I hope you’ve had a lovely week, enjoy your weekend! Jo x
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What a fabulous collage you have created here Jo x I love the scrunchy technique with the versamark followed by even more tissue layers from your stash. The flowers really pop against the background x Your garden flowers are stunning too x
TFS and huge hugs
Annie x
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Your page looks like a snapshot of your garden. Well done!
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WOW! Mixed Media at its VÈRY best!! I am in awe of all the textures and details and the wonderful colours! Simply TERRIFIC Jo!
And it makes me happy to see this linked to the current AJJ topic as well!
Thank you for all your wonderful support and amazing art you share with us!
Enjoy the weekend!
You are a wonderful addition to the AVJ team! You fit them perfectly!
Big , big hugs
Susi
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A fabulous page Jo. The textures look lovely and its a perfect background for your pretty flowers..
The inspiration photo looked great.
Have a good weekend Jo.
Yvonne xx
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I want to be you when i grow up in art 🙂 This is mind-opening for me. I had no idea so much could be done with tissue paper. Wow! Beautiful, and a perfect reflection of those stunning flowers/plants in your garden.
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That background is A M A Z I N G! Thanks for showing and explaining the process. Did you use a cuttlebug to cut the tissue papers?
Thanks for linking up for Words to live by for AJJ.
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Gorgeous page, Jo! The background texture is wonderful. The flowers really do look like the ones from your garden. You must be very pleased with this page. Eileen xx
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What a beautiful tissue journal garden you created Jo! love that crinkled embossed background and your lovely tissue stems and blooms – a perfect replication of your garden! xx
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Such a gorgeous display Jo, perfect to brighten up a dull and rainy day! I love how you re-created your beautiful flower bed with the stunning Pyrethrums and the wonderful silver foliage – it is really stunning! Hugs, Anne xx
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I love that silvery veined background and the subtly translucent tissue paper stems and flowers are magical. A wonderful page spread.
Alison x
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Wow that background Jo is amazing! who would have thought that the scrunching and then the embossing would result in such an amazing delicate texture! The subtle addition of the flowers ensures the whole piece is wonderfully colourful and ethereal. Fabulous! Thanks for such wonderful inspiration. Jennie x
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Wow, Jo, what an amazing and truly artistic way to use your tissue papers! Those silvery veins running throughout is a genius way to represent the silver foliage in your garden. And the translucent stems give such an airy feel. I really, really love this page, but feel it would look even prettier framed and hanging on my wall! You knocked my socks off, Jo! Hugs!
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Fabulous Jo! Love the scrunched tissue background and silver highlighting. The tissue flowers and foliage is amazing creating a stunning page! Nikki x
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Brilliant Jo! So lovely to see how this beautiful journal spread came together! I love the background and the delicate layers of tissue flowers. It really is very like your garden ! Thank you so much for the lovely comments you have left on my blog. They are very much appreciated. Toni xx
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Perfect Jo’s style! love love love your use of colors, the background is stunning! Thanks for the steps! Barbara
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Fabulous, Jo – you arranged all those die cuts so well and they are beautifully coloured. This reminds me of my first Altered Book spread with it’s gorgeous tissue background…it’s so subtle but beautiful. So sorry I’m not able to ‘get around’ the blogs as much as usual – I’ve missed all your wonderful art 😦
Cath x
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Amazing page Jo, the tissue paper gives your background a wonderful texture. The pink flowers are the eyecatcher. A wonderful composition! The silver ebossed looked wow!
Big Hugs
Sabine
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This journal page is out of this world, Jo. I love you applied silver embossing powder and heated it over the raised creases on the page. So amazing technique.
Hugs, Ann xx
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A wonderful journal spread , Jo . it has a real uplifting feel – crisp, fresh and full of summer colour.
Lovley creativity .
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