Hi creative friends! Kathy here today to share a summery mixed media canvas. I've always loved bees and honey. I put honey in my tea every morning. It's really a miracle how bees make honey and the whole pollination process is so important. I've heard that if there were no more bees we would have no more flowers. Well, I am no scientist but I know they are a very important part of our Eco-system. There's a farmers market in my area that has a live bee display and I am always mesmerized by it. On my last visit, the sales person told me that she saw the queen that day. I got very excited and asked if she would show her to me. It's often difficult to find her because there is so much activity in the hive and the queen moves around and generally stays out of sight. But guess what? I saw her!! This canvas was inspired by that experience.
I love all of the little details in this canvas: Double wings made of different materials, crackle on the frame, gold embossed crowns, shimmery beehive background, and splatters of pollen. This is mixed media art!
Thank you for visiting the blog today. I hope your summer is off to a great start!
Kathy Adams
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Supplies
5" x 7" Deep Edge Canvas
Art Anthology Beehive Stencil
Matte Medium
Matte Medium
Crackle Medium
Tim Holtz Layered Bee Die-Cut and Embossing Folder
Archival Black Ink
Background Rubber Stamp
Chipboard Scraps
Acetate or Plastic Packaging Scrap
White Tissue Paper (approx. 9" x 7")
Tutorial
Archival Black Ink
Background Rubber Stamp
Chipboard Scraps
Acetate or Plastic Packaging Scrap
White Tissue Paper (approx. 9" x 7")
Tutorial
Cover the canvas with the stamped tissue using matte medium. Add a coat of matte medium to the top as well.
Spray Art Anthology Glorious and Timeless Colorations Sprays on the canvas. Don't forget the sides! Let dry or use a heat tool.
Spread Art Anthology Dimensional Sunshine Sorbet and Amber Gemstones through the Beehive stencil.
These mediums are dimensional and super shimmery!
Paint the larger oval frame with Fluorite Gemstones and the smaller one with Rhodolite Gemstones. Since I did not gesso the frames, I painted two coats.
Paint the frames with crackle medium, thick in some places and thinner in others. Set aside to dry and let the cracks form.
Once the frames are dry, mix glazing medium with gold paint and coat the frames with it. Let it seep into the cracks for a few minutes then wipe the glaze off using a baby wipe. Paint both crowns with gold paint.
Give the frames a coat of Art Anthology Dazzle Sorbet, which is a clear coat with gold glitter. This will add shimmery glitter and seal the frames so the cracks won't flake off.
Die-cut one chipboard bee and one from clear acetate. Paint the body with yellows and a bit of orange.
Paint the chipboard bee's wings with Dazzle and a bit of Wild Orchid Colorations Spray.
I will use only the wings of the acetate bee and alcohol inks are the best medium for this material. I used gold and yellow/orange inks, diluting it with alcohol. I also added a bit of Dazzle to the wings to add gold glitter and to seal them.
Cut the acetate wings as shown and glue the middle only to the chipboard bee. Bend the acetate wings a bit so they separate from the chipboard ones for a cool dimensional look. I realized I needed to die-cut another chipboard bee and layer the bodies to hide the middle where the wings connect. I cut off the wings of this additional die-cut and layered the legs and bodies to hide where the acetate wings are attached. It looks much better this way!
After layering the bee bodies, I painted it with yellows, a touch of orange and Black Leather Jacket Sorbet. Lastly, I splattered yellow over the whole bee so it looks like she is covered in pollen.
Time to assemble it! I doubled foam squares to secure the bee to the canvas and liquid glue for everything else.
Once everything was assembled, I added the gem embellishments to the frame, crown and bee.
Thank you for visiting the blog today. I hope your summer is off to a great start!
Kathy Adams
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