Clothing designs based on my artwork-VIDA

I've been working on designing some very artsy clothing on  VIDA.  This is a site that transfers your art to all different types of products.  It's fun to design your own outfits and accessories that you can wear and hopefully others will enjoy wearing too.  Please click on the link and take a look.

I love a particular piece of art that I produced last year and have ordered it.  This is the piece that started the whole design process for me.



I designed this face for the Coloring Studio workbook published by Stampington.  Can't wait to wear it!

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my latest art adventure.
Hugs ~ Renee

P.S.  If there's anything you can't live without you can use this code: DISCOVERVIDA for a 15% discount on your purchase.

A Coloring Page turned into a Garden Notebook

So many of us are loving the coloring book craze and it shows no sign of disappearing any time soon.  Many people wonder what to do with some of those favorite pages.  How can we look at them every day without plastering our art work all over the walls?  Here's a suggestion, use the book page as a master board paper and it suddenly takes on a whole new life.  In this instance the page was used to make a small garden notebook housing seed packets and miscellaneous garden notes.

To begin I printed out a copy of the uncolored page on to a piece of computer paper.  Clear packing tape was applied over every bit of the design, trimmed out and then submerged in water.  After a few minutes of soaking, the paper will peel off of the back of the tape leaving only the print of the design.  Next the water color paper was folded into a miniature book measuring 7.5" by 7.5".  Tim Holtz's Distress Crayons were applied on a craft sheet and then picked up with a baby wipe and applied onto the front cover, being careful to follow the design; this is the portion that the packing tape transfer will be covering.

It doesn't look like much until the packing tape is adhered, then it takes on a life of its own.

There should be enough tackiness left in the tape to adhere to the book but if not just add some glue under the tape.  Now color in the background with additional Distress Crayon colors.  Draw a horizon line, add texture with StazOn Studio Glaze and allow to dry.  Now for the back of the book.

It is nice to have continuity in the colors of Distress Crayons used throughout the book.    I took the time to sew areas of the book so it will serve the purpose that I have in mind, mainly storage of seeds, etc.  There are several pockets on the inside to stuff treasures. Several of the threads were left long for a grunge effect. Random flower and butterfly stamps were used with StazOn Jet Black ink so there's no chance of smearing later.  The Bokeh effect is reminiscent of dew drops in the early morning and that look was achieved here with Purple Iridescent Creative Medium and a stencil. 

Here is a view of the book opened so you can see the front and the back after all the edges were distressed.

This is a list of the supplies used:

" Beauty Boots" coloring page from Stampington's "The Coloring Studio Vol. 3"

• Inks:  StazOn Jet Black, Ranger Wendy Vecchi Archival Cornflower Blue, Orange Blossom, Tree Branch
• Distress Crayons:  Seedless Preserves, Picked Raspberry, Mustard Seed, Rusty Hinge, Twisted Citron, Mermaid Lagoon
• Gelatos:  Metallic Melon, Metallic Mint, Cotton Candy
• StazOn Studio Glaze:  Cactus Green, Emerald Green, Orange Zest, Silver
• Stamps:  Penny Black, Memory Box, Finnabair, Idea-o-logy, Stampotique, Dyan Reaveley, Dina Wakley
• Stencils:  Stencil Girl, Artistcellar
• Other:  Purple Iridescent Creative Medium, Transparent Packing tape, Watercolor paper, baby wipes, black embossing powder

I'd love to see some of your projects created with coloring book pages.  Please feel free to leave a comment telling us what YOU have done with your pages.  Thanks for stopping by ~ Hugs ~ Renee

A Coloring class/party at my house! Plus the new Coloring Studio Summer Book is out!!

Now that we are a little more settled in here (not totally but almost) I decided it was time to have a coloring book party at my house.  A new friend of mine is organizing a craft party once a month encouraging others to teach something crafty that they think the group might enjoy.  What better thing to introduce than the new coloring book craze and different mediums that can be used.  It is also fun to share interesting ways to enhance the finished pages using stencils, etc. for the backgrounds.  If you are thinking of hosting a party like this you can see how simple it can be and still be an amazing experience for everyone.  WARNING!  Lots of photos to follow, bring the appropriate drink if you choose to continue.

We colored the owl page by artist Crystal Brashear found on page 65 in the Summer Edition of The Coloring Studio published by Somerset Studio

There were 25 people here and I just set up card tables since my dining tables can't handle that many.  I set out crayons, colored pencils, watercolor pencils, chalks, Distress Markers, Memento Markers, cotton balls, Q-tips and desserts.  I made an easy, simplified version of a Strawberry Trifle (my thanks to Pinterest for the recipe) and other light goodies, along with coffee, soft drinks and of course, ice tea, this is the South after all.

Assorted cookies, banana bread, light cake slices with frosting and Strawberry Trifle just set out on a self serve buffet table

The majority of the ladies had never done any type of art like this before, a few already love coloring books and were happy to see new techniques that they can easily use.  The youngest girls present were about 13 and the oldest ones were in their 80's, with quite a few ages in between.  We colored for about 3 hours and just enjoyed getting to know one another.  It was so fun!  I'd love to share some of their delightful art with you. So many were talking about framing their pages, that makes my heart glad.

I'd love to see this one completed.  Isn't it AMAZING?!
Obviously not her first rodeo.

I hope you enjoyed having a sneak peek at the party showcasing the new coloring book and just one of its amazing pages.  I am delighted to say that I do have a project in the book too.  It is always a privilege to be featured in any Stampington publication.  My article is on pages 98-100 and looks like this:

Sorry for such a long post.  Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you are coloring too.
Hugs ~ Renee

Enhanced Coloring Book Page ~ Inquisitive Owl 3

This is another example of what to do with a coloring book page.  I call this one the Starry Night Inquisitive Owl.  Here's a list of the products I used:

Supplies Used:

Pan Pastels

Tim Holtz Distress Crayons

Stamps:  Stampendous, Stampers Anonymous

Creative Medium iridescent Chartreuse paste by Imagine Craft

White gesso

Stencils:  Artistcellar Aspens & Stars

StazOn Jet Black ink

I enjoy coloring so much I developed a class showing how to color pages and enhance them turning them into small pieces of art.  I already have two classes scheduled locally.   Doesn't that sound like fun?  Photos to follow, one this month and another in June.  :-)  I hope you're having a great day!  Hugs ~ Renee

Got your coloring book? Now what......

Once you purchase a coloring book you may wonder....now what do I do with it?  Why, color in the pages, of course!  What can you color it with?  Anything you've got on hand.  I started coloring in some of the pages in my copy of The Coloring Studio, it took longer than I expected.  Each page is unique in its representation of the artist who created it.  It is more like a workbook to me since there are so many instructions and hints throughout the entire book.  I started with one of my favorites, Mou Saha, on page 100.  I used Pan Pastels, Memento Markers, gesso, stencils, Micron pens and an irRESISTible Pico Embellisher.  It was a meditative, fun, relaxing experience.  You are not facing a blank page and have the liberty to do whatever floats your boat.  This is what my first page looks like now.

Next I thought it only fair that I color my own design on page 60.  The beauty of the book is that you can add even more doodling to the pages or add stamps, etc. to the pages.  Remember the quote that says "art is never finished, just abandoned".  Play with the pages until you feel like abandoning them.  Here's my page.

I couldn't seem to stop adding tangles, color, stamps, etc. to the page.  Finally abandoned.

Whatever coloring book you choose I hope you're having some relaxing moments with it!  Later down the road I'm sure I'll be tearing out pages and doing other projects with them but for now I'll leave them in the book.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you're having a good one.  Hugs ~ Renee