The covers are foam lined and I purchased them for $1.00 each at my local dollar store. Obviously they are intended for an Ipad or other tablet, but can be used for much more.
Think: Photos, sketchpads, pencils, watercolors, books, travel receipts, etc.
Ever have days when all your art turns into a disaster? The day I created this canvas must have been one of those days.
"Monster" canvas
I found the monster above hiding in my closet when I was cleaning my studio, and I guess it was just so scary that it blocked my memory, because I don't recall making it. Since I try to use everything without creating an abundance of trash, it is time to upcycle!
So . . . what is your first thought about reclaiming a canvas?
If you are like me, you will normally grab sandpaper, smooth the surface, and gesso over the canvas to provide a new fresh start.
But "what if?". . . and so the journey begins . . .
Think of all the things you would normally do to with a bad canvas and then stretch your brain to try something new!
Flip the canvas to the back and paint white gesso on all the surfaces, across canvas, staples, and wood. (I had no idea at this point what I planned to do with it, but I had taken my first step on the journey, and that is so important! If you don't know where to start, just leap out there and begin!)
Begin painting areas of the white side and the black side with the same colors and compare the results. Paint until all areas of the canvas are filled on both sides.
Continue painting until both sides of the canvas are filled with color. Compare the differences of painting on a white surface (above) with those colors painted on a black surface (right).
Flip canvas back and forth to compare the differences of painting over white vs. black as a background.
When you are satisfied with the first color comparisons add more layers, painting one color over another to see how the layers build new colors.
Paint over the colors on the white side with mostly cool colors.
Paint over the colors on the "black" side with mostly warm colors.
(Warm colors are those that make you think of fire and sunshine: Yellows, Reds, Oranges and Cool colors are those that make you think of water, grass, and mountains: Blues, Greens, and Violets.) I loved the abstract compositions on both sides, but decided it would be nice to see the colors side by side, so out came the scissors. Push the sharp end of a pair of nail scissors through the canvas near its center and began slicing triangular shapes from the center outward toward the edges of the wood frame on the canvas.
Punch a hole near the center with sharp scissors. Don't let this scare you!!! It's fun!!!!
Cut triangle shapes fom center of canvas to wooden support at the outside edge.
Cut radiating lines from center of canvas to the wood on all four edges.
Bring the triangles through the middle and twist, curl, fold to form patterns on the back side of canvas. When satisfied with the design, glue to the wooden frame.
Turn frame vertical or horizontal to meet your needs.
And now you have a gorgeous shimmering frame for a photo or your next ColourArte project! Can't wait to get started on mine! Don't forget to visit ColourArte.com/blog There is a new free art tutorial there each day planned just for you by an international design team.
It annoys me that people carelessly discard their garbage across our country. I often reclaim abandoned car hoods, children's rusty bed headboards, old pieces of tires, broken glass, and anything I can remove from the environment that clutters our land to tote home. In my studio I bend, twist, glue, melt, paint and manipulate the found objects into art pieces. Studio A B See is always full of objects awaiting their transformation. The point is that it is a rare ocassion when I buy something to alter. This was an exception. This book flew off the shelf, grabbed me, and begged me for a new beginning! I spent a whole $.25, a quarter of a dollar!, to free it from its dusty home in an antique shop.
Inside the book I found a familiar scene from my childhood . . . an abundance of blank space around text and a seriouos lack of color!
There are many more BEFORE and AFTER pages of the book in the video below. I hope you will view it and give it a thumbs up. I would also like to invite you to subscribe to my youtube channel while you are there!
Not sure that I would call this a finished canvas but I enjoyed the journey and will return to it later to decide. My main focus was to show how to stretch your paint dollar, but as an added reward I found myself quieting my inner critic!
See the video and details on the ColourArte link at the end of this post.
Above: Real Feathers on Canvas Background
Below: Canvas after Feathers were Misted with Radiant Gels and Removed.
If you watched my video about Fancy Paper Feathers on Youtube, you know that I misted real feathers with Radiant Gels on top of a canvas. I rarely rinse a brush without brushing it across a canvas or paper to rid it of most of the paint. It just makes sense! I don't waste the paint. I simultaneously create new backgrounds that I plan to use at a later date, and that is the case with this canvas that was created when I misted those feathers. I also save the paper towels where I clean brushes or lift paint. They make awesome additions for collage work.
See how I created this canvas at ColourArte.com/blogon a project that I titled Stretch Paint!; Minimize Inner Critic
Here is a vintage book that I used to test Twinkling H2O's
The page below is printed with only two colors, green plus a black outline. Typical of the times, there are only three colors (green and turquoise, with black outlines) in the entire book.
I'm going to jazz it up with a makeover!
Painted the photo and margins with Twinkling H2O's with crisp edges on the bird, but using a wet into wet technique on background
If you would like to see a full tutorial and video on how I made these Fancy Paper Feathers go to Colourarte.com/blog For my third ColourArt project, I made Fancy Feathers! I have made these for several years, but the project has grown from a simple hymnbook feather to very fanciful, fun decorations made from all kinds of discarded papers and found objects! Add shimmering colors with Radiant Gel Dimensional Paint and Radiant Rain Shimmering Mists and Daubers and these feathers become individual works of art!
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Here is a vintage book that I used to test Twinkling H2O's 
