Bister Mister Spray Tray

A crafter can never have too much storage and what is nicer than decorating your own?  I'm making quite a few bits at the moment in an effort to make my tiny weeny art space more colourful and more organised.  My latest piece is done with Powertex.

I made the kit up and then coated all over with Ivory Powertex.  I then added a texture paste, made up from Powetex and 3D flex. I roughly spread it over the two ends and in patches on the top of the storage caddy.  
On the longer sides I used Easy Structure to push through two of the artist quote stencils.  I then sprayed with blue bister and left to dry.
I also stencilled one side of the carry handle and on the other I roughly spread some of the 3D flex texture paste and pressed a plaster piece into it.
Once dry I washed back removing the surface bister and leaving a nicely stained base.  The bister had encouraged some great crackles on the ends and some nice fine ones on the top.
Next I used Acrylic inks from The Secret Art Loft to build up layers of colour and to bring out the crackles.

I used Aqua, Viola, Palm and Deep Sea which I applied randomly with a brush, wiping back with a wet wipe. This enabled me to build a colourful piece with a nice splodgy arty vibe.


Over the handle I added the colours and let them drip down, this gave a nice deep colour in the corners where the handle met the top of the tray.

Finally I mixed up some Bronze Colortricx with some Easy varnish and dry brushed the art quotes.

I also used some Secret Art Loft Blueberry Pie acrylic paint and dry brushed over the rough textures to add further depth.  

That's all for now

Fi xx

Altered Time

WOW what a cold and long winter we've had here in the UK and it's something we don't get very often - Time just seemed to drag on and on ... which brings me to my latest blog over on the Powertex DT.

Using the fabulous March  Project Pack  I had oodles of fun creating this Pocket Watch taking the Mad Watch scene from Alice in Wonderland as my inspiration.  I didn't add butter or mustard but  Idid use some of them to pull together my colour pallet.

So first I unpacked and laid out the ingredients from the project pack, picked out some PowerColors and mixed up the black bister from the kit.

I always like to get a rough layout even though I know it will change once I get started. 

With this one I wanted a slighty deeper clock face so I used some MDF dropouts to raise the rim above the clock face.

First I used some Easy Structure and a cogs stencil (from my own stash)  to create some background texure that fitted with the theme.

Easy Structure dries really quickly and I prefer to let it dry naturally but if you are in a hurry you can blast it with some heat from a hair dryer or heat gun.            

Once the easy structure was dry I coated the whole layer  of Ivory Powertex from the kit (with a generous amount where there was no stencilling). 

I then placed some of the drop outs around the perimeter of the base, added the heart in the centre and the largest cog on top.   


I added some Ivory Powertex under the outer rim of the top layer of the watch and placed on top taking care to line it up accurately.  I applied more Powertex  over the top layer and then sprayed generously with black bister.

I used a hairdryer to dry and create some areas with a  bister split creating more texture and interest.

This part was all done in around 10-15 minutes.

While this finished drying I coated the numbers, clock hands and a few circle mdf dropouts with ivory. I then did the same to the remaining cogs which I placed into position while they were still wet.

The image tp the left shows where I thought I would place them, but I did move them around a few times before I put the Powertex on.  




Once the cogs, numbers, hands etc were dry I used Rich Gold Colorticx and Easy Varnish to richly coat the numbers and clock hands.  

I applied Yellow Ochre, Red Ochre and Dark Green pigments randomly over the cogs and circles and applied with Powertex pressing firmly on each piece until they had started to stick.



I used bronze gold colortricx to dry brush the background of the clock face.  

I then added washes of turquoise pigment as well as the yellow, red and dark green pigments to build up a rusty look.

I built this up over several thin layers.

I added a few flat back crystals to highlight where there were missing numbers and also popped some rusty circles to finish off the smaller cogs.

I did a similar finish to the stand using Ivory Powertex, Black Bister as well rich and bronze gold to give a cohesive look to the finished piece.

Below are some other close ups so you can see how it was all finished.

And here is the finished altered timepiece...

Have fun and don't forget to share your makes with us over on Powertex Addicts or why not join our fab new group The Powertex Studio where Certfied Powertex Tutors as well as YOU can share your creations and we can inspire each other.

Bye for now

Fi xx

This is what I had left!!!!!

These are the pigments I used and below are some close ups...

  

It's Owl a bit punky

Hi there Fi here having some fun with the January Owl Kit from Powertex UK.  

This kit is a bit of Owl-right! Lots of luscious embellishments and a super MDF base kit that will be a great outdoor decoration once the spring comes and the owl has had time to fully cure (about 4 weeks).

So let's get started!

First I tipped out the embellishment kit onto a plate, then did the same with the added mdf dropouts - I just have to say how much I love the dropouts! Lots of circles that will be ideal for steam punk and grungy styles and loads more that will help to give depth on other creations.

Next I laid out a basic idea for where I was heading.  I was given the challenge to for a more steam punk look so I wanted to suggest a re-cycled re-used look and also went with the Owl being King of the Night!

Even if this hadn't been for a blog, I would have taken a photo of my layout for reference - even though I might change a few bits as go ahead.

Once the photo is taken move your pieces off the owl.

Tip: When I removing my lay out, I laid them out in little groups so I didn't waste time or get frustrated looking for each piece.

Next I painted both sides and all the edges of the main owl piece with Powertex Bronze.  I dried off with the hairdryer.  

Next I ripped up a sheet of kitchen paper and separated the layers. 

I poured some Powertex onto the body and worked in to pieces of the kitchen paper, moving the kitchen paper into position with my brush.
 


I then moved on to the wings.  I painted with Powertex, cut the narrow lace in half and worked Powertex into it. I then shaped the lace around the outside of the right wing and the inside of the left wing - I like mixing things up and felt it added to the theme.

Next I worked on the eyes and the crown of my majestic owl.

I raised the left eye proud of the base by placing 4 of the dropout circles behind the main eye circle using Powertex. 

I added a metal embellishment inside the eye and then one of the glass pebbles, I moved on to complete the right eye and and the crown.

Remember Powertex is paint, glue, fabric hardener, pigment all in one so no need for additional mediums

Once this was done I completed the wings by adding layers of embellishments and referred to my photo when needed.

I used some more kitchen paper, that had Powertex worked in, under some embellishments to give it extra purchase.

Once the wings were complete, I worked on the main body, tail and branch areas.

I did change things around a little here from how I had originally laid it out. 

Don't worry about getting Powertex on the glass and resin embellishments as these can be wiped off gently with a baby wipe



Once I was happy with the placement of embellishments, I loaded my brush with Powertex and stippled over some areas where the embellishments were heavy for extra sticking power.  I then left it overnight to fully dry.

Once the night was over it was time to bring King Owl to life adding colour to enhance his gorgeousness!

First using Easy Varnish and Dark Green PowerColor I added colour to the lower sections of the wings, branch and body.


I then added a little white to lighten to a sage green and added this to some areas.

Next with a clean brush I added Yellow ochre and then Yellow Ochre and White.

I added highlights of Copper Colortrix to finish.

Because my owl is King and is altered with a nod to Steam Punk, I added an odd bit of chain and some Copper coloured glass glitter from my personal stash.

Here is my completed King Owl - I hope you agree he is a bit of an Owl right punky King of the Night!

Grab yourself and Owl Kit while they are still available and have some fun.  If you want to hang him outside, make sure all the edges of every piece of MDF have been well coated in Powertex and left inside for 3-4 weeks.

Below are some of close ups of my finished owl, left over embellishments and dropouts and a photo of my mixed up palette.

Until next time...

Fi xxx