Chaos in the Breeze?

Here in Honeysuckle Breeze we are finally stepping out of chaos into order. OK, yes my nose is growing as I say this..... "Chaos" is the name of my crusade piece for Michelle Ward's GPP Crusade No. 29. She states, "Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to just mess around with paint and brushes." Mess around? Are you kidding, girlfriend, sounds good to me. Oh, OK, with paint and brushes, why not, girlfriend. OK, take a peek at my messin' around.....


After finishing two wonderful quote challenges within the last two weeks at PaperWhimsey, it was fun to pick up my journal I began creating at Michelle's workshop in Wisconsin last May. I took "The Painted Page" at Valley Ridge Art Studio because I was not into using acrylic paints that much for anything in my work (OK I painted chipboard letters) and hey, I admire this artist! Her workshop did not disappoint me. After two days of painting and playing, I returned home not only with fond memories but with pages that were "just started" using different techniques. I work in this journal off and on just to reconnect with Michelle's style -- which I love, especially, since it is not the medium I feel comfortable in. I stand in awe of her works and *bow* to her. You rock, girl.

I started with my "blank" canvas that had some distinctive brush strokes and began by layering with my paints I selected to "use" at the workshop. I have all of these acrylics together so the color scheme of the journal remains in tact....and, yes, these are colors I do not use all the time, maybe like never, unless working in this journal. Yes, it challenges me to step out of my comfort zone and good for my soul. After getting the gesso out and adding more strokes - love the gesso strokes, I was so proud of me or is that mii. (Too much Wii Tennis lately). The more I use "brush" strokes, the easier they come to me. However, this has not always been the case. It took some "trusting" the dry brush to get to this point.

Once the page looked the way I thought I wanted it tooooo (thank you, Michelle, for teaching me that one can always, always, gesso and paint over - there are no mistakes that can't be fixed with just a little white surface prep paint.) . And so I started layering and layering. Looking through my stash of stuff (my SOS) I came across a photo I took at the Alamo New Year's Day and printed it onto a transparency. I turned that baby over and gessoed it. Gesso Queen (who mii?) ... Truth be knownst I never really knew what to do with that white stuff. Yes, I did get carried away slathering it....

Turned that baby over and stuck to the page - wet gesso and all.

AS I kept working on this piece (background noise was the boys over on the Travel Channel chasing ghosts, oh my oh my they need help and I'm not sure if I'm talking about the ghosts or the boys) the "theme" of the page came to me -- Chaos. I pulled out some of my Michelle Ward stamps (Crow About) and started to work in earnest. I also remembered Michelle showing us how to paint our brush strokes onto acetate and turn over to apply to our painted page for some cool brush stroke effects. She also reminded us to use that piece in our art work. I used an ArtChix Angel (#T410Mystery) transparency atop the acetate. This portion of the page reminds me of the Phoenix rising ... out of the depths of whatever...

Okie dokie, boys and girls...... TA DA......here is the finished page -- the screaming in the background on Most Haunted definitely had an influence on this piece, besides me wanting to strangle two of the women (Kat and Leslie, you know it is so bad when you know their names without thinking - OK a rat ran by so eat it and shut-up). Better yet, give them Valium, please, or find someone else to haunt with. You know by now, my sympathies were going with the ghosts. No wonder they want their solitude in those gorgeous English manors.

It was fun searching the stash to find objects to mount on this page. Which means, this morning is devoted to some serious organizing. Thanks for stopping by to check out Crusade no. 29! Thank you, Michelle! I can't wait for your October workshop back at the farm.....