Second Thursday Tutorial: a review of a few backgrounds

I had intended to have a tutorial today, but I've been putting out fires that have popped up and spread like wildfire both in my personal life and my blogging life.  One good thing is, I got my wireless mouse to work again after several months of it refusing to play nice.  Maybe it started working again because I threatened to feed it d-Con.I have a tutorial started, but mostly I moved art that was drying on my craft table and retrieved a few supplies I intend to use.  That means the tutorial will have to wait till next Thursday.  Here instead are two of my favorite backgrounds.

Acrylic and Baking Soda Background

I had a ton of trouble with this "easy" background. I didn't copy the materials or the instructions like I should have, so this was a real trial and error process.

Materials:
Acrylics*
Baking soda
Substrate (copier paper, paper bags, card stock, etc)
Brush (foam or bristle, not shown)
Craft mat, plastic bag, or something to protect your work surface

*I show bottled acrylics in the photos, but I ended up using some cheap craft paint in a jar to get the results I wanted.

Instructions:

1. Place a large amount of acrylic paint on your substrate.

2. Spread the paint using a brush. Cover your paper completely.

3. Immediately sprinkle baking soda into the WET paint. As you can see from the photo above, I accidentally dumped the baking soda when I was taking the photo. After I put the camera down, I placed the baking soda in my hand and sprinkled it evenly all over the page.  That may be why the first background was not successful.

Sprinkle baking soda over entire surface. Allow to dry flat.

4. When completely dry, brush baking soda from the page using a dry towel or cloth. A brush will not remove the baking soda, so you'll need something more substantial.

Here's how I used this particular piece.

I really didn't like how the background turned out, so I got some cheap craft paint and slathered it on a sheet of copier paper.

I put a LOT of paint on the page, then added the baking soda. I used red paint, but the baking soda changed the color dramatically.

I made two sheets, one with brush strokes and one that I pounced the brush strokes out. I really like it best.
Top image: with brush strokes showing. Bottom image: with brush strokes pounced out.

Baby Wipe Background

This is another quick and simple background technique that gives you a bonus.

Supplies:

Acrylic paint (color of your choice)

Baby wipes

Card stock (CS)

Plastic or craft sheet to protect your work surface

Place a small amount of acrylic paint on about 1/4 of the CS. Since acrylics dry quickly, you should only work on a small part of the page at a time.

Spread the paint using a wet baby wipe. Be sure to pick up all colors and spread evenly. Don't overwork the paint, or you'll end up with mud.

After you are pleased with the first area, add more paint to another area and continue spreading the paint with the same baby wipe.

Continue adding and spreading the paint until the page is complete. When finished, you will have a background sheet as well as a coordinating color baby wipe you can use as an accent on your page or to create a matching tag.

Now wasn't that easy? And it produces great results quickly, too.

Thank you for joining me today while I shared two of my favorite backgrounds.  I'm so glad you dropped by and the Second Thursday Tutorial will be next Thursday, at least I hope that's the case.

This is Day 14 of Art Every Day Month (AEDM), hosted by Leah Piken Kolidas and I shared two of my favorite backgrounds you can use in altered books, art journals, ATCs, or tags.