Another new to me technique

Today I'm once again joining Eileen whose blog is The Artful Crafter.  She is our host this month at Art Journal Journey with her Green (the color) theme.  And because this is a new technique to me, I'm also joining Try it on Tuesday.


It all started when my jar of gesso had dried beyond use.

I am incredibly lucky.  I have access to our Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) facility.  People bring their slightly used or unwanted items like antifreeze, brake fluid, swimming pool cleaner, and acrylic and oil paint for safe disposal.  These items are inspected, then placed on shelves and county residents can come once a month to see if there is something they can use.  It's called swap and shop.  You don't have to bring anything, but of course, it helps, since it's a bit out of the area.  You can take home up to 10 items at a time and since I get charged around $6.00 (USD) a year which is added to my property taxes, I like to take advantage of the service.  Other than the annual property tax fee, the items you take home are all FREE (my middle name).

I dug through my paint and found some very pale green house paint.  I was hoping I could use it in place of the gesso to prep my pages.  I was thrilled when it worked.  I might add, after the house paint dried, the pages were much softer than had I started with gesso.

Since St. Patrick's Day is coming soon, my mind is stuck on luck and lucky sayings. I divided the page with one of my favorite stencils, which I failed to photograph.

I used a green dye ink I adhered with a stipple brush I had completely forgotten about until I accidentally dumped a mug of pens and other tools recently.

This sentiment reads:

Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity.

The other quote reads:

Some things have nothing to do with luck, but everything to do with commitment and hard work.

I used the stipple brush to create the frame.

For this page in my Stress Free altered book, I started with a new to me technique where I used house paint instead of gesso to prime my book pages.  I then used a stencil to delineate the two sayings I found on the internet.  The sayings were computer generated, then cut to size.  Finally, I used the stipple brush to color the frames of the sayings.  I might add, the stipple brush had never been used before, either.

Bleubeard and I are delighted that you stopped by today. We hope you will also join us at Art Journal Journey with your own art inspired by the color Green and Try it on Tuesday with a new technique.