Playing With Mixed Media

From time to time I like to play with mixed media.  For those who are unaware of what mixed media is, it is a whole bunch of different art mediums put together to make one piece of art.  What I really like about mixed media is that you can experiment with all kinds of things and make one big mess!  It is a great art project to do with kids!  A word of caution: if you are not in the mood for lots of mess and play, then perhaps don't attempt until you are in the mood.  What I really love with mixed media is that you can't mess up your piece of art.  You just keep layering over and over until you get a look that you like.

There are some rules, like anything, but you can totally break them all!  One thing to keep in mind is you do want to try to make a piece that is pleasing to the eye.  Sometimes the best way to know this is to try some different things.  If you are using a lot of texture, colour, or symbols, you will want to make sure they are balanced in your picture.  They all draw attention so see what works as you layer different mediums on your canvas.

I usually start with either a board of some kind (cupboard doors or old pieces of wood work well) or a
canvas.  Today I am using a canvas.  I have already painted the whole canvas using different shades of blue.  You will also want to have a dryer (I use a hair dryer) available to dry your work in-between layers.  After I have a base, I begin to cut out or rip out decorative paper images.  I glue these on by either using Mod Podge or make my own mixture (white glue and water).  Today I have the idea of houses in mind, so I've begun to take different paper, burlap, decorative tissue paper (my favourite) and rip out or cut the shape of whimsical houses.  I also love to use name tags.  Oh, I should mention that before I glue any of these down, I have already glued a layer of tissue paper over the whole canvas to give it some really cool texture.



I begin to glue down my houses by adding some paint.  I add some distressed ink (works awesome and I highly recommend) and I use my ink pad to line some of the edges of my houses.  I continue playing with paint and things kicking around in my craft closet, such as bubble wrap, and create some neat pattern.  Really, you can spend a fortune on mixed media!  There are tons of really great stamps available.  I recommend Tim Holtz stamps!  There also are keys, stickers, and lettering that you can put on.  The sky is the limit!  I will be doing one like that in the future, but for now I want to show you that you can also use what is kicking around your house!

After I have layered enough and painted enough I take out my trusty paint pen and begin to doodle my homes making them more defined.  I also use some indian ink to do this.  After adding a few touches to my sky and some gold ink splatters, I call this finished.

So there you have it!  Really you can't go wrong.  Just be free to create, and have fun!  If you have some little ones around, include them in on the fun they will love it!
Happy creating!

Trish

Teaching and Creating With Kids

After having a few years off, I have recently returned to teaching art lessons for kids, and after completing my first class it all is coming back to me.  I realized how much I really love watching kids create and being able to have some input in teaching them more about art.  How can you not have fun when you are offering a smorgasbord of art...or in other words a smorgasbord of messy!  So on today's blog I am going to share with you a bit about teaching and creating with kids.

The first step to teaching art to kids involves having a plan!  I have learned that having a good pre-planned lesson is very important.  Not only having a lesson planned, but also having first done the project that you are planning on doing with your students.

I try to come up with fresh and new ideas for kids to create.  Ideas that allow them to try a variety of mediums.  I find that most creative people tend to like dabbling in a few different mediums and the best way to find out what you like is to try new things.  So I like to give my students the opportunity to work with a different medium each week.  I find the same goes true if you are doing arts and crafts at home with your children.  They love to experiment and try new things and create new big messes!
Going through the aisles in art stores and craft stores there is so much material out there it can be overwhelming as to where to begin.  So I mostly design my lessons around what I have an interest in and the overflow of what I myself have created.  I find that creating themes works very well too.  The themes I choose also revolve around things I enjoy. I find it much better if you are teaching about things that you really have an interest in and the kids too begin to catch your passion!

One of the most challenging thing I find in teaching kids is planning enough projects for a class.  This is challenging because you have some students that finish very fast and others that take twice as long as you had thought.  So I always come over prepared with extra projects.  But I have also learned to set reasonable time frames for the kids to complete a project and those that are done early have to sketch or wait for the others.  My first experience in running a camp was a real learning curve for me as I had one student who finished everything very fast.  I wanted to accommodate him so I kept coming up with more and more projects for him to do.  Let's just say that by the end of the camp I was exhausted and learned this isn't the best plan!

I have also seen the benefit of making the lessons fun! Although I do desire for them to learn new skills, I also believe in having lots of fun while doing so.  I often come up with art games that allows the students to grow in skill but also play at the same time.  This also gets everyone working together!

Having some incentives are always a good thing when you are teaching theory.  They may not all love coming to a Saturday morning class to hear about art theory so I throw some candy in the mix and theory isn't so bad!  I also keep it to a minimum and we do as much hands on as possible.

My most favourite thing is to encourage my students in their uniqueness!  I love it when people embrace how truly unique and special they are!  After all there is not another person like you!  I love to see my students creating from their own style and the uniqueness that is in them.  If you are comfortable in who you are you often are comfortable in what you create.  So I love to comment on at least one thing that I love about what the kids are creating!

So there are just a few tips that I have learned about teaching kids art!  There is much more to share, so I am currently writing a Funtastical Studios Art Curriculum Volume 1. that should be available  to purchase in early spring!  That will include art lessons from start to finish as well as some more of my tips on teaching!  Stay tuned for more.

Happy creating, and for those that have little ones, have fun creating with them!  Enjoy the moment!

Trish

 Week one: liquid watercolours!

Teaching watercolour techniques. 

Just look at what you can do! Rubbing alcohol on water-colour.

Lucy's ink on watercolour.

Doodling with oil pastels.

A fun game of musical watercolours!

Anna-Grace gets all the left over paint.  She's a little too young for this class, although she wouldn't think so.

Creating in the Snow

How much do I love winter?  Not that much!  I think I could easily adjust to living in the summer all year round, however that just isn't going to happen in Canada.  So as long as I live here I need to make the best of the winter.  I must say, winter can be very pretty and wondrous!  That is if you can get past my frozen toes, shovelling snow, and getting into a freezing car.
This week there has been a lot of snow falling, leaving a fresh patch of snow on the ground.  With everything so white I thought we needed to add a little colour to winter.  So the kids and I went out for some creative time in the snow ! You should try it.  It may just brighten up your winter day.  I know it did for me!  Check out some of the pictures of the day down below!

First things first time to create a doodle snow garden

I love seeing cardinals in the winter so I decided to plant one in my garden

Hello doodle garden welcome to winter 

Liquid watercolours show up nice in the white snow.

Sprinkling the snow with the rainbow.

Colour blending in the snow.

Snow makes a great brush holder.

Hello colour!

Books! Books! And More Books!

Our house is filled with excitement... or maybe I should say filled with books!  Steve and I spent the night organizing, signing, and preparing bags and envelopes for 100 books! Yes, that is right!  We have pretty much sold out of our first 100 books already! SO a big thank you to everyone who supported us in this adventure! We learned a lot and still are leaning.  All the books will either be shipped or delivered via Steve in the next week!  Just in time for Christmas!

So what's next????  We plan on ordering more books and are going to be looking at doing live book readings.  If you are in our area and are interested in us coming to your school or a program for children, please contact us!  We have a few things up our sleeves to bring some fun into children's lives!  We hope to inspire and bring creativity out of children as well as have fun!

Our next book is already a thought in my mind. This was so much fun that we can't stop at just one!  Besides Steve is on a roll with all his rhymes!

The books are here! The books are here!

Stevie is busy signing books and coming up with more rhymes for that extra special touch! 

The rhythm of our heart for children everywhere!

Shipping and labelling is more work then I realized...Ready for Canada Post!

Personal deliveries from Stevie the delivery man.

More books.... and even more books.  It's going to be busy few days.

The Vlog: Memories of France

OK, so on today's blog I thought I would try doing a vlog for something new!!! I got a new idea!! Along with all of my paintings and other creative things, I would like to add a new recipe from around the world.  I spent a lot of time when I was younger travelling to many different lands (I think around 35 countries). I desperately miss travelling and though I wouldn't change having kids for anything, it has changed my lifestyle in a Big way.  So once a week I will be doing a recipe from one of the lands that I have travelled as well as other creative blog entries.  As you will see, my video is done very much like I had travelled... by the seat of my pants.  So this week's land is France.  I had spent one year living in Paris as an au pair and was there on a mission to learn french.  As you will see from my video, my french is very rusty!  My time in France was very memorable and I will list some noteworthy things!

1. Most significant moment: Praying in McDonalds (I ate only in the finest restaurants LOL) with some missionaries and gave my heart to Jesus.  I was completely changed from that moment on and haven't been the same since.   I received peace of mind like I had never had before and it thankfully  led to a complete new direction for my life!

2. Favourite site to see: Sacre-Coeur.  I loved the view.  You could see so much of Paris, and behind it was quaint streets filled with french music and artists painting.

3. Craziest thing said to me: I was approached by a man while walking down the street in Paris.  He began to rhyme off all kinds of different dances.  I looked at him with a very blank look on my face and he finally asked me, "which dance do you do? Your a dancer no?"  I said "me????" (I have been known for my lack of coordination...if any at all!) He didn't believe me when I said I am not a dancer and gave me his card anyways.  He owned a dance academy in Paris and wanted me to come.  I never went.  I think I may have missed my calling!

4.Something I will never forget: Dodging dog poop everyday!  The streets were covered with bombs!  Everyone had a french poodle and they didn't have the poop and scoop law in effect!  I think they do now!  The unforgettable moment of stepping in one of those bombs!!

5. Learning the French culture: I had a few slip ups!  Ok more then a few since I came to France only knowing the words bonjour and merci... and people thought my french sounded like I was Chinese.
Going to the market buying food was always fun as I often would try to speak in my best French only for the French to politely speak back to me in English.  Strolling down the famous street Champs -Elyisee, I called it in my best Canadian accent exactly as I read it Champs Elise.

That all seems like so long ago!  But memories really do last a lifetime and I am so grateful for the time I had in Paris, the people I met, and the experiences I had.  I look back on it all and see what a beautiful gift it was.  Through the good days and the homesick days I wouldn't have changed it.  Maybe one  day Paris I will return?  But for now you are memory I will always cherish!

Me overlooking Paris.

Believe it or not but this was my toilet! Sure missed home when I saw this.

The subway system in Paris.

Me trying to buy some fruits and vegetables.

Bon appetite!!