Believe in your Dreams

Believe in your Dreams

Posted by DecoArt on Aug 16th 2017

Art journal pages are so much fun and a wonderful way of self expression.  My inspiration for this page was from the little girl dressed up in the Native American costume; young, happy and carefree with her whole life ahead of her.  An important lesson to remember is to “Believe in your Dreams”.  This also is the title of this art journal page.  

Let’s take a look at the supplies needed for this project and then I’ll take you through the step by step process.  It’s fun and easy and a great way to let your creativity go crazy.

Items Needed:

Instructions:

Begin with a page from a book or journal.  I like to take old paperback childrens’ books and completely alter them.  They turn into wonderful art journals!

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Place dots randomly on the page using various paint colors and Gesso.  In this case, I used DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Vermillion, Cobalt Teal Hue, Blue Green Light and Yellow Oxide.  I also smeared some DecoArt Media White Gesso on the page.  Use a brayer to blend the paints and gesso over the entire page.  Don’t use a lot of each item; just enough to cover the page.  You can always add more layers.  If you use too much, wipe off the brayer and blot the page. Gently heat set completely dry. 

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Here is how your page will look at this point.

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Place Andy Skinner’s 8”x8” Sunburst Stencil on the page.  Using a sponge, blot DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Cobalt Teal Hue over the entire stencil.  Then go over the stencil again using the sponge and DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Titanium White; working from the outside edges back in toward the center.  Allow the Cobalt Teal Hue to remain darker as you move into the center of the stencil. 

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Create another layer using Andy Skinner’s 8”x8” Halftone Stencil.  Place it at the various corners of the page and blot randomly over some of the circles in the stencil using DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Vermillion and a sponge. 

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Here is what the page will look like at this point. 

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To soften the colors, mix some DecoArt Media White Gesso with a little water and lightly, randomly over the surface of the page.  Gently heat set. 

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Add another layer to you page with a sponge and Andy Skinner’s 12”x3” Shedded Stencil.  I created my own Faux Metallic Copper paint by mixing DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Metallic Gold, a smaller amount of English Red Oxide and a touch of Transparent White.  Using the sponge, I dabbed the “copper” randomly on the page; particularly around the perimeter. 

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Here is what the page looks like at this point. 

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Using a paint brush, some water and some DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Vermillion and Metallic Copper paints, I created drips and runs from the top of the page.  Mix water and paint together, creating a runny paint.  Hold the page upright.  Brush it across the top of the page and spritz it with a water bottle and allow the paint to run.  When you’re happy with its appearance, lay the page flat and heat set the paint.  Repeat with a layer of the Metallic Copper.  Repeat this step again with more colors or more of the same colors if needed.

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Lay Andy Skinner’s 8”x8” Sunburst Stencil back in place on the page.  Using the sponge, dab the DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Metallic Gold on the RIGHT SIDE of the stencil only.  This will create a bit of a subtle sunburst effect radiating from the magazine girl once she is glued onto the page.

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Use Andy Skinner’s 8”x8” Creativity Stencil to create the sentiment “Believe In Your Dreams”.  All of these words can be found on this one stencil.  Use a small amount of DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Carbon Black on a craft sheet.  Dab a stencil brush into the paint and lightly stencil over the letters that have been taped in place.  Repeat this step for each of the letters and then immediately wash the stencil. 

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Here is what the page will look like after this step and the stamping of a feather stamp twice using Black Permanent Ink or the Carbon Black brayer method.

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Create little black circles by squeezing a little DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Carbon Black onto a craft sheet.  Remove the lid from the paint bottle.  Smooth out the paint with your finger and twist the lid edges in the paint.  Stamp them randomly on your page.  

Next squeeze a little DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Titanium White onto the craft mat.  Use the flat eraser end of a pencil.  Dip it into the white paint and stamp it into the center of each of your black outlined circles.  Gently heat set to dry.

Cut out and glue the magazine girl in place using DecoArt Media Matte Medium.  Brush the left side of the page with the Matte Medium.  Then lay the girl in place and lightly press over her to remove wrinkles and air bubbles. You might want to brayer over her with a clean brayer as well.  Then brush over the image with more Matte Medium to seal her in place.  This will dry clear and seals her.  Gently heat set.

To create a soft white washed effect over the page, squeeze a small amount of DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Titanium White onto the craft mat.  Using an old toothbrush, put some of the paint on the bristles of the brush and randomly stroke if over the page.  You can also clearly see the black circles and white centers in this picture.  Gently heat set

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Create shadows randomly around the girl by using a Watercolor Black Pencil.  Make lines next to the cut edges of the girl.  Use a water brush to pull the pencil away from the girl and create gray shadows.  You can also use your fingers to blend the black pencil into the background.  Gently heat set.  Repeat this process until you are happy with your shading.

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Add character and a little dimension to your page with Stampendous Frantage Teal Color Fragments.  Brush DecoArt Media Matte Medium over an area of the page and and gently drop the fragments in that area.  They will stick to the Matte Medium and it will dry clear.  Repeat this process randomly over the page and the images on the page.  Lift up the book page and gently tap it on the work surface to remove any loose fragments.

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Here is a closeup of what the fragments can add to your page at this point.

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Finally, I squeezed a small amount of DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics Carbon Black onto a craft mat.  Using my finger, I randomly ran it across the edges of the page to “frame” it.  This really sets the images and makes the black on the page pop even more.

Thank so much for stopping by and checking out this mixed media art journal page.  I hope that it’s inspired you to take a look in some magazines and see if there isn’t a photograph that catches your creative curiosity.  Cut it out and create your own art journal page using DecoArt’s amazing Media Line of products.

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