More beeswax!

What is better than one friend and a play date?? Two friends and play date, of course!! We visited with Marg a few days later and brought along our beeswax collage box of goodies and played all day!! I started with this collage which I created on a chipboard coaster - be on the look out at garage sales, etc for these -they are perfect little canvases!! This one was ivory so I just created on the back side. First, I applied some beeswax and layered in a piece of paper napkin that coordinated with the woman's dress and added the script and edging (paper napkin). I cut out and layered in the woman who was printed on cardstock which helped her stand out and not be transparent like the paper napkin images which had been separated into single layers and were very transparent after the application of beeswax. The paper napkin rose and words on bond paper were added afterwards. Again, I applied beeswax to the edges of the coaster and applied gold Pearl EX to the whole thing. Marg suggested buffing with pantihose afterwards and it REALLY makes the whole collage very transparent and shiny!! Really happy with the way it turned out!!
This was my second attempt!! Went with a bit of a steampunk look!! Started with some copper and black mesh from Magenta, added some blue paper napkin over that, then added my cut out collage images - map, tower, clock face over medallion, portrait and little man. This time, I added texture by using a rubber stamp!! I added a pool of wax over the map, heated it with a heat gun until all molten and then placed my stamp into the wax. I had added embossing ink to the stamp - rubbed it into the surface so that all the rubber was covered - before placing it in the wax. When the wax had cooled the stamp came off very easily but you do have to wait for the wax to cool before removing the stamp. Instant texture!! I added a small copper gear as my little 3D embellishement and I was done. Added beeswax to the edges and copper Pearl EX as usual. The Pearl Ex really highlighted the texture I added using the stamp!! A little buffing with the pantihose and I was done!! Really happy with this one too!!

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UPDATE: I finished off this beeswax collage today for submission for an Art Lottery I am participating in!!

I cut a brown circular backer for it and glued it in place with double sided tape and glue to be sure it would stay in place. I punched two holes and set copper eyelets in each one to accommodate a hanger. Added a short piece of black 3/8" gros grain ribbon as a hanger.It finished it off quite nicely!!

Therese

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After a wonderful lunch - Thanks Marg!! I created this little collage. I was experimenting with adding colour using wax crayons and the little mini iron! Works like a darn!! It will take a little practice to get the coloured wax nicely blended and dripped where I want it!!

For my first try, I am happy with the results. Realized as well that elements can be attached with drops of wax - coloured or otherwise. Adding colour takes a bit of planning and is a little harder to remove completely!!

All in all, a great day of projects and learning as you go!! It was great to have others playing at the same time, comparing notes and seeing what others were doing!! I will be relegating a pair of pantihose to my craft room to be used with beeswax. They are a little lonely in the drawer anyway!!

Nights are getting much cooler and the days are comfortable!! The seasons are changing!! So are the trees here and there!!

Enjoy the last bits of summer and play a little with your friends!!

Therese

Beeswax collage - friends

Have been visiting with my friend, Linda!! It is so wonderful to have creative friends that you can have play dates with!! We played with beewax and came up with several collages!!

Here is my first one! I brought along some 4" masonite squares and we started with those. I layered some small collage images - Eiffel Tower, bottle of wine on an elegant table, an old trunk and an old clock face (scrap bin) over an embossed panel and a handmade paper background which were all layered onto the tile using beeswax. We painted our tiles with white gesso before we started to help with the reflection of light through the layers. Really glad we did because it turned out a bit on the dark side because of the elements I used. Finally, I added some words which I layered onto white bond so they would be clearly visible and a copper eyelet to the center of the clock. I like to have at least one 3D element to add a bit of dimension though I was able to add a fair amount of texture to the wax using my little clover leaf mini iron. Once I was happy with my collage I added wax to the edges and highlighted the whole thing with copper Pearl Ex -sides as well. The Pearl Ex really brings out the texture in the beeswax. I had predrilled holes, so it was easy to add a wire hanger and some beads to finish it off!!

I am using a small crock pot to melt my wax and a natural bristle brush to add the wax to my collage pieces and substrate. We used both a heat gun and the mini iron to help encase our elements into the beeswax surface we had created when adding our backgrounds. I am melting ivory beeswax sheets in my crockpot and Linda was using Ranger Beewax in her Ranger Melting Pot with an insert. Both work perfectly well!!

We experimented with coasters next!!

Therese

Beeswax collage - friend

Been playing with beeswax again!!

I bought myself a mini iron a couple of weeks ago knowing I wanted to create a little beeswax collage for a friend of mine. I started by gluing several pieces of white embossed cardstock to a 4"x4" square of masonite. A shopping trip through my stash for collage items yielded the following - a striped tissue in green, gold and red, a yellow tissue on which I stamped "friend" (SU) in green, some music sheet, a short piece of lace and a deep red handmade paper from which I cut out a heart.

I applied melted beeswax (mini crock pot) over the textured cardstock with a natural bristled brush and laid the striped tissue paper in it. I used the mini iron to embed the paper into the wax - worked so well!!!!! The mini iron allows you to add heat just where you want it and immediately heats all the layers through which embeds them into your collage. I added the yellow friend tissue paper to the left of it and the torn sheet music to the top and used the iron to embed them as well. Added the lace in the same fashion leaving the ends sticking out the sides and added the red heart. I decided the heart needed a bit of texture so used a scroll stamp (SU wheel) over the melted wax, let it cool and then gently pulled it off. Great texture!! Decided to add the same texture to the bottom of the collage. Had a bit of trouble because the wax was sticking to the stamp** but just reheated and tried again and got a good impression. I applied mica powder ( Perfect Pearls or Pearl EX) to the textured wax which nicely highlighted it. Added some to the heart as well. Thought the collage needed just a bit of something 3D near the word Friend so added a plastic butterfly charm!! Just what I was looking for.

I trimmed all the papers to the edge of the masonite tile using an exacto knife and added beeswax along all the edges to finish them off. Used the mini iron to set them and add a bit of texture then applied some mica powder to the front and sides of all the edges.

I drilled a couple of small holes at the top, threaded through a wire hanger with some ebeads and tied on a copper ribbon!!

I am very happy with the way it turned out!! Looking forward to making a few more of these this summer.

Therese

**If you try to pull the rubber stamp off before the wax has completely hardened it will take the wax up with it. I will consider using a spritz of water or some embossing ink on my stamp before applying it to the wax to prevent sticking the next time around. Will let you know how it goes. You can also place your collage in the fridge or freezer to ensure that the beeswax has solidified completely. To remove wax from your rubber stamp heat with your heat gun for a few seconds and blot with paper towel to remove the wax.

Beeswax - Bloom, Just, Peace

After a bit more research on the internet and watching a few videos I have made a few more beeswax collages. In this one, I used design elements I had left over from this project. I started with a coaster which I discovered is very absorbent - it would have been better for me to glue the light blue background to the coaster and then add my elements with beeswax but with enough wax all the elements are now firmly attached to the coaster. I drew the stems on the background paper with a green marker, used layered punchies for the flowers and added some die cut butterflies. The fence die cut was attached with wax and the words were laid over it. I coloured my letters with pencil crayon, outlined them in black Sharpie and cut them out before adding them to my collage. All the elements were dipped in the beeswax using my new tweezers, laid on the collage and burnished with an old gift card (any piece of hard plastic would do) to ensure that the elements are well attached. I started with the fence and words, added the letters and flowers in layers and finally added the butterflies. I did add some wax with a brush over some areas to make sure that all the elements had enough wax to keep them in place and used my heat gun to settle all elements into place. The elements do float when you heat the collage so sometimes it is tricky getting everything to stay in place.

Once I was finished collaging I buffed the wax and added some mica poweder (Pearl Ex - interference blue) to the edges and a bit on the flowers and butterflies.

For this one, I glued the stamped background paper to the coaster before I started and that worked well. I used die cuts, punchies and some laser printed words I had in my basket of scrap goodies to work up this collage.

In the final stage where I was adding wax and making sure all the elements were secure, I added a puddle of wax on the left hand side and pressed one of my embossing folders into it. I left it in place until the wax harden - a trip to the freezer encourages the process. Love the look of it!! Very dimensional! You could press a rubber stamp in the wax as well to get a nice impression.

I added mica powder to the edges of this one as well in a gold interference colour as well as regular gold to highlight the embossed wax area!! Very cool!!

For this collage, I used ripped pieces of book pages and music sheets to create an all over collage look on the coaster by dipping the pieces, laying them down and burnishing with the gift card. The elements I gathered from my collage bucket - newspaper stamped with acrylic paint using an embossing folder, laser printed "Peace on Earth", die cut and punchie hearts, punchie "R" and the other words were cut from stamped newspaper.

It was difficult to get the foil heart to stay embedded in the wax. I expect because it does not absorb wax so maybe it should have been added last with a dab of wax. I used silver mica powder on the edges, in a few places on the collage and to especially highlight the texture on the bottom edge.

I have really enjoyed doing these collages. For anyone trying it for the first time I would recommend starting small - ATC size would be great, prepare all your elements and build from the bottom up. Tweezers are great for dipping the small pieces and keeping "floaters" in place. Don't be in hurry - take your time and add items in one at a time. Use your heat gun carefully and not too close - if you have a one with variable speed and temperature, use a slow speed and medium - low temperature.

I will finish these off with hangers and enter them in the Art Lottery on AFTCM!!

Therese

Beeswax collage - Home

Another technique I have been wanting to try for a while - a long while. Today was the day!

I used half of a game board (6"x9") as my substrate. For beeswax, I melted sheets of beeswax normally used to make rolled candles. For melting, I used a small crock pot in which I placed a small metal can (salmon). It took about a 1/2 hour to heat everything up but it worked perfectly. I used a utility natural bristled brush for applying the wax.

A few photos of the steps I went through while working on my collage.

#1 - The substrate - The game pieces have long been incorporated into collage bins and the boards have been just sitting so I decided to use one of them. I cut it in half and sanded the design off the paper of the playing surface so I would not have it showing through my collage and to keep the back of the board - a nice pebbly black surface - as the back of my collage.

#2 - I laser printed my collage images - vintage world map, neighborhood of houses, a large house and a woman standing - and trimmed them close. I downloaded the images from this Flicker Collage collection. The link is also on my sidebar under Online Resources - Collage Images. I referred to this video by Suze Weinberg to get started. All of my pieces were large so I applied beeswax to my substrate, laid my images down and used my heat gun to apply heat which melted the wax and incorporated the images into it. I added wax with the brush when needed. It is best to have something that helps spread the wax evenly over the surface. I used a crumpled piece of wax paper which worked reasonably well but was not ideal. I will try a skewer next time, using the pointy end for the fine work and laying it over to work the large areas.

#3 - I have collaged all the large images and have temporarily placed the red foil heart and the lace at the bottom.

#4 - All the words have been incorporated. The words were handwritten - black sharpie or white gel pen - on white tissue paper, dipped into the wax and positioned. It was more difficult than I thought to keep them straight and positioned correctly because as soon as I applied heat they were prone to moving around in the melted wax. It might have been more practical to use printed words from books or even laser printed ones.

Here is the finished collage. To attach the lace I applied wax to the bottom section with the brush, dipped the end of the lace in the wax and put it down on one edge and proceeded to position the rest of it by heating small sections and laying it down. I added some small hydrangea flowers to the collage which required more wax than I expected to keep them in place. I punched some holes in the top corners with my Cropadile and inserted and set large eyelets. Tied in a black ribbon to create a hanger.

I am pretty happy with my collage and look forward to trying it again with other materials - magazine images, paper napkins and adding some glitz like Suze did in her video!!

Therese

My Art - creative binder

I have decided to try to put all of my creative brainstorming in one place as opposed to bits of paper all over the place. There are several projects on hold because I cannot find the paper I mused the details on!!!
I altered a small binder. I sanded the front and glued down my own decorative paper. I added masking tape all the way around and then painted it with a dark maroon acrylic paint to coordinate with the binder cover. I stamped the bird in black StazON onto the decorative paper and then added some lustre in red and gold. Added beeswax over that to just seal everything and keep any colour from rubbing off.

Inside I have some blank pages for doodling and drawing as well as lined pages for making notes, etc.

Very happy with my new little book and am hoping to keep myself better organized.

Therese