Textures with Acrylics - How not to use ALL of your paint!

When I started to experiment with painting, my brother, Jerry Piper, an awesome artist (jpiperart) filled my head with so much information due to his great excitement in me pursuing this medium. We would talk for hours, we would facetime and paint, skype and paint, he sent me videos, pictures and magazines. He started me off right out of the gate with textures, and it kinda ruined me :) 

Painting with acrylic is hard to achieve texture without adding something to your canvas. Not like oil, where you can build and build with the layers of paint. That being said, you can goop and goop acrylic paint onto a canvas to build up texture, it takes about a week to dry and it is lovely, but - you have used a lot of paint, and that can be expensive!

"Finger Painting Underwater" Tish McDermott 2014

Here are some ideas to experiment with, to add textures and visuals to your paintings. 

Joint compound. Use this in a thinish layer. As you knife it on, it will roll, and create ridges. Now go crazy! Get a fork, or a chop stick, or stencils, your fingers, anything with a pattern, and roll it around or mash it into the wet joint compound.  Play with it!

You have to take extra care with joint compound. It has to dry completely, about 24 hours, then you have to gesso over it, let it dry completely, then varnish it (clear coat) let it dry completely. So there is some prep time to your canvas. But it is so worth it!

Spackling. I will do a post on spackling soon to show you it as well. There is some FUN things you can do with it!!!

Here I have already prepped my board, with joint compound, made swirls, and applied gesso and varnished it. Added a bit of sheet music with mod podge. 

Tissue paper!! I crumble it up, and place it on the board in a wad. It will loosed up and flatten out as you mod podge it on. If you are going to use tissue paper, in this thickness you have to add extra drying time before painting.

It is hard to see, but there is the tissue paper over the joint compound.

I wanted these paintings to look, old, aged with patina, like a treasure map, so I added this bit of magazine with a turquoise necklace. 

Oh and where else to find treasure, but Santa Fe!

As you paint, choose your colors to accent the peaks and valleys of your designs. It makes a world of difference. You go into the painting with all the depth!

"Treasure Hunt" Tish McDermott 2016 - 14x18 mixed media $126

"Hidden Treasure" Tish McDermott 2016 - 11x14 mixed media $77

 "Frustrations" Tish McDermott 2016 - 14 x 18 mixed media $126

What will you use to texture your next creation?

And as always, Be peaceful, Be kind. 

Remember to explore, create, dream, imagine and discover!

Anatomy of a Painting - Tie Dye Garden

I wanted to do something bright, something floral and still abstract. I work alot with blues, and for once wanted to have a painting with no blue in it. 

I laid out the canvas for a tryptic style layout. I used ALOT of paint because I knew I was going to loose a lot of it in the process. Now think of a bug crawling thru a flower garden in full bloom. As you look around, what would all that glorious color look like? That is where we start.

We are a bug in a garden and have an up close and personal view of a bloom, now lets move forward shall we?

Water - tons of water, this is where I am loosing paint. I spray, spray, spray the canvas and then tilt it around slightly for all the colors to run. This gives is a tie dye effect - cause you know I can't leave the house without at least one piece of tie dye on :)

This is going to take a while to dry, so I am really looking into this piece, taking the vision further. It needs depth, it needs some shadows, it needs a darker color. 

Lets go for the blue :)

There is still a lot of water on the canvas, so the blue/green begins to 'melt' into the pattern, PERFECT! I don't tilt it around, I just let it do it's thing. 

As it dries, you can see how the blue started to crawl thru the painting, making it seem alive. 

Now that the painting is fully dry, there is still some need for depth, for definition. On the parts of the canvas that had little to no paint, I used a black color pencil to shade in areas.  That helps to bring the color forward. Then to help define the 'petals' of the flower, I used a sharpie and made random lines, tracing the 'petals'

Now you can see them side by side, finished, as I had envisioned them!

Items used, acrylic paint, color pencils, sharpies.

And as always, Be peaceful, Be kind. 

Remember to explore, create, dream, imagine and discover!

Exploration in Creativity - Acrylic Abstract Painting

Inspiration is all around me, and it keeps a constant chatter in the creative recesses of my brain. Some things that inspire me or not jewelry related, therefore I explore many creative outlets. Painting has become an outlet of creativity for me. And I love it

August I went on vacation with my brother Toog (or Jerry Piper as the rest of the world knows him) to Santa Fe/Taos and I was blown away. We ran at break neck speeds all over the town going thru every gallery to take in as much 'culture' as we could. We took in so much, I think, no, I know, I blacked out a couple of times. So much stimuli, I was in art overload, and I loved it.

My painting style has been forever changed. From exploratory to experimental, and I really think I have found my niche. 

I can't wait to see where this journey takes me. 

And as always, Be peaceful, Be kind

All of my creations are based on the metaphysical properties of the stones or the colors that are incorporated. Jewelry should be a window to our soul, a protector of our emotions and a companion to our spirit.

Celebrate yourself with healing jewelry made with love!

Craft Hoarder Confessions

It is always this time of year I look at my work space and say it is time for a change. I get it cleaned up and feel good about myself for about 2 hours. As I start to work and explore new ideas, the room falls apart around me. I have learned to accept that I create from chaos.

Up til now - didn't matter how bad it got, and trust me it was bad. I have posted several before and after pics to try and purge some, maybe shame myself into not doing it, it hasn't worked - but up til now, I always knew where everything was. As of recent, I can't find a thing. It takes me forever to find my shipping supplies, to find my packaging papers, stamps and ribbons, so when I mail out the order it is all wrapped and sweet.

  I saw this today while on Facebook -

This is me in a nut shell. I thought maybe it was time to confess.

Hi my name is Tish McDermott and I want to call myself and artist, a clever crafter, but all I am is a hoarder.

When I started making jewelry, it was always done on the kitchen table, and when I was done, I cleaned up and put things back where they belonged. We used the kitchen table for other things, why I don't know it was the perfect crafting spot, and I had a cat that loved to steal things.

Next I moved into the spare bedroom, oh the joy of it. All the space I need AND I could close the door. I had things organized in the closet, I had bought small little storage cabinets, it was perfect.

Then we had someone move in with us, and I was displaced. I moved into a small room off the office, that had been used for storage, and for my daughters sewing room.

This is where it turned bad. I had room and lots of it. Not the advantage of the storage of a closet, but still, room. The room did not have a door, it was a small hallway that lead into the kitchen. Not good. The zoo could come and go as they pleased. I brought down the armoire  from the bedroom we had used for the tv - storage and it blocked the hallway. This is MY domain. My husband built me a work bench, so things could be hung and arranged, and I had plenty of room to work.

Soon, I couldn't find things in my work room because they had spilled out into the office. Now I have shelves in the office to hold more things. The computer desk is now piled with business cards, shipping supplies- where is my computer?


Here is the confession - Because I not only make jewelry, I sew and paint as well.

I NEED THINGS!!!!

I save all cardboard boxes. I may need them for shipping.
I save all packing materials - again shipping
I save all tissue paper

To me, I think I am doing good, reducing my global footprint, recycling these shipping items.

I save every pair of jeans.
I save every t shirt
I save socks
I save towels
I save sheets
I can use the material.

I save empty coffee containers. They are great storage.
I have 23 of them

I save empty tins (this is a new thing) Again - they are great storage!
I have 2

I save pretty, heavy paper. I use them for my packaging.

Mason jars - storage

Magazines - I make canvas from them

Shopping bags - storage

I can't pass up a good sale - I don't make wreaths, but I got such a great deal, like serious after coupons and such, I just paid taxes on that burlap ribbon that people make wreaths with.
I have 12 rolls

And the list goes on.

BUT as luck should have it. The spare bedroom has now become my husbands office, and the office that is attached to my workroom is mine.

I am rolling up my sleeves and getting started.

Pray for me ;)