Make art just for you!
Hello sweet creative!
I'm super excited because recently, for the first time in ages, I've been feeling called to painting a big canvas. This past year, I've mostly created in my art journal or on small substrates. And when our little family moved house last summer, I gave away most of my larger canvases, because I was settling into a smaller studio, plus I didn't feel like painting big anymore anyway (storing and shipping is a true challenge).
But I forgot to give away the large, 1 x 1 meter (3 x 3 feet) canvas that we used for years as a screen to watch movies with a video projector. It's been sitting in our garage ever since, its edges shabby and torn, with lots of finger prints.
And suddenly, I got this impulse... you know the kind. I cleaned it up and it wasn't half as bad as I thought. Plus, my plan wasn’t to make an actual finished “painting” out of it (no pressure!). I just wanted to make a cool mixed media backdrop to place on our dining room dresser, which is covered in houseplants. It used to have a mirror, which I wanted to move to the entryway.
So... permission granted to NOT make a masterpiece, but simply something artsy to beautify your home!
Step 1: Collage
I quickly gathered lots of collage papers and it felt exciting to use larger pieces and patterns than in my smaller art. I mixed up some florals (wallpaper, scrapbook paper, tissue napkins…) together with some vintage ephemera, book pages, and a vintage alphabet (I should have scanned it first, oh well…). Then it was time to start gluing it all to the surface!
My selection of papers
Mixing it up on the canvas!
Step 2: Blending
Once the first layer of collage was in place (and it doesn’t even need to be dry), it was time to start blending it all together, to create a more cohesive, painterly look. My go-to technique for this is to use opaque acrylic paints or craft paints (here I even used furniture chalk paints!), find an approximate match for one of the collage papers (for instance, “Parchment” or “Titan Buff” for book pages), then loosely blend the edges:
Step 3: More paint!
After that, I’m usually pretty much in the flow and I love to make marks with my brush, my fingers, and just splatter, smudge, stamp and drip paints and inks wherever I feel like it. All along this process, I had no end result in mind, other than creating a fun abstract background, with lots of pink to nicely contrast with the green of the houseplants.
I also scratched into the paint and journaled here and there, happy thoughts for our home and positive affirmations for good times shared in our dining room where this piece would be displayed.
Step 4: Finishing touches
I think it took me just 3 days to complete the canvas, because I was about to leave for a week-long art retreat and wanted to finish it and set it up in our dining room before leaving. I worked super quickly, in little pockets of time over a few days, going back and forth between packing my suitcase in the bedroom and painting in the studio, and I did it! I find that there’s nothing like a good deadline to boost your creativity and give you a sense of accomplishment.
I used pencils and crayons to extend some of the stems and leaves, and add color to the flowers. I also kept building up the layers, rolling some white over the papers with a small brayer to add light and texture, and added more colorful marks with paintbrushes of various sizes.
I loved the simplicity and the looseness of the process, especially how the fast pace helped me stay in the flow (I put on some upbeat music whenever I felt like I was getting stuck!). And I love how the whole canvas turned out. Even though some of my favorite floral parts ended up hidden by the house plants, it’s good enough for me and for its intended purpose. Above all, I'm really glad and proud that I finally got back to painting on a canvas after over a year.
Come paint loose mixed media florals with me!
I’m very much in a springtime mood right now, how about you? I’d love to show you how to paint this kind of loose and layered floral art, it’s so forgiving and satisfying. I teach similar techniques, plus many many more, in my online class Flower Flow. It's such an uplifting course and perfect for all levels, including beginners.
Click below to find out more and join the classroom!
And remember: it’s completely OK to make art just for you, to beautify your home and fill it with good vibes. You’ll approach your canvas differently if you already know where you intend to place it, what colors will surround it etc. This can be a great starting point that will boost your creativity, help you get rid of the (self-imposed) pressure to make “art”, and just keep it fun!
Light, Love & Fairy Dust,
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Did you know it’s OK to make art just for YOU? What if I created a cool mixed media canvas for my home, just to use as a backdrop for the houseplants in my dining room? Yes! Permission granted to not make a masterpiece, but simply something artsy to beautify our homes. Come take a peek at the process!