Postcard Fabric

I was already on my way to the check-out counter when I saw the fabric. It was straight out of the 70s–polyester, shiny, with a gold gleam, and in colors that made my eyes water 10 feet away–red and orange. And I loved it.

Now, I have a streak of bad taste. Sometimes there is nothing like sequins, shiny fabric, and rhinestones to set the mood. Yes, this is odd for someone whose favorite colors in journaling are sepia and black. Payne’s Gray is way out there for me. But this one looked like a lava flow, a gleaming spill of heat, or, well, a Sonoran Desert sunset.

The fabric was not to wear, it caught my eye because I’m participating in iHanna’s postcard swap. (You have till March 24, 2013 to sign up). I’ve participated before and find it my duty as a Sonoran desert-dweller to make at least three of the cards with an image of a saguaro cactus standing in our red-orange sunsets.

Last year one of the recipients didn’t think it was possible to have a plant that looked like a saguaro, and another one thought I’d sent her a postcard of a pickle in tomato brine, but hey, it’s all good fun.

Here are four of the completed cards:

Polyester fabric, ink on paper.

I still have to stitch around the edges to finish the fabric. The texture of the fabric, and the gold shimmer only shows at a different angle, but you get the idea.

Ink on paper (cactus), marbled paper, dark blue fabric with sparkles.

This postcard is layered–marbled paper, the cactus, and sheer navy fabric with sparkles. This one needs to be edged, too.

Acrylic paint on watercolor, cut out type.

All the postcards are abstracts, and I like the way the paint mixed.

paper collage on inked watercolor, poem.

Another favorite Lorna Crozier poem, “Twilight Angel.” I always wonder what people think when they get a postcard like this.

–Quinn McDonald is working on more than one project at a time.

Saturday Surprise: A Gift for You

Saturdays are play time on my blog. Today’s creativity-boost sites are about art journaling, because I’ve been having fun making new journal pages and postcards.

Stencils, tissue, and iridescent ink really give this page a deep-space look. Stencils from Stencil Girl.

I’m exploring the joys of tissue paper and collage. Watch iHanna making the most of tissue paper by painting it.  She also has a tutorial on making paper cloth. She uses a lot of color, and makes it bright and beautiful.

And if you want to get in on iHanna’s Spring Postcard Swap, join now, the deadline for signing up is March 24. I’m doing it again this year, and each postcard will be a wildly different one.

Some of those postcards will be using stencils, now that I know some secrets about stenciling. For months I’ve wished I could love stencils more. I have some interesting stencils, but I didn’t really know how to use them in art journaling. Part of my problem was that I did a lot of wall stenciling in the 80s (remember all those vines twining around the top of the walls? Yeah, I did that.

And today’s stencils are much more creative and wilder than ever before.

Denim, Titan Buff and gold are favorite color combinations for me. I like the color-on-color stencil I placed and sponged down in the upper left.

Art Instigator (and previous guest poster, writing about extreme self-care) Glenda Waterworth stepped up when I expressed my lack of skill. Glenda is the owner of the UK-based online store Chocolate Baroque–a store that designs and sells unmounted rubber stamps and a host of other products to help your creative urges.

Glenda created a how-to-stencil download for her website. I asked her to please give me some tips so I could enjoy stencils more. As she usually does, Glenda leaped ahead and made me (and you!) an incredible offer.

At the moment, the stencil how-to download comes free with a purchase, but Glenda is making the how-to a gift for readers of my blog.  It contains how-tos, tips, and beautiful examples of cards that Glenda made with stencils and a variety of techniques and materials.  There’s a coupon code so you can download the how-to information  for free until March 17.

All you need to do is go visit Chocolate Baroque, add the Stencil Inspiration leaflet to your cart, then enter coupon code QC3  in the coupon box which you will see on the shopping cart page or on the checkout page.

You will need to register on the website to purchase a product, even a free one, but new accounts are approved automatically so there’s no delays. And no shipping, because it’s a download. Instant stencil gratification!

Thanks so much to Glenda for sharing so generously for the joy of creativity! If you are a stencil lover, leave a link to your stencil work in the comments.

Have a great creative weekend!

--Quinn McDonald thrills in the generosity of creative people.

Report on the Postcard Swap

When I signed up for iHanna’s postcard swap, (see the results of all the swaps)  I wanted to try a new swap idea: very few duplicates. I’ve also started to receive my swaps; you can see them on the bottom of this blog post.

When I saw my list of swappers, three of them were overseas. So I made three of these:

This saguaro cactus has a fruit set on it. The Tohono O’odoham Indians harvest these fruits as part of their ecology/economy. They make syrup and candy from the fruit. And then, as part of a gratitude ceremony, they ferment some of the juice for the annual rain-calling ceremony. To indicate the heat, I covered the image with a sheer red-and-orange fabric and sewed around the edges.

Monsoon paper had to appear on one of the cards. This one is a piece of Monsoon Paper that looks like a night sky. Around the edge it says, “The stars are always in the sky, but are visible only in the dark of night.” I love the idea that the bright twinkly stars are always there, but we can only see them when the light fails.

There is something about foreign language type I find mysterious. Here is a card divided into thirds—Japanese, Russian and Hebrew. The strips that separate them are Braille paper. I love the idea of different ways to communicate. The circle is mica.

I have some Braille paper, so I made two postcards with that wonderfully textured paper.

This one is woven with irregular pieces.

This one is more of an underwater fantasy. I added some glitter, but it doesn’t show up well on a scan.

I thought that someone may have use for a very small bulletin board, so this one is made of cork, edged in copper tape. There is room in the bottom right-hand corner to use as a coaster for your drink. Hope this one makes it through the mail.

I made two found-poetry cards. Only one is shown here–the one about secrets. I love making the inked background on these.

So far, I’ve received four cards:

This card with three button flowers and stitching arrived in an envelope to protect the buttons. I love the color combination; the flowers seem just right for Spring. Thanks, Amy!

This one is mysteriously meaningful in mixed media, mixed messages. Batman sneaks a peek out of a bright red poppy, sewn onto the card. A piece of heavy lace is attached to the right side. Does Batman have a sensitive side? What astonished me is that this card survived the trip from Sweden! Thanks, Charlotta!

This big card is a visual stunner. The background is squares cut out of text. The bright red lips are cut out of a magazine. And the rest of the woman is drawn in black marker. It took me a fraction of a second to see it all, and the shift as I understood the card made me smile. Thanks, Lena from Sweden!

This card arrived just in time to be included in this blog. At first I thought it was a pencil point at the bottom, but Gail explained that she often want kayaking, and gets the nose of her kayak in the photo. It made sense to include it in the card. The quote on the front is from Rick Bass, the American writer and environmentalist. It says:

“If it’s wild to your own heart, protect it. Preserve it. Love it. And fight for it, and dedicate yourself to it, whether it’s a mountain range, your wife, your husband, or even (god forbid) your job. It doesn’t matter if it’s wild to anyone else: if it’s what makes your heart sing, if it’s what makes your days soar like a hawk in the summertime, then focus on it. Because for sure, it’s wild, and if it’s wild, it’ll mean you’re still free. No matter where you are.”

Clever and a great card, Gail!

These swaps are a rewarding challenge. If you’ve never done one before, dive into the next one you find. They are a lot of fun!

—Quinn McDonald is a creativity coach and writer who loves art journaling in any form.