Art Exchange: A Fun Idea

A few weeks ago I received an interesting e-mail.  It was a chain mail letter, but this one I didn't trash.  This one promised fun and art, so how could I refuse?  Called, "Tag your it! Art Exchange", the sender sends you a note asking your to join.  Your task if you choose to accept is to create any kind of small piece of art and send it to the name on the top of the 2 person list - in one week.  Then move his or her name to the top and add mine to the bottom.  Send the e-mail out to 6 arty-crafty friends and in a few weeks I should receive 36 pieces of art!  This idea intrigued me so I got busy, it took me a little over a week and a half, and then I mailed my art to a gal in California, and have sent out requests.  I hope my friends can play!  Here's what I made.

I got the wood block (stamp for fabrics) at Maiwa.  When I spied the camels, I right away saw what I was going to do for a holiday card.  Here's how I did it:
1.  On heavy weight cotton rag watercolor paper, brush colors of acryllic paints, I used Liquitex's Ultramarine Blue and Dioxazine Purple.  Wetting a large brush with a gollpe of paint make large cross hatchings across paper with the Ultramarine.  Using a dryer brush and the Purple make more cross hatches but these are more feathery.  I was thinking of sand storms when I was doing this.  
2.  Using Colored Ink,  I used Windsor & Newton's color that looks like intense teal.  and an old tooth brush, dip the tooth brush in some ink and scrape the bristles against your fingers or a knife to splatter the ink.
Once your paper has dried:
3.  Using a metallic acryllic, I used Liquitex's Iridescent White, and a damp sponge.  Pour a bit of your paint out onto a sheet of paper/glass/plate and gently sponge the color onto the stamp taking care not to clog up the stamp.  Press your stamp onto your paper, three times.  It is important to test your stamping technique.  making sure you have the right amount of pressure so the stamp stamps completely.  My paper is hard so I put one thickness of a towel under the paper between the table so there is a bit more absorbsion.  Mostly I did this because my stamp is wood, not linoleum or rubber.
4.  Creating the gifts for the camels:  I love ARTchix Studio for collage sheets and I used two different collage sheets here.  The Party Crown  and the Heart and Soul Collage Sheet.

The party crown I cut the crown out with an X-acto, and then glued glass flats on the top three points, the heart I cut out of the sheet with and X-acto and then using two other fancy colored papers, red and purple cut another heart in purple paper just slightly larger than the heart and hen another in red slightly larger than the purple.  These were glued together using Zots, a hard sticky paper glue that makes what you glue stand away from the previous layer.  Then I glued a larger glass flat to the center of the heart. and glued that to the camel. The third gift is a vintage gold embossed paper bunny I got from Tinsel Trading Company.  The handsome bun is holding a square decorative glass, again glued to the bun's hands using a tiny bit of a Zot.

5.  Once the gifts are Zotted on, I cut out the entire shape of the card following the images of the camels and their gifts.  I also cut out the area where the reign is. 

6.  The three words on little flags are sewn onto the reigns with gold metallic thread.  I like the words Cherish, Love and Create, but choose your own.  Each letter is its own flag and using both a thin black finepoint maker letter the words, and the write over the black with a metallic gold pen.  And then just sew through the paper!

7.  Since my art card is folded it is nice to emboss a fold before you try to bend the paper.  I use a ruler and a dull back side of a knife to do this, making a groove in the paper, will make your creased fold perfectly sharp.

8. Sign your work! I did mine on the back with its title "Cherish, Love and Create".
9.  Don't forget to clean your brushes, sponge and stamp for another project.