March Week 2 recap
The second week of March has been just as intensely busy, if not more, as the first. This week, I continued to play with acrylic inks and a handheld pump (the kind you use to fill air in balloons) to create this stringy pattern and movement. I realized, in a very short time, that it’s not good to have this kind of repetitive motion (especially since this technique is so addictive!), so I moved on to a different kind of manual air pump that is used to clean camera lenses — yes, cleaning my studio has its perks! But, my friends, even that made my arm muscles and wrist yell out in pain. I would’ve been heading to physical therapy for months if sanity hadn’t prevailed! But just because the sane part of my brain protected me from injury, doesn’t mean that the crafty part of it was ok with it — I had to continue creating more of these!
So, I rummaged through my husband’s drawers and found a chargeable keyboard cleaner. Will it work, I wondered? Only one way to find out! I am thrilled to share that it works brilliantly once you’ve figured out the speed at which the air blows out, the distance from your substrate, the different stages of drying, the different viscosity of the colors and what colors layer better at first and which ones should be used later. I felt like a mad chemist in my lab! The randomness of these creations and just how unique each one is speaks to my spontanteity-loving-heart. This technique really makes me feel like a kid again … one with messy hands, messy clothes, a messy tabletop and a wide grin!
New $5 Course Alert
While playing with this new gadget and acrylic inks was a whole lot of fun, I also worked on creating a self-paced class for you. This is part of my new $5 classes that focus on one technique or medium. This one is all about creating a series.
Creating a series or body of cohesive work allows you to delve deeper into a concept or theme, fostering a more profound exploration of your artistic voice and vision. By developing a series, you can establish a narrative thread that connects individual pieces, allowing for a richer storytelling experience and deeper understanding of what you like. Immersing yourself in this process also allows you to refine some skills, experiment with different techniques, and maintain consistency in style and execution. This focused approach also cultivates a sense of discipline and intentionality in your creative process.
I always encourage nervous artists to start small and in this class, I show you how a little 2x3 piece of brown paper can turn into something quite magical.
I applied the same techniques that I share in this class, in this custom set of bucket fillers. You can see how one can create a series that is really unique and highly personalized to the recipient using the tips I share.
And of course, as with any project, I always have scraps left over, which I never throw. So, I did a quick video tutorial on Instagram about how you can use a little strip of painted paper to create something that looks modern, yet retro, has a beautiful visual aesthetic and can be made by anyone, regardless of their skill level.
Speaking of scraps, I shared these paintings made entirely of dried up paint, peeled off of my palette paper. They received a lot of love on social media with some requests to purchase individual paintings (these can be framed or used as bookmarks). If you’re interested in buying one or a couple, please let me know and I’ll make sure to inform you when these are listed on my website.
And the biggest news of the week? I cleaned my studio!! Yahoo! Well, ok, mostly. Here’s one of my most popular Instagram reels of the week … you can see me cleaning … and then getting distracted! It’s been heartening to know I am not the only one who gives in to temptation!
My finger-painting course continues to get more and more enrollees and I am loving what folks are sharing, not just by way of their paintings but also how this technique is allowing them to play, to feel looser, to enjoy the process and take pride in what they’re making. I made a birthday card for a friend yesterday and all it took was 18 minutes, my fingers, and some paint.
That’s all for me this week. I’m looking forward to seeing the magic all of you create with me in the One Badass Art Journal workshop next week. Can’t wait to hear your feedback and celebrate your journal pages!
XOXO
Mansi.
