Artful Journeys Week 12 and more

So, this week we have the prompt "Spring"!  BUT...there's a catch!  NO FLOWERS!!!  Yup, you read that right...No flowers...the idea being to think outside of the box for this week's prompt...and so I did...I didn't just think outside the box, tho, I thought higher...

Here's what I used:

• Liquitex Basics in Titanium white, Mars Black, Burnt Umber and Light Blue Permanent
• Underpaper
• 1" flat brush and a No. 1 round for details
• Uhu glue stick
• Dina Wakley Scribbly Birds stamps
• Archival ink pad in Jet Black

I started in a large book that I have turned into an altered book...I wanted a BIG spread for this one, and this book (an old discarded Conservatory coffee table book was just the ticket) I found at my local library for CHEAP.   I grabbed a stack of underpapers and got busy stamping birds all over the parts I really liked, then cut them all out...I didn't get too fussy with my cutting, as I honestly just didn't want to, plus fussy cutting all those feet would have gotten somebody stabbed with my good scissors.

My stack of underpaper birdies!

So, in the book, I painted my background using my 1" flat brush by Dina Wakley, using Light Blue Permanent and Titanium White.  I wanted the sky behind the birds to look soft and fluffy and "spring"y!  Two of the things I love about spring are the skies and the birds and I love that I got to combine them in this spread.

My sky for my birdies!  Loved how this one turned out.

Next I used burnt umber and mars black for the poles and lines for the birds...

I even made sure to add some detail to the poles...something I would have neglected just 6 months ago.

With that done, I could focus on my beautiful little birds, and getting them put down....this is where my glue stick came in....tho when I do this for my daughter on a canvas, I will be using gel medium instead of  a glue stick.

Aren't they just adorable?!?!!??  And check out this little guy close up!

I absolutely love making my own collage elements from my underpaper and will most certainly do it every chance I get.  Feel free to send me yours! lol

Now, here's a pic of a spread I'm currently working on in my large Dylusions journal....

Dylusions paints, Liquitex paints, Dina Wakley stamps and pieces of happy mail under it all.  I don't really know where it's going just yet, but I'm loving it so far.

And there you have it!  My take on the week 12 prompt and my background...there is some other stuff, but since it's swaps....you don't get to see yet....
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