“Adopt the pace of nature. Her secret is patience.”
I am so fortunate to live near one of the most beautiful places on earth, Glacier National Park. The mountains, waterfalls and crystal-clear lakes are beautiful to behold. The hiking and horseback trails take you to viewpoints that are breathtaking. To stand still in the woods and just listen to the deep stillness is good medicine for the soul. I know it, I've done it.
The title of this piece, She Is Of Nature, embraces the theme of nature's soothing solitude. Am I the 'She' in the title? Heck no! This is Grizzly Bear Country!
Safe and sound in my art room (no bears for miles), I decided to try an experiment with my latest DecoArt products from the DecoArt Blogger Outreach Program. I love the look of Encaustic Art and wondered if I could create a faux encaustic effect with acrylics and mediums. I knew I wanted to include natural elements which also happened to be the theme for July at Mixed Media World.
After preparing an 8 x 10 canvas board with DecoArt Media Gesso, I added features of a female face using Andy Skinner's 'Baroque' stencil and black archival ink. The first coat of DecoArt Media Crackle Glaze was applied. I immediately placed 3 freshly picked leaves on to the glaze and used a heat gun to set this layer. Another coat of crackle glaze was applied. Upon drying, I worked DecoArt's Antiquing cream into the cracks, wiping back with a soft cloth. Onto this base, I added torn sheets of pattern paper, music sheets and book pages; stamping, stenciling, string and DecoArt Media Modeling Paste, and several layers of Matte Medium and Ultra Matte Varnish. I sculpted the woman's hair with more modeling paste and highlighted with DecoArt Metallic Lustre wax.
I made a concoction of DecoArt Media Modeling Paste, Gesso and Sea Salt to create texture on my wood rectangle chips. After curing, I added Crackle Glaze, Modeling Paste and DecoArt Media Antiquing Cream. I 'rusted' 5 tiny nails and used them to attach my prepared wood chips to the canvas board.
I just love the 'waxy' effect I was able to achieve by combining DecoArt Media products!
The final touches were circles cut from a dead branch, excelsior, a phrase from 7 Dots Studio and gesso highlights.
Below I have prepared a little slide show of my faux encaustic process.
I hope you have enjoyed my experiment with faux encaustic. I have included a product list below. Thank you so much for stopping by and don't forget to check out the July Challenge at Mixed Media World!
Product List
DecoArt Media: Gesso, Matte Medium, Crackle Glaze, Ultra Matte Varnish, Modeling Paste: Antiquing Cream in 'Raw Umber', 'Titanium White', 'Carbon Black' and 'Patina Green'; Fluid Acrylics in 'Interference Gold', 'Burnt Sienna', 'Transparent Red Iron Oxide'; Metallic Lustre in 'Champagne Ice'; Andy Skinner stencil 'Baroque'; DecoArt Stencil 'Button Alphabet'
7 Dots Studio: 'Dreamscapes' word sticker
8x10 canvas board, old sewing pattern paper, book pages, wood rectangle chips, nails, string,
