Can you believe that we are celebrating our 3rd birthday?!? How exciting!
I love how our community has grown and our love for mixed media art has developed over the last 3 years. We started with one little article [What is Mixed Media Art?] and have now features dozens of artists and tutorials and projects, all aimed at fulfilling your inner need to create, while NOT spending a fortune on the latest colours or products. We can be creative with a few simple supplies, a little know-how and giving ourselves permission to play and create art! It’s as easy as that!!
And for those of you who still don’t believe me (or in yourself) check back to our article on Dispelling the “I can’t do it” Myths of Creativity!
To celebrate our birthday, I have 3 ephemera kits to give away. To be in the running, leave a comment, telling us how your mixed media art has changed over the last 3 years. My favourite 3 will receive an ephemera kit in the mail.
Comments will close Fri 30 November 2012! Please make sure I can contact you.
I went from art journaling then broke out some canvases and now I’m selling my art
I went from doing art sporadically to developing a more regular art practice. I am primarily an art journaler and I love the joy, fun and play it has brought into my life. I love watching online tutorials, taking classes and learning and practicing new techniques. Thanks to sites like yours, mixed media arts are becoming more mainstream and widely available to help others explore and expand their artsy horizons!
Thanks for the chance to enter the contest.
Happy Birthday!!!
I have learned to not be afraid of anything I do. I can add all sorts of things to a piece and experiment without worrying about the outcome. I am able to just play and not plan and stress about what I am making. I love the freedom I have learned.
I so enjoy the articles I receive, great gift to me. The articles has opened up a wide field of new crafting for me.
Now I look at every day objects and ask myself what can I use this for.
Every artist provides an idea for me even if I do not do what the artist is working on. I so enjoy color and creating.
I have been able to pass on information to customers at the craft store I work at.
Thank you so much for the articles, may we grow old together.
Robin Foster
I think I have been a mixed media artist since I was a very young child. I enjoyed adding found objects to my art and never “went with the flow”. I exasperated traditional art teachers with my use of whatever materials I had on hand.
As I grew older (I am now 59) I tried so hard to fit myself into a mould. To label my art,. And then the advent of the www came along and suddenly I was able to see the kind of art I made and it had a name! I admit I became a Tim Ho, loving everything he made and then saw the work of the amazing Laura Denison, and started joining groups, and taking courses.
I took my first mixed media course about three years ago It was a Suzie Blu course. I loved her quirkiness. In many ways she reminded me of a younger moi. Then I took another course and learned the fabulous background techniques from Christie Tomlinson. And course after course I learned and I grew both as an artist and a person.
In the past three years my art has evolved. I see more of me on my canvasses, books, and collages. I am more confident and have a sense of being part of a global community of artists. .I am no longer worried about fitting into a specific genre and to quote Popeye ” I yam what I yam”.
I love your site and have learned so much here. Thanks for helping me see that I am a part of something bigger than myself.
My art has gone from paint and a few pictures to many techniques and media. I always look forward to your sight for new techniques and inspiration!
During the past 3 years I have bought a die cutting machine and have amassed a huge range of dies and embossing folders, which I use whenever I can. I now also use masks and spray inks, both with and without mica. I make my own dye ink sprays and often make my own backgrounds. I am incorporating beads and wire into my work more than i used to and I like to build up a rich, layered effect.
I have always loved bits and pieces of things: paper, string, keys, buttons… Now I know them by name – ephemera! I look for ways to put them to use. I try to see how they connect with ideas or thoughts I have. The biggest change for me would be learning to overcome the fear of trying a mixed media piece. Actually using some of the treasures I have saved up and seeing what happens!
My mixed media art has changed so much over the last several years. After battling a chronic illness that has not only been physically debilitating, it’s been financially crippling as well. From not being able to hardly write, let alone draw, I have overcome those barriers by using my art to keep me going and focused. Mixed Media artwork allows me to use my “physical quirks” in a whole new way. I have learn to become more resourceful (monetarily wise) — looking outside the box for just about anything to create. It’s amazing what you can find if you are desperate to create. I am even finding that by giving a piece of artwork as a gift is more rewarding than buying a store-bought gift. Right now I am trying to gain the courage to sell through Etsy since I have always kept or given away my art. Big step for me!
For the past 3 years, mixed media art has taken on a whole new meaning to me. I used to think “mixed media” meant combining acrylics, pastels, colored pencils, etc. I began to LOVE art again, when I discovered true “mixed media” art. I enjoy distressing metals and papers and combining them wih fabrics, yarns and string on a board that I have created using molding paste and paints. Creating mixed media art has become about putting thing I love together to make art that is pleasing to me!
I love collage and mixed media painting. I did a 365 project of an ATC a day (which ended up only a 180, but I continue to add to it). This made me much freer with my collage materials; not over-thinking things as much as I once did.
I was mainly a landscape and art quilter …. becoming more interested in mixed media was a natural progression ….and although I swore I would never get into doing anything with paper, here I am not only using paper but making 3D art as well and I absolutely LOVE IT … it makes my heart sing
Happy Birthday, Us! I think what’s changed in my work over the last 3 years is I stopped taking so many classes and just concentrated on MY style. It seemed to help. I started not to be afraid of color and images. I’ve learned to draw a little more with faces mainly and realized they don’t have to be perfect faces.
I love Mixed media and I am trying to incorporate them in my layouts that I am doing…I just discovered it and love every bit of it….
I have gone from simple inclusions to layers of ephemera and find this to be key in preserving and sharing pieces of personal history.
I went from scrapbooking to collage to painting to full-on mixed media and fabric work. I love seeing how my style has developed over the past few years. My new favorite materials to work with are vintage artifacts.
I went from not doing anything to making my brother the best birthday gift =]
Three years ago, I made an ATC ‘now and then” and for the most part kept the results of my artistic efforts to myself. I’ve progressed to working in my studio as often as I can, am no longer afraid to let others see what I have created and have even taught a workshop online. Recently, when I was in the hospital, I brought some portable art supplies and managed to create some pieces during the week I was cooped up there. They were popular with my nurses and roommates. 🙂
Kitty
I am finding that as my art evolves, I am also evolving. I dabbled a bit at first, hesitant, feeling my way forward as I learned about the tools and honed my skills. Over the last 3 years, with lots of positive feedback, I have grown confident, unafraid of making mistakes, enjoying the experimentation. I have begun to sell my journals, wall art, gift tags, pins, etc. in local boutiques and I’m planning on going on-line in the new year. I am loving the hunt for “raw materials” and how it all leads to making new connections with other creative souls.
My new mantra — As in art . . . .so in life!
I’ve gone from completely shy about what I tried to being completely radical with my art. There is so much to learn, and I love it all. And I’ve gone from being completely shy about showing it to others to being totally okay and PROUD of it – even selling it! My calling card even says “Mixed Media Artist” on it.
When I started I came from a (mostly) traditional background in quilting. I have morphed more into the Fibre Arts & Mixed Media end of things. I won’t abandon my quilting entirely, but will merge it with a mixed media component.
Still working on bravery to let the canvas talk without perfection’s pesky little voice creeping in:)
Happy Birthday! I am so glad I found you! I love the articles, the community of artists. Knowing I am not alone in my wanting to use found objects. I have lost the fear to call myself and artist, to just be creative, to take that leap of faith and just do it. I am talented and I am using the gift God gave me. I say that with a humble heart. I have always collected odd bits of paper, images, fabric, ribbons, rusty nails, beat up bottle caps, tactile objects my whole life, since I was little girl and to know that it’s okay to use it, and call it art is such a great feeling. My 3 1/2 year old Granddaughter comes over to “collage”, she loves my “so much stuff”. the next generation is here. Life is good, and I am thankful for kindred spirits like you and others I have met that are artists too and this wonderful community you created. Bravo! Thank you!
I haven’t been doing mixed media art for very long so everything I do is a “change” I guess I am still dabbling but I am enjoying that very much! Happy Birthday to you and hope you are here to help us out many more years!
Happy birthday! For me I found mixed media at a time when I was depressed and didn’t know what I was going to do. I loved the fact that there were no rules, no it can only bee this way our that way. I’ve always was interested in art but was always told I wasnt good enough or I wasnt talented enough. But when I found mixed media all that went away. Now I art journal and have started working on canvases. I hope to feel confident enough by next year to tackle a really large canvas.
Happy Birthday! I’m so glad to have found your website to help me with mixed media art. I’m new to it and and wondering why I waited so long to begin.
We use mixed media art, for school projects!
As it gives the kids so much freedom to use their imaginations!
Plus they get bonus points for using recycled materials!
Our “art” hasn’t changed much over the last 3 years… But we have improved on, and utilized so many good ideas!
Like using empty cornflake boxes… Newspaper, and scraps of colored paper from the florists!
Shevauns Drama project- designing a Japanese theme costume, got an A+!!
Thank you mixed media art!!
For me, making mixed media art is all about growth and change. As I learn new tecniques and start trusting myself a little more, I find I get braver and bolder and am much more willing to “color outside the lines”! If someone had told me three or four years ago that I would become a “junker”, constantly on the lookout for broken dolls, chipped china, old flash cubes and various rusty bits and pieces for my art, I would have laughed. Now I know that the hunt is often as much fun as the art-making!
I am not an artist.
But, you kinda gave me the tools and permission to play and learn. I thank-you for that. I have learned a lot from you and i can now share some of your tools with the kids i mentor.
Thank-You
Just wanted to say Happy Birthday! Thanks for all your inspiration. I never could draw. So as far as I was concerned, I wasn’t artistic. Everyone in my family can write, draw, or play an instrument- except me. I only started painting because I saw a picture online of ladybug toe nails–I had to have them! I tried other nail art designs I liked and tried them. The problem was that nails are too small to do all I had in my head. So I was searching for alternatives and found your site and others.I had never heard of mixed media art or art journals. Now I journal and create all sorts of things. I still can’t draw well, but sites like this taught me that art is all about color and texture and pleasing your own eye, not perfection. So thanks!
In the past 3 years, hmmm…Three years ago I was an (extreemly) active alcoholic and didn’t think that any of
my creativity still remained intact. Two years ago October I started my recovery process and vowed to myself that,
if even a SPARK of it remained, I would try to stoke that ember. While the flame may still not be bright, it’s at least
burning. In the past year I’ve taken a collage/assemblage class, a beginner’s drawing class to try to brush up on
the skills I used to have, and attended a Dia de Los Muertos shrine making workshop. I’ve also been going out to
galleries to view (other) artist’s works and, through a woman I met at a meeting, I’ve been invited to participate with
a group of women in following “The Artist’s Way” through Julia Cameron’s book!
It’s still difficult for me not to lament the year’s I wasted (literally) and, especially, not to compare myself to other
people who already “have what I want”—but I do take joy from my efforts to rekindle what I’d thought I’d lost in
myself and in the process itself. Just finding sites like this one adds fuel to the fire every time I engage with them.
Thanks for inspiring me and including me in YOUR community!
Three years ago, I came home from work most nights, fixed dinner, did a little cleaning, watched TV with my husband and went to bed. Repeat, repeat, repeat. Then I decided to take a collage workshop. All of a sudden, a part of me that had never spoken before, shouted “you can do it!” It was so loud and so foreign, that I paid attention. And slowly over the last two years, I have evolved into an artist!
I re prioritized my time, bought a folding table and set up shop! I asked for gift cards to craft stores for birthday and holiday gifts and now my shelves are stocked. Now, I make time, whenever possible, to escape into my own stress reducing, fulfilling world of torn paper, paint, paste and stamps. I’ve never sold anything, but never wanted to either. I love creating pieces for people in my life. At age 56, I am so grateful that I listened to that voice inside me and tapped into my bottomless well of creative energy and inspiration!
Judy
I went from doing no mixed media to to now everything is mixed media! I look at my other paintings and see ways of making them ‘more’. My creativity has expanded from using mainstream art supplies to using just about anything and everything in the house, sometimes much to my husbands despair (: Im having so much more fun with my art now!
3 years ago I was just starting to play with paints and collage. Never would I have called myself an artist. Since then I started a blog, took online classes, taken part in lots of challenges, and worked at my art. I may be tentative in calling myself an artist now , but I know that when I grow up I will be a true artist.
well, I had put my paintbrushes and canvases away sometime after my sophmore year in college. (13 years ago) I had a bad experience with an art teacher, I was so depressed when I learned I wasn’t even a face or name to him I was just a body that filled a space at a certain desk! And I had 2 classes back to back wth him! So I figured I must not be good enough or must not have any talent, and I put my things away-I even threw away my works that I previously did. Recently I decided to get my things back out, it’s been an awesome journey to realize that it wasn’t just me. I CAN create wonderful things and my ideas are beautiful! I stumbled upon this website several months ago, and I love all the ideas and inspiration that come from it! I hope to someday soon submit my art for eveyone to view!
Both of my grandparents showed me love for the bits and pieces of life; my grandma and I would go through her costume jewelry, and she’d show me how to take pieces that weren’t quite what she wanted them to be and turn them into the perfect “new” accessory, so I don’t think I’ve ever met a bead, crystal, piece of broken jewelry, or any other pretty bauble I didn’t love. She also collected the family’s paper ephemera; newspaper clippings, invitations, announcements and the like – it’s from her I learned to love all types of paper, as is evident from my bulging files, piles, and boxes!
My grandpa was a farm boy turned bus driver, and his eagle eyes always spotted treasures along sidewalks, roadways, and country trails. He trained me from an early age to look at the ground wherever I go; this is how I find my beloved bits of rusted metal, dropped bits of this or broken pieces of that, miscellaneous gifts from nature, and of course sometimes – on a really good day – money! 🙂
Having lost my grandparents at a young age (and other key people in my life in more recent years), I’ve struggled with grief and depression as far back as I can remember. The intriguing world of mixed media art, the existence of soul-feeding sites like Mixed Media Art, and the community of like-minded artists have opened my eyes – and heart – to ways I can express my memories, love and grief in meaningful ways that honor the people I’ve lost by using treasured memorabilia and found objects to create beautiful art.
The past 3 years have been especially pivotal for me artistically because I’ve been in the midst of a very difficult divorce since the fall of 2009, and my art has evolved into both an escape and a reaffirmation of myself as a survivor. Thank you, Mixed Media Art, for 3 wonderful years of advice, encouragement and valuable information – please keep it coming!
Happy birthday, and thanks to share with us.
Well, I can’t say my MM art has changed in the last 3 years because I just started doing it!
I’ve got one piece under my belt and I can’t wait to do more!
Happy 3rd Birthday! I used to think that being creative was for other people, then about 3 yrs ago I let go of my self-defeating standards of perfectionism and thoughts that I couldn’t draw, and gave it a try. Found this site and found inspiration and encouragement and I haven’t stopped creating since! I think about and make art whenever I can. Thank you for encouraging and supporting us beginners. I found a new love—-playing with art materials! You can teach an old dog new tricks, I’m the proof. Thank you for the big part this site has played in this new phase of my life.
From paper and canvas to gluing fabric to canvas to felting, silk paper, combining the two to make new wearables. But then you need bling, so beading, foils you name it. If I can stick it or sew it I will!
First A great BIG Happy Birthday to you at Mixed Media Art. I am really going to prevent this form being a whole whoa is me story, but, I have only been working with mixed media for a very short time. I found myself in a position of no longer being able to work and becoming fully disabled. I am not an artist by nature but absolutly love art, I can’t draw well, but creating beautiful things with non conventional items is very enjoyable. I have become a great collector of all things vintage, ephemera, recycled and colorful I can find, and turning it into my form of Art. This has pequied the interest of my 12 yr old daughter who home schools. We both joined the Art House Project for 2013. I walk into Lowe’s Home improvement and I look at all these great art supplies for my journals or creations. I see Art in street signs now. I also look at cereal boxes, delivery boxes, and the like and see what can be created. (I get stuck at the supplies to finish and or even create at times, but I know have blogs such as yours gives me a purpose that just mine. I have my husband, my kids, my kids sports, homeschool, all the usuals, but now without my 20 yrs age a nurse job to call my own, now Art is just mine. So Thank you for making your one article even bigger and better, so newbies like me not only have guidence on this journey, but have some inspiration to be able to create what’s in our hearts, or just what we find beautiful in that moment. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!
I used to call my artsy creations “Dimensional Art” or “Memory Boxes and Books”. As the trends have brought Steampunk and Assemblage more to the mainstream forefront, I have found that my art has become more comfortable for me and there are new avenues for learning available. The bonus is that I have also found soul brothers and sisters from around the world on the Internet! Mixed Media Art has finally “arrived”.
Wow! I don’t know about you, but my mixed media crafting has changed tremendously. I started with just stamps, but now they are just a part of the ‘arting’ I do. And I love it all!
I started crafting when I was about to retire as I knew I had to do something to be creative if I was to stay sane.
I started with card making and got fairly advanced to where I was selling them….After a few years I bored and after taking a mixed media class I started making canvases with very bright colors with a lot of activity on them. I make for people who are long term hospitalized or terminal to hang on their wall to brighten their day……. I think they are quite gaudy but I am getting requests to make for others….. I love trying new ideas on layering and creating canvases that have Positive Sayings……I just want to keep learning how to improbe what I am now doing as I often do not like the results BUT others do….
Follwing Mixed Media Art has inspired me to push forward creating what I love, using anything and everything to achieve the look I want. My creativity continues to evolve the more I am able to let go of the creative restrictions that have bound me.
Thank you and Happy Birthday!
When I came across MixedMedia Arts I had an enlightening moment. I got me. I got it finally, that all these years whereby I couldn’t just choose one art form or craft to love . I just had to collect every little and big piece of this and that of what nots and discards. That I wasn’t insane, unfocussed, or a hoarder! I am an artist! Pure and simple. Admitting it to myself was the easy part, saying it out loud though has proven to be challenging. Whenever I am asked what I do BESIDES being a stay at home mom….. I reply I am an artist. That is quickly followed by a” what kind of art do you make”?.
In other words, “yeah right so are you actually making any money doing this?” I know that the answer to that honestly is “no” and that I do spend money on supplies. I am trying to “make money” but honestly for what I do invest into whatever I make, not alot of people could afford my stuff! Besides, I make because I want to and I need to in order to remain sane.
Over time I have learned that most art does not need expensive tools and supplies but quality. Quality in the care one has of turning nothing into something. I know it doesnt make much sense. But honestly as artists can we not look at what humans or nature has discarded and say hey that could be a… Exactly! Yes I buy LOTS of stuff. I buy lots of used and thrifted stuff and I try to only buy new when it comes to adhesives, threads and paints. Because used, well they just cant be used again! When it comes to mixed media I love how anything goes. Like life. There is always more than just one way to do things.
I have been an elementary art teacher for 32 years and have always loved making collages. It was hard to make art for myself after spending all my time teaching youngsters. At an Art Education convention, I saw lots of mixed media work. I went back to school and introduced my students to mixed media. They loved it and are so creative. That was about 3 years ago. This year I retired and can spend all the time I want on mixed media and art quilting. I greatly appreciate Mixed Media Art for all the inspiration and encouragement. Happy Birthday!!
Mixed media techniques help me create art that includes texture and memorabilia that translates to original and meaningful art wheather it is realistic fish paintings or whimsical girls in a garden.Compare a plain cheese sandwhich to an Italian panini.The many layers and texture of the grilled Italian sandwich grab your senses and pull in.
During the last 3 years my range of mixed media has advanced dramatically. I never envisaged I had the ability to create. The variety I have discovered is collage, card making, mixed media painting, water colour painting, drawings of various images, and iconography. I’m attempting the renaissance paintings on my very amateurish level. I have been experimenting with new mediums of building textures, such as impasto, gesso sand medium and other applications.
Whenever I travel, the first thing I target is a scene of interest I can paint, and tasting the countryside with new abandon sets in. Losing myself in creative activity is very rewarding and very therapeutic. I tap in with my inner child. The diverse areas of imagery and breadth of knowledge has been my constant companion. I approach my work with fresh confidence and excitement. Like everything, it’s taking the first step and plunge that activates the seeds of hope and faith in oneself. I started to donate some of my work and feeling a sense of pride which gave me a feeling only one, can imagine.
Belonging to this global powerhouse of creative aspirants made me feel I was needed to be part of this network, and the possibilities were endless.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Michelle and the Mixed Media Staff for believing in me and it starts from sowing the first seed and then it multiplies.
I dance with colours, shapes, and I come alive with my subject and we start a contract with each other. Commitment and discipline to my art work keeps the creative flow alive in me and a sense of curiosity is established.. It’s not the destination that counts, but the journey that is important.
Wow that year went by fast! Happy Birthday!
Yay! Happy Birthday! Mixed media art has added an unbelievable stash to every room in my house!!! You look at life and its ephemera which is no longer trash headed for some landfill. You find the back parking lot of a bar a good source for rusty bottlecaps, rusty hairpins(I don’t know why they are there!) and rusty paperclips(hmmmm). Your family asks, “Can you use this?” before throwing most things away. Most of the time your answer is , “Of course I can use it!” especially if it has texture or aged patina! Mixed media is a joy even the youngest or poorest or oldest or artfully challenged artist can enjoy with the skills and sources they have today. Mixed media is for everybody…yay!
The most important thing about Mixed Media Art is to just be yourself and live out yourself in your projects And most of all…..enjoy what you do There is no right or wrong in this Art just to enjoy it Happy Birthday to a great team! You are truly an inspiration to us all ! A Merry Christmas to you all and a happy 2013! Keep up the wonderful ideas that you are always willing to share!
Riette Bornman
South Africa
I am so happy to be celebrating here with your 3rd Birthday! The wonderful site speaks for itself and has provided so much help and guidance to so many venturing out into the world of mixed media like myself where for me it started to change my life about 2 years ago and now I am a full on artist with a huge success in creating mixed media and fabric art journals which I show and talk about in my blog and it has attracted so much interest and following and from where I am flat out creating to sell.
Many thanks for providing this wonderful opportunity.
“Happy Birthday”!!!
Three years ago I hadn’t heard of mixed media! Somehow I stumbled on a video, then a book, then a blog and it just spiraled. For a long time I just looked. Just watched. Just envied and dreamed. Finally I decided that instead of just keeping a journal for a class in Spiritual Direction that I was taking, I would keep an art journal instead and I haven’t been able to quit since. Now I’m doing it myself instead of just watching others and nothing makes me happier than messy hands. Messy hands mean a good day!
Happy 3rd Birthday and thanks for the inspiration!
I now look at all art in a different way thank you so much and happy birthday
I didn’t know the things I created was called ” mixed media” art until I came across your website. I just figured it was creating with what I had available. Now I see art everywhere. Sidewalks, stuff in my cupboards and even at my sons auto detailing shop. Its been an incredible journey full of fun, learning and mistake making, sometimes which was fun too. I am still looking for the courage to sell my creations. But in the meantime glue, ephemera, paint and found tresures are my best friends. Happy Birthday and Thank-you for giving my messin around a name. Sincerely, Annie
Hello,
I’m new here, I love Mixed media art and I want this new year 2013, share my work with those who love art and thank you for your site.
Fathia Nasr, Moroccann painter and poet.
Sorry for my english.
I have begun using mixed media techniques in making my art dolls. I collect all kinds of items, papers, tea bags, leaves, pods, etc and use them in my dolls. Anything can be used and my horizons have no limits. I love it!
Hmmm….how my mixed media has changed? Well, being new to it, I would say that mixed media art has changed ME. It has resulted in creating a whole new awareness that everything doesn’t have to be perfect. I love the paper crafting world but, it has a tendency to be quite structured whereas something about the freedom to produce from our imaginations wonderful works of art, is just fascinating to me. A true inner expression with an artistic outlet that encourages the creator to go beyond that comfort zone. It has challenged me in new and exciting ways. Affording a way to discover hidden skills that I never knew existed let alone having the courage to try pursuing. I am thankful that I just happened upon the mixed media arena simply by perusing the internet looking for some new inspiration and “something different”. Do you know what I mean? I was thrilled to discover that mixed media art IS achievable. No matter what level of experience you are. It’s all in that “letting go” and allowing yourself the opportunity to open creative wings….and soar. Thank you to Mixed Media Art for your educating, insightful and informative ideas. Not to mention a web home designed to discover once again, those hidden capacities we’ve probably already had but, never had the determination to try. In addition, the laid back feeling and non-judgmental atmosphere draws the crafts person into what feels like a safe haven to tap into our inner artistes. Happy 3rd Birthday and may you only continue to grow and add to the delightful world of mixed media.
I never considered myself a mixed media artist until recently – I considered myself an altered art artist. Then I realized the true definition of mixed media and it fit what I was doing. Yes, I alter items sometimes, but I use all kinds of media to do that. Plus I’ve expanded into different sizes/types of “canvases” (for lack of a better word). I’ve gone from doing mainly ATCs to creating art of all kinds, from ATCs to Tags to Albums and beyond (still altering whatever I can get my hands on). I’ve even been accepted as a designer for three different groups. All because one day on a whim I picked up a glue stick, a piece of paper, fussy cut a few images, and did some stamping.
Happy Birthday to you!!!! I have gained so much more than progress with mixed media. I was always referred to as a little weird. I accepted it as I knew it was true. However, you sight and connection to others, either through art, comments, sharing… has led me to knowing, I am not weird. I am an artist and see the world a different way. I have now found an art community!! So when I show up one hour early for my art class they say yes… that is what artists do. I feel “a part of” rather than weird or bordering on “oldtimers”. Through watching and learning, I had the courage to go to two mixed media classes in ………..Italy. I have never ever traveled alone and I did it. I loved it. Through my art, I learn about myself, an endless source of information and entertainment. Through others I find that I am a unique individual who is not alone and not so unique, there are so many that share similar characteristics. I have gained Confidence, enough to send me on a hunt until I found a mixed media artist in my area. I have a better idea how to approach a project. On your birthday, know that you have given sooo much~~ Molly
I have only been doing mixed media for about a year. I love that I can do painting one day, journaling the next, then fabric art after that. And there are no limits. Whatever I can imagine I can do. I have watched tons of videos, gone to Create O.C. Where I had a blast. I have an “art room” where I can go whenever I want. I don’t even use my living room anymore. I just hanf out in the art room. What fun to just do what I love from day to day. My favorite things to do are make homemade journals, and make page backgrounds.
Happy birthday!
Yolanda
Congratulation to your Birthday!
My free style changed to a tightly focused style the last years. That means that I’m more thinking about what I will do in my art journal. I choose colors and theme to remember before I start. First pages where a creative explosion. Also I changed my view of myself. Now I can say I’m an artist and I can’t live without it.
Jo Ann Salem writes:
I have tried a lot more multi-media projects from postcards to pendants! Your articles come to me now on my iphone and that is so convenient. I have grown due to your articles and posted projects. You make the learning process so much more clear when you show examples and items which have already been created. Every day I look forward to the new info you send to me in my email. I have a lot of notes and blog sites on file for whenever I run out of inspiration or ideas. I do not sell my art, but give it away as gifts, mostly. The process is my reward and I thank you for your constant support. I feel at home here even as more of a crafter than an artist. Sometimes art groups look down on us who just enjoy learning new ways to express ourselves. Thank you for being open minded to the “sometimers” out here!! The artists and creativity that you publish are very motivational and I also thank you for your insight. Happy Birthday. I am 72 and have always needed a creative outlet and you have been there for my “feed!” Thanks so much. Love, Jo Ann Salem
Three years ago I didn’t call myself an artist… I was a crafter, a creator, a sewer…but never an artist and now I realize how much art there is in everything and how important that word really is.
Happy third birthday!!
I didn’t start doing art until about 10 years ago and at first was very tentative about doing anything starting out with trying to scrapbook and make cards and moving into mixed media canvas that started out small to more bold and bigger. I have also subscribed to Cloth Paper Scissors and often purchase other magazines with various art projects featured that use a number of items that I would normally throw away- like dryer sheets and coffee sleeves. I have also started giving my art as gifts and my eye is constantly looking at my environment through a new lens- looking at color combinations and items that might be used to make a unique piece of art. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker by day I have found art to be a wonderful stress outlet and a way to express my creativity.
Honestly, I am not a mixed media artist. Typically I focus more on traditional art media, landscapes, still lifes, the figure and the occasional illustration. But recently I have had a bit of an upheaval in my life, and with the start of a new job, I had to leave my old home, family and studio behind to work. With limited space and time, I have started to broaden my horizons. Inspired by the works of Lisa Cyr and Barron Storey, I wanted to look at more mixed media applications and allow myself to play in order to relieve the stress of the situation and stay connected to my artistic passions.
I am learning more everyday and feeling more comfortable with my choices and results. Thank you for that. Happy Birthday!
I’ve gone from teaching traditional quilting for 30+ years and have morphed into fibre arts and mixed media and am team teaching that with a friend. I’ve always thought of myself as craftsy, now I think of myself as artsy! Happy Birthday!
I’m loving mixing so many different applications to one piece of art. A little intimidated as well. Happy Birthday!!!
I’m new to mixed-media, only about a year to a year and a half. I find it challenging since I come from an acrylic/oil painting background. I hadn’t thought of combining media before and I find it fascinating. So much to choose from and the challenge of making them work together. Recently, I did a mm of Ms. Merino of Elegant Femme and was very pleased with the way it turned out–using the cover of a femminine pad, telephone book pages, acrylics, watercolours, and a heart-shaped stick pin. It was only 4″ X 6″, but it was a wonderful project.
Finding your site has openned my horizons on what can be done by just applying our wonderful imagination. I love to see the techniques you use and the projects you encourage all to do. Thank you! I hope you continue to inspire others for a long time.
Happy 3rd Birthday♥
I am a recent newcomer to mix media, around February…and I love it…I like to search out what others are doing on the internet. There are so many ideas and such great talent, so I am so grateful that people are so willing to share. I have been in a slump lately…but that will change once the Christmas season is over. I like to source things from the hardware store. This includes a pull out storage box on wheels, it holds my paint etc.
I am just learning mixed media art and loving this new to me craft.
Hi My name is Sheila-
I am just now teaching myself art, I am drawing people and eyes. I’m excited to learn more about art. Then I found Mixed Media Art and am hoping to learn a lot from Michelle. In the last 3 years, I have been making jewelry bookmarks, earrings, bracelets and some necklaces. Also I crochet and knit, blankets, hats and scarves. I will be making a journal with pictures of my grandchildren and art things for my daughter for Christmas, I’m exciting about this as well. Happy Birthday, and have an artsy day!!
Sheila-