Mixed Media Canvas with Tamiko

Hey folks, Happy Wednesday to you!  I am forever loving the process of learning to create my own paper. Arnold Grummer has laid down an awesome foundation that many have and will continue to learn from.  Check out and subscribe to the Arnold Grummer's YouTube channel by clicking here.
Today I made a canvas.  I used one of molds my friend Mitzi gifted me.  Arnold Grummer has a plethora of casting molds available for you on the website.  After reading The Art of Paper Casting, a book that can be purchased on the site, I learned how to properly prepare a mold for casting paper.  Almost like baking in a pan, you usually start out brushing a little oil on the mold to assist with the release of the paper cast.  You don't have to do it every time, but if you ever have a problem removing a dry cast from the mold.. that is one sure way to resolve it.

I learned after I finished my project that I could in fact spray my castings with a workable fixative or brush on some type of acrylic sealant BEFORE I paint it,   That will indeed help with my paint not totally soaking into the paper and it gives it bit of an allowance for a wet media application.

I basically prepared for my cast by, taking some torn bits of paper, a handful, and placing it in the blender with 2.5 cups of water.  I turned the blender on until my water and paper turned into a paper slurry.  I then took the contents of the blender and poured it slowly into my paper casting strainer where I pressed the excess water out.  With that pulp I used tweezers to place the pulp carefully into the mold.  I wanted to make sure I had all the sections properly filled.  The smaller molds normally take 6-12 hrs to dry out.  You can also place them in the oven on a low temp. of 275 degrees for 10-15 minutes.  You can even zap it with a heat gun.

After the mold is dry, again you can protect it with a workable fixative, or acrylic sealant of choice, before you add color.  I did not in this case.  I will try it another time.  I am still pleased with how it came out.  I painted my casted building with Colour Arte Twinkling H2Os .  I applied them very lightly with my water brush.  I did a quickie gelato background.  I attached the building on the canvas board with Helmar 450 quick dry adhesive.  After finding a proper quote on pinterest I printed it on my computer and mounted the wording on darker blue hand made paper scraps from a previous project and adhered that to the canvas, again with more Helmar 450.  If you are interested and seeing how I create paper, check out how the master, Arnold Grummer, does it here.

My quote on the page says :  May your home hold joy; Every room hold laughter;  Every room open windows to great possibilities.

I hope you enjoyed my canvas as much as i did creating it.  Thanks for stopping by!