I’ve always been more of a neutral color fan. I feel like it’s only been in the past year or two that I’ve really branched out and worked in lots of different colors. I love off-whites and brown backgrounds. I love black text on beige paper. I love kraft paper and chipboard, and I love the timeless, sophisticated quality to all of the above.
So, every once in a while, I go back to those first loves and just go crazy. This canvas blends so many of my favorite things- neutral color paper with text, white and brown accents, text washi-tape, ink-stained muslin, etc. It’s pretty awesome, in my opinion. :)
Neutral Color Scrapbook Canvas
What I love most about this layout, is the negative space that’s actually full of text and other images. I whitewashed the whole thing with Distress Crackle Paint, but you can still see everything underneath. Yet now, with the whitewash, it’s almost as if everything else is on top of a fresh, clean canvas. I love that this piece has that look and feel.
- The first step was to cover the surface with various papers. Everything piece I chose was covered with text.
- I darkened it with some walnut ink, and then paint the surface with Tim Holtz’ Distress Crackle Paste, for a crackly, whitewash effect. Awesome. :)
- Quick Tip- if you use crackle paste, I would recommend sealing it with some gel medium. It can tend to flake a bit, especially the larger cracks where you used more paint.
- The sides were a bit rough, with some paper still sticking over, so I took some time and sanded all the edges down.
- Washi-tape was added to the left side; different lengths in all different neutral colors and patterns.
- My map stamp and one of my script stamps were perfect to add a few more interesting details.
- I stained some strips of muslin just a bit with more walnut ink, and added them over the washi-tape.
- Next it’s time for the background paper, and the picture.
- A piece of flair goes pretty well with everything else, huh? And how about those IKEA pencils?! I knew the handfull I grabbed would come in handy.
- This piece wouldn’t be complete without a few ink splatters!!
Anyone else out there a huge fan of neutral colors? I’d love to hear what you think, and see your projects.
Thanks so much for visiting! I hope I inspired you a little today. :)
Do it! And then post pictures. :)
I love your piece! I’ve been really drawn to neutral colors of late. I’ve been playing around with a 10×10 canvas where I used tea bags, birch bark, and some old book pages. It’s not quite done but it’s coming along. :)
Thank you so much Kelly! I would love to see your piece when it’s finished. I have never used tea bags before, but I love other pieces I see that use them. And of course, anything with book pages is super awesome. :)
I’ll be happy to share- it’s currently drying, but I expect to add a bit more to it and then be done later tonight. The tea bags really do offer some interesting texture and color. I’ve got another small collage that I’m working on that I did a stencil over the tea bag, and then I’m gluing that to a book page. It looks really neat so far.
It sounds really interesting. I think I need to make some tea… :)