The Atelier

"Work, Eat, Sleep" by Kris Hankins

Most of my days seem to slip by much too quickly. And, many of my days are full of the same old mundane chores and activities.  I am fortunate that I have a fair amount of time that I can allot to enjoy my art.

For me, creating art is a total escape from the mundane. My world comes alive when I sit down in my studio. No two projects are ever the same. Life is fresh, ideas are exhilarating, and finished projects are rewarding.

 

To express how my life comes alive with art, I made this chipboard wall hanging for my studio. It hangs over my work table. It shows the difference in my days…the mundane versus the art filled days.

To make this wall hanging, I started off by inking up a piece of heavy chipboard with chalk inks. I used 4-5 colors to create a weathered-looking background.

 

On light yellow, green and blue card stock, I stamped the words "work", "sleep" and "eat" with chalk ink, using the Buzz and Bloom Rustic Alphabet stamp set. I cut these words into strips and attached them to the chipboard. I also hand-wrote some personal thoughts next to each word.
 

I took (3) 1" coordinating cardstock squares, and stamped them with a paisley print from the Buzz and Bloom Paisley Passion stamp set. I adhered the squares to the coordinating word strip, laying them at a slight angle. 

Next, I took Buzz and Bloom Chipboard Rustic Alphabet and spelled out the word ART. I inked each of the letters with white ink. I then over stamped each of them with random images from the Buzz and Bloom Pretty Things I, II, and III stamp sets. I used two stamp images and two shades of ink on each letter to give the letters more depth and interest.
 

I then attached the chipboard letters to the background. I layered them on top of each other, using pop dots where needed.  A little “bling” is always a good thing to add, so I added  square rhinestones to each letter. I added a large decorative flower, and some small rhinestones to the background. 

Next to this, I added some handwritten words that describe how I feel when I am in my studio doing art.  As final touches, I attached paper flowers, two strips of polka dotted ribbon to the background, and added two eyelets to the top of the wall hanging.  A ribbon hanger was attached through the eyelets.

 

"You Can Fly" by Kris Hankins

Whenever possible, I like to bring nature into my home, whether it is with a plant or fresh flowers, or other decorative element. Year round, I love to spend time in my screened porch, endlessly observing the outdoors. It is so relaxing for me. I wanted to make a birdhouse for my screened porch. This house didn't end up as just your average birdhouse.  I'd say it was a bit "stylish".  If it were placed outside, I think only the classiest of birds could inhabit it.
 

Step 1 - I first gave my unfinished birdhouse a light sanding and a coat of primer. This was followed by a coat of white acrylic paint over the entire birdhouse.

Next, I added glaze medium to a small dab of beige acrylic paint. I left the paint/glaze partially mixed. I painted the sheer/streaky mixture onto the roof, using vertical paint strokes. This gave the finished roof a dimensional look of wood.

 

Step 2 - After the roof was dry, I stamped a flourish from Buzz and Blooms Pretty Things I stamp set at the top edges of the roof using green chalk ink. Stamping on this glazed surface gave the stamped images a weathered/aged look. I heat set the images with my heat gun.

 

Using an antique gold acrylic paint, I painted the edges of the roof and the birds perch.  I also mixed some antique metallic gold paint with some gel medium, and made subtle strokes on the top and bottom edges of the roof. Again, this added some age and dimension to the roof.  Gives a patina. 

I also glued some narrow “stitched” green ribbon down the front and back edges of the roof.

 

Step 3 - With a fine/thin paint brush, I painted whispy grass blades on all sides of the birdhouse. I used 3 or 4 shades of green/yellow paints to paint the blades of grass.

 

Step 4 – With a small size alphabet, I stamped “you can fly” on the front of the house, using chalk ink. 

Step 5 – To further embellish my birdhouse, I glued a piece of ribbon leaves onto the birdhouse, going from the birdhouse doorway curving it around to the side panel. I made sure that only the vine was glued down and that the leaves were not. 

I punched a dozen sunflower images out of printed paper using a ¾” paper punch. I added diamond glaze to each flower. After they were completely dry (overnight), I “cracked” each of them. I then adhered them randomly to all sides of the birdhouse.
 

Step 6 – To further enhance the look of my stylish birdhouse, I chose to add two Buzz and Bloom Nautilus Scroll chipboard pieces. I used one large and one small size.  I inked them both with green chalk ink. For interest, I stippled them with rust, light green, and gold chalk ink. I attached the large flourish to the front of the house, and the small one to the eave at the pitch of the roof. 

Step 7 – My final step was to paint 4 round wooden balls with white paint, and attached them to the bottom of the birdhouse.  I gave the balls a wash of antique metallic gold paint.

The house is now ready for both humans and birds to enjoy!!!