Collage Play with Crowabout ~ Week #53

Collage Play with Crowabout offered up a wonderful collage sheet this week. Nancy B.of Crowabout really outdid herself.

As the mother of three sons, it was easy to create a collage that would be "all about boys."

If you haven't yet visited the Collage Play with Crowabout blog, you really must do so. There is an abundance of inspiration and fun waiting for you there.

Collage available in my Etsy shop.

© Nancy Lefko

Bitten by the Halloween Bug

Whether it was denial that the summer was over or just the "Halloween Scrooge" in me, whatever the reason, I was having a hard time mustering up the interest in creating Halloween themed collages. However, the "Mix It Up with Melange" Challenge this week got my creative Halloween juices flowing and I had great fun making the collages featured here.


I really do enjoy working in the colors that I associate with Halloween and Autumn. I may not really be ready for that nip in the air, but the changing leaves here in New England really are spectacular.

Collages available in my Etsy shop.

© Nancy Lefko

"Mix It Up with Melange" Challenge ~ WEE WITCHES

The Melange Challenge was just the nudge I needed to begin work on some Halloween collages. Once I started on this collage, I was inspired to create three more.

If you are in need of some inspiration, please stop by the Melange Team blog and join in on the "Mix it Up" challenge....we'd love to see what you create.

Collage available in my Etsy shop.

© Nancy Lefko

Summer's Really Over

During the height of summer when the activity and just plain NOISE around my house reached a crescendo, I yearned for a few hours of peace and quiet. Uninterrupted silence...a few moments to create in my studio...seemed like a slice of Heaven.

And yet now that the boys are back in school, some days are just TOO quiet. After the chores are done and the errands run, instead of making a bee-line to my studio, I look for other things to busy myself with and yet nothing quite fills the void. It's almost as if I am looking for someone to nurture and they're not here. The emptiness is palpable and I don't like how it feels.

Oh, I'm sure that I'll adjust to the empty house in time and the silence will be less deafening. But for now, I actually have to force myself into my studio. Today I prepped some surfaces for future collage work and then took my journal out to the screen porch...my very favorite spot in the house...and put those feelings down on paper. Yes, journaling was a good idea. Just that little bit of creative expression got under my skin and I was sorry when I had to set my journal down.

Yes, I'll be fine...there are surfaces ready to collage.

© Nancy Lefko

Collage Play with Crowabout ~ Week #52

Collage Play with Crowabout is an exercise that truly stretches your creativity and gives your muse a workout. This week the collage sheet from Nancy B.of Crowabout was filled with wonderful images that I was immediately drawn to, and yet it took a while to formulate an idea or a direction for my collage. Even then, the collage you see pictured above is not at all the one I began...there were many changes along the way.

If you haven't yet visited the Collage Play with Crowabout blog, you really must do so. There is an abundance of inspiration and fun waiting for you there.

Collage available in my Etsy shop.

© Nancy Lefko

Collage Play with Crowabout ~ Week #51

This week's collage sheet at Collage Play with Crowabout was the nudge I needed to get my Halloween juices flowing. I have been in a state of denial regarding the end of summer and therefore none too anxious to begin creating Halloween inspired art. But the wonderful collage images that Nancy B.of Crowabout supplied in this week's challenge certainly made me more receptive to the chill in the air that is approaching and all the fun and beauty that the Fall brings.

Collage available in my Etsy shop.

© Nancy Lefko

"Mix It Up with Melange" Challenge ~ NAUGHTY

It wasn't much of a stretch for me to find an image to use in a NAUGHTY collage for the "Mix it Up" challenge. More than a few of my lovely vintage ladies might be referenced as such.

Please stop by the Melange Team blog and join in on the "Mix it Up" challenge....we'd love to see what inspires you.

Collage available in my Etsy shop.

© Nancy Lefko

FABRIC ART COLLAGE ~ A Book Review

Fabric Art Collage by Rebekah Meier is a wonderful resource book with a wealth of over 40 mixed media techniques.

Divided into nine sections, this book is well-organized and reader-friendly. The full color photographs showcase not only finished projects and techniques, but also key steps along the way.

Beginning with the section entitled TOOLS AND SUPPLIES, Rebekah offers an extensive and thorough overview of a wide range of products including fabrics, paints, dyes, inks, adhesives, tools, accessories and more. There is truly something for everyone; Rebekah's vast experience with a wide array of products and materials is evident.

PAINTING AND STAMPING illustrates 13 techniques for adding design to fabric. Concise instructions are given for each technique.

Eight techniques for CREATING BASE MATERIAL show how to combine materials such as fusible web, paper, Lutradur (a non-woven translucent web) and more.

CREATING TEXTURE offers five methods, including needle-felting and machine stitchery, utilizing a wide variety of materials.

Sections entitled EMBELLISHMENTS and FIBERS AND HAND EMBROIDERY offer up ideas and approaches for adding extra “punch” to your fabric collages.

HOT TOOLS explains how using the Creative Textile Tool, an iron or a heat embossing tool can fuse, emboss or etch a variety of materials to be used in your collages.

Rebekah demonstrates DISTRESSING materials with tea, coffee, dye, ink and paint and she offers guidance in ASSEMBLING THE LAYERS. A focus on creating composition, balance and construction of the finished piece rounds out the techniques presented in this resource book.

Five different quilt projects are found at the close of Fabric Art Collage along with a gallery of 17 beautiful examples of mixed media/fabric projects. Finally, the materials referenced throughout the book are listed in the “resources section” with detailed source information.

The author suggests creating a “techniques swatch book” as you move through the book. I think this is a wonderful idea and would make for a handy reference.

Fabric Art Collage will be a “go to” resource when you are looking to master a new technique for use in your mixed media projects. The techniques range from the simple to the more complex, thereby satisfying the novice or the experienced artist.

This book is available through C&T Publishing.

FaveCrafts is giving away a copy of this awesome book. Visit their site and enter every day, if you like, to increase your chance of winning. Contest ends September 8, 2009. Good luck!

Image © C&T Publishing