When I was a teenager, I loved to paint. As the years pass, my free time seems to shrink and while I've wanted to get back to painting for awhile now, I just don't have the time or I admit, the confidence to do it. This brought an idea to my mind. Why not paint over a stamped image using acrylic paints so that it looks more like a painting than a stamped image.
Using the stamp as a guide, I've created my own mini painting to use on a card or piece of altered art. It's a fun and unique approach to using a stamped image and I hope you'll enjoy it.
To start off with, I've stamped my image onto some Sticky Back Canvas and then heat set it. I'm using one of the latest Lockhart stamps here, Petunias on the Gate, and stamped it in Jet Black Archival Ink. This is a great ink that is permanent when heat set making it perfect for adding liquid paints to.
You can see that this stamp is quite detailed and beautiful and could be colored with Copic Markers, colored pencils, watercolored or whatever medium you wish. Today's project uses a more loosely interpreted approach where you use the stamp as a guide and then cover it up totally with paint. You'll be able to see how closely the final painting follows the stamp but is not a slave to it.
Acrylic paints are wonderful things and I love how you can apply them thick like an oil painting or thin them to a wash to resemble watercolors. To create the background apply water to the area you want to "wash" with paint and then pick up a small amount of color with a wet brush and put in a thin transparent coat of paint to form the background.
After your wash is dry, begin adding thicker coats of Studio Line Acrylic Paint to build up color and totally cover the stamped image. Feel free to add in your own highlights and greenery. Above is a photo of my painting midway through.
I've added in my flowers randomly. By the time you get to the flowers, most of your ink should be covered so add them where you wish. I love adding dots of colors to resemble flowers. An easy way to get lovely dots is to turn your brush upside-down and dab the paint on with the end of your brush.
I used the Ranger Non-Stick Craft Sheet as a worksurface for my canvas and also to mix colors directly on. Get variations of colors by mixing two or more paints directly on the mat. It simply wipes off or the paint will peel off if you allow it to dry.
These are the Studio Line paint colors I used.
This is my final painting while drying. You can see that some of the flower dots are still wet.
Finally a detail shot of the finished image. Don't worry if the painting isn't perfect. It just adds to the charm of the project. One last thing to note...the smaller the stamp detail is, the harder it will be to recreate. If you're looking for extreme detail, Copic Markers or watercoloring may be a better coloring method for you.
Thanks for stopping by the CLASSroom and happy creating!
Supplies: Petunias on the Gate stamp by Lockhart Stamp Company, Find Joy Stamp set by Hero Arts, Jet Black Archival Ink by Ranger, Sticky Back Canvas by Ranger, Non-Stick Craft Sheet by Ranger, Smidge of Blue, Sable Brown, Blank Canvas, Sky Blue, Landscape Green, Yellow Pastel and Dash of Red Studio Line Paints by Ranger, Studio Artist Brushes, Pink Vintage Button by Jenni Bowlin, twine, sewing machine, Mini Pin by Tim Holtz, Solar White cardstock by Neenah, Mocha Cardstock by Memory Box
