Beginner's - ArtTrader Magazine

Art TRADER
m a g a z i n e
Technique 5: Book Pages
Materials
• cardstock
• old book page or newspaper
• acrylic or watercolor paints
-46-
Technique 4: Tissue Paper
Materials
• cardstock
• bright scrapbooking paper
• tissue paper
I glued the scrapbooking paper to the cardstock. While that was drying, I crumpled up my tissue paper
and ripped it into pieces. I glued the tissue pieces, overlapping, on the cardstock but not so much that
the paper pattern didn’t show through. On this card, I added a dark red border with marker and then
used a black Sharpie to draw whimsy circles around the edge.
I glued the book page to my cardstock and then quickly brushed over everything with my red and white
acrylic paints. Nothing too fancy— just a quick wash so the text shows nicely underneath. I added rubber
stamping to my edges. I used a star and a swirly. You could use anything, really, since I overlapped and
wasn’t worried about the actual stamp showing. I just wanted a design-y edge.
And there you have it—5 very simple and quick techniques for making mixed media backgrounds. The
longest part of these backgrounds was waiting for the glue to dry!
Finishing your cards
Since I’ve just used the plain white cardstock as a base, I normally like to add a matching color cardstock
to the back. This adds an extra layer of sturdiness, plus it looks good too. Once I’ve glued it all together
along with my ATC label, I let air dry until there is no surface stickiness and then I leave my card
between heavy books for at least 24 hours.
In the next issue, we’ll find even more ways to make inexpensive and easy mixed media
backgrounds.