Creative Jumpstart 2020 | Jump, Jump!

I’m super excited to announce that I’ll be participating as an artist in Creative JumpStart (CJS) 2020 (aff. link)!

If you’re not familiar with CJS, it’s a one-of-a-kind online event run by Nathalie Kalbach to kick your creativity into high gear in January 2020.

You’ll learn techniques, discover new materials, and connect with other artists and crafters. 

Throughout January you will get access to a new video by one of the featured artists every day. I’m proud to be one of those artists, called ‘JumpStarters’, for the 7th time!

See for yourself:

Head on over to Nathalie’s website to sign up and for more details!

You get 31 downloadable videos – over 5 hours worth of video content –  for just 50 USD if you sign up before 31 December 2019.

However, you can save even more if you register during Cyber Week!

You can sign up until 6 December for 45 USD or, if you happen to catch this TODAY (2 December 2019) before 11:59 pm EST, it’s only 40 USD!

So what are you are waiting for?! Sign up here!

Join in #CJS20
Join CJS2020

The Stencilfied Journal 2019

Marsha Valk | The Stencilfied Journal 2019 - Prompt 5 Stairway To Heaven

The Stencilfied Journal is a 24-week StencilGirl® Collaboration Challenge hosted by the fab Tina Walker. Each Monday from January to June, Tina has revealed a song prompt for us to play with (using stencils by StencilGirl® Products).

Marsha Valk | The Stencilfied Journal 2019 - Prompt 6 Thank You

This round wasn’t as successful for me as the first round during the summer of last year. Which is a shame, because I use song lyrics in my art journal all the time and, I immensely enjoyed the six prompts I did end up doing!

Marsha Valk | The Stencilfied Journal 2019 - Prompt 7 Counting Blue Cars

I figure it has something to do with my schedule at the beginning of the year and the fact that song prompts require more (mental) steps than last year’s ‘doing, not thinking’ type prompts.

Marsha Valk | The Stencilfied Journal 2019 - Prompt 8 Beautiful

I may, or may not, do a couple more of the prompts. I’m certainly not abandoning this little journal. I still love the pocket size, and I want to see it filled to the brim just like last year’s!

Marsha Valk | The Stencilfied Journal 2019 - Prompt 10 Another Brick In The Wall

Tina has written up a farewell post on her blog, with some of the stunning pages the other participants created. Visit her here: The Stencilfied Journal 2019 – Tina Walker

Marsha Valk | The Stencilfied Journal 2019 - Prompt 11 Cat's In The Cradle

Please note that though I am a columnist for StencilGirl® Products, this is not a sponsored post. I participated in this collab because it’s fun and I think Tina is thebombdotcom!⠀

n*Studio | Hex Marks The Spot

It’s my turn on the n*Studio blog today! Which means that it’s time to share last month’s project with you here.

Hex Marks The Spot

Last month Nat’s Creative Squad was asked to use the Hex Set Large rubber stamps and, to think about what we treasure.

You can read the story behind this page and, a step-by-step description of how I made it here on Nathalie’s blog: Hex Marks The Spot – Marsha Valk

Food For Thought

While you’re there you may also want to have a look at my lighthearted take on this month’s prompt: Food For Thought – Marsha Valk

Gelli Arts® & DecoArt® Collaboration | Summer Fun

Hi there! Gelli Arts® has teamed up with DecoArt® for some ‘Summer Fun’, and I’m here today to share the video I contributed to their blog collaboration!

For the collab, each of the participating Gelli Arts® Artists was gifted a box of DecoArt® Americana Premium paints and mediums to play with.

The theme ‘Summer Fun’ made me think of summer days in the yard and of vacations abroad.

Marsha Valk | Gelli Arts® + DecoArt® collab: Summer Fun mixed media collage monoprint

How-to

I’ve recreated a photo I found in Elle magazine. I started by sketching it on computer paper; then I scanned the sketch to reverse it, and to print multiple copies.

I used the multiple copies to cut several stencils of the scene, each to use with one or two print colours. The stencils (and cut out masks) also helped with printing multiple layers.

I mixed the DecoArt® Americana Premium paints to create colours that (kind of) matched the original photo, and I created texture plates by applying Texture Medium to scrap pieces of cardboard with a Gelli Arts® mini printing tool.

The ‘Summer Fun’ theme also reminded me of colourful dresses, so I decided to use another photo from the same magazine as a reference to draw a lady onto computer paper.

I painted her head first. Then I used Matte Medium and gel printed tissue paper to collage the multicoloured dress.

Once the collage was dry, I pasted the lady onto the gel printed scene with the same Matte Medium, and then I enhanced the print with shadows and added details using paint markers and coloured pencils.

Preserve summer memories

As mentioned, I used photos from a magazine as a reference to create my gel print, but you could also use a personal photo as the jumping off point instead. Wouldn’t it be fun to record a summer memory this way?!

Visit the Gelli Arts® blog to see what the other participating artists have created.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful summer (or winter)!

Materials used

Gelli Arts® 12” x 14” gel printing plate
Gelli Arts® 8” x 10” gel printing plate
Gelli Arts® mini printing tool
4” roller

DecoArt® Americana Premium Mediums Matte Medium, Texture Medium, White Gesso
DecoArt® Americana Premium Acrylic Paints Burnt Umber, Cadmium Orange Hue, Carbon Black, Cobalt Teal Hue, Dark Grey Value 3, Dioxazine Purple, Phthalo Green-Yellow, Primary Cyan, Primary Magenta, Primary Yellow, Pyrrole Red, Quinacridone Magenta, Titan Buff, Translucent White

Please note that none of the links in this post are affiliate links! However, if you use the code MarshaV at check out on the Gelli Arts® website, you get 10% off an order over $20, and I earn a small percentage of the sale.

Stencils

StencilGirl® Products Letters on Box stencil by Daniella Woolf
AALL & Create Stencil #9 by Autour de Mwa, Stencil #12 by Autour de Mwa, Stencil #32 by Carol AndCo, #36 by Aida Domisiewicz

Other

Magazine (Elle)
Computer paper (A4)
Cardboard scraps
Paper (A3)
Tissue paper
Craft knife + cutting mat
2” roller
Scissors
Black pen
Pencil
Paint markers
Coloured pencils

n*Studio | Pastel Dreams

Marsha Valk | n*Studio: Pastel Dreams art journal pageYou may have noticed that I’ve rejoined Nathalie Kalbach’s Creative Squad and, it’s my turn on the n*Studio blog today! Which means that it’s time to share last month’s project with you here!

Pastel Dreams

Last month the n*Studio Creative Squad was asked to go pastel with our colour palettes and to create with Nat’s Large Floral Tile stamp set.

Marsha Valk | n*Studio: Pastel Dreams

The pastel theme reminded me of Mrs Prysselius, one of the characters in the old Pippi Longstocking films.

In the Dutch translation of the Astrid Lindgren books Mrs Prysselius is called aunt Pastellia, so that’s the name she goes by for me.

You can read the full story and watch the step-by-step video here on Nathalie’s blog: Pastel Dreams – Marsha Valk

Marsha Valk | n*Studio: Feel The Rhythm

While you’re there you may also want to have a look at the video I did for April: Feel The Rhythm – Marsha Valk

Hex Marks The Spot

And, last but not least, my Creative Squad project for June is available right here: Hex Marks The Spot – Marsha Valk

StencilGirl® Products & Resketch Color Journal Collaboration

Marsha Valk | StencilGirl®: Resketch Collab JournalHi there! I’ve got a special post for you today!

In February and March I worked my way through a wonderful little Resketch journal as part of the StencilGirl® Products & Resketch Color Collaboration organised by StencilGirl® columnist Tina Walker.

Marsha Valk | StencilGirl®: Resketch Collab Journal

For this collaboration, all of the participants received a journal gifted by Resketch. I chose the 3.5 x 5-inch journal.

Marsha Valk | StencilGirl®: Resketch Collab Journal

To fill the journal we were only allowed to use ONE colour + black and white. I chose ultramarine.

Marsha Valk | StencilGirl®: Resketch Collab Journal

And, as this was a collab for the StencilGirl® Talk Blog, the only stencils we were allowed to use were stencils by StencilGirl® Products. All of the other materials I used were my own choice.

Watch the video above for a quick flip through of the journal!

Marsha Valk | StencilGirl®: Resketch Collab Journal

Tina’s column about the collab is up on the StencilGirl® Talk Blog today and to celebrate she’s also hosting a GIVEAWAY!

We are giving away a random selection of Resketch journals AND a $25 StencilGirl® gift certificate to ONE LUCKY PERSON!

Make sure to comment below to let us know you’ve visited and let us know what color your journal would be. Visit each artist(s) blog for more chances to win!

Anna Friesen
Cynthia Silveri
Jenny Petricek
Tina Walker
Amie Seahorn
Michele Kosciolek
Erin DeCoste
Lisa Dobry
Josefine Fourage

We will pick ONE winner on April 29th, 2019 so watch this space to see if you are a winner! (Comments due no later than April 28th midnight EST).

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Marsha Valk | StencilGirl®: Resketch Collab Journal

Please note that the journal featured in this post was gifted to me by Resketch. I’m also a columnist for the StencilGirl® Talk Blog, so though I did not receive any compensation for participating in this collaboration, the majority of the stencils I used to fill the pages were previously given to me or purchased with a discount!

Creative Jumpstart 2019 | Go ahead, jump!

I’m super excited to announce that I’ll be participating as an artist in Creative JumpStart (CJS) 2019 (aff. link)!

If you’re not familiar with CJS, it’s a one-of-a-kind online event organised by Nathalie Kalbach to kick your creativity into high gear in January 2019.

You’ll learn techniques, discover new materials, and connect with other artists and crafters. 

Throughout January you will get access to a new video by one of the featured artists every day. I’m proud to be one of those artists, called ‘JumpStarters’.

See for yourself:

Head on over to Nathalie’s website to sign up and for more details!

You get 31 downloadable videos – over 5 hours worth of video content –  for just 40 USD if you sign up TODAY (November 26, 2018) before 11:59 pm EST. 

Afterwards, it will be 45 USD until November 30th 2018, and 50 USD until December 31st 2018, before it goes to its regular sale price of 60 USD on January 1st 2019. 

So what are you are waiting for?! Sign up here!

StencilGirl® Column | Cyanotype Printing with StencilGirl® Stencils

Marsha Valk | StencilGirl® Column: Cyanotypes

There’s a new column up on the StencilGirl® Talk blog!

In it, I tell you all about my gratitude journal, you get a glimpse of what I did in London last month, and I share how I tried my hand at cyanotype printing using StencilGirl® Product stencils!

Go to the StencilGirl® Talk Blog to read the column and to see the complete list of stencils, masks and materials used!

Have a wonderful week!