Monday, May 28, 2007

Cheap Trick - Tissue Paper Backgrounds

Whilst playing around with packing tissue, I remembered Michelle's Street Team call for Crusade No. 8 - Cheap Tricks & thought this entry would qualify...........
I never throw away packing tissue I receive with parcels as its always useful for collage & even stamping on. The above background was simply stamped with blueprints , then crumpled up prior to swiping with distress inks & spritzing with water.
This background started off as a piece of tan tissue paper to which I applied rusting solutions through a square mesh stencil .......quite a neat effect & textural in real life, the scan really doesn't do it justice!
Here are a couple of ATC's made with the first backgound above.

The Architect

Venus
Other Free Cheap Tricks:
Use your old phone book yellow pages for glueing, once the page is sticky just turn over & use the next one.
Use phone book pages as part of your background (as in the ATC below)......picked up this trick from Claudine Hellmuth's book - Collage Discovery Workshop.

Collect & incorporate used postage stamps (as above) in your art & you can even cut out the images from some to add to your collage if your don't wish to include the whole stamp. The butterfly in the example below was cut out from used US postage.

Masking tape which is relatively cheap from any Hardware/DIY store can be used to also create textured backgrounds as in the deco cover above.
When you think about it there are a ton of things you can use in your art for free, you just have to look at things with a different eye!

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gisele - thanks for jumping in on the crusade by showing us your terrific cheap tricks! We are all learning so much with this prompt - love seeing your tissue paper technique! Like i don't already hoard stuff....now I'll be stashing away phone books! Again, thanks for playing.

Anonymous said...

These are great cheap tricks and I really like what you have produced with them. I love the architectural plan stamp, who is it by? Ux

Judy said...

Great idea's Gisele, I have seen these done but you make them look so great. I wish i could print on tissue paper but it will rip through the printer. Love the masking tape too - I have done that, have you tried burning it a bit too, its also a really nice effect.

Ro Bruhn said...

These are great Gisele, I love the one with the plan print. I've used the tissue paper with the paisley design on it that you sent your charm in, in my journal.
Ro
xo

Crafty Green Poet said...

I was just going to recycle our old phone book but you've given me another idea! I clooect tissue paper too, but mostly use it for wrapping gifts, again you've given me an alternative idea for it! Great cheap tricks!

Barbara said...

I really loved reading how you did this. Thanks for sharing.

carlene federer said...

Love, love the tissue paper thing...everyone at my house knows to never EVER throw a piece away, lol! Great art too!

Penny Rabbit said...

Your background paper ideas are fantastic! Love them! Love your art, it's incredible!

cookievf said...

Gisele, thanks for sharing all of these great techniques. I really enjoyed reading about them!

All of the cards are sooo pretty! My favorite is the "architectural plan" and especially what you did with it!
- vicki xo

x said...

What great tricks and wonderful art, love the architecture plan. ;) Thanks very much for sharing these great tricks. ;)

Jo Capper-Sandon said...

WOW....you are so clever ...fabulous tips here. And stunning work as always.