"Life Doesn't Have to Be Perfect" Mixed Media Panel by Keri Sallee

Good Morning Creatives!

This morning I am sharing a mixed media piece I recently made using my Gel Press 8×10 Plate and Impressables “Rose Mandala.”

Supplies:

In addition to you Gel Press Monoprinting Supplies, you will need:

DecoArt Dazzling Metallics Acrylic Paint
Large Stamp or Texture Block (I am using an Art Foamies stamp designed by Rita Barakat)
DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylic in Carbon Black
Bright Yellow Paint Pen
Watercolors
Quote (I used stickers from Tim Holtz)
Modeling Paste (I used The Crafter’s Workshop “Light and Fluffy Modeling Paste”
Brayer
White Copy Paper

Getting Started:

Start by adding a few drops of your Dazzling Metallics on your 8×10 Gel Plate. I chose: Peacock Pearl, Festive Red and Splendid Gold.

Using a brayer and a light touch, move your paint across you plate. Too much pressure and you’ll get mud. Great for your face…not great for your print. 🙂 Stamp you choice of texture into your plate. This ArtFoamies Stamp makes me happy because it feels like an over the top seashell.

So that my colors will stay vibrant and my metallics will show up, I used just a plain white copy paper. Lay your paper down on top of your paint and rub the back, applying medium pressure to help the paint adhere to your paper. Lift by gently pulling up on a corner.

You can see how the ArtFoamies removed paint from my Gel Press Plate in these great swirly patterns, which POP since I used white paper as my base.

Adding my Impressables

I wanted to add a BIG contrast element to my background, so I chose my Impressables “Rose Mandala” plate and DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylic in Carbon Black (my GO-TO black for most projects!)

Using a piece of palette paper or wax paper, apply a small amount of the black fluid acrylic and run your brayer through it to evenly coat it.

Brayer your paint over your Mandala. Using your brayer does 2 things:

allows you to apply a thin layer of paint and
allows you to use a smaller amount of paint to cover the full surface of your plate.

Gel Press Impressable Rose Mandala

Flip your plate over and “stamp” it on to your created background.

Don’t worry about “perfect” images. The imperfections add to the fun!

Finishing Touches

Now that my background is complete, it’s time to add some more layers.

I knew I wanted to make flowers, so I started with my DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylic and just painted some wavy lines to act as my stems. On top of each of them, I used a modeling paste to “paint” my flowers. I didn’t worry about perfection or making them realistic. They are meant to be funky and abstract with lots of texture. I love how my flowers are very angular, while the Gel Press background I created is all about circles and swirls.