Mixed Media Art by Kim Collister with StencilGirl® Products

Hello, creatives! Kim Collister here! 

Anytime I get to play with StencilGirl® products, it’s always a fun day in the studio! First off, I’ve been dying to use this frame I picked up at a flea market. What I love the most about it, is that it is all one piece. The center substrate is wood and originally someone had stamped the words “Hello Beautiful” on it.  I brought it home, sanded the paint off in the center of the frame and gave  it a layer of white Gesso with another light sanding and a coat of white acrylic paint.

The first stencil I chose to use was Tina Walker’s Stone Statue, which I just love.  This is the larger one which worked perfect for this frame.  I placed the stencil centered in the frame and used a makeup sponge to dab on some tan acrylic paint (Desert Sand) on the face area and the sides of the face.

Leaving the stencil in place, I took another sponge and dabbed on some background colors using four colors of acrylic paint: Laguna, Bahama Blue, Sweet Mint, Caribbean and Lavender.

I didn’t use a brush with the pounce effect because I wanted a more painterly look which you get more of by using a sponge and little more paint.

After lifting up the stencil, I used my heat gun to dry any areas still wet or damp. The next stencil I chose to use on this piece was one designed by Carolyn Dube called Words to Live By.   I placed the stencil in the center with the top as close to the top edge as possible. I used the Desert Sand acrylic paint to give the appearance of her extended hair dabbing it on a little thicker with a sponge. When I use the thicker paint, I let it sit for a few minutes before lifting the stencil. Once lifted, the words came through with my base colors of blue hues and lavender. 

I loved the words so much that I added some more blue and lavender colors at the bottom left and just randomly added lavender here and there.  Using the heat gun to dry again, I then placed the same stencil down and dabbed on the Desert Sand acrylic paint over the stencil in the lower left corner showing different words on the bottom of the stencil.

Now, I was left with a blank space on the right bottom. I loved working on this piece as I went along seeing what would surface with no expectations. So the next stencil I grabbed was a stencil designed by Andrea Matus deMeng: A Rose by Any Other Name. For this one, I used the Lavender acrylic paint over the base colors already there and after lifting the stencil, I filled in some areas of the rose with blues. 

At this point I wanted to add a little more of the Desert Sand to balance my picture so I used two of the leaf stems in a stencil by Roxanne Coble: Wolf.

Next, I added some doodle drawings and a tad bit of lace on the bottom of her collar using White and Black Posca paint pens and a pencil. 

There was still an uncertainty about her face so I dug through my collage and found an eye which totally brought the piece together for me. Through out creating this piece I was listening to Little Big Town’s album “Nightfall”, so I decided to name this painting “The Daughter’s” and I love that the words just fell into place with the name: Be Bold, Be You, Explore, Strong, Amazing, There and NOW.

“THE DAUGHTERS”

This is my finished piece, frame and all. Since the frame was attached, I painted it blending all the blues and highlighting different areas. Around the picture, I blended all the colors to make the picture stand out more so the frame would not be such a big focal point.

You can see more of my work by visiting my Blog or connecting with me on Instagram.

Until then, I hope you are finding lots of ways to create during this wild, crazy time.

Stay safe, stay well and BE BOLD, BE YOU!

Kim ~*