WI Art Camp 2012 - Day 5

It's our last day... sooooo sad!!!  But we're taking a class with Jan..... soooooo fun!!!!
Our class is called Art and Soul and we're working with one of Tim's configuration boxes.  The project was supposed to be Heart and Soul, but the hearts that Jan ordered didn't get to her in time so we substituted Mary's paper mache torsos.  And as it turned out, I think we all liked using the torsos more than we would have liked the hearts!!!
Some things just happen for a reason!

 On the way to Jan's house we met Pea at Artist and Display and did some 'damage'.  The TAP paper that Margaret turned us on to, and the gelli plate that Jan demoed at my house were popular items!
And then it was on to Jan's for fun and more shopping!!!







We had printed instructions that Jan made for us and we began the project step by step.  But like any project we all work at a different pace and Jan had great patience with us all.  We started by punching holes in our box covers so we could install the wheels and various other embellishments.

 Then we needed to paint our boxes.  We had choice of acrylic paints, distress stains, and the new distress metallic stains.  I chose the easiest... distress metallic stain.. and I only used one color since I don't trust my ability to blend colors.
We took a break for lunch and you just couldn't stop some of us from shopping.
And then it was back to work.
Jan's husband Carl got home from work and started working on our dinner... what a treat!
 

Poor Margaret.... There were so many of us that we had an overflow area since the rest of us took up the entire dining room table.

 We all used decorative tissue paper to cover the inside of our main box... simply applying with glue or matte medium, I used matte medium.

 Once we determine which of the smaller boxes we would use inside the main box we used paper tape and/or washi tape to cover the outside and inside of the boxes.  Jan had a ton of choices for us... black, white, colors, patterned, etc. 
This was the first time I had used the tapes and after a little practice with them I like them and would use them again.

Margaret took a different approach... I like it!!!
Rather than have her inside boxes with the openings facing out, she turned them around, painted them to match the outside of the box, and attached embellishments on them so they looked like drawers.  How cool!!!

 I think this is Pea's.  And now we're almost ready to move on to adding embellishments to the box and then working on the torso.   We added metal corners to the box cover, a 'skate' key to the side with embellishments hanging from it, a key to hang off the front, and a numbered plaque attached to the top.

 We covered the torso with metal foil.  But before we did that, Jan had us practice with flashing tape on a paper mache heart so that we could see how easy or difficult it would be to work on a curved surface.
We tore the metal tape in pieces and then applied to the entire torso.  After smoothing it down we used various items to create texture... like a tracing wheel, a pen, a piercing tool, and a credit card.  When we were satisfied with the texture we created we used alcohol inks to color the torso.  After coloring the torso we used steel wool on the torso.  You could rub as little or as much as you wanted.
Carol did something different with her torso... only part of it was covered with the metal tape and the other part was covered with a napkin.

 This is my box to the right.  I didn't rub my torso as much as everyone else.  I noticed that the more you rub, the more color that comes off.  I wanted my torso to have lots of color since there was so much white, black, and silver to my box.
If you notice on the bottom of the box there is a metal plate, and each of us needed to come up with a 6 or 7 letter word to punch with a dymo  that we slipped inside the plate.  My word is 'petite' and Pea's word is 'sweet p'... so appropriate.  I think Margaret's word was 'armoire'.

 I think this box is Bev's, but I'm not sure.  We were all so busy I couldn't keep up with what everyone else was doing.

 Maggi's box is on the right.  She painted the insides of a couple of her small boxes instead of lining with the paper tape. 
There would be more work to be done on our own.  We did not finish the insides of our small boxes at Jan's ... that is to be completed at home.  I'm glad because at this point I need to think about what I want to do with them.
And you can see on Margaret's below that our next steps were to embellish our torso with some of the items that Jan provided and to attach the slides across the top of the box.
The original project that Jan found on line showed using a circular slide from a viewfinder, but she couldn't find any of them.

 Above is a picture of all 7 of our creations.  Now, it is up to us to take them home and finish them.  Hopefully we all remember to post pictures when we finish them.  This project has given me more ideas for projects I can make as gifts.  Thanks so much Jan!!!

 Check out this grill!!!
Chef Carl is making us dinner... are we lucky or what??
Carl made chicken breasts stuffed with spinach and feta cheese, and if that wasn't enough, he also made pork tenderloins that were covered with coarse ground dijon mustard while they were cooked.  It was all sooooo delicious!

We returned home from our wonderful day of crafting, shopping, and eating at Jan's and Bob had already started a bonfire for us.  Too bad we were full from eating dinner... no one had room for s'mores!  It was such a mild day and night that the fire was just enough warmth to keep us cozy.  It was our last night before Bev, Carol, and Margaret flew away.
Another successful Art Camp!!!  And yes, we are doing it again.  We may  squeeze a CA Art camp in there, but I think we're all wanting to come back to WI again in 2013.  It works for me!!!