Foiled!!

One of the fun techniques that I did some experiments with was working with foil.  I really liked the way you could manipulate it with anything that had the ability to leave an impression.  You could use everything  from a spoon to a fly swatter.  All you had to do was press it onto the foil or press the foil on top of the impression.
When I was in Michael's I saw some really interesting pattern presses, before I started this I had no idea anything like that even existed.  The "pattern presses" are just small flat pieces of metal with an embossed design on them.  They had so many interesting ones that I had  to buy one to experiment with.   I choose one that had different machine gears embossed on the plate.  I also used various acrylics to see how different colors affected the design.  This is how it came out. 
Donna Vines

Metal Looks

By know you all know how much I enjoyed Carol Nelson's workshop and what a fan of hers I am.  Not only do I admire her talent but her fearlessness.  She just goes for it.  She is not afraid to fail and go on to the next thing.  Most of the time we are too intimated to stray from all the set rules.  Play and take risks should be a sign in all our "play" spaces.
This is another technique Carol showed us.  I loved doing this one because it not only used found objects but made them look like they had been around for ages.
For this exercise use anything you have from your garage.  I used washers, paperclips, a button and  some old gutter screening.  I glued down the found objects with gel medium and the screening I used as a stencil and spread some gel on and let dry until it was hard.  Once the glue was set and the medium dry I covered it with heavy duty aluminum foil.  I glued the foil in the back with gel medium then burnished around the objects with my finger.  Once all the shapes were outlined I spread a mixture of watered down acrylic paints till I got the finish I wanted.  This look is very "Steam punk", which I love.
Donna Vines

Steam punk