table of contents
Introduction
well-stocked pantry tools and materials
Substitution Chart Design Recipes Serving Suggestions Creative-Tasting Party Planner
chapter one artistic appetizers
Paper Dolls Style Icons Doll Variations Doodles
t wo cook s in the kitch en : the creat ive proce ss ( essay )
Crazy Papers Kitchen Colorants Scrumptious Squares Heavenly Leftovers Backgrounds Quick Color Recipes Self-Portrait
chapter two main courses
Reliquary Girls Quilted Clutch Mixed-Media Doll
Art Quilt t wo cook s in the kitch en : what is “ mixed - media ”? ( essay )
Fabric Journal Dimensional Collage Watched Paint Never Dries Peek-a-Boo Collage Book
Keepsake Box
chapter three sweet treats and special occasions
Art Game
t wo cook s in the kitch en : abou t each other ( essay )
Mini Collages Cottage Cards
chapter four guess who’s coming to dinner (mixed media apron gallery) About the Authors Templates
reliquary
girls
everyth ing wor ks; “If I cre ate fro m the hea rt, nea rly if fro m the hea d, alm ost not hing.”
ingredients 3 6˝ square canvas, at least /4˝ deep
3 1/2´ of 1/4-inch copper tubing 6˝ x 36˝ piece of fabric, matching thread Copper tacks or screws 5 yards (or so) of copper wire for wings and cage if you are making the flying girl Scrap block of wood for the base of the standing girl Photocopied image of a face, those shown are about 4˝, but try a couple of sizes to see which one looks best Acrylic paint, two colors to complement the fabric as well as white and brown One sheet of cardstock to complement your fabric and/or paint Paintbrushes Paper towels Scissors Needle-nose pliers Glue Hammer
—M arc Cha gal l
i just love these dolls. The niches. The serious heads on the silly forms, the bent tubing limbs, and the wonderful fabrics mixed with metals. They are built, not glued together. They each tell a story from my everyday life, not some dreamt up, wild, poetic tale. For me, they really are an example of allowing the truth to spill from your artwork— that’s where the soul comes from. Throughout history, reliquaries have been created as containers for precious artifacts of cultural significance. These assemblage dolls might not hold any saint’s tears or king’s toenails, but they can display odds and ends that you love to look at. Those odds and ends aren’t doing anything for you in the junk drawer. Might as well make some art with them. The sitting girl is the original reliquary doll; I created her for my husband, J.R. He marvels at how I can sew entire quilts and purses and skirts from scratch, but can never seem to find the time to sew on his buttons. “Sew what” in the niche is actually me saying to him, “You want me to sew what? I’ve got art to make!” The little thread angel is telling me to be a good girl and sew on the stinkin’ buttons and bake a pie and run the sweeper, while the thread devil is telling me to make something frivolously cute. When Cheryl saw these finished pieces, she asked me, “what exactly did you tell the guy at the home-improvement store that you were doing with all of the copper tubing?” I laughed because it was my husband that really required all the explaining. I asked him to help me with the drilling (keep in mind, artists, that the copper wire and tubing are heavenly to work with because they are very easy to mold), and boy, was he ever full of suggestions and questions, beginning with “why would you…” I thought about crediting him as my collaborator on this one.
Drill
mixed mania
Debbi Crane & Cheryl Prater
project gallery
clockwise from top left: Dimensional Collage, Scrumptious Squares, Cottage Cards, Reliquary Doll, book from Keepsake Box.
clockwise from top left: Fabric Journal, Art Game, Fabric Journal, Art Quilt
mixed mania
Debbi Crane & Cheryl Prater
get your
mix on!
Mixed Mania features 20+ smart and sassy mixed-media projects
appetizers (starter projects), main courses (full projects), and sweet treats (projdivided like a cookbook into
ects to make for gifts) for a fresh perspective on mixed-media art. From artist books to assemblage, art quilts to art dolls, it’s all here, plus how-to instruction on a variety of mixed-media, collage, and surface-design techniques.
inside you’ll find:
F O ver twenty step-by-step projects laid out like recipes complete with ingredients (materials), instructions (what to mix, add), and tips (how it should look, taste, etc.) showcasing colorful, innovative collage and assemblage projects created with a variety of ephemera and mixed-media materials, all with detailed how-to instructions and photos. F T echniques include art quilting, collage, bookbinding, assemblage, image transfers, paper art, and more. F A n inspiring gallery of work by popular artists interpreting the theme of the Apron in a variety of mixed-media.
Mixed Mania will appeal to established art makers seeking inspiration and to readers new to the world of mixed media looking for a way to get started.
about the authors debbi crane has been an avid book artist for many years and has studied book arts at Penland and Arrowmont. Since 1998, she has been teaching art workshops for adults in various fabric arts, including the International Quilt Festival at Make-It-U, sponsored by Quilting Arts Magazine. She lives in Bedford, Indiana.
Scrumptious Squares, Quilted Clutch
interweavebooks.com
ISBN 978-1-59668-084-5 $22.95 81/2 x 101/4 128 pages Paperbound November 2008
cheryl prater is a scrapbooker who began experimenting with collage and altered books in 2005 after discovering Cloth Paper Scissors magazine. She creates, blogs, teaches workshops, and takes on other artful endeavors in Atlanta, Georgia.
