Tips & Techniques Thursday: Making Mixed Media, and Distress Stickles

Hi, its's me, Ann, from the Design Team at All that Stickles.  For today's Tips and Techniques, what  I am sharing with all of you is about using those awesome Distress Stickles in your Mixed Media. Now, for those of you who are not sure... Mixed Media is about making art using multiple forms of medias.  For example, a painter that uses more than one type of media on the same canvas, such as oil, pastel, and pencil is considered to be doing mixed media. Today the vogue is about taking scrap booking to another level by altering other substrates than just paper into more complex pieces, or by altering existing objects with various mediums. Then, there are those beautiful canvases that we can paint and glue and distress.... the possibilities are limitless. Basically there is no wrong way to do this.  Making Mixed Media is often the process of evolution many artists go through. We learn the basics, the how to's, what works with what, etc.  Then, the artist just gets this natural feeling of "hey there is more out there", and "let's see what else I can do with this...." Making any art is truly an organic thing.  Therefore, if you ever feel that you have learned everything you can about scrap book making, or card making, or any other craft, but you still want to create, then you just might be ready for this Mixed Media Art. Look out! You just might be an Artist!

Next week on the blog we have a Linky Party going on where we encourage our followers to post projects that show some and ANY Distress Stickles. Shhh! I wasn't supposed to tell you this!  The team members have also been busy creating some great examples to share with you, make sure to come back and check it out.

First, here is a picture of some of my handmade books and journals in and on which I have used Mixed Medias and sometimes stickles.  Because I like to antique my new creations I often turn to the line of Ranger's Tim Holtz Distress products, including the Distress Stickles.  For one thing, all the products in that line are all colour coordinated.  That simplifies things quickly.  So I can use the acrylic paints, the alcohol inks, the Dye ink pads, and of course the coordinating Distress Stickles, and voila I have mixed medias!

I tend to apply the distress or any Stickles for that matter over a dry, and usually as the final layer on my projects.  I use the Distress Stickles to high light or add some dimension to my piece.  Therefore, I want them to be seen, not covered up by another opaque layer.  For example, on my Art journal (book on the left with binder rings) I used some Antique Linen and Rock Candy Distress Stickles, sparingly. Just enough to put some glitter back onto some of the elements after lots of pushing and pulling with layers of paint and ink.  I put just a bit of glitter in some nooks and crannies because I wanted to give my journal an old book look with some fancy jewels and buttons from a long time ago.

In this example (above) I used some Walnut Stain Distress Stickles to enhance my attempt at making rusted metal.  In this instance I had put just too much of the Stickles, so I added some more paint to camouflage the shine but left the grittiness behind.  I also used the paints and inks from the Distress line.

On the page just above (which is a page from inside the journal on the far right in the first picture),  I used Worn Lipstick Distress Stickles on the pink elements.  Notice how it adds dimension but it is not too shiny, it looks more worn. On the green elements I added Vintage Photo Distress Stickles, this gives the rusted look.

Now if you are wondering just how many colours of Distress Stickles are available, check this list out, I got this from the Ranger Website.

Distress Stickles TDS28888 NEW! Barn Door TDS28895 NEW! Bundled Sage TDS28901 NEW! Chipped Sapphire TDS28918 NEW! Crushed Olive TDS28925 NEW! Forest Moss TDS28932 NEW! Pumice Stone TDS28949 NEW! Rusty Hinge TDS28956 NEW! Spun Sugar TDS28963 NEW! Stormy Sky TDS28970 NEW! Tumbled Glass TDS28987 NEW! Victorian Velvet TDS28994 NEW! Wild Honey TDS26334 Aged Mahogany TDS26457 Antiqued Bronze TDS24958 Antique Linen TDS26341 Black Soot TDS24965 Broken China TDS26358 Brushed Corduroy TDS26464 Brushed Pewter TDS26365 Dried Marigold TDS26372 Dusty Concord TDS24972 Faded Jeans TDS24989 Fired Brick TDS24996 Frayed Burlap TDS25009 Milled Lavender TDS26389 Mustard Seed TDS26396 Old Paper TDS25016 Peeled Paint TDS26488 Picket Fence TDS26402 Pine Needles TDS26563 Rock Candy TDS25023 Scattered Straw TDS26419 Shabby Shutters TDS25030 Spiced Marmalade TDS26471 Tarnished Brass TDS26426 Tattered Rose TDS26433 Tea Dye TDS25047 Vintage Photo TDS25054 Walnut Stain TDS26440 Weathered Wood TDS25061 Worn Lipstick

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The glitter in these stickles tends to be bigger than those in the regular line, which adds to its nostalgic feeling, just like the entire Distress Line.  I also find the glitter to be more subtle in its shine, which I love for my altered and distressed projects.

I hope that you enjoy this tutorial and are inspired to give Mixed Media a try.  Just use some stickles and have fun!  Thanks for viewing.

For more inspiration please visit my blog http://annmakes.blogspot.com