"Though we cry tears of sadness
for the loss of our loved ones,
So the angels weep tears of joy
For the return of their's."
Hey everyone,
I'm back to show you a canvas I made for many reasons. One of the reasons is that it is the tenth 'anniversary' of my mother's death today. I can't believe how fast time goes by. Some memories fade unfortunately, while others stay put in my heart forever. I still miss her so much. Her warmth, our bond, her laughter, her naughty, funny and vibrant nature, her creativity, her advice, her hugs, our talks on the phone, our shopping trips.
So when I saw the
'Angels' challenge' from the 13Arts blog come by, I knew I wanted to create something for/about my mom. (I even miss that I can't
make gifts for her anymore...)
My mom loved angels so much, she actually became one. The poem above says it all. She believed dearly in angels, and she found comfort in knowing she was needed in heaven even more, than here on earth. Though she had a really hard time leaving us behind. She fought her battle against cancer for as long as humanly possible. And then some more.
Watching slip her away into heaven is something I will never forget, for as long as I live and breathe.
You still have until the 27th of March to join in their challenge!
Also, the March challenge over at the
Words & Paintery blog really spoke to me. You still have until April 15 to join in! The colors really inspired me to use them on my angel canvas. My mother was a very feminine woman.
And the words? They are the words my mother used to live by. She tried to make her dreams come true and enjoyed all the little things that every day brought. She had had a rough childhood and knew she had to make her own happiness.
Sadly these words have become even more true when she passed away at age 52. Her early death has made us realize to seize the day. Nothing lasts forever indeed.
So... where to start?
I wanted to try to use a picture of mother collage style. So I made a copy and applied it to the canvas with gel medium. Let that dry and worked around it in the meantime.
Recently I purchased this 'wings stencil' from Sandra's Hobbyshop and thought the wing shapes would fit nicely into a heart shaped canvas. I applied gesso to the canvas first after having read that someone had had trouble with the crackle paste. Unfortunately, the gesso might have been the source of that same trouble I also experienced later on: the crackle paste was so immensely cracked, the bits were practically standing upright! I could flick them all right off. I decided to put a coat of gel medium on the canvas first, then applied the texture paste once more. This time I kept the layer thinner as well.
Luckily, the paste stuck this time.
Below you can see the result of the cracked wings. Some bits are still almost chipping off, but I sealed everything with gel medium. Which I did whilst blending it a bit with Finnabair Art Ingredients Opal Mica Powder, peach colored.
The picture came out okay, and I coated it with a clear crackle medium. Unfortunately I applied it too thickly, cracking up my mother's face too much, so I tried 'collaging' the same picture over it, in the hopes of a better result. (I can already tell you it didn't work. I could peel the picture right off, revealing nothing but the deeply cracked picture once more.)
Around the top and sides of the wings I stenciled little stars with modeling paste. I wanted the wings to stay in focus, not clutter them.
So I decided to put the emphasis on the bottom half of the canvas, by embellishing a skirt-like shape. First I adhered a bit of lace, but I might as well not have, since it's not showing anywhere anymore, LOL. Then I added some more embellishments.
Not shown on this picture yet, is the bit I added later, above the 'waist' of my mother. I wasn't happy with the outcome of the blouse, so I covered that up mostly.
Then it was time to cover everything in gesso.
Once the gesso had dried, I sprayed, using 3 different colors. I used 2 glimmermists: pink poodle and crimson.
And for the lighter shade of pink, I used Lindy's Stamp Gang: Sunset Pink.
I set off the stars from the background with a bit of Silver Inka Gold.
I added some Prima Art Stones here and there with gel medium, and sprayed those too. For a bit more glitter I added Glimmerglam: Chandelier over the wings, the picture, the shirt and wherever else it was needed.
I'll leave you with some more shots, and hope you like it. My only regret is adding the too big cracks to my mom's head. Also I have to admit I found it difficult to embellish this one, because I wanted the wings to remain uncluttered.
Comments and questions are always welcome!
Happy scrapping!
