Sunday 27 March 2016

Sweet Airs, Fantasy ATC Triptych by Julie Ann

Hello from Julie Ann at Magpieheaven. I'm back today with the second of my projects for the Calico Crafts Parts blog. 

Last time I asked you to step into a miniature theatre and view the first scene from Shakespeare's magical tale of travellers shipwrecked on an enchanted isle, The Tempest. Now I've created a miniature triptych from 3 Calico Craft Parts ATCs that could well depict a scene from some fantasy land where 'Sweet airs...give delight'.


These sturdy ATCs have such detailed, intricately crafted frames they can be combined with dolls' house hinges to form an intriguing triptych. I chose to combine 1 shaped ATC Wood Blank with a fancy cut-out frame with 2 ATC Wood Blanks with Seashell Pillar Frames .


This little Robin MDF Bird Shape was all ready to sing her heart out, but first she needed a quirky new head in the form of a Mini Greyboard heart!


Here are the ATCs painted black with their frames decorated in shades of green acrylics and lightly gilded. I also decided to give the little songbird a crown from a sheet of Mini MDF Crown Shapes Style 3.


The midnight black of the blanks has now been transformed to blue twilight on the magical isle with some Crackle and shades of blue Acrylic with a touch of violet water colour.


I suggested the magical isle in the background with a little stamping and some more water-colour highlights. The robin is now one of the spirits of the Isle and 2 feathers from a sheet of Mini MDF Feathers Style1 drift gently down, painted in shades of green and blue opaque and translucent acrylics.


I added my own text to the ATCs either side of the Spirit of the Isle, 'Lark Ascending' and 'Sweet Airs'.You can see the tiny Dolls' House hinges I attached with non-toxic super-glue to the reverse side of the ATCs after decorating.


These Art Nouveau letters, which I painted and gilded had just the right air of exuberance and looked to me as if they were quite capable of flying from the triptych with the butterflies from the Mini MDF Wood Butterflies Sheet Style 4. You can select from a number of alphabets at Calico Craft Parts and create the word or words of your choice for your particular project.


A final glimpse of the Spirit of the Isle. After painting the crown with a blend of yellow and red acrylics and a touch of thick gold embossing enamel, I coated it with clear embossing enamel and melted this with a heat tool. I've added an extra feather and part of a flourish along with features in water-colour and black pigment pens. 

These Calico Craft Parts ATC Blanks were such a lovely substrate to work with and individually they would make a great ATC for a swap. Why not check them out on the Calico Craft Parts Store here? I've really enjoyed this opportunity to play with these beautiful craft blanks and I would like to thank ZuZu and the Team for inviting me to contribute to the blog. Happy Creating Everyone! 

15 comments:

  1. Julie Ann, these are stunning! The details are incredible.

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  2. Wow! What a feast for the eyes this is. Beautiful triptych Julie Ann. I love your beautiful bird lady and I love how you've decorated the back of your piece too. Fabulous! Lx

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  3. Julie, this is totally amazing, I love your imagination and the wonderful characters you create, and the ATC`s triptych is a fantastic idea. The atc`s so very beautiful. Thank you for a trip to fairyland !! xx

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  4. Absolutely delightful! This should be a marvelous enchanting faery story with an important plot turn at every ATC! I just love it. Brava!

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  5. What a fabulous triptych Julie! So much detail both in the use of the parts and in the painting. The tiny feathers on the bird's branch are so beautiful! I love this!

    Hugs
    Lesley Xx

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  6. Gracious but you made a beyond INCREDIBLE Triptych Julie. What a great magical isle and fun robin. SUPER FUN IMAGINATIVE creation! XXj.

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  7. this is utterly masterful! just so lovely and inspiring! xo

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  8. Love seeing one of your lovely works in a triptych! And I'm not surprised that even the back is beautiful. Enjoyed seeing the process so much. Another magical, imaginative work of art!

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  9. This is absolutely stunning, Julie Ann! I love seeing your original art work for the robin's head and I adore the atcs as a triptych. Must get some!

    Lucy x

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  10. Oh Julie, you are totally rocking these craft parts, absolutely brilliant work here again. Love what you did with those ATCs, both the front and the back, super creation!

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  11. Thank You so much everyone for these lovely comments! I have to say it was a pleasure to work with these beautiful craft parts. They are so well made. It's been a privilege and a pleasure to be here! xx

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  12. A completely stunning triptych - and another Shakespearean connection... I'm a happy woman!
    Alison x

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  13. Absolutely brilliant Julie Ann!
    You have showcased these frames beautifully and have inspired me so!
    Jackie xoxo

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  14. Love this Julie Ann! The blue and violet are a perfect backdrop, so much drama, perfectly portrayed! Xx

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