Mail Art Play

Hello peeps! Thanks for coming to visit me here. In the past month I've been having loads of fun fulfilling some happy mail requests and some surprises as well. Here is a little summary. Enjoy! 

Mail Art 01

For Roben-Marie Smith's design team, I made a tutorial for some fun happy mail pockets with a 5x7 gelatin plate, and with yummy rubber stamps by Kristin Peterson called Dream Thicket and the Shine set by Samie Harding 

Happy Mail Art Pockets video tutorial HERE. 

The contents of these pockets are prints from a gelliprinting session, seen below: 

Also, I've been decorating the white cardboard envelopes my StencilGirl club stencils come in. I've had such juicy fun decorating them that it's a shame they're not canvases!

Mail Art 02

Luscious plaid lines, mini hearts, dots and roses!

The whirly mandalas are so happy looking too. Lots of layers with the super matte chalk acylics by PaperArtsy, paired with the luminous Golden fluid paints. I think it's a perfect match!

Lately, I've enjoyed brayering on coloured backgrounds, instead of using a brush or sponge.

These pinks and purples swatches of colour are the result of my printmaking session for the art video tutorial, mentioned above. I really wouldn't need to add anything else to this luciousness, correct? But, I couldn't stop there, had to add my own marks and more to it!

Misty circles made with diy circle stencils add some more magic...

Mail Art 03

Mail Art 04

Just adore the script rubber stamp from the Shine stamp set! It adds the perfect ''looseness'' to my look. I actually managed to make two similar tags like this.

Now this l'il pocket I made waaaay back in 2015. I did make a tutorial for these pockets. See HERE. I hope to make a video tutorial for them one of these days. It's on my to-do list. 

Making more and more of these little painty index card files, with the added bonus of Art Pops stickers by Roben-Marie!

Mail Art 05

Several things are already tucked away in that book paper envelope. This time I added some streaks of smooshed colour. ♥

Loving this corner...

Wax seals make everything extra special!

Can't resist some glamour shots of the sewn edges on the envelopes! I find the Art Pops sticker in bottom middle-ish (in photo above) soooo gorgeous.

Well, here is the end of my post, I guess. I posted on my Instagram that I'd love to sell some of this type of mail art to you! For a decorated envelope, a wax sealed book paper envelope inside, a few tags and pockets, possibly some of my own stickers I've printed on my printer, and more, I'm asking $30.00 CDN + shipping. Shoot me an email at customscrapbooksbyanna@gmail.com if you're interested! ♥♥♥

Have a great day!

♥♥♥ Anna  ♥♥♥

Pretty Little Pockets Tutorial using Gelli® Prints

I have a little tutorial for you today! Want to make these pretty little pockets? If you're at all like me and have a Gelli®-plate, you have stacks of gorgeous prints, and you need ways to use them! How about some flower toppers for sheer white envelopes? 

I also made a big pile of pockets with recycled kraft-colored envelopes. Any color of envelope would be pretty!

Once you start making these, you just might not want to stop! :)

Yes, see that round blue thing in the photo above? It's the round 6" Gelli®-plate. I love it in all it's stained glory! ;)

You will need:

- sewing machine
- black (or any other color you wish) sewing thread (make sure the bobbin has black thread too. Teehee. I made the mistake and totally forgot about that part with the first pocket I made.)
- white glassine envelopes (the ones I used are 3 1/2 x 7 3/4 inches in size) Found them in the cake decorating section of Michaels.
- acetate/transparency
- ruler
- trimmer
- scissors
- various Gelli®-prints - some of them had defined lines, and others were busier. It doesn't really matter. They end up pretty no matter what type of prints you choose, I think! Do you have no idea what Gelli® prints are?!? Oh my goodness! Do check out my other posts about it, or check out the Gelli®Arts website!  
- Bic white-out pen (The white Signo Uni-ball would work too.)
- irRESISTable Pico Embellishers in Neon Orange and Neon Pink (or puff paint)
- washi tape
- Neocolors2 wax water-soluable crayons
- black Stabilo All pencil
- waterbrush or a plain brush
- Gelatos
- paper doilies (I used a set from the cake decorating supply section at Michaels.)
- glue dots or some other adhesive (a simple glue stick works too) or a stapler
- fine line markers (optional)
- flowers template (optional) Download template HERE

Envelopes:

1. Cut transparency/acetate into a 4 inch square. If you have different sized envelopes, just measure accordingly, leaving a border all around for the stitching.

2. With an envelope opener (or knife or scissors), cut open two edges of the glassine envelope. Open and lay flat.

3. Mark out a 3 1/2 inch square with pencil on the front of the envelope lightly, making sure it's mostly centered. Cut out the opening with scissors.

4. Take the acetate square, and with a small bit of washi tape, secure it to the back of the envelope, covering up the window, making sure you leave enough overlapping all around so that you can sew it to the envelope.

5. With sewing machine, sew around all the edges of the window, as shown in the photos. On some of them, I stitched double rows, and others I did not. Remove the washi tape.

6. Close the envelope up, and sew closed around the two sides and bottom.

Flowers:

1. I have included a template you can download for free if you don't want to freehand the flowers. Click on photo for this safe download. Once downloaded, print it off, then cut out the flowers to use as a template.

Sorry about the blue corner lower left. Not sure how that came to be there. LOL

1. Select a few Gelli®-prints, Choose based on color. Intricate patterns or a simple circle pattern are lovely too. You might want to experiment a little, to see what you like the best.

2. Place the flowers on a Gelli® print, trace around the flowers with the black Stabilo All pencil.

Alternately, if you don't want to use the template, with the black Stabilo All, freehand a circle directly on the prints, then petals all around,

I don't worry too much about evenly sized petals. Just wing it. ;)

3. Wet the lines with a waterbrush or just a normal paint brush. Let dry.

4. With a coordinating NeoColors2 crayon, add some color to the middle and on one edge of each petal.

5. Wet with brush and blend. Let dry. (Partially at least. I'm often too impatient...)

6. Add three different colors of Gelatos to the petals and middle. I used colors Bubble Gum, Passion Fruit and Lavender. For a contrasting look, add a different color to the base of each petal. (Which I've done on other flowers, but not this one.)  Let dry (mostly).

I added the two colors in similar areas, close to the base of each petal, blending outward with more water to eliminate hard lines as best as I could.

7. Add the same lines as the black ones with the white-put pen, messily following the lines of the black pencil. But don't sweat it. You don't want the white lines exactly where the black lines are. Carelessly is key here! LOL

I added small dots in the middle, along with a few larger ones. I find them so cute!

8. With the Pico Embellisher, add dots to the middles and the petals. See photos for placement. Let dry.

9. Cut out each flower with the scissors.

10. Attach to envelope with glue dots or staple to pockets. On some of them, I folded the flower in two, and tucked the back half into the front of the envelope. On others, I added a paper doily behind the flower first.Add some washi tape, and maybe some more of that Pico Embellisher around the window. I doodled with a marker on a few of them.

And there you have it! Now find some goodies to fill the little pocket, and send to an artist friend! Or add it to your next art journaling page! :)

With these flower pockets, I used pink and turquoise sewing thread instead of black.

Thanks for stopping by!

Anna