CKU Blog Hop - Mixed Media Canvas

 Hi and welcome to the CKU Blog Hop! We’re excited to share with you projects that we hope get you excited about CKU Reunion, whether you’ve already registered, are planning to come, or wishing you were coming. The blog hop is from Friday, October 7th at 10:00 am MT until Saturday, October 8th at 10:00 am MT. If you get lost during the hop, come back here for the hop order (below). Have fun hopping!

Last winter I took Christy Tomlinson's SheART Workshop and loved playing with the various mediums, doodling, and letting loose as I created. The only problem was, I'm not very good with making cute girls (mine was a little on the "fluffy" side). So when I was thinking about a project for this blog hop I thought it would be fun to try some of the techniques I learned in that workshop but with a twist.

This canvas is a tribute to my sweet Basset Hound Cleo. I love this picture of her. The great thing about making a canvas is you can play and if you don't like something, add another layer or stamp something over it.

What you need to get started is a white canvas (you can get them at any hobby store like Michael's, JoAnns, or Hobby Lobby - mine is a 8x11 size), paper, photo, Mod Podge, stamps, StazOn ink, paint, brushes, rub-ons, and a heat tool (for quickly drying in between layers).

This picture shows the basic background I applied to the canvas. Everything is adhered with Mod Podge and totally dried before starting the next steps (that's where the heat tool comes in handy or you're going to have a lot of waiting time).

Next, I added the "character" to the project, the stuff that makes it more of a collage than just a canvas. I used stamps (you'll need StazOn ink for stamping because the Mod Podge creates a slick surface), paint and a variety of applicators (like mesh, bubble wrap, and a dry brush), printed items, a rhinestone paw print, rub-ons, and doodling with a pen.

Once you have all the flat items on, paint the edges of the canvas, and apply a final layer of Mod Podge to seal everything. Then I added a flower (made with various circles) and a brad with a quote (I clipped the brad legs off and applied with foam tape).

Here's the finished project and a couple close up shots.

I had so much fun creating this canvas, which I now have at work so I can admire my beautiful hound. But more than that were the memories I enjoyed as I worked on the canvas.

I hope you enjoyed my Cleo canvas. Have fun blog hopping and we hope to see you at CKU Reunion in San Diego on October 27-29.

Here's the blog hop order (if you stumbled upon this blog post I highly recommend starting at the beginning with Stacy Julian):

Stacy Julian
Michelle Hill
Jodi Sanford
Kim Watson
Deena Wuest
Cindy Tobey
Stacy Croninger (You are here!)