The Sketchbook Challenge Book Blog Hop

The winner of the drawing is Joy Manoleros!  You are the winner of the wonderful package from Mistyfuse!  Joy, please contact Sue Bleiweiss at sue@suebleiweiss.com and let her know you won the drawing on my blog for the Mistyfuse package and she will make arrangements to send it to you.  Thank you, everyone, for stopping by the blog and leaving a comment.  It was great fun to hear from you!

Welcome to the Sketchbook Challenge blog hop, Day #3!  

As many of you know I have been a contributing artist to the Sketchbook Challenge blog for the past 18 months.  When Sue Bleiweiss asked me to participate in the book project I was thrilled.  I created mixed media work for the chapter on "Simple Pleasures".

It is my great pleasure to show you a couple of tips using Mistyfuse.  I have been a huge fan of Mistyfuse for a long time.

One of the best things about the product is how versatile it is for the mixed media artist.  Not only is it fabulous with all types of cloth (including silk organza!) but it works with a variety of papers, as well.

I have two questions for you:  1) Are you a "Mistyfuser"?, and 2) have you ever tried using Mistyfuse for any unusual projects?  Please take a moment to comment at the end of the post so you can be eligible to win a gift from Mistyfuse!

I would like to show you a quick little tutorial about how I like to cut from a roll of Mistyfuse with my rechargeable scissors.  Obviously, any scissors will work for this, but I find it very handy to use these scissors when I am fusing a lot of cloth:  it is easier to quickly cut a piece of fusible, fuse, and move to the next area.

 Mistyfuse is unrolled over the surface of my fabric

Using my rechargeable scissors I can quickly cut my piece of Mistyfuse quite close to the edge of my cloth, taking care not to cut my teflon Goddess sheet underneath!

Once cut, I position a second Goddess sheet over the surface.

This protects both my ironing board as well as my iron from any errant fusible.

The the iron on a medium-high dry setting, I move around the surface.

It is not necessary to hold the iron in place for a long period of time.

Once fused, peel the top teflon sheet (or kitchen parchment paper works well, too)

from the surface of the fused fabric

Note the "sheen" on the fused side of the cloth.

This is important to note so you will position the fused side down on your project!

Another little tip:  I keep a green pot scrubber near my work area.

After I peel off the fused cloth from both top and bottom pressing sheets 

I quickly (and lightly) scrub the surface of the sheets to assure that any small bits of fusible left behind are removed.  

Here is what happens when you pick up the fusible from the teflon sheet:

it makes a little roll, which is easily pulled off the scrubber

Once fused, it is very easy to rotary cut or die cut the cloth!

Here is a piece of synthetic sheer that has been previously painted with

several layers of acrylic paint.

Mistyfuse was applied to one side in preparation for fusing it to a piece of watercolor paper.

Here is my piece of watercolor paper.

It was an "unloved" plein-air painting that had several layers of both watercolor and 

acrylic paint

The fused sheer if placed on the surface.

Teflon goddess sheet is both under and over the two pieces....

The iron fuses the sheer to the paper.

And now the sheer looks nicely integrated to the watercolor paper!  

I like using sheers on both paper and cloth because I love the layered effect.

I use a lot of fused "scraps" in my sketchbooks as an unusual layer that adds a great deal of texture.  Mistyfuse can also be used to fuse paper to paper, as well as paper to cloth.  

I will be interested to know all the different ways you have used Mistyfuse.  Don't forget to 

leave a comment at the end of the post!

In the meantime, I hope you will consider picking up a copy of "The Sketchbook Challenge" book.  You will find that, in addition to the beautiful photography of the artwork, there are loads of wonderful tips in the book that will help you in your artful journey.

The Sketchbook Challenge book may be found at the following online sources:
Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Sketchbook-Challenge-Techniques-Inspiration-Achieving/dp/0307796558

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-sketchbook-challenge-sue-bleiweiss/1106242576

ArtPlantae: http://www.artplantaebooks.com/book/9780307796554

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Please visit these other blog hop participants:
June 26:
Jill Berry  http://jillberrydesign.com/blog/
Sue Bleiweiss http://www.suebleiweiss.com/blog

June 27:
Violette   http://www.violette.ca/
Kathyanne White http://kathyanneart.blogspot.com/

June 28:
Kathy Sperino http://finishinglinesbyksperino.blogspot.com/

June 29:
Jamie Fingal http://jamiefingaldesigns.blogspot.com/
Lynn Krawczyk  http://fibraartysta.blogspot.com/

July 2:
Jackie Bowcutt http://stitchworks-jackie.blogspot.com/
Lyric Kinard http://lyrickinard.blogspot.com/

July 3:
Jane Davies http://janedavies-collagejourneys.blogspot.com/
Kim Rae Nugent http://kimraenugent.blogspot.com/

July 5:
Carla Sonheim  www.carlasonheim.wordpress.com/
Carol Sloan  www.carolbsloan.blogspot.com/

July 6:
Susan Brubaker Knapp  http://wwwbluemoonriver.blogspot.com/
Diana Trout dianatrout.typepad.com

July 9:
Tracie Lyn Huskamp  www.thereddoor-studio.blogspot.com/
Judi Hurwitt  www.approachable-art.blogspot.com

July 10:
Jane LaFazio http://janeville.blogspot.com/
Kelli Nina Perkins: http://ephemeralalchemy.blogspot.com/

Thank you to our generous sponsors!
The Sketchbook Challenge Book blog hop is sponsored by:

Mistyfuse http://www.mistyfuse.com

ArtPlantae Today http://artplantaetoday.com/

Gelli Arts http://www.gelliarts.com/

Joggles http://www.joggles.com

Sue Pelland Designs http://suepellanddesigns.com/

ProChemical and Dye http://prochemicalanddye.com/home.php

The Thread Studio http://www.thethreadstudio.com/

Blue Twig Studio http://www.bluetwigstudio.com/

The Artist Cellar http://artistcellar.com/



My giveaway:
From Mistyfuse (www.mistyfuse.com)  A 10yd combination package of Mistyfuse that includes 6 yards of White and 2 yards each of Black and Ultraviolet and a Goddess Sheet.  Total retail value: $48!
In order for a chance to win, you need to leave a comment before midnight CDT on June 30th.  The winner will be chosen randomly from the comments left on this post. 
Thank you so much for dropping by.  I hope you will stop by often!  
Yay!