We love creating our custom art pieces and I had an idea to do some abstracts.

My art teacher from Grade 9 taught us to do collages with tissue paper and Mod Podge. I’m so glad I remember the process, as it creates a lot of texture, colour and depth. Here’s what I did:

Step #1:  Gather your supplies. Get together coloured tissue paper (I decided on blues, teals and a touch of purple), card stock, paint brushes, a camera with a zoom lens, and a tripod. 

Step #2: Tear it up. Tear the tissue paper in random shapes & sizes and apply to the card stock with the Mod Podge. Let it dry for several hours until the glaze is clear.  A few bumps and wrinkles are fine. It adds a nice texture.

Step #3: Set up the camera & tripod.  Use a very slow shutter speed (I used 1.5 – 3 seconds). Click to take the image and slowly zoom in.  Try it reversed also.  Focus and them zoom out. 

Step #4: Edit. If you have any editing software (I use Lightroom 4) you can add some vibrance or saturation, or adjust the exposure to your liking. 

Step #5: Print it. Have it printed to your desire size.  We are going with a 34×42.

~ Patti Houston, Owner