KAREN CAMPBELL, ARTIST
  • HOME
    • About Me
    • Fan Artwork
    • Patreon
    • PORTFOLIO >
      • Mixed Media
      • Watercolors
      • Art Journals
      • Encaustic
      • Drawing
    • Press
    • Retreats
    • What Students Say...
  • Courses
    • How to Draw Fun Fab Faces
    • How to Draw MORE Fun Fab Faces
    • How to Draw Amazing Hands
    • Whimsical Women of the World
    • Mixed Media Magic
    • Fairy Tales Creative Course
    • Art of Play (6 Course Bundle)
  • Fun Fab Drawing Club
    • See ALL the Projects!!
  • MIXED MEDIA SOCIETY
    • See ALL the Projects!!
  • Books
  • Blog

blog

Let's Get Your Creative Juices Flowing!!!

MAGICAL Palette Knife Painting with Acrylic on Mixed Media Canvas

2/4/2021

1 Comment

 
I've never tried palette knife painting with acrylic paints for one of my mixed media portraits until today! It was actually SUPER FUN!!

​I created some thick, edgy texture in the hair, and kept things a bit more delicate for the face using my mixed media art supply go-tos: faber castell gelatos, pitt pens & my black stabilo all pencil! Join me to see just how this MAGICAL mixed media fairy canvas comes to life!!
Picture
Below, I'm looking a little unsure about how the palette knife painting is gonna go for her face... LOL!
Picture
But I quickly got a LOT more into it when I started adding layers of thick red acrylic paint for hair!!
Picture
If you've been following me for a while, you probably know that most of the time I START my mixed media art projects with collage. Every once in a while I'll do my foreground subject (typically a face!!) first, and then try another collage art technique like in today's project.
Picture
This collage paper was actually sent to me by a friend who MADE it, so I was thrilled to include it in this piece. 
Picture
Are you loving "the ugly phase" on this girl?! LOL!! It makes me cringe, but oh well!! Do what I always say - JUST KEEP GOING!! This means you're about half-way done with your project!!
Picture
After quite a bit of blending I added back some definition to my original lines with my black stabilo all pencil and pulled out my paintbrush to activate it with a little acrylic. I LOVE how this adds shading all by itself! Cool, right?! 
Picture
Then it's time to play with my Faber castell gelatos! I'm in LOVE with these for creating my mixed media portraits! I recently did a video ALL about the magical goodness of gelatos and why you need to check these out if you've never played with them before. 
Picture
They're amazing for shading faces. Look at that smooth complexion I've blended in below...
Picture
I love the contrast with her thick hair - full of texture!
Picture
Take a look at these killer lashes up close!!

​Tons of people have trouble with drawing eyelashes! I KNOW these can be super tricky, so I've done a number of eyelash drawing tutorials on how to draw eyelashes successfully. Here's one on my drawing channel, and another on my mixed media channel. 

I've also created a free cheatsheet to help you out that you can download and use as a reference when you're practicing eyelash drawing. It teaches you how to draw eyelashes step by step, along with the THREE important things to think about every time you're drawing eyelashes. Click the button below and I'll send it straight to your inbox! 
Picture
Picture
For this particular project, I used my stabilo to draw eyelashes on this girl. When I activated these lines, it created the look of more dramatic eye makeup. I'm always down with THAT! 

Check out the video to see how I added in some magical blues to her hair and eyes, and of course layered in my signature white highlights to make EVERYTHING POP at the end!! SO FUN!! 
Thanks for hanging out with me today! I hope you have a fab week!! 
​
❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation. 
​
❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback)

❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY


❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON

❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP  

❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM

❤️ FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK
1 Comment

QUICK & EASY Faber Castell Gelatos TRICK for STUNNING Mixed Media Portraits!

1/3/2021

0 Comments

 
Faber Castell Gelatos are one of my all time FAVORITE art supplies. Lots of mixed media artists aren't quite sure how to use them, or only associate gelatos with background work.

​In today's art supply demo, I'll show you why they're a MUST HAVE in my studio + the QUICK & EASY way I use them to create MAGICAL mixed media portraits. If you're a beginner in the world of mixed media art, or just curious about what gelatos can do for you - today's video is a MUST SEE!!
Picture
Before we continue, super quick announcement! All product links noted below are Affiliate. I may earn a small commission if you choose to order through these links, but by law there is never any additional cost to the consumer for doing so. I only reccommend products I actually use and love. Thank you for your support! ​
Picture
When students first start working with me, they often ask, what are gelatos? Gelatos are a fun art supply made by a fine art supplies company called Faber Castell! Gelatos are supposed to be a fine art product, but I think a lot of artists would probably put them into the "craft" category because they are not light fast. 

If you haven't seen these before, they kinda look like a tube of chapstick with a blunt tip. 
Picture
Gelatos come in a wide range of colors. They even have a metallic line. I do want to caution you if you're drawn to metallics. If you follow me and have picked up the Faber castell gelatos metallic set, hoping to use them like I do in my Mixed Media "Hamburger" projects, unfortunately they DON'T work. So just be forewarned, if you want to play along with me- the metallic version has been tested, and sadly failed.

Pick up the flat/matte set and you'll be good to go! In fact, here is my favorite. It's got all the skin tones I love, and I think you'll REALLY enjoy yourself!!

Not sure what my Hamburger System is? I
t's my signature mixed media layering process!

Lots of people struggle with understanding their mixed media art supplies and how they work best together. It's really not that hard once someone shows you how! I compare layering my supplies to the way you layer toppings for the perfect burger!


I've got an entire  FUN YouTube series of tutorials, cheatsheets, and even wrote a mixed media art BOOK about it!! Download the FREE, one-page cheatsheet that explains it all by clicking the button below. 
Picture
​I'll send it straight to your inbox so you can print it and keep it at your art table for reference to help you with your own mixed media layering.
Picture
If you haven't worked with them before, gelatos are a watersoluble product. That means if you put them down on a piece of paper and add water to them - they WILL melt and move around on you. 

There are a lot of other products on the market that work just like gelatos- including Marabu art crayons (they can really smear on you) and Distress crayons (not lightfast at all, so I quit using them). 
Picture
What I LOVE about gelatos is they're not AS watersoluble as these other brands. 

The way that I like to use them is for accentuating the shading and tones on top of my acrylics. They blend out just perfectly, and I'll show you in today's video. 

I think they're AMAZING for adding skin tone shading, or adding any shading on any subject you're featuring in your mixed media projects! 
Picture
Personally I love mixed media projects to be fast and FUN!! And I want to see an instant success. For me, Faber-Castell gelatos DO just that. I don't have to spend TONS of time blending my acrylic paints, I can just work some gelatos on top of my acryilcs, it's super easy, and BOOM.

Gorgeous shading, every time!

​Watch the video to see where I've used gelatos specifically in this cute mixed media face and in the one above.
Picture
Now, let's move on to the product demo! CLICK over to the video so you can see exactly what I'm talking about ;)

To get the demo started, I painted an acrylic head shape in four different skin tone shades using craft paints. Using craft paint is totally normal for me when I'm doing skin tones because I love how the paint that comes out of the bottle in the prefect skin tone I'm looking for in a base coat. I don't have to mix a thing! Then I add 2-3 shades of gelatos on top for shading, and they look amazing! 
Picture
I noted the gelato shades I used in the above girl off to the side, and showed you just how EASY it is to blend with these on the right. They totally melt right into each other. And this is without adding anything to them. 
Picture
In this one I used five shades of gelatos instead of three because I just couldn't stop! LOL! I love these things. Isn't that the most beautiful blend off colors off to the right? I told you these things were magical for mixed media work!! 
Picture
So fun!! I love how these shades blend together for a rich medium skin tone. You really can add such a rich layer of color to your faces and I'm not kidding... it only takes a couple of strokes and a little blending with your finger and you're done. SO much faster than doing countless layers of blending with your acrylics!! The highlights throughout this face (above) were done in the color caramel. Using white would've been too strong here. Make sure you try incorporating tangerine if you're playing with darker skin tones because it REALLY adds a beautiful effect. 
Picture
And here is the last one! Just a different direction from the first pale skinned girl. This one goes more into the yellow color family and butterscotch. If you look closely, you'll see a few white highlights I added with my white gelato. This has a very soft effect. And again, SUPER easy and fast. Especially if you're only using three shades!
Picture
Now! If this was a "real" mixed media project for me (not just a value scale demo showing you how I love to use gelatos)... there are a lot more steps I take to tie a project together. 

Be sure you click over to the video to see a quick demo of what comes next. I know tons of people have questions about how to SEAL faber castell gelatos! 

I have found they do fantastic with a layer of mod podge on top!

​Check this out... 
Picture
but this STILL isn't the end...

There's even MORE!! If you want to see what comes next, click over to watch my Hamburger System playlist after today's video, and I'll take you layer by layer through the entire SUPER FUN process!! 
Thanks for hanging out with me today! I hope you have a fab week!! 
​
❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation. 
​
❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback)

❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY


❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON

❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP  

❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM

❤️ FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK


0 Comments

    Karen Campbell

    Founder of Awesome Art School.  Mixed Media Artist.  Author of 15 Instructional Art Books!

    Posting on YouTube every single Monday AND Friday of the year!  

    The Alliance of Independent Authors - Author Member

    Archives

    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018

    Categories

    All
    5 Minute Drawing Practice
    Acrylic Brushes
    Acrylic Painting Basics
    Acrylic Painting For Beginners
    Acrylic Painting On Canvas
    Acrylic Painting Supplies
    Acrylic Painting Tutorial
    Acrylic Paint Types
    Alcohol Marker Art
    Alcohol Marker Brands
    Altered Book
    Altered Book Art Journal
    Art Deco
    Art For Beginners
    Art Heals
    Artist Collaboration
    Art Journal
    Art Journal For Beginners
    Art Journal Ideas
    Art Journal Inspiration
    Art Journal Page
    Art Journal Techniques
    Art Supplies
    Art Supply Demos
    Art Supply Reviews
    Art Supply Storage
    Asian Eye Drawing
    Beginners
    Canvas Painting
    Cat Art
    Christmas Watercolor Ideas
    Collage
    Collage Ideas
    Collage Techniques
    Colored Pencils
    Copic Marker Alternative
    Copic Marker Art
    Copic Marker Drawing
    Copic Marker Tutorial
    Copic Skin Tones
    Copic Vs Ohuhu Alcohol Markers
    Craft Gem Projects
    Daniel Smith
    Daniel Smith Watercolor Palette
    Daniel Smith Watercolors
    Drawing
    Drawing A Baby Face
    Drawing Books On Amazon
    Drawing Challenge
    Drawing Eyelashes
    Drawing Eyes In Pencil
    Drawing Faces
    Drawing Faces For Beginners
    Drawing Facial Features
    Drawing Female Hairstyles
    Drawing For Beginners
    Drawing Hairstyles
    Drawing Tutorial
    Ear Drawing Practice
    Easy Acrylic Painting
    Easy Drawings For Beginners
    Easy Mixed Media Projects
    Easy Owl Painting
    EASY Watercolor Tutorial
    Eyelashes Drawing
    Faber Castell Gelatos
    Face Drawing
    Face Drawing Practice
    Face Drawing Tutorial
    Face Shape Drawing
    Face Sketch
    Fountain Pen Ink
    Free Art Lesson
    Free Lesson
    FREE Watercolor Lesson
    Full Length Drawing Tutorial
    Full Length Face Drawing Tutorial
    Full Length Mixed Media Projects
    Fun Fab Drawing Club
    Gesso Brush
    Hamburger
    How To Art Journal
    How To Color A Baby Face In Copic Markers
    How To Create A Watercolor Palette
    How To Draw
    How To Draw A 3/4 View Face
    How To Draw A Baby's Face
    How To Draw A Face
    How To Draw A Fairy
    How To Draw A Male Face
    How To Draw And Shade A Face In Copic Markers
    How To Draw And Shade A Whimsical African American Face
    How To Draw Asian Eyes
    How To Draw A Smile With Teeth
    How To Draw Bangs
    How To Draw Dreadlocks
    How To Draw Ears
    How To Draw Expressions
    How To Draw Eyebrows
    How To Draw Eyelashes
    How To Draw Eyes Realistically
    How To Draw Fairy Ears
    How To Draw Figures
    How To Draw Freckles
    How To Draw Hair
    How To Draw Lips
    How To Draw Lips Realistically
    How To Draw Noses Realistically
    How To Draw Realistic Ears
    How To Draw Teeth
    How To Draw Wrinkles
    How To Paint Eyelashes
    How To Sketch A 3 Quarter Portrait
    How To Sketch A Face
    Magical Mashup
    Mermaid
    Mixed Media
    Mixed Media Art
    Mixed Media Art Journal
    Mixed Media Art Journaling
    Mixed Media Art Supplies
    Mixed Media Art Tutorials
    Mixed Media Backgrounds
    Mixed Media Brushes
    Mixed Media Canvas
    Mixed Media Challenge
    Mixed Media Collage
    Mixed Media Collage Background
    Mixed Media Drawing
    Mixed Media Eyes
    Mixed Media Faces
    Mixed Media Girls
    Mixed Media Hamburger
    Mixed Media Paintbrushes
    Mixed Media Painting
    Mixed Media Portraits
    Mixed Media Project
    Mixed Media Society
    Mixed Media Tutorial
    Mixed Media Tutorials
    Mixed Media YouTube
    Monochromatic Drawing
    My Favorite Art Supplies
    My Favorite Watercolors
    New Book!
    No Draw Mixed Media Art Project
    Nose Drawing Practice
    Old Book Crafts
    Owl Painting
    Paint Brush Types
    Painting On Canvas
    Painting With Ink
    Palette Knife Painting
    Paper Napkin Art Journal Background
    Pencil Drawing Tutorial
    Portrait Drawing
    Portrait Drawing Tutorial
    Profile Drawing
    Quadrant Method
    Shading Faces
    Sheet Music Art
    Side Profile Drawing
    Side View Drawing
    Sketching Tutorial
    Stabilo All Pencil Projects
    Three Quarter View Face
    Tissue Paper Art Journal Background
    Upcycled Art
    Upcycle Old Books
    Value Scale Drawing
    Vintage Book Pages
    Watercolor Brushes
    Watercolor Markers
    Watercolors
    Watercolor Supplies
    Watercolor Tutorial
    Water Soluble Pencils
    Whimsical-christmas-tree
    Whimsical-face-drawing-tutorial
    Whimsical-face-drawing-tutorial
    Whimsical Women Of The World World Portrait Drawing Series
    YouTube Drawing Channel
    Youtube-giveaway
    Youtube-video

    RSS Feed

Picture

What Fans Are Saying

Karen, you are absolutely fabulous! You make me feel like I can draw anything. I have recently retired and finally have the time to do some of the art that I have loved since I was in school. I am really at the beginning of my art journey and I hope to learn as much as I can. Thank you for all you do.

​-Jill Y.

I ordered your Fun Fab Faces book and loved it! I was having a little trouble getting the noses I wanted and now it's easy! Also, I love how you stressed how important having the three tones in your drawing is. Thanks a bunch!

-Donna L.

Thank you Karen! I never though I could do faces. You broke it down so it was understandable! And I love your book! I got it yesterday! Can't wait to start practicing! It's so much fun!!!!!

​-Debbie M.

Thank you for the encouragement to get back into my drawing and painting. After being away for 35 years.  THANK YOU.

- Teresa S.

Contact Us

  • HOME
    • About Me
    • Fan Artwork
    • Patreon
    • PORTFOLIO >
      • Mixed Media
      • Watercolors
      • Art Journals
      • Encaustic
      • Drawing
    • Press
    • Retreats
    • What Students Say...
  • Courses
    • How to Draw Fun Fab Faces
    • How to Draw MORE Fun Fab Faces
    • How to Draw Amazing Hands
    • Whimsical Women of the World
    • Mixed Media Magic
    • Fairy Tales Creative Course
    • Art of Play (6 Course Bundle)
  • Fun Fab Drawing Club
    • See ALL the Projects!!
  • MIXED MEDIA SOCIETY
    • See ALL the Projects!!
  • Books
  • Blog