I’m slammmmmmmed, my darlins, and this is going to be quick:

I wanted to try making a face with *nothing but paint*, so I tried that, and voila. I did it. It isn’t the best face I’ve ever made, but here’s what’s awesome: It isn’t the worst, either, and this face only took 35 minutes from start to finish. SO much room for progress, right? I’m doing the halleluyar dance over it.

Here’s the video:

I will update with snapshots when I feel a little less like I’m the rabbit in the greyhound race. xo

Let me tell you what that entails:

First, I had to download it. It was about three hours long, so yeah. It took *hours*. Then, I had to convert it into a file that iMovie would understand. Then I had to import it into iMovie. Then it had to be optimized so I could create the time-lapsed goodness I was after. Then, the editing, and then, the saving and uploading. I did not finish until after midnight.

But! I have 31 days to complete 29 faces, so if you look at it that way, I’m totally on track. :)

Today’s face started life as a deliciously turquoise & violet background. I then included some scrapbook papers and text pages, lots of Dylusions sprays, brayered on fluid acrylics, and a coat of clear gesso. Her face was made with General’s Peel & Sketch charcoal and then a Permapaque marker. The paint used was Golden fluid acrylic and Stewart Gill.

She isn’t finished ~ not by a long shot. I envision her with starfish in her hair and maybe some lovely, tranquil seaweed floating in the background.

Here’s the time lapse version

Available for a limited time, here is the full length version with supplies discussion as well as the real time process. Please note that I’d already begun the background making before I hit record.

Here’s a snapshot

La Femme De La Mer will soon be up for auction, and once she’s sold, there will be prints available, but remember ~ she’s not finished. xo

See you tomorrow with Face #7 and maybe even Face #8

Love & Glitter,

Effy

P.S. If you were inspired by this, please tip your art barista!

P.P.S Please note that for the duration of May, Book Of Days will be posted here on my blog with daily videos and musings while I undertake the challenge to make 29Faces in May. Find more information about Book Of Days here!

I am trying to get all my faces done ahead of time, so the video you see here was actually made yesterday (Friday) before I headed out to see my Kidlet in his very last school performance ever! It was not the best day on record, either art wise or life wise. We had serious dam and sire issues (we have a breeding pair of shih tzu x bichon frise who we are NOT WANTING TO BREED right now, and our dam was mismated yesterday. She is going in to be spade next week as a result and that’s the end of that. Right when I was supposed to be on a VERY IMPORTANT CALL, they got stuck together,  (TMI?) so there went my perfectly planned afternoon.

Once they were dealt with (and placed in separate rooms), I sat down to do Face #5.

Here’s what I learned.

• Copics don’t work great over workable fixitif. 
• There is a point at which I should stop, and I *know* that point instinctively, but sometimes I push too far. 
• What looks like ‘too far’ to me now would have had me popping a champagne bottle open a year ago, so even this failure has the flavour of success. 
• The kneadable eraser is as much a tool as the pencil itself. In fact, in this sketch, the erasers I used were the stars of the show.

This is where I wish I’d stopped (and this is the point at which the video ends because I wanted to spare you the extra ten minutes of awful, frustrating mucking about that followed).

This, I love. My husband said “Jezebel” when he saw this, and I totally resonated with that. She smolders. She is gorgeous, and there is no way on the Gods’ green earth that I could have made her a year ago.

Just before I began doing the ‘darkest darks’ with the Micron, you’ll notice I hover over the page with the pencil for a second. That was the moment I felt the ‘no more’ course through me. That was the moment at which I probably *should* have stopped. Now, I do love the black ink in this, and I am very taken with her red lips and green eyes, but I could easily have stopped just before I did that, and this would have felt like a big HALLELUYAR moment.

But I didn’t stop. I pushed.

And here’s what I did.

The text is notes I made about the process and what I learned.

Now, to be fair, this is a perfectly good face. She is pretty. She is identifiably a) human and b) female, but she is NOT what I wanted. She is too cartoon. She crossed over from what felt like art to something more like caricature.

I could have totally lied to you and said “This is what I did” and left it at that, but I want you to know the truth:

There is such a thing as too far.

And my too far in this present moment is wayyyyy different from my too far a year ago. A face that would have been a cause for celebration in 2011 is now a disappointment to me. But one filled with lessons that I might not otherwise have learned.

So, note to self. When the hand hovers, ready to affix the signature? Trust that.

And don’t use Copics over workable fixitif.

*laughs*

Here’s the video:

A note about tomorrow:

I am live streaming here tomorrow at 1 p.m. EST and I am making a face. That face will be recorded both for Ustream and also on my web cam so I can then edit the video and add it to my 29Faces playlist on YouTube. The blog post for tomorrow will go up before the stream. xo

Love & Glitter,

Effy

Want to have a lot of fun? Sign up for Book of Days! 

Before I dive right into telling you about face #4, I have some inspiring things to share with you!

First, this:

Trust me. You want in on this. I will definitely see you there. Hint hint. :)

Then there’s this:

Which I will be teaching in. It’s already started and the first lesson is up. It’s a beautiful course with lots of angelic goodness.

And this!

I am teaching in this in June and in August, but I’m the least of it. Tamara Laporte! Gritty Jane! Mystele! Samantha Kira! Jane Davenport! And so many other amazing teachers! It’s already begun, but the course will remain open until March 2013 and all materials are downloadable and yours to keep FOREVER, so don’t miss this opportunity!

And, finally, this!

SUMMER CAMP FOR GROWN UPS!

OMG, I’m so excited about this.

Starts June 4th and lasts 12 weeks! Awesome!
(affie link)

On With The Faces!

It’s Friday and I have Face #4 for you in my effort to complete 29 faces in May! This pretty was made on chipboard and started her life as the mere glimpse of an idea. I wanted whimsy with crazy hair. I think I achieved my aim. You?

I’ve never worked on chipboard before and it’s LOVELY! I layered on some scrapbook papers, sprayed on some inks, and then went to town with graphite, water soluble crayons, Derwent Inktense, and acrylic paint. The writing is done with a Sakura Glaze pen. Notice the little jewels in her crown? Even though I had an awful time trying to get them to stick, I am thrilled to death with them.

Here’s the video

So. Much. Fun

In Other News:

We are heading out tonight to see the Kidlet perform in his very last school concert *ever*. I will try to get video for you, but if not, I’m sure I’ll find some on YouTube. They always record the performances.

I’ll see you back here tomorrow for 29Faces #5!

In The Meantime

You can sign up for Book Of Days here, like me on Facebook here,  or subscribe to my YouTube channel here.

*FLINGS GLITTER*

Effy Wild
effythewild@gmail.com 

Today’s face is so mixed media it’s not even funny. She started as graphite on watercolour paper. I smudged and smooshed and then moved on to clear gesso and watercolour crayon. The Derwent Colorsoft pencil came next, and though I didn’t expect it to react with the paint the way it did, I worked with it and used the pigment to my advantage. A little more paint. A little more Derwent Colorsoft, and ta da. She called. I answered. And now I have a gorgeous girl to use in my journal whenever I want, since she will be photographed and saved as a digital element that I can print off any time.

Fun stuff!

Here’s the video:

Actual time to make: approximately two hours

And here’s a snapshot.

I love her crooked little chin.

She is going to be a lot of fun to play with. I envision bright blue backgrounds and loads of birds behind her.

That’s it for now, folks! I’ll see you tomorrow! xo

P.S. Want to join in the fun? Check out Book Of Days!