I was fascinated by the Tattered Angels Mixed Media Origins Paper from the get-go.  The imagery drew me in at first, but once I actually put my hands on the sheets, I was all in.

Unlike the paper you’re accustomed to, there is some other component in this that makes it far sturdier than most paper or cardstock of the same weight.  At a guess, I’d say the weight is somewhere around 100#.  I tried several times to tear it and was unable to.  The sheets feel somewhat fabric-like and have a slightly textured surface on both sides.

Knowing how strong it is, I decided a sheet would make a splendid book page and set out to give it a try.  I played with the book, on and off, for a while until settling on what you’ll see in the video.  Most of the books I create have blank paper as pages, but given that the imagery is what grabbed my eye to begin with, I was happy to work outside of my norm and very happy with the results.

In the video you’ll see suggestions for using gesso to “push” some of the imagery more into the background, allowing a focal image or area of the page to be predominate.  Coloring this paper is pretty simple.  I used various inks and sprays loaded into Tim’s Detail Water Brushes as well as colored pencils and both work beautifully.  I’m certain paint would too and especially some that tend toward transparency like Golden’s Fluid Acrylics.    Or thin the more opaque ones you have to create more of a wash.

Options for embellishing your pages extend far beyond simply adding color.  Toward the end I flip through several where I’d begun to add to what’s already printed on the paper and one of the options you’ll see me mention are some of the samples I made while filming the Wildflowers, Watercolors, and Stencils video that was last week’s MidWeek Muse.  As promised, here is a link to that video… click here and it will open in a new page so you don’t lose your place on this one!

Supplies For This Video:

Tattered Angels Mixed Media Origins Papers

Dina Wakley’s Plain Media Tape

Dylusions Black Marble Paint

Inkssentials Mini Ink Blending Tool & Foam Refill

Strathmore 9″ x 12″ Bristol Paper Pad

Scor Tape

Ranger’s Sticky Back Canvas – Natural or White

Aleene’s Thick Designer Tacky Glue

Dina Wakley’s Gesso – 4 oz jar or 2 oz tube

Flora & Fronds Stencil/Mask Combos

Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush Pens

Joggles Collage Sheets