Do you save all your scraps of art - even the ugliest pieces? I never throw anything away and just keep boxes and drawers full of it all. Then on a rainy day, I'll put some out and make mini pieces of art.
I love to create cards, small tags, bookmarks, or journal materials out of these leftover paper piles. I use watercolor paper for my practice and that way it's heavy enough to be trimmed into different sizes.
If I have time and I want a quick "destresser" I will whip out the paint pens and start embellishing with little details.
I keep a big drawer full of random pieces from studio play, demos, classes, etc. Everything I am finished with goes in here.
To get started I find a random piece that I know I am ready to reuse, then I trim it out into multiple pieces right away without thinking too hard about it! That's where the magic is. All of a sudden one sheet of 11x14 paper turns into 12 little pieces that are each beautiful on their own!
For every product sold in my online shop, a small piece of art goes with the order as a little thank you. I just flip over the other side and start writing - not to matter if there are splatters or marks. Just a sweet colorful note of my appreciation!
You can easily make a handful of tags for your gift-giving, and I know most people would appreciate it better than a store-bought tag!
Maybe there is a section of my practice art that I really like and even that can be trimmed out and mounted on a wooden board, or put in a frame. What a great gift that would make?!
Or even a beautiful long strip that turns into a bookmark!
Nothing goes to waste - even the smallest strips from these projects end up in my journal. I guess I have a hard time throwing away any art and I’d rather recreate it into something else!
Want to see a demo? Check out this video that is an excerpt of my Facebook Creative Community!
Do you save your scraps of practice art, and upcycle them into more art? If so let me know what you would turn them into!
Sending Love + Light!
xo Andrea