Hot Glue Flower

     This canvas was inspired by a photograph I saw on line, texture paste had been used to create the petals of a flower. Hot glue can be used for creating texture, so I set about using it to make my flower for Altered Eclectics.

     As the canvas was going to be painted I was able to draw a rough flower shape to guide my glue application. Working one petal at a time I put down a string of glue around the outside edge of the petal, with a silicone finger protector firmly placed on my hand I used it to smudge the glue into the centre to create a veined petal, this could not be done without the protector!
      Working at diagonals around the flower I created all the petals and let them set, hot glue sets quite quickly so you need to work fast. Some petals look better than others but then real flowers are never completely perfect.

 
     To get a textured centre I used some seed beads, a large pool of hot glue completely smothered with beads and left to set. Once the glue had set I very gently rubbed a finger across the beads to disturb any loose ones to get ready for painting.
     The paint I planned to use needed a layer of gesso first, some better quality paints may not need this preparation, it's an idea to try a small patch first if it doesn't give any information on the label.

     I painted the canvas with gesso and then a layer of white acrylic too. The purple metallic paint I used was then put all over the entire canvas, including the edges.
     I wanted the flower paler than the background so I used the same paint and added a little white acrylic to it, it lost it's metallic quality but that didn't matter as I was going to add foil.
     Once dry and touched up where necessary, I added a little glue from a Stix2 glue stick (other glue sticks may work) on each petal with my finger. After a few minutes I placed transfer foil over the petals and gently rubbed to get the silver in place.

     The beaded centre of the flower was painted with white pearl but it didn't look right, so I went over it with a thin layer of gold pearl with gave it some warmth.
     Butterfly or bee?....It had to be a bee. I die cut a bee in black card, then die cut in cork, I had hoped the cork one would be complete but his legs fell off as I took him out of the die, just a little bit too delicate. All was not lost as I used the little bits of cork that the die cut out of his body to go where the yellow bits might bee.

     The card bee was stuck on to acetate so I could get the translucent wings and also to give him some support. The wings looked OK but not quite good enough so I added a little iridescent glitter to them to make them sparkle.
     The bee is stuck on to the flower with two layers of clear foam pad, so if you look at it sideways the bee is hovering.
     A little trip around the edge of the canvas with a two in one glue pen, this is put on and it's blue, you smudge it with your finger to make a random distressed type edge and once it has changed to clear it is super tacky and ready for some foil, this canvas has a mix of silver and purple.
     The whole canvas is only 6x6 so it's easy to find somewhere to hang it, in sunlight it shows just how shiny it is.
     Altered Eclectics is a challenge blog for mixed media and altered art so if you have made anything like that please come over and show us, we would love to see your artwork.

I would like to enter this canvas in the following challenges:

Cut It Up - Flowers - must use a die cut

Simon Says Wednesday - Anything Goes

Love To Create - Anything Creative Mixed Media Goes