Eco-Friendly Mixed Media

9 x 12 Art Panel On Used Chipboard

Do you hoard scraps and odds and ends in hopes of using them someday and keeping them from the landfill? I always have bits and pieces from other projects lying around that I am hesitant to throw away. Last night I used some of them to make this mixed media piece on used pieces of chipboard that I received from my friend who works selling fabrics. This heavy duty cardboard is from the inside of the fabric bolts after all the material is sold. To make your own mixed media, you could use any sturdy wood or cardboard panel, as long as it is durable.



Materials

To start this project, you will need:
-a thick cardboard or wood base
-paper, fabric, yarn, glitter, paint, stickers, or other decorative embellishments
-scissors along with a rotary cutters or exacto blade
-adhesives (I used Ad Tech permanent glue runner)
-magnets or mounting adhesive for hanging the finished piece

First, prep your base by cutting it to the desired size and trimming rough, uneven edges with the exacto blade. For the project above, I had to cut off the ends of the chipboard to get a rectangular piece. I scored the chipboard with a rotary cutters and used a scissors, after it was scored.

Chipboard Prior To Being Trimmed

After the base is prepped and trimmed, you can cover it with paper or paint to get a background for your work. I used decorative paper for the front, and plain brown card stock for the back.

Back Of Panel Covered With Brown Card stock

When you have the front and back prepped, make sure everything is dry before decorating your project. Look for an all-purpose permanent adhesive that dries clear and will not wrinkle paper. When you are finished affixing the embellishments or painting the panel, you can use an optional acrylic matte or glossy top coat if desired. Then, use mounting adhesive squares or peel-and-stick magnets to mount the artwork on the wall or refrigerator.



Finished Mounted Panel

Get creative and try incorporating these materials into your work:
-buttons
-ribbon
-decorative tapes
-newspaper
-wrapping paper
-fabric and yarn
-twigs, dried flowers, leaves
-dried beans and peas
-glitter
-sea glass and shells
-ric rac and seam binding
-photographs