Journals & Collaborative Projects

Below you will find a sampling our members' work from previous collaborative projects.  Click on images to view them larger. We hope this will inspire you to come and play with us! If you are interested in joining our group, please visit us at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Paper_Traders/

Tutorials & Techniques

Below are some of our favorite tricks for adding depth and dimension to your art.  We hope you have fun giving these a try!

Current Group Swaps & Projects

Below is a list of current swaps and projects available to group members. If you are interested in joining our group and participating in these projects, please visit us at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Paper_Traders/.  

For existing group members, you can sign up to participate  in these projects here: Swaps & Current Projects.  

We look forward to swapping with you.  Happy Arting!

Member Gallery for Group Swaps
 
Below you will find a sampling our members' work from previous group swaps and projects.  Click on images to view them larger. We hope this will inspire you to come and play with us! If you are interested in joining our group, please visit us at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Paper_Traders/.
 
Come play with us... Join today!

Paper Traders is a friendly online community of artists from around the world. We nurture and value creativity, embrace new ideas, products, and techniques yet also value tried and true methods of artistic expression. Our projects consist primarily of paper arts, mixed media collage, artist trading cards, altered art, assemblages, collaborative journals, mail art, and more.

We are interested in creative individuals of varied skill levels who wish to challenge themselves artistically and help build a supportive community. We are at our best when we can share our creative efforts as well as techniques, resources, feedback, and insights. We encourage conversation about art, the art process, and what it means to be an artist.

Paper Traders is hosted on Yahoo Groups at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Paper_Traders/.
We hope you will consider joining us on an artistic journey!

In order to prevent spammers and to insure that all applicants are actual persons interested in creating art, a questionnaire will be sent to all potential members. When applying, please submit digital examples of your work or direct us to a website where we can view your art. The intent of the questionnaire is not to judge the merits of your art but to safeguard the integrity of our community.

Free Images for Download

Below you will find images that are owned by our group members and offered for your personal use as well as images found in the public domain. Images may be freely used in your personal artwork but may not be used for commercial purposes of any kind without written permission of the owner. No images may be used to create collage sheets or image collections for resale.

To download, follow the link provided. In some cases, you may be able to just click on the image to enlarge it, then right-click and select "save image as". Content changes frequently and many images are available for a limited time.  Please check back often for newly posted images to use in your art journey.

Open Art Challenges !

We're changing things up here at Paper Traders. Instead of the monthly challenges of the past, we'll now be hosting special challenges that might feature a specific technique or product and will be rewarded with actual prizes sponsored by our group members.

Our new challenge for 2013 is a year long word prompt journaling project/challenge. Each specific challenge will be open for one month and all art bloggers can participate, whether you are a Paper Traders member or not. Each artist will comment with a link to their blog post that features the artwork for that particular challenge. For each challenge, a winner will be selected whose art best exemplifies the challenge. The winning artist will be featured here and get a "Trader Treasure" blog button to display on their own blog. They also will receive one chance for each entry for the end of the year prize drawing. Watch this page for more details and challenge announcements.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Product Spotlight: Glue



So, I was originally going to write this post about adhesives in general but I had SO MANY glues, tapes, dots, foam squares, etc. that I decided to "narrow" things down a bit and just stick to glues.  As you can see from the photo, I have A LOT of those too  =)

I use all of these for various purposes but I do have a few favorites in the bunch...

PPA "Perfect Paper Adhesive" - This is my absolute favorite for delicate paper collage.  I just glop some on the canvas, lay down the paper, and glop more on top, spreading everything with a foam brush.  It dries smooth and matte and holds everything together invisibly.  I even use this on the thinnest layer from a napkin - just be very gentle.

Nori glue - I recently discovered this and instantly fell in love with it!  This is a very slow-drying thin paste which is excellent for delicate papers and tissues.  Because it dries slowly, there is plenty of time for repositioning.  It's super smooth so you can literally slide the papers around once you lay them down to get them in just the right place.

Pioneer glue stick - This is the absolute best glue stick I have ever used!  You can even glue metal embellishments on with this stuff.  Incredible.

Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive - I probably use this glue more than anything else you see here (except for maybe my Pioneer glue stick).  Believe what it says: this glue is VERY fast drying!  Once your paper's down, it's down to stay; make sure you work quickly.

So, which are your favorites?  Do you use something that I don't have on my table?  If so, I'd love to hear about it...  Who knows?  Maybe I'll find a new favorite  =)

4 comments:

Aimeslee Winans said...

Great post, Beckie! Thanks!

LOL, I had to enlarge the picture to read all the glue names, the Save a Puzzle one made me giggle!

My go-to glues currently (it changes) are my Scotch wrinkle-free glue sticks, gel medium, Zip-Dry, Zig 2-way and Sakura Quickie Glue pens, Fabri-Tac, Xyron and for heavy stuff, my KI Gloo and my Diamond Glaze. Oh, and my Royal Coat decoupage medium for 3D altered items.

artbeckons said...

Well, I certainly couldn't throw perfectly good puzzle glue away! Heehee!!

I have gel medium in both matte and glossy, the Zig 2-way glue, the Xyron (for sure!) and Diamond Glaze (in a couple different brands).

Which glues do you like for which different type of projects?

Teri Terrific said...

First time blog visitor; can't seem to drag myself away :D
My favorite glue is Tombow Mono-multi liquid glue with two applicators. I like it over Scotch Quick Dry because (1) finer application is possible which also accounts for (2) shorter drying time and (3) clogged tip easily rubs off (Scotch tends to require pointy object).
For most fine detail apps, I prefer laying piece to be glued face down onto sticky-note-type surface and spraying with photo safe 3M General Purpose 45 Spray Adhesive. Sprays evenly with a fine spray, dries quickly, and doesn't leave sticky edges like I get using Xyron or adhesive sheets.
I'm looking forward to trying each of your favorites. Thank you for posting.

artbeckons said...

Thanks for the feedback, Teri. I will have to try the liquid Tombow... I love their tape runner =)