For the Love of Art

Art is the soul of culture.  It opens up a relationship between artist and audience that is unique and fulfilling.  Art challenges us to understand another's perspective, to stand in awe of another's gift, to appreciate an array of colors that may fall outside our own favorite spectrum. 

The products of art are as varied as the ideas that the artist brings to the experience.  Just check any store catalog or walk along the aisles of your favorite art store and you will see.  Many artists today are utilizing common items found in the home and creating unique and interesting projects. 

As a scrap artist myself, I use found objects, mostly vintage; and repurposed items to make functional multi-media art.  I've decoupaged tins and old boxes and a child's vintage wooden piano, updated jewelry to today's style, made journals and jot books, collaged pictures in old frames, and on and on.  I'm always scouting estate sales for unique items to use, as well as emphemera to inspire my craft.  Recently, I read about using tea bags in Cloth Paper Scissors.  Being an avid iced tea drinker I had to see what that was all about.  Yes, it takes time to clean and dry the tea papers, but now that I know how beautiful they are, for the love of Art, I can't throw them away.

To prepare the teabags is simple.  Simply brew your tea, snip the folded edge open with scissors and rinse the tea leaves out, gently opening the closed edges.  This will leave you with a beautifully flat stained paper.  I've found that the color of the papers vary, depending on what type of tea you use.  I had tried a couple of projects with them, without great success.  But, as with art, it is a work in progress.   

After joining two wonderful art groups in my area; an ATC group and a Fiber - Arts group, I've discovered ways of using emphemera I hadn't considered.  Sewing together the tea papers to make a larger piece of paper would definitely be an option, or using an iron on method with a bonding paper.  You could do an inkjet print from your printer by securing it to a larger sheet of paper.  They of course, could be be stamped on, painted, or used in a variety of ways. 

That being said, I want to introduce you to Took Gallagher, who I met through my art groups.  She has found a wonderful use for the tea papers and shared her experience on her blog.  You can jump to it here:  http://fraughtwmeaning.blogspot.com/2012/04/2102365-day-109.html
 
And while you're at her site, read about the Art-O-Mat project.  It's an amazing way to promote everyday art in a unique and earth friendly manner.  I'm working on a project myself to submit and will keep you posted.  Karen