Master How to Add Fabric, Vintage Finds, Texture, and Sentimental Pieces to Your Mixed Media Art
Have you ever wondered how to add fabric, vintage finds, textured materials, and sentimental goodies into your mixed media art in a way that blends seamlessly with the rest of your canvas?
I remember the first time I learned each of these mixed media techniques and new ways of thinking about layered creation. I was completely captivated.
Each one felt like a small key unlocking another door. A deeper understanding of how layers could work together instead of competing with each other. That feeling of ohhh… this is what I was missing.
Over the years, I’ve been asked many questions about how I create my multi layered mixed media portraits.
Here are some of the most important ones I had to figure out for myself along the way.
How do you integrate added media so it doesn’t look like it’s just stuck on?
With mixed media, it’s important that materials aren’t added just for the sake of adding them.
I always come back to these questions
What do I want this painting to say?
What do I want it to feel like?
What story am I trying to show?
I love working with all kinds of materials, but I constantly ask myself
What does this actually do for the painting or the portrait?
How do you work with bulkier items so there’s a gradual shift into the painting?
This is one of the biggest challenges artists face when working with heavier fabrics, textured materials, or found objects.
The goal is never to hide them, but to help them belong. To soften the edges, build transitions, and allow the materials to feel held by the rest of the piece rather than sitting on top of it.
Which mediums work best for heavier fabrics and found objects?
Choosing the right adhesive and layering approach matters. Not just for durability, but for how the piece feels visually and emotionally.
When materials are properly supported, they become part of the story rather than a distraction from it.
Prior to creating the Personal Portraits Workshop, I had only sold my mixed media portraits. But after being asked so often to share these techniques, I realized I wanted to work with other creatives so they could create this kind of mixed media portrait themselves.
Why learning this on your own can feel frustrating
Learning new skills on your own, usually leads to a lot of trial and error and only a certain level of success.
That’s because this kind of learning needs to go deeper.
We need space to understand the why, not just the how.
We need the ability to pause, reflect, revisit techniques, and absorb the process at our own pace.
This kind of learning is about exchange. Teaching, observing, questioning, experimenting, and seeing how things come together over time.
Introducing the Personal Portraits Workshop
Personal Portraits is now offered as a fully pre recorded, self paced mixed media portrait workshop.
Inside this workshop, I share all of the collage and assemblage techniques I use to create my mixed media portraits. I walk you through the process step by step, from transferring a large portrait image using a meaningful photo, to layering fabric, texture, vintage elements, and personal materials in a way that feels intentional and cohesive.
One of the most important parts of this process happens before any layering begins.
I’ve created an entire lesson devoted to sorting and working with mixed media materials intentionally. We slow down and look at fabrics, papers, textures, and sentimental pieces not as a pile of options, but as storytellers. This step alone often brings a deep sense of clarity and relief before the art even begins.
You’ll be able to move through the lessons at your own rhythm. You can pause, rewind, revisit techniques, and return to the material whenever you need. There’s no pressure to keep up and no rush to finish.
This format allows you to truly absorb the techniques and apply them in a way that feels right for you.
I’m sharing the heart of what I do and how I do it, inviting you into a creative journey that’s meant to feel supportive, steady, and deeply personal.
An intimate and thoughtful experience has been carefully created for you. One that allows you to explore portrait making in a way that feels approachable, meaningful, and grounded.
I’ll be sharing more details soon, but I wanted to offer this little heads up so you know something special is available if this kind of mixed media portrait work has been calling to you.
If this sounds like something you’ve been curious about, keep an eye on your inbox and my social spaces. I’d love to welcome you in.
Light & Love,
P.S. Stay Connected & Inspired!
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I live and create on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabeg peoples, lands that remain under their original stewardship. I honor their enduring connection to this place and their care for it over generations.
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