Just Let It Dry....

Okay, so one of the things that I love about mixed media art is that there really aren't many rules. In fact, there's only one: LET IT DRY! For those of us who don't count patience among our virtues, this can be the hardest rule to follow. But OH THE PAIN when we break it!

I'm working on a little piece of subway art for a friend's daughter's birthday. I ran out and got some fabulous Hazel & Ruby stencils and went to work.

Step 1: cover the canvas with Mod Podge and gorgeous paper. 

Step 2: LET IT DRY. 

Step 3: one more coat of Mod Podge. 

Step 4: LET IT DRY. 

Step 5: Set your stencils. 

Step 6: Cover with paint. 

Step 7: Remove stencils

Step 8: LET IT DRY! 

Step 9: Seal with Mod Podge. 

Step 10: LET IT DRY!

Yeah. I went from Step One to Step 3. It didn't work. My soggy paper ripped and was just generally a mess. So I thought, hey, I'll just remove and recover. The outcome:

ARGH! So at the end of it all, I started over. I'm writing this while Step Two is taking place. The other canvas has been placed on the "upcycle"/"repurpose" shelf. (I never throw canvases away.) And now I'm humming a little ditty a friend of mine wrote and set to the Beatles' "Let It Be..."

All together now:

Let it dry!

Let it dry!
Let it dry!
Yeah, let it dry!

Work on something else, and 

Let it dry!