week7 "Northern Lights" sponsored by INM

NTNA week 7 "Northern Lights" sponsored by INM.This challenge reminded me of a beauty I'm all to familiar with. Living in northern Alberta we get the opportunity to see the northern lights often and and they are always impressive. I really wanted to include them along with the cosmos. So I created an above and below piece marrying the small town woods and space. I've included some of my inspirational pics so you can follow my journey. I hope you like the piece! The lighted components were tricky but they add a lot of flair.  

1.) I buff and prep my tips, I decided it would be fun to make 3 of the tips into hills for my forest. I add a flat sheet of white gel to the front of them. 2.) I create another flat sheet of gel for the backdrop and trim it with scissors. 3.) I sponge on a night time ombré with nail varnish. I let the polish dry for 1 hour then apply a matte gel top coat so that I can adhere my other gel items with gel. I prefer this method because it's more secure than glue.  

1.) I apply permanent marker on the northern lights in a random pattern. 2.) I take a brush with alcohol and dab it on. 3.) I add on some detail with black acrylic paint, then I apply top gloss and cure.  

1.) I paint the trees with acrylic paint in a gray scale. 2.) I outline the lighter trees with black acrylic paint. 3.) I add on some trees to the backdrop. I build the cabins from my pattern pieces by sticking the walls together with a thick viscosity gel. I use a thick gel because it holds the pieces together until I cure them. I adhere the northern lights on with the thick gel as well.  

1.) I begin installing the lights, the lights start like the tall red one on the right. I trim the lights in half and reinstall the components. I secure the lights with acrylic. 2.) I sketch out my fog swoops, then I apply white glass gel over it on the waxy side and cure. Glass gel is a semitransparent gel perfect for fog. You can't have a mysterious small town forest with out fog!  

\n 1.) I create some clouds by layering beads of acrylic repeatedly. 2.) Night clouds are dark and ominous so I pants the clouds with some thinned out black acrylic paint. 3.) I trim a clear straw and secure it with gel to create a spacer to make it appear like its floating.  

1.) I paint a brick pattern on the houses with grey acrylic paint. I add and chimney with gel and paint it black, then I add smoke coming from the chimney with white glass gel. I also add white glass gel to the windows. I adhere more trees and the fog with thick gel and cure. I secure the clouds with the thick gel as well. 2.) I apply the fairy light stars by drilling holes in the backdrop then setting the lights in place with a tac free top gloss.  

1.) I build a few rocks for added detail with acrylic. 1.) I build a spaceship with acrylic for the base and a gel dome for the roof. The roof was made by applying gel over clay curing and then removing the clay. 3.) I begin adding details to the spaceship, I add an alien made of acrylic and some caviar beads on top of gel then cure them into place. 4.) I build Saturn out of clay, coat it with gel and cure it. I create the rings out of glass gel and outline them with acrylic paint  

1.) I add some acrylic paint to Saturn and black detail lines. I create the moon with clay and gel then add craters with acrylic and top it off with acrylic paint. I stuff both planets with several fairy lights and attach them to the back drop with thick gel. I add some detail to the space ship with black acrylic paint and add a beam made of glass gel. I attach the spaceship with thick gel. I paint the rocks grey with some acrylic paint and sponge on a little black as well. I attach some gold stars to the sky with gel. Now switch off the lights and enjoy the cosmic experience!