Playing with Surface Design: Modern Techniques for Painting, Stamping, Printing and More

Lots of photos and detailed descriptions for techniques that have been done over and over. Nothing new, creative or appealing here. You may want to paint with a credit card, apply ink with bubble wrap, make gelatin prints and paste paper, or stamp repeat images on plain paper for gift wrap. If so, you'll find it done better in many other publications. The projects are very simple and not very attractive. I feel like I've wasted by money on this book. I really prefer having and holding a real book to looking online for this kind of guidance - but in this case I'd make an exception. There are much nicer projects online.

With all the 5-star reviews, I was expecting some exceptional projects, but there isn't one creative idea that's worth trying unless you think that putting multi-colored splotches of paint on a leather circle would make a nice coaster or dipping the toe of your shoe in swirls of floating nail polish makes something you'd be willing to wear. Please save your money and avoid this book.

Playing with Surface design emphasizes “playing" in the best possible way. More than just a book of techniques, it’s an accessible entry into making marks without fear. The techniques are approachable for adults and young people alike, but the results have a fine art quality. The author demystifies painting in a way that will get anyone dipping brushes, cards, sponges and anything else handy into paint and having fun with the results. How intimidating can it be when you’re just going to punch out circles and make a garland or wrap a book or make note cards? There is a freeing quality to the simplicity that can lead to a surprising amount of creative exploration.There is also an introduction into gelatin printing and making paste paper which opens up many creative possibilities. In addition, there are projects for home decor, gifts and accessories. The back includes a gallery of artists working in various forms of surface design.

The author explores surface design on all types of substrates including, paper, fabric, leather, and even wood.

Her four main techniques are gelatin printing, paste paper, credit card printing, and mark making. Armed with those techniques and a few more thrown in, the reader is given clear step-by-step instructions of 22 different projects, half of which are on paper. These projects are easy and a great introduction to surface design. The last chapter offers the reader some wonderful inspiration from other artists.

This is a beautiful book with lots of information on this fun topic. The projects are easy, but give really nice results. If you are new to surface design, this is a great beginners guide to getting your feet wet. If you are a seasoned artist, you will probably find several ideas to expand your creativity.

As a long time surface design artist, I'm always excited to see new books out on the market. This book does not disappoint! It's very clearly written and friendly, it feels like a play date with the author. The techniques are demonstrated in a very effective way and the projects are inspiring. I always really appreciate books that take the time to really show you how to apply a technique to different projects so you can get a good idea of how to use them. I would recommend this to anyone looking to explore surface design in an easy fun way, it's wonderful!

The author has very creative ideas using materials that I almost always already have in my house. I especially liked the ideas that centered around recycled items, like using bubble wrap and a fabric-safe ink pad to decorate a tea towel. My kids already made the scribble garland by coloring sticker labels with markers and stringing them together to make a fun (and easy!) decoration for their bedroom. There’s some interesting projects for home decor, but also for embellishing jewelry and even shoes. One of my favorite projects is the sand and sea notecards. I used an old credit card to apply seafoam acrylic paint to the blank, white cards. I love how it turned out and it’s just a really fun technique, too. The finished look is like a really lovely watercolor effect. There’s also a project that uses the same credit card technique but with wood that I can’t wait to try, now that I’ve tried it out with the notecards. Very fun projects and ideas!

This tutorial and technique filled book is a wealth of info on how to create all sorts of patterns, textures and images with all types of mediums on lots of different surfaces. It really covers a wide variety of techniques and the projects are all quite doable. If you want to expand how you make art or upcycle everyday objects you will have a lot to work with in this book. I tried the scribble garland technique first as I generally work with imagery and I thought it would be a good exercise in not thinking too much. I really like it and will be trying more of the abstract art focusing on color.