Creating Art With Coffee Filters and Teabags
Hello! If this is your first time here, welcome to my tiny corner of the internet! I wanted to share a bit of my process with you so I decided to write a blog post about it. I was debating on making a video but I need to practice writing, so here I am.
Coffee filters & tea bags pre-paint
If you’re not familiar with my art, I’m an abstract mixed media collage artist. My work typically consists of linen, raw canvas, coffee filters, and tea bags. I stain the filters with coffee and paint to use as collage paper in my work. Working with coffee filters and tea bags gives me the freedom to not overthink. The filter and coffee do most of the work, providing a beautiful foundation to work from. I’m an overthinker at heart so when I discovered this technique I fell in love.
My process originally started with tea bags. I was lost in Pinterest land and saw a post of someone using tea bags for something creative- I couldn’t even tell you what that was now- and decided to try it out. I soon learned that different types of tea result in different color tea bags, once steeped long enough. They provide a beautiful translucent paper to collage with and paint soaks in beautifully.
Coffee filters stained with paint
While working my day job, I discovered how beautiful coffee stained filters are. I was on a sales call at a doctors office who had a used coffee filter lying on their kitchen counter. There was something so beautiful about it that it stopped me in my tracks. I realize how silly that sounds when I type it out, but it’s true! Maybe it was the earthy color or the way the coffee dried so beautifully. Either way, I immediately knew I had to try it out in my artwork. Wowzaaa was I so happy with the results! Let the experimenting begin! Different folds in the filters result in different patterns the coffee makes. Loose, imperfect coffee stains are sometimes left as is or, just like tea bags, make the perfect base for paint.
Once I have some beautiful stained and painted coffee filters in front of me, I work from there. By this point there are scraps of fabric eating my studio table and floor, begging for a place in my next collage. Some pieces start with torn linen, others with filters.
Inspired by textiles, I dusted off the old sewing machine and pieced some of these painted coffee filters and tea bags together. I forgot how much I loved sewing. My former fashion designer wannabe is getting her fix. JK...that’s not where my skills lie. However, my obsession with fabric and textiles is resurfacing.
Coffee filters and tea bags add a beautiful earthiness to my work that I’ve been craving and didn’t know how to achieve. I think I found my sweet spot ;) I hope you enjoyed reading a bit about my process!
Painted filters & tea bag sewn together
Painted tea bag
