Andrea's Review	Catherine's Review	Chris' Review	Penny's Review	Tammy's Review

Review by Andrea

You can tell by looking at the cover of the Beeswax Collage DVD that Claudine Hellmuth likes to have fun with her art. Retro figures, simple colors and line art permeate her designs bringing a smile to your face instantly! The full-color DVD jacket gives just a glimpse of the content inside by showing different phases of projects in thumbnail pictures. There is a list of materials on the back of the jacket for reference which I found useful in collecting before I started my projects.

The 90-minute DVD is very well produced with great lighting and audio. The camera views captured Claudine's movements well as she explained the process and products for beeswax collage. I really liked the DVD chaptering making it easy to skip to certain sections as needed or wanted. The speed that Claudine talked and moved through the projects worked well for me - I only needed to pause a couple of times when I was busy writing and looked up to see a bubble of text appear with more tidbits of information. Her style of explaining the techniques and projects was a great mix of visual and auditory cues. I understood her description of the material or technique, but when seeing her demonstrate it, made it all clear.

The first section of the DVD was an introduction to the materials and tools used in working with beeswax and collage. It was evident that Claudine has worked extensively in this area by her multitude of tips and knowledge of the tools. I really felt comfortable when starting to work with the medium knowing that I could fix my mistakes if needed without destroying the project. There is a great amount of flexibility when designing with wax which I was sure that I would put to the test! She showed how to use anything from magazine clippings to fabric to hand drawn items with the beeswax - a complete cornucopia of ideas! Armed with the ideas from Claudine, I was ready to start on some projects.

I have a friend's birthday coming up that would love a Poppet style card. This is Claudine's own creation of collaging a photocopied picture to watercolor paper using beeswax, tissue paper and any other items that seem appropriate. The cards are large, usually 10" or so in length of paper cut around the person's head and body. Sounds sort of weird doesn't it? Well, it's a unique combination that really works! You can be completely free when creating these types of cards, so I put a picture of myself on the card with a birthday message to go along. I used fabric as my "dress" and colored tissue as my apron. An arm was made to hold a mini flower bouquet. The birthday message was stamped on the green tissue and applied to watercolor paper using beeswax. It was completely fun to create! I was laughing practically the whole time! I must admit that it took a little time to get used to layering with the different papers and fabric while working with the beeswax, but a quick watch of the DVD in those areas really helped me get through the project with no major issues at all.

Title: Happy Birthday Poppet Card
Products used: Idea Inspiration (Claudine Hellmuth, Beeswax Collage DVD from Creative Catalyst Productions)
Paper (Canson Watercolor)
Gel Medium (Plaid)
Natural Colored Beeswax, Stickles and Melting Pot (Ranger)
Stamp (Inque Boutique)
Ink (Tsukineko StazOn, Jet Black)
Ric Rac (Doodlebug)
Eyelet (Stampin' Up!)
Flowers (Prima)
Fabric and Tissue (Unknown)

Moving from paper to canvas was a little different due to the texture differences, but just as much fun to work on as was the paper. For this project I experimented with adding color from crayon wax and using magazine clippings. I really liked stamping on white tissue and adding that as a base layer to the collage. It's amazing how the beeswax makes the tissue disappear into the base! It really looks like the canvas came that way! Using beeswax as an adhesive for the 3d embellishments worked like a charm (pun intended). I used crayons to give the background a bit of color. I'm not 100% crazy about the outcome, but with more practice I think I could get it to look like what I pictured in my head. The tips for working with magazine clippings worked wonderfully and added just the right amount of whimsy to the canvas. For trying so many different techniques and embellishments, I do like the end result.

Title: "I See Potential" Canvas
Products used: Idea Inspiration (Claudine Hellmuth, Beeswax Collage DVD from Creative Catalyst Productions)
Paper (Canson Watercolor)
Canvas (Fredrix)
Color (Crayola Crayons)
Gel Medium (Plaid)
Natural Colored Beeswax and Melting Pot (Ranger)
Stamp (Stampers Anonymous)
Ink (Tsukineko StazOn, Jet Black)
Fabric and Tissue (Unknown)
Various Embellishments and Emphemera

I learned A TON about working with beeswax from this DVD! It has been a rather intimidating medium for me, but I'm really confident that I can use it with no hesitation now. I would like to work more with the white or bleached beeswax instead of the natural color just to see the difference when adding fabric and colored tissue. I also need to get some oil pastels and more tissue paper! I loved how Claudine showed the ease of adding color with these on the DVD projects. I did find the beeswax to be a bit messy, but easy to clean up. Working on a non-stick craft sheet is mandatory with a heat gun and paper towels close by to melt and soak up the wax drops and spillage. The first paint brush I used to apply the wax decided to "molt" in the middle of my projects leaving stray hair EVERYWHERE, so follow Claudine's advice to use a regular inexpensive paint brush!

I really LOVED this DVD and Claudine's teaching style. She takes out the paranoia behind working with the wax and tools to turn it into something truly productive and totally FUN! Thanks Claudine, you rock!

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Review by Catherine

Claudine Hellmuth is one of those icons in the paper crafting industry whom I've always admired and always wanted to take a class from or see working up close and personal. Claudine's style is fun and whimsical, while still incorporating artistic collage techniques, making her work unexpected and wonderful to look at. I really admire the fact that Claudine is always true to her style and brand of creating. Because of the fact that I have always wanted to take a class from Claudine, I jumped at the chance to review a DVD from her using beeswax collage techniques.

When I received the Beeswax Collage DVD by Claudine Hellmuth, I was interested to read on the DVD cover that Claudine has produced two previous DVDs untilizing her Collage Techniques. I had not previously been aware of these DVDs, but now that I know about them I definitely will be on the look out for them. The DVD cover is a traditional DVD case, with a very professionally printed cover jacket. The Beeswax Collage DVD is a product of Creative Catalyst Productions. The DVD is meant to be a workshop in DVD, and the printing on the back cover promises "Claudine's methods make it easy to get started and even easier to fix mistakes." I was certainly hoping that watching the Beeswax Collage DVD would make collage art a little easier for me.

I popped the DVD into my player and sat down to begin watching. I had to laugh out loud right away, because of the copyright warning at the very beginning warning that Karmic Law would apply to any copyright infringement. After reading that, I knew right away that I was in for a relaxed, fun experience in watching the Beeswax Collage DVD.

Claudine goes over the materials needed for her form of Beeswax Collage at the beginning, discusses the difference between her form of beeswax collage, and then jumps right into techniques. I enjoyed watching the different techniques that Claudine utilizes in beeswax collage, but my favorite part of the DVD by far is the projects section where we get to watch Claudine create three different beeswax collage products from start to finish. I love watching the artistic process that artists go through, and watching Claudine work was very entertaining and enlightening for me. Additionally, I really like the way the DVD is set up, with the ability to jump from the projects at the end to the technique section that Claudine is utilizing at the time of the project. All one must do is simply press enter when the message flashes at the top of the screen, and the DVD will skip to the technique section so that one can watch the technique step by step again.

I have worked very little with beeswax in the past, and have always been slightly intimidated by this technique. After watching the Beeswax Collage DVD by Claudine Hellmuth, my intimidation was diminished. I have had a set of paper mache letters spelling ART sitting in my studio for some time waiting to be altered. After watching this DVD the first time, I was inspired to pull the letters out and begin to alter them. I placed layers of patterned tissue on the letters first, then began layering various papers on top of the background that I created. I loved the fact that in the DVD Claudine encourages you to follow the process in creating artwork. It is certainly a freeing experience to do so.

Title: ART letters
Products used: Beeswax (Melt Art Beeswax-Ranger)
Inspired by (Beeswax Collage DVD by Claudine Hellmuth)
Tissue Paper (Papyrus; Target)
Patterned Paper (K & Co.)
Music Paper (Vintage)
Crayons (Crayola)
Stickers (Scenic Route)
Paper Mache Letters (unknown)

For my second project, I decided to do a collage with a picture on it. I have a picture of my youngest son taken at his birthday party that is one of my favorites. I've used this picture in scrapbooks before, but I've wanted to find a way to display it that was fun and functional. After watching the Beeswax Collage DVD, I felt that using the techniques that Claudine discusses would be a perfect way to highlight this picture. This project is definitely a bit out of the ordinary for me, but I love the result.

Title: Happy Birthday Baby
Products used: Beeswax (Melt Art Beeswax-Ranger)
Inspired by (Beeswax Collage DVD by Claudine Hellmuth)
Tissue Paper (various)
Patterned Paper (Scenic Route; KI Memories)
Crayons (Crayola)
Canvas (Hobby Lobby)

I doubt that it needs to be said that I really enjoyed this DVD. I love Claudine's style, and her method of teaching is relaxed and invigorating. I have watched the DVD three times so far, and I can see myself watching it several more times until I have fully absorbed it. I have enjoyed the techniques that I have tried and am looking forward to experimenting with beeswax collage techniques further. If you are looking to expand your repertoire of paper crafting techniques, then you must get the Beeswax Collage DVD by Claudine Hellmuth as soon as possible.

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Review by Chris

Instructional DVD's are a great way to learn something new. You can sit in the comfort of your home, stop and start whenever you want, repeat parts that go too fast, and usually look at a gallery of examples. It's a recipe for success. However, the whole process can be a disaster if the presentation is not smooth and organized, or if the presenter does not have a personality that you enjoy. I'm extremely happy to say that Claudine Hellmuth and her Beeswax Collage DVD get two thumbs up from me on both counts!

I have only used beeswax a couple of times and it was for fairly specialized projects. One was making an altered canvas and the other creating batik fabric. After watching the Beeswax Collage DVD from start to finish, I realized there were a lot more possibilities for using the beeswax to create collage projects than I had realized. I really like the flexibility and forgiveness of the beeswax. If you don't like where you put something, you can just re-melt the wax and move/remove the item. Once removed, it's as if the item was never there to begin with!

Watching Claudine teach the beeswax collage technique was a truly pleasant experience. She has a cheerful personality, is calm and relaxed, takes her time to explain a procedure or technique and establishes a friendly learning environment. It is obvious that she enjoys this artform and she shares her enthusiasm for it with the audience. At the end of the DVD there is a "blooper" segment where her fun personality really shines and her laughter is contagious.

The DVD is divided into several sections. Following an overview of the process of beeswax collage, Claudine demonstrates eight different techniques and then builds an entire collage project from start to finish, using those eight different techniques. One of the most important steps for me was when she demonstrated how to remove unwanted elements and colors. Learning how easy it is to un-do something in a beeswax collage is so liberating. It takes away any fear of making a mistake and allows the artist to try things that they're not sure they'll like. Don't like it? No problem. Just melt it and remove it. So simple.

Following the canvas collage, Claudine also demonstrates how to create a card and a metal figure using the beeswax collage technique. The DVD also contains a gallery of Claudine's work and a small preview section for other mixed media DVD's produced by Creative Catalyst Productions.

After watching the entire DVD, I gathered my materials and reset the DVD to the first technique, adding background layers, ready to follow along as I created my canvas collage. Luckily I own the two most important tools used by Claudine: a melting pot for the wax and Clover's quilting iron. I also have lots of tissue paper and scrapbook paper as well as other elements to embellish my collage projects. While I was waiting for the melting pot to melt the beeswax and the quilting iron to heat up, I began to organize the products I wanted to use to create my projects.

My first project was a collage on a small stretched canvas. Using photos of my son, niece and dog, I created a pastoral scene of them standing together in a field with hills in the background. I used a piece of printed gauzy fabric for the yellow and white checked background and tissue paper for the grass and hills. One tip which Claudine shared in her DVD is how to insert line drawings into your collage. White gift tissue becomes transparent when covered with the beeswax and only the lines show. You can see my skeletal trees, clouds and flowers, which were added using this technique. I whitened the clouds by coloring them using a white oil pastel crayon. I did use a thicker product (etal from Mrs. Grossman) for Lily's body. It makes her look like she's wearing some type of body suit. Next time, I would also raise her head off the canvas to give it the same perspective of depth. The biggest help to me in creating beeswax collages is the small quilting iron. This tool allows you to heat just the elements you're adding and to smooth the beeswax to give the project a nice finished look. I think this is the one element that makes me love the process as much as I do.

Canvas Collage
Products used: Inspired by Beeswax Collage DVD by Claudine Hellmuth
Beeswax (Ranger)
Melting Pot (Ranger)
Hot Iron (Clover)
Patterned paper (Deja Views; Karen Foster)
Metallic paper (Mrs. Grossman, etal)
Oil pastel crayons (Sakura, Cray-pas)
Ribbon (Offray)
Tissue paper, Sharpie pen, crayons

For my second project, I wanted to try the beeswax collage technique on a surface other than canvas. I glued two large puzzle pieces together to create this project. The background is patterned paper, which is much more difficult to adhere than tissue paper. Claudine did mention that scrapbook paper needs more beeswax, but I also had trouble getting the paper to fold over the edges and go around the curved parts. I finally used a bone folder and my fingers to shape the paper first, clipping the curves as necessary, before adhering it down with the melted beeswax. This extra step worked very well to get the stiffer paper to go over the edge. The dictionary page flowers are coated on both sides with matte gel medium to keep the paper from going "transparent" when the beeswax is applied. The photos were treated in the same way. In her DVD, Claudine demonstrates adding metallic accents to the beeswax projects using heat transfer foil sheets. You don't need the heat, just a rubbing tool, or in my case, a tracing wheel from my sewing basket. I added some three dimensional paper flowers to the project once the beeswax was completely cooled. I also experimented with rub-ons, which transferred onto the cooled beeswax very well.

Friends Puzzle
Products used: Inspired by Beeswax Collage DVD by Claudine Hellmuth
Melting pot (Ranger)
Beeswax (Ranger)
Hot Iron (Clover)
Patterned paper (Karen Foster)
Rub-ons (Heidi Swapp)
Flowers (Prima)
Foil paper (Crafta Frame)
Old dictionary, Sharpie pen

For my last project, I created a fun greeting card. I have this really cute frog greeting paper from which I cut an image. I used tissue paper designs for the background and added the frog and the "hi" greeting stamped on white gift tissue. I used the hot iron to create a smooth surface for this card.

Hi card
Products used: Inspired by Beeswax Collage DVD by Claudine Hellmuth
Melting pot (Ranger)
Hot iron (Clover)
Beeswax (Ranger)
Tissue paper, stamps, Sharpie pen

Beeswax is not just for candles anymore! This mixed media technique of using beeswax in collage is so much fun. With the very easy way to change things you don't like, this process really frees the artist to try things they otherwise might not. The final appearance of the project can be as rough or finished as the artist wishes as they manipulate the melted beeswax. Claudine's instructions are clear, precise and easy to follow. I encourage anyone wishing to venture into the realm of textural collage to check out Beeswax Collage by Claudine Hellmuth. I promise, once you get your beeswax melted, you won't want to stop!

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Review by Penny

Beeswax Collage with Claudine Hellmuth ($29.95, Creative Catalyst Productions) is a brand new DVD giving a clear 90 minute demonstration of eight techniques using beeswax. You will learn how to work with background layers, add images, remove items, color, image transfer, metallics, objects and fabrics and stamping while creating three unique projects--a collage, a poppet card, and a metal poppet--suitable for all skill levels.

Claudine's teaching style is extremely encouraging, from her "lines don't have to meet up perfectly" attitude to her whimsical color combinations and subjects. A common theme is the "poppet" which combines a real head photo with a pieced together body using fabric, paper, color, shapes and lines. It is a fantastical world where rules do not apply. Figures are often slightly disproportionate which adds to their one-of-a-kind charm and their "poppet" designation.

Beeswax collage is an easy thing to try with few supplies necessary to get started--beeswax, brushes, a heat source such as a no-hole craft iron or a quilter's iron, canvas, fabric, gesso, crock pot, and tissue paper--depending on what type of collage you are making. Claudine makes it look goof-proof and fun.

After watching the DVD for this review, I was so inspired that I went out to purchase a few more supplies so that I can keep on practicing and incorporating beeswax collage into my art. Once I set up my supplies and a large, protected working area I was ready to begin. I soon discovered that the wax takes some time to melt, about one hour in a crock pot, and the adhesion of your collage elements depend greatly on their thickness. It is truly an experiment with no right or wrong, but certainly one that will evolve with each attempt.

My first attempt was this tricycle and balloon collage:

Title: Tricycle Collage
Products used: Claudine Hellmuth Beeswax Collage DVD (Creative Catalyst)
Canvas
Beeswax, Glossy Accents (Ranger)
Ribbon (Tie One On Ribbon Club)
Adhesive (Glue Dots)
Marker (Sharpie)
Other: images from internet, butterfly charm, tissue paper

My second collage contained several more layers and elements.

Lucky No. 7
Products used: Claudine Hellmuth Beeswax Collage DVD (Creative Catalyst)
Canvas
Beeswax (Ranger)
Patterned Paper (BasicGrey, Creative Imaginations, Rusty Pickle)
Rub-Ons (Daisy D's)
Stickers-alpha (Making Memories), numbers (7gypsies) and diamonds (Heidi Swapp)
Other: playing card, metal frame

There is a laughter-packed outtake reel at the end which caps off this incredible journey. Claudine is an engaging teacher to watch. She makes the techniques look easy and fun. Most importantly, she made beeswax collage something that I couldn't wait to try. I give this DVD two thumbs up!

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Review by Tammy

Every so often a product or technique comes along that is not just artistic or creative but just plain ole' fashioned FUN! Well this tops that category! Claudine Hellmuth's whimsical style and fun nature will have you totally inspired about making a collage when you watch her newest DVD, Beeswax Collage. This 90 minute instructional DVD is anything but boring as Ms. Hellmuth takes you step-by-step through many different techniques using beeswax.

The Beeswax Collage DVD was produced by Creative Catalyst Productions in a high quality studio so you really feel like you're getting one-on-one instructions. The DVD is broken into five separate categories:

• Getting Started
• Beeswax Basics
• Techniques
• Projects
• Special Features

Ms. Hellmuth will teach you everything you need to know about the different types of beeswax and supplies you will need to create some really imaginitive pieces of art. She also incorporates 8 easy-to-do techniques in three projects:

• Beeswax Collage
• Poppet Card
• Metal Poppet

The instructions in this video were so clear and easy to understand that once I had viewed the 90 minutes of instruction I felt like I could easily accomplish my own beeswax collage. In the video, Claudine uses a small crockpot and blocks of beeswax and she explains that it could take up to 2 hours for the beeswax to completely melt. For this review I used a 3.5 ounce jar of Natural Beeswax by Ranger that was sent to me from MemoryVilla. The beeswax in this jar is made up of small pellets that are perfect for using in your Melting Pot. I found that by using a smaller amount of beeswax and my Melting Pot it only took about 30-40 minutes for the Ranger Beeswax to completely melt.

Because Ms. Hellmuth showed so many options to each of her techniques I quickly realized that their was no way to really "mess up" this project. While the beeswax dries quickly, objects are easily removed by reheating with a heat gun making the whole process mistake proof. Ms. Hellmuth uses a quilter's iron to adhere each of the pieces with the beeswax but she also suggests using a craft iron that does not have holes. Since I did not have the quilter's iron I found that my small craft iron worked just as well.

When I started my first project I had something completely different in mind. I kept trying to make the piece work into what I had imagined but I soon realized that sometimes you have to let loose and let the project guide you. Once I realized this, the collage came together easily. The hardest part of the entire piece for me was working with the arm. I probably spent 2 hours trying to perfect the drawing. I finally realized that it was going to be easiest to draw the arm separate from the hand and merge the two using a light box. Once again, remember that there really is no right or wrong way to design your project, sometimes you just have think outside the box a little.

I started with some yellow tissue paper for the background and green vellum was added to create the landscape. I created the dress, flowers, heart, and tree trunk from scrapbook paper that was backed with Gesso. I used some dark green tissue paper for the tree top and the title and pen work was done on white tissue paper which becomes transparent when beeswax is added. The vest and arm were created from white typing paper and the arm was backed with Gesso to make it less transparent than the vest. A pink heart and gemstones were added as a finishing touch.

Title: Create
Products used: Beeswax Collage DVD (Claudine Hellmuth)
Beeswax, natural (Ranger)
Tissue Paper (misc)
Scrapbook Paper (misc)
Gesso (Liquitex)
Flower Punch (EK Success)
5" x 7" Stretched Canvas (Hobby Lobby)
Iron (Heidi Swapp)
Pen (Micron)

Now that I had discovered how easy it was to create a beeswax collage I was ready to start again. This time I decided to make a "play on words" with my son's Jersey Dairy cow. She truly is the Queen around our farm so naturally she should carry the title of "Dairy Queen". I created this collage piece on an 8 x 12-inch canvas board and used a piece of fabric scrap for her dress. The crown was cut from brown cardstock and a piece of the matching fabric was adhered to the bottom of the crown to coordinate with her dress. The sky and landscape were created with tissue paper along with the clouds and flowers. I used a white oil pastel to color in the clouds and various colored crayons for the flower centers. I felt as though the flowers needed a little more color so I added a few touches of different colored oil pastels to the flowers for a little more variation. The title was cut from scrapbook paper that was backed with Gesso and then adhered to the collage.

Title: the Dairy Queen
Products used: Beeswax Collage DVD (Claudine Hellmuth)
Beeswax, natural (Ranger)
Tissue Paper (misc)
Scrapbook Paper (misc)
Fabric (misc)
Gesso (Liquitex)
8" x 12" Canvas board (Hobby Lobby)
Iron (Heidi Swapp)
Pen (Micron)

Scrapbooking can take on many forms and Beeswax Collage is just another way of preserving memories. So many times we hear the phrase, "I lost my mojo!" and it is usually because we have gotten into a scrapbooking rut. There was something about creating these beeswax projects that unleashed my creativity and it just began to flow. There is no right or wrong way to create these collage art pieces and any mistakes that you do happen to make are easily removed and you are able to start over in minutes. While I did not have a traditional page when I was completed I still had created something that was memorable.

I was only able to touch the surface of all of the techniques that Claudine Hellmuth taught on her video, Beeswax Collage. The supplies that she uses are easy to find and if you are like me, the majority of them are already in your stash. I encourage everyone to get this DVD and begin exploring the many possibilities of Beeswax collage!

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