enjoy the process

Just thought I would give you a peek at PART of what goes on around here as I am preparing for classes...I pull out everything that I think I might want to use, and then begin to put things together.  This weekend I am teaching an altered book class, as well as a mixed media card class so I had lots of ideas, lots of goodies to "play" with...

The process IS a huge mess, but it is a lot of fun to play with all my "toys."

It all came together and here is the result of this particular process...   :)

Create something today...and enjoy the process!

happy new year!

Happy New Year!!!  Every year I choose a Word of the Year...a word (with its corresponding thought, definition, etc) to watch for, to focus on.  It is amazing how significant these "words" become as I live with them over the course of the year...and it is so much F-U-N to see them pop up...like a surprise...found treasure.  I highly recommend giving this "exercise" a try and see how it impacts your life.

My Word of the Year (WotY) for 2017 is SHINE.

I will now begin to incorporate this word and its various meanings and what I am discovering about this word FOR ME during the year into my journal pages.  This is the cover of a composition book that I altered.  I used an S dictionary page (S is for shine!) and then used my acrylics, a stencil, and cut the star...easy peasy...cheery and fun!

2017...I'm ready!!!

joy to the world

Art journaling...

Joy!!!
Merry Christmas art friends!!!

a party on the page

Here is a peek at an art journal page that we did at Play on the Page at the Stamp Art Shoppe in Roseville. Tis the season to be jolly...with lots of celebrating happening, so we created a party on our page.  Our journaling prompt was what gift has this past year given you, which we tucked behind the gift box.

I hope you are finding time for a bit of creativity...as you enjoy all the festivities.  :)

faithful to the process

Art journal page...reminder and declaration...

Keep processing, playing on the pages of your art journal.  :)

catch up

I can't believe it has been a whole month since I last posted...and I suppose that this upcoming month will be even crazier with the holidays...sigh...oh well...it is what it is...and I DO so love the holidays!!!  :)

I just thought I would catch up with just a few of the things I have been working on, playing with lately...in/for/around teaching classes...all very fun...

Finished up Ink-tober....

Lettering as background...

Oh...and then a little of this...not "play on the page" but fun anyway...and just look at colors...yum!!!

 And now this...

So much to be thankful for!

Blessings!

a fun opportunity

I have mentioned before that I teach a variety of art classes (to anyone who will sit still long enough to listen). ;)  Seriously, I just love it. And last week I had a wonderful opportunity to teach a mixed media lesson to an awesome group of young adults at Phoenix High School in Lincoln.  Here they are with their mixed media pieces (that will be used later as part of a different project).

Our project was creating a "master board," following step by step instructions with an emphasis on incorporating "found objects" (credit cards, paper towel tubes, sequin waste, dictionary pages, etc) as art tools...I am always super inspired by my students work when I teach because it is so fun to the same supplies, the same instructions "interpreted" so differently from individual to individual.  And young people create so freely...I think that they aren't worried about what is right or wrong or what people think...they just jump in and PLAY...did I say I LOVE it!?!  I am so thankful for this opportunity!

Follow their example and play at something creative today!  :)

cheer up!

In the class I taught today we looked at the art of Teesha Moore, the amazing artist who introduced me to art journaling over 20 years ago.  We talked about what we observed in her style and these are the notes that I made, highlighting the things I want to remember...

It is not a great photo but you get the idea...I used a craft tag...created little journal boxes for the different points that I wanted to note...used a variety of "fonts" to letter in my notes.  (I used my trusty Sharpie Pen for this.) Then I added a bit of embellishments with my Prismacolor colored pencils. Finally,  I added little pops of color with the Sakura Gelly Roll gel pens in fun neons.

Then this is one of the pages that I created Teesha-style...
(watercolored background...plain and simple since I knew I would be adding lots more to this page...)

Then came the collaged borders...and the girl (I couldn't resist her cranky little face!)...and her autumn dress...doodling...shading...and journaling...

So, so much fun!!!  It is so good to look at other artists and their work...really study them...find out what resonates with you, and then experiment, play, and learn new things!

Thank you Teesha Moore...for sharing your authentic style and for so much inspiration.

peeking

I love interactive books...and so I am always looking for ways to make my own (journal) pages interesting and interactive.  I also love the symbolism of windows and doors. So when I saw the Tim Holtz 4-paned window die, I knew that I wanted to use it in my art journal to create a window that peeks through to the page behind.  This is the result...

I shared this at a few of my art journaling classes and everyone had a fun time with it.
I'm thinking of journaling: "perspective...looking out, looking in" What would you "journal" (write) on this page?
Hope you are enjoying the view from where you are.  :)

documented life...

As I follow Documented Life Project 2016 (DLP 2016), I have tweaked my planner according to my own "system." I thought I would share my "decorated" April and May calendars (the backs of the calendars are what I art journal on.)

Above is my April page...I have been playing around with cutting words from scrapbook paper or paper that I decorated/painted myself...too much fun!

And this is my May page...the center circle contains a blind contour drawing of the perfume that I got for Mother's Day.   I just L-O-V-E doing blind contours...I have absolutely NO expectations with them (after all, how "good"  :) could they turn out when you can't even look at your paper?!?!?)...plus they almost always have a fun, wonky look to them.  I did this with my Stabilo ALL pencil and then activated and sealed it with matte medium.  This is a great warm-up exercise...try it!  :)

Adding art journaling to my planner keeps this art and journaling practice in front of me daily...and it is so much fun to USE my planner when it is decorated and so much a part of me!

Now on to June!!!

time flies!

Whew!  The days certainly fly by quickly!  I can't believe it has been so long since my last post...it has been very busy these past weeks...I have been blessed with lots of fun teaching opportunities, meeting so many new creative friends, playing on the pages of our journals together...Here is a peek at a page or two...

The above two pages are still in process since I will still add my journaling, and maybe a little "pen work"... always lots of mixed media fun!

Hope you can add a bit of creativity to these last days of spring...as we move into summer.!!!

that was fun!

I've been teaching altered book basics this year, and so this has been my "playground."  This is one of the pages I have been playing with...

Combining my love of letters, collage,wash tape, fun edges, doodling...it is still in process since I know that I want to add clip art or a stamped image...I will update you as I finish it...

Too much fun!!!

Thankful!

So much to be thankful for!

Still!  Always!!!

onto the page

I L-O-V-E art journaling for so many reasons...but you know that already don't you...I love it just for the joy of creating, but there are times when I am working through "something" and the processing is screaming to be expressed on the pages of my art journal...this is what happened with this page.  As I was "struggling," a picture of a cherry pie came to mind...hmmm...and so I hunted through magazines till I found just the right picture...and I propose that even that "hunting" helped with the processing...anyway, here is the process as it developed on the pages...

First, I "spilled" what needed to come out all around the edges, creating a border...

Then, since it wasn't "pretty,"  I covered over parts of the journaling with dictionary text and strips of a magazine page...

Then came the "antidote"...one of my favorite Scripture verses, written big and loose, some of the letters ending with an upward swoosh and some with a long finish line...

Next, I added some swipes of gesso over some of the journaling and the collage elements, plus some texture paste through a stencil, to unify the different elements... 

  

Since I knew I was using a cherry pie I decided to sketch some cherries over the verse and watercolor them with Tombow markers and a waterbrush...kinda scarey, but so much fun once I just committed, and did it...I had fun with the doodled leaves too!   :)  I also added a bit of shading around the sketches with a Distress marker (Antique Linen) and waterbrush...

Finally, I outlined the pie with a Fudeball pen-all squiggly-plus a Stabilo pencil and the same Distress marker and then blended with a waterbrush...

That's it!  I had worked it all out right there in my journal...it is hugely significant to me and the page will serve as a reminder and encouragement to me to engage and be faithful to the process. Once again, our art journals serve us well!  :)  Hi Ho Cherry-O!!! 

linger

Another art journal page prompted by the Documented Life Project...

Distress ink splattered with water...dictionary text paper...Dylusions spray ink...

A copy of a Modigliani portrait that I love...

Fun die cut pieces...a little penwork...



Journaling using Faber Castel Pitt pens...
   "The portrait makes direct eye contact with the viewer...linger and decode the story."
     (quote by Lynne Perrella)

...linger and decode the story...

putting my art to good use

A quick collage I made as the cover for my planner...with my WotY (Word of the Year) to remind me to remember the WONDER...Paper I love...dictionary text which I use ALL the time...polka dotted paper-always fun!...washi tape-LOVE!!!...this girl face stamp...wonder flashcard...all things I enjoy...and so I'm happy about having my planner with me and using it...success! Putting my art to good use!  YAY!!!

much ado about nothing

I'm either reverting to my childhood or I am just needing some not-so-serious moments when I sit down in my studio...yep! I am still playing with crayons and watercolors...and enjoying every carefree moment!  I did several pages one day:  just scribbling the crayons around the page...

and then swishing watercolor over the top...

So much fun!!!

And then from one, I completed an art journal page...

 

 

Since this was just playing-around-on-paper fun...AND I had just seen Shakespeare's play by the same name...it seemed an appropriate journal entry (I used Kuretake Zig Sumi ink brush pen for writing-Love!).  :)

still in the making

Here is a peek at my process of a page still in the making...

Scrapbooking paper glued to my journal page...

A light coat of white gesso applied to center...

I used a Dina Wakley stencil and traced the girl's shape onto a dictionary page, cut it out, glued it to the page...

 



 I cut stars from a piece of newsprint that had over-spray from a previous project (yes, I DO save my "under-papers"...sigh)...

 

Next I outlined all of these with a Stabilo pencil and activated the lines with water...yum!...

 

Then I took an acrylic marker and dotted a border...

 

I'm happy with it so far, but I "know" it isn't finished yet...I will definitely add some writing, even if just a word or two...how would YOU finish this page?

mark making

The theme for March for Documented Life Project was mark making...this is where I started...

I "sat" with this for a while...wasn't inspired to add any more "marks" soooo...

...my default is usually dictionary page pieces...  :)

A little acrylic paint-colors of spring-swiped on with an old credit card...this is where I am...I'm liking it this way, although I know that I will add to it...what would you add to this page?

five

Documented Life Project prompt from a few weeks ago was "five layers"...this is my interpretation on my art journal page...
The collage element was "one" layer :) which we created in my Creekside Studio Sew Fun Art Journaling class last week (stitching-both with a sewing machine and by hand-is super fun!  Try it!)

First, distress inks were applied directly to the paper, and also sponged through a hand-cut stencil.  Second, I spritzed black marker ink through the Tim Holtz spritzer.  Third, the journaling came next, in the "white" space created by the stencil...prompted by the word 'thrive' on the dictionary page and by Frida, my focal image...along with the doodling.  Fourth, I glued down my collage layer.  Finally, five!, I added a little acrylic paint grid for texture.  Easy, peasy, lemon squeezy!  :)