Keep An Art Journal

Going Live! Share to Keep an Art Journal

2009-10-21T09:06:00.000-07:00

Keep an Art Journal - Room to Create 2

2009-09-28T08:20:00.000-07:00

Here you can see what I was talking about in the previous post I'll try to describe going clockwise from about 11:00.

1. single-item-depth shelf above treadmill
2. acres of table space looking at pegboard corner
3. Same as 2 only you can see the top of the new wheely-drawer behind the stool
4. Wire drawers with finished work, sewing machine as well as pin board above
5. Wider view of 4
6. part of clothes line, top of rolls in bucket, treadmill as paper holder, single depth shelf, large shelves and in the distance small shelf of large items

Having the clutter in manageable spaces inspires me to clear the table at night and to put out new stuff to begin every day - isn't that we want?

Keep an Art Journal - Room to create

2009-09-28T07:52:00.000-07:00

I decided to do whatever it takes/took to clear off my workspace - my 10 foot table - in such a way that I could have more than a square foot of workspace. I have been meaning to put up this pegboard for the entire summer. Finally got it cut, painted and sanded a month ago and NOW it is up and loaded. This was just the beginning. I cleared rolls of paper and other necessary items into standing buckets and waste baskets. Added a shelf above my treadmill that is one-item deep and easy to reach, added a large paint storage shelf and sorted ephemera to bottles, jugs and jars. Also made a clothes line arrangement for prepped paper in between uses. I did splurge and buy a second set of plastic-wheely drawers and have moved my rubber stamps into it. I have had stamps 6 inches deep in bins and have no idea what I have or where - no longer true! Also reorganized my semi-organized wire drawers so I can find things. Decided it is okay to have things stand on the sideboards as I don't need to work there.

ALL this allowed for my table to emerge to the point I could put a clean paper cover on it. Now the real work begins - changing habits so that I actually put things away at the end of the day or the end of the project. It has been a week and so far I am putting 90% of my things away each night. There are always the things that need to dry sitting out and usually a few things awaiting processing the next day but overall I suddenly have expansive room to create!

Handpainted Pages with Tape Added

2009-09-21T07:23:00.000-07:00

In my last post I said I would show you the pages inside the second handmade journal. Since then I had to uninstall and reinstall the photo software - and I had a big case of Idonwannas.

Now it is done and I am very pleased to show you the inside of this journal. I usually hand tear my pages and leave a deckled edge, but for some reason I couldn't get these pages torn to my satisfaction. Luckily for me I have recently discovered decorative tape which is the white lacy stuff you see here! The tape also comes with black lace.(karl@oboiler.com to buy)

The second set of pages you see has a different decorative tape that has script on a clear background. This tape furthers my ongoing experiment with using script or text for interest and depth. I love the effect. I found this tape on Etsy at the direction of my current art journaling mentor Kelly Kilmer.

The e-mail address for this tape is Yangyanggo@hotmail.com I cannot remember the Etsy name though. I also have a transparent tab/extension on this spread of pages to the right which just makes the next page sooooo inviting. When I write and collage this page I will turn the book so that the extension is on the top of the page. Then the vertical lines in the page will be there for script! And no one will be able to just flip through the book without pause.

Now the question is should I give this journal to my sister for her birthday? Even if I am not sure that she would use it? Or even if she wants something more to dust lying around on a shelf? This is where I am stuck right now.

Making Your Art Journals - Recycle and Reuse

2009-09-17T16:06:00.001-07:00

This is the second journal I have handmade on my own - I LOVE it! I took a class in which I learned how to reuse an old book cover and paint, collage and bind it, into a beautiful work of art that anyone would be proud to carry around, work in or just look at.

I have spent a lifetime looking like a church lady just because my hair is curly and my figure is prim. I have a practical bent that talks me out of outrageous clothing and flashy cars. But when I get to my art table I can see no reason to be practical. If I were going to be practical I would just go buy the sturdiest journal that would serve my purposes.

So for this cover I painted the binding tape a mix of Lumiere's metallic rust and halo pink gold acrylic paint. The book boards are the same metallic rust, and the grid tape is painted Golden's Copper Acrylic. Then I decided to make dingle-bobs on the binding thread and to put them on the outside. They will probably tangle and be in the way, but oh, they look so cool. I got my husband to help me drill a hole in some Austrian Pfennigs and used one of them as a dingle-bob, I also used some bronze beads and charms from Vintag. Oh and I had a pearl laying right there so I tied it on too.

This journal has hand-painted pages in it and I will show them in another post...I must go get some journaling done so I can finish my current journal and start using one of my new ones.

An Altered Book Art Journal

2009-09-13T10:11:00.000-07:00

Ah software - the band on the left of each picture is actually the top and the grid tape will go down the left side.

This is the first altered book journal cover I have made on my own. I took a class in July, with Kelly Kilmer but since the journal I made then is still being filled, I haven't tried making another cover on my own.

This cover is beautiful, but it isn't perfect. I made the space between the two book boards too narrow so the book will not be one that lies flat when the pages are added and filled up. I could do it over, but I think I will just learn from it and make another and put the lesson to better use. Re-dos never work for me anyway.

I still have to sew in the pages and have to wait for my waxed linen thread to arrive in the mail...the pages are painted and standing by.

I'll post the art journal again when the pages are in - stay tuned.

What Chases Me in Circles?

2009-09-08T06:45:00.000-07:00

When in a mode of procrastination my creativity declines, slumps, goes stagnant I don't care how you say it. On days where I am more behind than usual I get less productive.

With the days getting shorter and the morning sun coming through my window later and later, I can easily get side-tracked into a 'normal' pace.

My morning practices (and my morning) go better when done before other folk are moving around the house. They are quiet practices. Meditation, writing, and a quick walk around the hood. If I am up very long before I begin my practices my mind gets the upper hand telling me about chilliness, darkness and just this once.

If I get to the meditation before I can really think (but after I brush my teeth) I know my day will be more productive, which means I'll be itching to paint, glue and write by the time I get a chance to do it. Then procrastination and putting off aren't even an issue.

Well I think I got sidetracked right there - I notice that the more I put things off the harder it is to get up in the morning. If I don't get up EARLY in the morning I miss my daily set up. When I miss my set up I don't have the energy to tackle the icky stuff and then it builds up in my mind, gains weight so to say. Then the next obvious step is to the 'put it off' mode...it's a vicious circle is all I'm saying.

The Heart of the Matter

2009-09-05T17:30:00.000-07:00

Why I Art Journal
I had an idea that I would like to use some old ledger pages for collaging and decided to add a new ledger page that would tally all the things that I use and use up on a daily basis. Since it was on ledger paper I added up the new tally and came to a grand total of $37.00 give or take a few pennies. On a side note, I thought of several things that I did not add to the list that I use on a daily basis. Like I did not add in the daily amount of utilities and phone costs and car gasoline consumed just to make it through my day. So back to the $37.00. I was mucking about looking for a focal point and thought this bag with a gold Sacajawea dollar in it would look good on the page and was busily attaching it when my eye fell on the image of the little African child licking a minute amount of food from his/er fingers so as not to miss a single bit of meal.
Feed this child for $5.00 a month.
According to this my daily consumption - DAILY - would feed this child for seven months or seven children for a month...What will it take for me to lower my consumption by $5.00 a day? Could I do it and sponsor one child a day for a year? The thought is staggering.

Keep an Art Journal in the Great Outdoors!

2009-09-04T18:54:00.000-07:00

Here is the story and accompanying picture from the camping trip - different from my 'at home' work, but still quite fun.

Keep an Art Journal Plein Air

2009-09-04T17:38:00.000-07:00

Camping is a way for me to reconnect
with the universe and the natural world. Normally I only take my writing journal and wait until I'm home to let the art out.

It seemed such a shame to let the long unscheduled hours to drift by without any art journaling at all that I decided that I could at least do a little bit, at least prep a few pages. I forgot about such things as wind, no running water, ants and drifting leaves and blowing dust.

Even though I didn't attempt anything using my normal acrylic paints and collaging, I was able to make a couple of satisfying pages with the water color pencils and Sharpie water-based poster paint pens. I never have enough
good reading material when I go off into the mountains I so have to make up snippets of my own, something I would love to find in
a book at the library.

I am having trouble uploading another picture so I will fool this
software and get it in another way...hope it doesn't look too out
of order.

Here is the happy camper journaling away bundled up for pre-breakfast coffee in the cool mountain air.

I think everyone would benefit from getting away from the everydayness of life and get a little uncomfortable and inconvenient in order to be in a place that's beauty is so big that it expands any mortal wishing to rise.

Signature Page

2009-08-29T07:16:00.000-07:00

Remember that yummy paper I bought - see one of the posts from August 21 - well I have decided to mainly use it for the inside the journal covers I make. It is so scrumptious I don't want to cover it up!

I am trying out a few ideas for a signature stamp ala Prince. I have in mind making a large round stamp and then use it to sign books etc. when I'm famous! Here are the three I like best on my signature page.

I want my signature to remind me (mostly) and others to have direction, and the direction I am striving for on a moment-to-moment basis is Live, Love, Laugh and Be Happy. Yes, I know another song.

Keeping an Art Journal on the Road

2009-08-28T09:16:00.000-07:00

This is a different journal, one in which I have painted and stamped on and dried in advance. Then on a trip I can fill it in with events and ephemera picked up on the way.

I can't stand the thought of paint in my car, but we snipped and glued and collected pictures at every rest stop.

On the way home we also added stickers that we picked up in Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park that do not show here. Always ask for stickers, you would be amazed how many ice cream parlors, sweet shops and other places have their own stickers!

Sharing Food for Thought

2009-08-28T09:05:00.000-07:00

Sharing for me is a way of being. I believe I exist in what I share, whether it is conversation, art or food. I have a very practical helpmeet that grounds me in the reality of life that I need to have it before I share it...so picky.

This page uses my own 'made' papers as well as some little mosaic tiles I found somewhere. It is also another sample of the water-based poster paint pens by Sharpie...I understand they are a discontinued product so I will stock up.

I don't know if it comes through that I also love to share my values. See the post below for a look at the page with the flap lifted for the items I don't share.

Sharing with Flap Up

2009-08-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

Childhood Friends

2009-08-27T20:25:00.000-07:00

When I was 12 I ran into Bilbo Baggins, introduced by my friend Janet Meddings. We were at the stage where we were in love with the Beatles and the Hobbits captured our imaginations. I was sucked into Middle Earth and no matter what I said, I could not get my friends and family to read the 'fairy tales.' It was very frustrating.

When my niece was 4 years old I read the entire four books to her out loud, a chapter a day. My dad and mom as well as my sister would listen in. We moved away and my mom said that my dad went to the library and checked out the entire trilogy and they read it together.

I read the series aloud again when my daughter was very young and the audience was her and my niece again, then I read it aloud again to my daughter and my son. A chapter a night.

I would love to meet both Bilbo and Frodo and go on adventures with them and then come home and write the adventures down in my journal - just as Bilbo did.

Keep an Art Journal Experiment

2009-08-25T06:46:00.000-07:00

The experiment of a script layer seems to have worked a little better in this page. This time the song Try to Remember or maybe it's The Days of September or !@#$#%$@! it's probably Follow - aside, I'm having a Dory moment, I refuse to have senior moments...

Ahem, where was I, the song script seems to be more visible for this page although I used the same translucent paper. And I do think it adds quite a bit of depth. I will go look at some paper in person and see if vellum or something else is available that is more translucent without being transparent.

I think every year could have a 13th month.

Treasures Found

2009-08-25T06:36:00.000-07:00

I took the picture of this page before I finished it.

Sand dollars have always seemed miraculous and mysterious to me. How come the flower pattern? Or is it a star? The delicate and intricate pattern on each shell is incredible and I am assuming, like snowflakes, no two are identical. Mind boggling!

I keep sand dollars where I can see them and be reminded daily of the infinity and perfection of the universe I inhabit.

Old Enough

2009-08-25T06:30:00.000-07:00

I was trying to layer writing in as it's own "depth charge." I wrote the entire song the
12th of Never in tiny script and then put a translucent overlay. I should have used transparent. In another post below Beginner's Mind I used tissue with script with the same experiment in mind. I will just say that the experiment continues.

This will now be my new birthday and the song will be the new birthday song requirement.
Happy Birthday.

Who I Am 1

2009-08-23T09:16:00.000-07:00

I am going to do a series of Who I am and see what that reveals. At first I didn't really care for the dark colors and flat, matte surfacing of this page, but it is growing on
me. Of course I couldn't find the Spanish dictionary I keep for this purpose, only the French and English. So I put in a French Bulldog as a nod to my French-Huegenot background as well as my tenacity.

Double Page Display

2009-08-23T09:08:00.000-07:00

I love bridging two pages and two subjects with a focal point. It is kind of like putting a mirror on the wall to enlarge a room. My favorite play images and my sentimental journey are easily bridged by the fun image of Max - it seems to give continuity from my childhood to my present life.

When the Fog Lifts

2009-08-23T08:08:00.000-07:00

The last year BC (before children) we lived in the coastal range above Refugio Beach on one side and Lake Cachuma on the other. Our property was surrounded by Los Padres National Forest and from one side we looked down into the Santa Ynez Valley and from the other we looked down on the ocean if the fog lifted and went out to sea.

That was the beginning of our bird watching life too. The danger of fire in the chaparral and the deteriorating road final sent us off to another even more remote site. Keeping an Art Journal can easily return you to the adventures of your youth even when you aren't old (LOL). My daughter is now in her thirties and my son is close behind.

Keep an Art Journal to DeClutter

2009-08-21T12:19:00.000-07:00

De Clutter is in De Can

Journaling about things I keep really got me looking around at what I keep and why.

I have a lot of things to do my work (office machines, files, phones) maintain my presentation (nail polish etc), support my hobbies (piano and music books) books, and books, and books. Oh yes and an art studio. So I have a lot of things not necessary to my survival that are useful, but I have just as many things that have sort of drifted in and made a home for themselves. Each with its own coating of dust I might add.

The journaling got me moving and this past two weeks I have sent 4 large garbage sacks to various charities, listed hundreds of books on half.com and e-bay and dusted and dusted.

It felt easy, a relief even. The stacks of books and journals that were stealing all my desk space now have plenty of room on - GASP – the bookshelves!

Keep an Art Journal - Paper online

2009-08-21T11:33:00.000-07:00

Today my new

papers came in the mail. I normally

make my own paper backgrounds with paint and collage, but I found a scrap of beautiful paper at the last class I took and used it in one of my journal pages. I sleuthed out the name of the company and then found the actual papers. And for the first time I bought decorative paper online!

K & Company make these papers and I finally found them online at

Two Peas in a Bucket. The name of the design line is Que Sera Sera, and there are textured papers, glittering papers and flat papers. The papers are designed for scrapbooking so come in the 12 X 12 format. I will use them for inside covers in my next altered book and art journals and any leftover scrap will definitely find its way into the interior of the book.

flat papers - click image to enlarge

Beginner's Mind - Keep an Art Journal

2009-08-21T10:53:00.000-07:00

(click image to make it larger)

I was trying to figure out why these pictures were so compelling to me and looked up a wiki for Self Actualization.

Check it out - it may improve your self talk, self image, self esteem. I may be falling short, but I am on a mighty quest.

The blossoms are from the orchid plant on Carol’s kitchen window sill so they are doubly dear. Silly to try to put dried flowers in an Art Journal or an Altered Book, they are just too fragile. I did it anyway and then spent a week coming up with something to protect them (hopefully). I finally ended up cutting up the shopping bag from Two Hands Paperie, it was the best thing I got there! The problem then is that you cannot actually see the page being protected unless you are there to pick up the covering. I’ll see if I can get another picture with the cover lifted as I think the page itself says a lot.

And here is the real advantage and beauty in keeping an art journal, combining several elements that speak to the real me also gives the world access to the real me. Kind of like standing around with your protective covering lifted up.

Keep an Art Journal - Daily Upsets

2009-07-31T11:36:00.000-07:00

And the cure

Nap Time

2009-07-31T11:33:00.000-07:00

When I grow up I will take naps with my cat - like my cat

Daily Coffee

2009-07-31T11:30:00.000-07:00

Blame Could Kill Love

Inspirational Words

2009-05-10T17:13:00.000-07:00

Mixed Media Monday Challenge
"Listen"
Unfinished Journal cover
http://mixedmediamonday.wordpress.com/

Keep An Art Journal for Experimenting 3

2009-05-03T06:59:00.000-07:00

Really having trouble getting the photos to load in the proper direction, you know up versus down.

Keep an Art Journal for Experimenting 2

2009-05-01T12:05:00.000-07:00

An example showing

the Boulderado through one layer of Mica looking the other way as you leaf through the art journal.

Keep an Art Journal for Experimenting

2009-05-01T12:00:00.000-07:00

Another way to use art journaling is as a place to try out something new.

About a year ago I kept reading about people using mica in scrapbooking and could not quite figure out how they were doing it.

To make a long story short, my husband and I went on an extended hiking trip and came across an old mine that had large chunks of mica lying about. I examined it and then put a few pieces in my pack. As I hiked along I started to see in my mind how one could indeed use mica as window panes. And how this was particularly suited to the art journal format, with consecutive pages adding to a layered effect. The pieces we found had the largest mica sheets I had ever seen, lots of pieces bigger than the palm of my hand.

In case you don’t know, mica is a rock comprised of tightly compressed layers of shiny, see through mineral. I was only carrying out a few pieces for obvious reasons – you don’t add tons (or even 25 pounds) of rock to your pack when you are hiking above 10,000 feet in the mountains.

I have since found that there is processed mica available in craft stores. Regardless of where you obtain your mica or what the form is, the flakes or sheets can be carefully peeled apart for thinner and thinner panes. The effect is nice, kind of like beveled glass. The real fun which I discovered while experimenting in my art journal, was layering two or three pages where the ‘window’ looked backwards and forwards. The main subject is the same picture seen through thicker or thinner layers (or no layer) and the picture itself can be entirely different.

I will try to get more than one photo into this post showing the same 3 – 4 pages. What I don’t think I captured in the photos is the quality of light that comes through the mica and thus through the image.

This is just one example of ways to keep an art journal for trying out new methods and materials

To Keep an Art Journal As Practice

2009-04-25T09:41:00.000-07:00

To keep an art journal is a ‘practice’ as in meditation and yoga.

Every day in your meditation or in your yoga you bring a different ‘you’ to the practice. A simple example of this is that on some days you have not had enough sleep and your meditation or your yoga will reflect that fact. Another example, once in a while you will have a glass of wine with dinner and then have another after dinner. Not only will the meditation and yoga be affected, but any exercise - and in a way - any motivation, will be affected.

When you set out to keep an art journal as a spiritual practice it will be the same. Some days you will be brilliant and many days you will be average and some days you will just suck.

Once you decide that you are going to keep an art journal on a daily or semi-weekly basis, you will immediately come up against impossible obstacles to doing so. These obstacles are exactly why you haven’t already started – press through. Growing is not always comfortable and one way to add in a new practice is to make it more uncomfortable to not do it than it is to do it. For example if you promised yourself that you would work in your art journal at least twice a week and you made it Monday, but forgot all about it until 11:30 pm Saturday – make yourself do at least a portion of a page anyway. You will teach your mind that you are serious about starting this practice and you are going to do it no matter what! It may take a few late nights or missed dinner dates, but your mind will get the message.

For the best results in using this ‘practice’ you want to cultivate a non-judging attitude. With frequent and regular practice you will bring yourself to the page with more creative confidence and learn to trust the process and yourself.

I use an affirmation that one of my journaling teachers gave me, “Create to be authentic, not perfect.”

To Keep an Art Journal as a practice is actually a practice in being authentic.

To Keep an Art Journal Takes Practice

2009-04-21T05:41:00.000-07:00

A friend said to me the other day “You have always been a better self-starter than I have.” I stared at her in astonishment. This is not how I see myself. If I want to accomplish anything I have to paint myself into a corner and have no way out but forward. To others this looks like self-starting.

Side note: This brings up all those funny initials that geeks use ROFL, LMAO, LOL. For the rest of us these translate into hysterical giggles.

Ahem, where was I, oh yes to keep an art journal takes practice…let me tell you how I paint myself into a corner.

Ø First of all I tell everyone that I am having a great time with my art journaling and my altered art journals. I tell them all my new ideas and how I am going to make a million dollars with my art.

Ø I make sure that I clear off my work table every week all the way down to the surface

Ø I make sure I have all the pens, pencils, paint and stencils I could ever use.

Ø I make sure I can find stuff

Ø I schedule time to do it

Ø I tell the kids we will be painting at “X” time (“Is it time yet?”)

Ø Then I stand in front of my paper with all the stuff sitting there and it seems easy to start.

Many of us think we should already be able to do this or know how. Many of us feel blocked when it comes to creativity. With practice you will gradually cultivate confidence and skill but it will take practicing.

To Keep an Art Journal as A Survival Tool

2009-04-19T11:33:00.000-07:00

Days like this are when my determination to keep an art journal becomes a survival tool, much, much more than recreation, therapy or spiritual practice.

The kids have an extra day off because of teacher conferences YAY YAHOO – except it is snowing - hard. I spent the morning puttering around my art area while they watched cartoons and now the art supplies are in good order for when the giant HO-HUM sets in.

We will practice mixing and using acrylics, our ten year old is developing a real technique and it is great fun watching her daubing, spraying and speckling. This is where my art journaling comes into play. While she works I use her extra paints to prep pages in a couple of my new art journals. No matter how often we do it – we always have extra paint mixed and out. This way I am there to help turn her big wet pages, hand out wipes and admire, without hovering. It is a great opportunity to prepare pages with colors I wouldn’t normally choose myself. It allows a fresh flush of color on as many pages as I care to work up.

When the kids are home for several days, especially in the winter, I can get several layers down on my pages, creating a feeling of depth as well as strengthening the paper. I always have at least two journals going and often three. This helps me keep going – painting journal #2 while #1 dries. I let the pages dry, at least a little, before putting wax paper under and in between because if I put it in too soon it affects the texture pattern and sometimes that isn’t what I want. Sometimes it is.

Now the gray day is turning to evening and suppertime and we have survived the day in great spirits with lots of art to show for it!

Insights

2009-04-16T17:16:00.000-07:00

You know insights seem to happen in the moment, but there are a myriad of things that lead up to having the insight. In this case I went to the Denver Art Museum (first time), visited a friend's studio (and nearly drooled), have been reading magazines and books on my particular art genre, and also have been collaging quite a bit since early December to complete 2008 and envision 2009. I think that all of these 'doings' led to my insight.

I write, and as a writer it is very important to read. Every class, workshop and many books I have read about writing, all recommend lots of reading. And it is recommended that a person read all kinds of things to see how other folk do it – not so you do it like them, but so you see different ways and methods that you can use.

Insight - It's the same with art! To create, no matter what form of creativity you choose, it will serve you to surround yourself with an environment of art! I am not saying you need to move or buy a new house or tons of original art. But you could get an annual pass to the local Art Museum, make a point of visiting the summer art fairs, subscribe to an art magazine, join an art association for your type of art or participate in an art group.

We all know (we do - don't we?) that insights are worthless if they are not followed with effective action. So for your first action get out a pen and your journal and list what actions you will take to bring art to your daily environment.

Use Collage to Keep an Art Journal

2009-03-30T12:17:00.000-07:00

Postcards from
the Edge,
Valli McDougle

col-lage (ke-lazh’) n. An artistic composition of objects and materials pasted on a surface [Gk. holla glue]

Recently I went to a party at my
friend, Valli McDougle’s place. Valli, our host, came to the first

Art Camp for Women in 2007 and is an extraordinary water media artist. Her home is new and luxury of luxuries, she has TWO art studios, one upstairs and one downstairs. And she has acres of wall space to hang her art.

Right now she is taking a series of courses on collage technique and at the end of the evening she and I were huddled in the studio looking at her latest pieces. Collage to die for. Here are pictures of two of her collages.Collage fits right in with my effort to keep an art journal and also is an accurate depiction of how my life is structured. In this day and age we are not a people of long continuums and big families. That era has passed. In my life I have patches and pieces of many different categories or domains of life. My income is from several different sources and endeavors. My social life has different age groups and different interest groups. Even my health regime has several different expressions, run club with the kids, gym with my grown daughter, nutrition and cleansing with a peer, household veggie garden and kitchen organization with my husband.Likewise, my creativity shows up in blurts of expression, rather than a long string of watercolors or photographs or years of dance.

Bridge to Nowhere, Valli McDougle

Organize to Keep an Art Journal

2009-03-29T06:35:00.000-07:00

One way to encourage yourself when setting out to keep an art journal is to have an easily accessible set of supplies.

I often find myself with time to work on a page only to arrive at an art table buried deep in stacks of magazines, or piles of pens or the remains of the last kid day. OR if the art table is cleared (miracles of miracles) and I get to work on my art journal, I spend half the time trying to locate a specific paint, or picture or rubber stamp. I have reorganized any number of times and still find that I am not organized.

Just recently I came across a brilliant book by Gwen Diehn, she has more than one book out, but this one is The Decorated Page, Journals, Scrapbooks & Albums Made Simply Beautiful. (See under Favorites in the sidebar.) Among other great tips, techniques and illustrations, the author has come up with an organization system that works really well.

She has:
1. Everyday Supply Kit
2. Supply Kit for Customizing Books and Preparing Pages
3. Travel Supply Kit.

In the book she lists what she keeps in her kits, and these lists can be easily modified for your own needs. She is so efficient that this system seems to work whether you have a large studio or if you work on the kitchen counter after the kids are in bed.

In the same section of the book she also clearly tells you how to set up a workstation. The idea is that when you walk up to your art table or when you have a moment to work on an altered journal, the supplies are waiting right there all in one place for your use and your valuable time is spent creating, not searching.

Keep An Art Journal - the Green Way Part III

2009-03-28T07:37:00.000-07:00

Keep an Art Journal – the Green Way Part III

This week is spring break and I was looking for a project for the kids that would be simple enough for a ten year old and not break the bank. So I was looking around for ways to use the recycle bin for the actual art pieces, not just the organization and supplies.

It doesn’t hurt if the project also helps them to learn to be more conscious of the environment.

With all of that in mind I opened up the latest edition of my favorite magazine, Cloth, Paper, Scissors and there right in the front was an article for making the lowly grocery sack into fancy clutch purses! Right now, our ten-year-old girl is making the transition from playing dress up to fashionista - not that big of a transition in reality so the fancy purses looked like a great project.

With the magazine propped up in front of me I followed the instructions diligently. I used up oddly mixed paint, left over Christmas ribbon, odd buttons and the grocery sacks! With a few variations and personal touches I soon had a glitzy little purse. (see below) But really, am I the type to use a glitzy little purse?

To keep an Art Journal (remember?)

Here is where creativity intervenes! I then made my laminated material a little thicker by using more bags and proceeded to put together a killer art journal cover! The grocery sack format fits one of the standard Moleskine journals just right!

I’m not sure of the durability and efficiency of my art pieces. Will the paint chip or crack? Will the plastic split? Will sewing through the paint cause leaks or running paint? Today I will find out. I will fool around with different sizes and uses. The 7 year old (male) wants a camouflage colored glasses case. Maybe I could make cell phone pouches, business card holders, and maybe a reusable coffee cup sleeve.

To make a long story short – I am having a great time and the closet space previously used for recycling grocery sacks has diminished to the point I may need to go to the store.

Keep An Art Journal - the Green Way Part II

2009-03-27T05:59:00.000-07:00

Click on image to enlarge.

Grocery Sack Art

The pervasive plastic grocery sack is becoming an obsession with me. I have reusable grocery sacks in each car and even carry one clipped to my purse – and we still accumulate the obsequious plastic sacks by the dozens! To find a fun and creative use for them makes my heart sing.

Keep An Art Journal - the Green Way

2009-03-20T07:13:00.001-07:00

Recycle & Re-use to keep an Art Journal:

Playing in the art world could be a costly habit, especially to keep an art journal,but over time I have developed a strategy;

Spend big money on brushes, paper, paint and classes,
Save everywhere else.

In keeping with this strategy I haunt the thrift stores, rummage through the recycling bin and clip coupons from the Sunday paper. Here are my favorites:

Costco Salad boxes are sturdy clear plastic with lids and the Roma Tomato containers are a long slim tray once the lid is cut off. Both make great storage bins.
Sometimes Costco also has great deals on pens, papers and storage drawers.
Lettuce boxes from other grocery stores are smaller, but also have nice lids and make good storage containers for smaller things like glue sticks or ephemera
Large Cottage cheese and Yogurt Cartons – good for holding brushes and water and have many other uses.
Large Laundry jug lids and Small yogurt cups – perfect small paint & glue containers.
Sleeves for to-go hot drinks – for texture and patterns.
Gift wrap that is no longer good enough for presents (especially tissue).

Thrift stores & Garage Sales:

Micro-wave muffin ‘tins’ 6 cup indentations great for several paint colors and mixing for a project – one of my best finds, and there are always one or two hidden in the cookware section.
Lazy Susans, large and small, good way to keep pens, brushes, punches, scissors and rulers handy.
Silk ties for small fabric projects.
Dress patterns for collage and art dolls.
Blank books - cheap way to start to keep an art journal
Always watch for paint brushes.
Discarded rug kits, the netting/webbing make great patterns for rubbing or spraying or even adding to a collage.

Sales & Sunday Paper Coupons - I use these when I run out of something essential and more expensive, like acrylic matte medium or gel medium or journals!

Michael’s, Jo-Anne’s and Hobby Lobby – most Sundays these Stores have a 40% – 50% off coupon in their advertisements
Annual clearance sales at the fancier stores, Meininger’s had a great sale last September, and after the December Holidays, many stores are cleaning up, for space and tax purposes. College bookstores often have a summer sale.

Auctions - boom or bust – you never know - look up auctions for your state on Google when you have time for a weekend jaunt.

The fact remains that I spend a lot of money to keep an art journal, especially on art supplies. I am satisfied though, that I could spend much more if I didn’t watch for bargains and savings. Keep your eyes open!

Altered Journals

2009-03-13T07:16:00.000-07:00

Altered art is also one of my passions. I work on old books as the base and as a rabid-reader I found I have a huge resistance to mangling books, even old books, even stupid romance books, even books that had millions of copies printed and no one would ever, ever read twice…it took months to get over it. Finally I found an old book, not old as in antique, but old as in used. It was a book with three stories by the same author under one cover, I had read all the stories, cheesy romances, and knew that reading them the first time had been a waste of time, reading them a second time was out of the question. Besides, it cost a quarter at the second-hand store.

So screwing up my courage, I altered the cover first. It is so gorgeous with bronzed ribbon and a Van Gogh postcard. Then I find that it is more practical to do the cover last – ah well. The theme of that first book is "Girlfriends" and I have everything in it from a small bottle of Bailey’s Creme to a Fairy Godmother. When I made it I had in mind sending it to a friend when I found a friend that needed cheering up…and when that friend was cheered up and moving along well, she too, would send the book along to a friend that was down. Well Good idea – right? The book has been sitting here, waiting for the final letter explaining how to pass it on, for about two years now. I have decided to get it in the mail this week. I have a friend in need and this will help in my New Decluttering Plan.

Now that I think of it, these altered books also are a another way to keep an art journal. I call my work altered journals. The one above includes poems, songs, grandmothers, cats, and a winter’s worth of warming thoughts. The final letter that needs to go in will have an explanation of the use of the book as well as a place to write in the name of the sender and recipient, with a date. There are places where the recipient could add some art, wish I had left more room for that…maybe I can glue in another pocket…hmm... see it never ends!

Art Journaling

2009-03-12T12:29:00.001-07:00

Art (art) n. 1. The ability of man to arrange or adapt natural things or conditions to his own uses. 2. The creation of works that are, in form, content, and execution, esthetically pleasing and meaningful, as in music, painting, sculpture, literature, architecture, dance, etc. 3. The principles and techniques governing the creation of such works. 4. The works so created, esp. paintings, drawings, and sculpture. 5. Skilled workmanship; craft. 6. Any skill, craft, trade or profession: the art of cooking: a teacher’s art. 7. Printing Any illustrative or decorative material that accompanies the text….

Jour-nal (jur’ nel) n. 1. A record of daily occurrences, as a diary. 2. A record of the proceedings of a legislature, club etc. 3. A daily newspaper. 4. Any periodical or magazine. 5. Naut. A logbook …

Diary (di’ e-ree) n. pl. –ries 1. A written, daily record of the writer’s experiences, feelings, activities, etc. 2. A book for keeping such a record. [diarium >L dies a day]

As you can read in the above, Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary has a lot to say about art, more than I was willing to type. The three dots mean that there were more meanings mostly to do with artifice etc. And then Mr. Webster defines Journal and in the definition used the word diary – which he also defines. The highlighting is my own.

There are as many different expressions of ‘Art Journaling” out there as there are ‘Art Journalers.’ I have taken a few (art journal) classes where there is nothing written or only one word (usually dream or believe) that is then illustrated. Then I have taken classes where there were only words, with funny fonts or embellishments. My art journaling has words, illustrations, collaging and paint! My definition – my name is close to Webster – comes down to:

Art Journaling v. The act of making a daily record of the artist’s experiences, feelings, lessons and expressions.

Art Journal n. A book for keeping a daily record of the artist’s experiences, feelings, lessons and expressions.

Art Journaling fits my life like a glove and I love it. I have book after book of pages. Pages that are the art itself and pages that have spaces left just for writing in at some other date. Being self-taught I am always experimenting with techniques I have read about. Often I don’t care for the result. When I try something out on a page-sized paper and it doesn’t do what I think it should, I can just turn the page and try again.

Another thing about art journaling is that it can be done in ten-minute (or 20, 30 etc) increments and be very satisfying. No matter what the reason, we usually do not have hours and hours to sit around with a pen or a paint brush. When I have a few minutes, even if I am not feeling artistic, I can always do a little something to a page. I always have more than one set of pages in the works.

As the pages add up the growth of the skill is obvious and progress can be seen. Progress more as progression…