An Art Journaling Afternoon

My friend, Margaret, and I enjoyed an afternoon of Art Journaling on Monday.  It was low key and relaxing.

She’d been interested in trying her hand at crafting an Art Journal and wanted to do one in an altered book.  You can see more about some art journal basics here.

I got Margaret rolling on a spread with color as the theme.  She created these lovely pages on the color orange.

All the elements came together beautifully.  The rich fall colors in the pretty background picture are accented with a little blue that is repeated in the design on the dress fabric and the scrap of blue mulberry paper behind the woman.  The repetition of the fish scale pattern is echoed in the lines on the fabric.

Margaret said she felt like she was in kindergarten.  We should have had milk and cookies!

While she was working on her orange page, I put together this page.  I’d cut out the yellow bird a long time ago and had found the scrap that says “sing” and the two pieces have sat on my desk for months.  I was very happy to finally include them in a spread.

The ripped piece of paper in the middle is printed vellum.  When it is flat, you can see a bit more of the left part of the face.  I don’t really know why I combined these images, but I did.  Her face is tinted a deep shade of teal but that doesn’t really show in this photo.  I like how the yellow, rust-orange and turquoise work together.

We continued creating, with both of us starting another page.   Margaret wasn’t finished when I had to leave, but you can see she had a nice possible layout that she was working with.

I’m sorry I cut off part of the word “HOME”.  She did a beautiful job with the pink, black, white and green accented color scheme in all the elements.  You can see the doggie’s pink tongue and bits of pink and green  in the interior photos.

After my Halloween costume this year, it should be no surprise that I did a page with a peacock feather motif.

I was nearly finished before I left, but I added a few doodles on the face tucked into the word “beauty” and some white ink finishing the shape of the bottom of the peacock feather later that evening. When I started it, I looked through magazine images I’ve previously picked and chose items for their color. There is a giant leaf, a hibiscus, some pretty glass bottles, a plate, some jewelry and even some shoes all collaged together.

It was good spending time crafting with my friend, chatting and catching up as we colored and pasted, using our creative energy.

Thank you for your visit.

Old and New Art Journal Pages

This is from my first Art Journal.  I never got around to posting it, so here it is!

Bloom Where You’re Planted.  I think I have that attitude.

The picture was too long for the page, so I added this little fold down flap.

The other page has a flap too.  And another true statement.  I do love where we live!

This is the Church of Saint Raphael in San Rafael.  You can see the tile roof on the right of the smaller chapel, which is a replica, built in 1949, of the Mission San Rafael.  Many people refer to the larger church as the Mission.

I chose the background paper to go with the soft pink color of the church buildings in the photo. I like the two sentiments.

This is a spread in my newest journal.  Once again, I’m trying out pages I’ve seen on Pinterest.

This was more about the color block writing than what I had to say.  It was only after I did it that I went back to look at the inspiration and realize that instead of using markers, it has been done with colored pencil.  Oh.  That would have been MUCH easier!  I may try it again another time.  The original from Whimspirations by Joanne Sharpe had a much easier flow and cleaner color.

This one was also not quite what I’d seen…another one to try again.  After loving the 3-D Hand, I wanted to try something similar.

I should go back and look at the directions when I see something like this…but I learn from trying.  After I did it, I looked at the picture again and will try this one another time.  I just want to share what I’m doing – some are more successful than others.

There is pleasure in the doing.  In sitting down at my desk and choosing colors and putting pen to paper.

That is success enough!

Thanks for coming by.

3-D Hand Drawing

I love how this flat picture looks three dimensional.  I saw the how-to on Pinterest here.  I did it a few times before I liked it enough to add color.

Trace your hand with pencil.

Somehow my hand has been replaced by this odd, pinkish wrinkled old paw.  Strange.

Now take a marker and draw a straight line until you get to the pencil line.  Than draw an arc to the other pencil line and then go back to making a straight line.

I tried using a ruler but in the end it was easiest just doing it freehand.

You can go back and erase the pencil line when you’re finished with the black lines.

It kind of reminds me of topographical maps with their contour lines.

It looks effective from every angle too.

Felt markers add color.

I glued it into my newest Art Journal. Unfortunately, I think it loses a little of the 3-D effect going over the two pages.  But it is still cool.

I had slicked down some gesso first and after gluing the hand picture I covered it with Mod Podge.  The water-based markers smeared some with the water-based Mod Podge.  Oops.  I tried to heat-set the color with a heat gun but it wasn’t completely effective

This new Art Journal is in an old textbook from my high school, found on the shelf at my mom’s house.

Adventures in America Literature, published in 1952.

It is overdue.

I don’t know how it got onto the shelf at Mom’s but it wasn’t me.  I graduated before that!

I appreciate the visit!

Triangles

I started another Art Journal.  I’ve got one just for the doors and entries spreads but I wanted to have another general one that I can fill with whatever I want.

Pinterest continues to give me ideas and inspiration and these triangles were inspired by these triangles at Pie ‘N the Sky. Which, in turn, were inspired by these triangles at A Beautiful Mess.

I first cut out some triangles that were 1.5 inches on each side but I decided they were too small, so I went with 2.5 inches instead.  I made a template out of heavy card stock (the front cover of a mini calendar), measuring the triangle and cutting it out with an Exacto knife.  This was great because I just put the template down on paper to decide exactly where I wanted to cut out the shapes from that page.

Be sure and cut some triangles with the design oriented with the point at the top and some inverted so the design or photo is oriented with the wide part at the top.

Most of my triangles were cut from magazine pages but some came out of textbooks, there is a triangle from a dictionary (with the definition of triangle, of course), a paint swatch (the photo on the reverse side of the paint samples), sheet music, a postcard, the lining of an envelope, and pretty patterned paper.  Thin paper is best for the center of the two pages if you are doing a two-page spread in an art journal because it is easier to smooth it into the crease.

I did my initial layout on the back of a manilla folder.  In one of the blogs I looked at they had all the triangles touching but I liked how they looked with a little space in between.  I also think it is a little more forgiving as a layout because if you’re like me, the shapes are probably not all identical.

Before I started on my pages, I’d painted them with a coat of gesso for a more neutral background.  My glue of choice is a glue stick, although a glue pen was helpful when I found a corner I’d missed.

I forget this tip but it is helpful when you have a project with a lot of gluing: use a magazine (one you have read and pulled out any articles, recipes or material for future craft projects) when putting glue on the triangles and when one page gets too sticky, simply turn to a new page.

After I did my layout, I took a picture of it which was also helpful.  I started transferring triangles from the layout to the page and I got off track once but was able to refer back to the picture to see how I originally had it.

Even a 2.5 inch triangle is large enough to capture a familiar gaze.

Or a famous musician. Or two.

An optional finishing step is a coat of Mod Podge or similar medium.  If I were doing this on the cover of my journal, I would do this step by I decided to skip it for this spread.

Thanks for stopping by.

Art Journal Update

Hello!  I didn’t intend to take such a long break from blogging but other things filled my time.  I think, after 30 Days of Creativity (30DOC), that I needed a breather.

I’ve started on my next Art Journal and wanted to share some pictures from it.  We also went to Sea Ranch over the long Fourth of July weekend so the post after this one will have some photos from that trip.

I’ve been collecting images of doors, archways, gates, windows and other interesting entrances because I want to do an Art Journal using these images.  I decided to use this picture of an elaborate bronze doors with the fancy green surround as my first door.  After pasting the picture into the book, I cut the doors open and added small door pulls.

Doors can be seen as a symbol of new beginnings, an opportunity, or a transition.  I love all the detail in this double door, so much more elaborate than typical doors we see in our culture.

I wanted it to be a welcoming door, into  this, my new Art Journal.  Pull the door open and you will see…

A smiling boy with a bright orange umbrella.  Turn the page and you will find he’s with some friends.

I love that the door is from India, the boys from Indonesia and the background is Russian.  The beautiful borders on these pages are from the artwork in the book I’m using for my journal: The Firebird.

I chose images that I both liked and for their colors to finish this two-page spread: California poppies and nasturtiums,purple and orange starfish, a Monarch butterfly and the Firebird from the Russian folktale.

I started this Art Journal in an old Bon Appetit cookbook.  I picked it up at a used book store in Half Moon Bay and thought I’d checked for a stitched binding.

But as I got into the second page, I realized that it was a glued binding and it was coming unglued! The book I used for 30DOC also had a glued binding and had held together for the whole month but this one was falling apart before I even finished two pages.  Changing to a different book seemed like the best way to go, so I cut the bronze and green door page out of the old cookbook/journal and tipped it into the new storybook/journal.  If you look closely at the page with the Firebird and poppies, you can see recipes peeking out through the colored background.

A closed door can also represent something ending or something hidden. In the next few pages, I created a room with book-lined walls and comfortable places to sit.  The background is a collage made from pages of a dictionary.

I like the shabby but cozy feeling of peeling layers of paint, rich colors, lots of pillows and even a cat relaxing.  But what is behind the door?

Yes, there is even a hint in those dictionary definitions: the word bare turned up.  I didn’t plan it that way but when it was pointed out, I highlighted the word that fit in so perfectly.

The soft peachy tones look beautiful next to the blue around and next to the doorway.

Jessica Chastain in a photo from Vanity Fair.

I used foil for mirrors on these pages.  A lush arrangement of flowers and a chandelier are finishing touches.

Most of the pictures in these two pages are from a home on an island in Greece.

Archways frame beautiful views.  On the right hand side, cut-outs offer a glimpse of the following page but seemed a little awkward.  I stamped on a small design in blue ink to make the page more cohesive.

More arches fill the next page.

The ocher arches on the left side have been cut out to view the water on the previous page.

It was very satisfying to sit down with my supplies and create new pages in a new Art Journal.  Having unstructured, unscheduled time at Sea Ranch or on any vacation is one of the real benefits for me.

Take a look at the next post for a few Sea Ranch pictures.

Thanks for the visit.

Day 15: Taj Mahal Kiss

Day 15: Taj Mahal Kiss.  I started this spread yesterday. My sister was generous with her folders of images and had already given me the Taj Mahal picture.

The item that really inspired this spread though was this.

Magenta Ink.

When I was leafing through Kathleen’s pictures, I found this image of the beautiful sari-clad woman happily receiving a kiss from her turbaned beau. That image, the Taj Mahal and a carpet and some tiles I had pictures of along with bright magenta, celadon, and turquoise inks and I just needed to start gluing.

Kathleen also had the silver paisley embellishments.  So – thank you for sharing your goodies!

Today, at the Collage Cafe at Kentucky Girl Designs, I completed the pages with a stamped ink medallion, a little teal ink around the larger silver paisley embellishment, and a few adhesive jewels.

Fifteen days done, fifteen to go!

Last year on Day 15:  Notecards with Lined Envelopes

And the year before that? Glass Marble Magnets

I started two great pages at the Collage Cafe.  Visit tomorrow to see the first one.

Thanks for stopping by!

Day 11: White On White

Day 11: White On White.

Simple objects from my crafting desk, and from around the house , glued atop the page.  For the heavier items, I used E6000 adhesive.  Tombow adhesive worked for the tag, stamps, burlap scrap, and felt flowers

For most spreads I glue three pages together on each side so they’re really sturdy.  For this one I glued 4 pages on each side.

I envisioned the familiar items all in white on a white background so you would just see the shape and texture.

I don’t have any white paint so I was using Gesso.

Last year Day 11’s project were these Button Rings.

The first year I did 30DOC, I made this epic Minature Paper Dress on day 11.

Come back tomorrow and see what I come up with!

Day 6: Mosaic Poppies

Day 6, a little late, a mosaic of poppies. Pinterest was, once again, a source of inspiration.  I found this picture and followed the link back to Donna Downey’s awesome blog “Simply Me“.  Lots of yummy stuff to go look at later.

I love these Oriental Poppies and have taken pictures of them at Filoli Gardens:

And also at the Italian Street Painting Festival in San Rafael:

I used pictures pulled from magazines and from my stash of saved images (also mostly from magazines).  The poppies have petals made from blinds, dresses, art work and lips.

The flower centers are from a picture of lustrous dark hair and a black pen for the little details.

The green for the leaves and stems came mostly from ads that had leaves in them but also from some green jeans.

Most of the color for the background “tiles” was background in ads – sky, water, or just a pretty colored  background, but I also used several paint chips, some scrap-booking paper and a great purse.  Look carefully and you can see details like stitching (that’s the purse).

Somehow it is almost 8PM and I haven’t started the spread for today! Yikes.

Here is the Day 6 project from last year: Shrinky Dink Rings (Fail II)

Day 6 the year before was: Infused Oil

Thanks for stopping by.

Day 4: Running Out Of Time

Day 4: Running Out Of Time.  I started this before going to work and it was a foggy morning.  The image of the woman caught my eye…

Than I  found the misty Venice picture.  It all pulled together when I found the hourglass which seemed to suit the timeless quality of Venice as well as the idea of time running out and the look of apprehension or concern on the woman’s face.

I completed the spread after my choir rehearsal, adding layers of paper and color.

Last year I made these: Double Sponged and Embossed Cards

The year before I made these: Pizza Bites

Thanks for stopping by.

Day 2: Año Nuevo State Park

We went to Año Nuevo State Park yesterday and saw elephant seals.  This spread has pictures from the brochure and map we picked up, a bookmark and the picture of the bull elephant seal on the right is from a magazine photo of a life-sized seal at the Marine Mammal Center.

We saw loads of seals but none of the bulls.  The females and juvenile males were up on the beaches.  Some of the juveniles were sounding off at each other and challenging each other but nothing like the full-on fighting and mating that goes on in January.

Last year I made this: Cake Stand.

The year before I made this: Embossed Tins.

Thanks for your visit.