I don’t know about you, but my sweetie and I have had an AMAZING 4th of July weekend!
We were fortunate enough to spend the weekend out in Carlton with my sis-in-law, mom-in-law, and the nieces and nephews!! Can I just tell you, we had a BLAST!!! We had fun going on a long walk/jog, swimming at the community pool, window shopping, and then my sis, Nette, and my niece Megan spent so much time arting! I was teaching them both some mixed media techniques!! Megan is getting ready to redecorate her room, now that she is almost a teenager, and I wanted to help her out by giving her the opportunity to make some new art to hang in her room!!
Megan’s Art
The stuff we did was pretty advanced, and she did swimmingly!!! Nette and I did well too, but Megan ended up with a finished piece…let’s just say, Nette and I have a bit more to do before we can say the same thing!! 😉
Anyway, we had fun listening to music, hanging out on the back patio trying to enjoy the rare moments of cool breeze (and this weekend, that was rare!), but now that Jason and I are finally back home, I am a little sad. I miss having family around, having family dinners, community walks, meet and greets, get togethers, and just plain silliness that you can only experience with true freedom like you can with family! My sweetie and I are seriously thinking about moving to their little town, just to be able to have that in our lives more often. We shall see! 🙂
My Art
Well, enough of that! I wasn’t wanting to be a bummer at all, but really just a quick, and belated, Happy 4th of July to all of you out there!! I am so grateful to live in an amazing country where I can live the way I want to, with the people I love!! God is good! We are SOOOO BLESSED!!!
Here is to creating a Beautiful Creative life! 😉
If you want to have a different life, live differently!
I am happy to announce that my Art Journal Thursday video has been posted out on YouTube!
The supplies I used this week were:
White gesso
Art Advantage Acrylic Paint: Permanent Green Light, Phthalo Turquoise, Cerulean Blue
Dina Wakley Media Stencils: Halves, and Spinners
Dylusions 5×8 Stencil: Circles Small
Black Stabilo Pencil
Finalize Bottle filled with white acrylic paint
Punchinella
M. Graham & Co Titanium White Acrylic Paint
This week’s page is actually really simple, but I love the way that it turned out.
I was really excited to get started on this week’s art journal spread because this was the week that I got to start in my crisp, clean, new art journal!
My new art journal is a Strathmore 400 series, 8.5×11 watercolor paper journal, and I am just LOVING the size! It is so much more manageable than the art journal I just finished, which was a Strathmore 500 series 11×17, I think!
The pages of this journal aren’t quite as smooth as the last journal, but I think I will be able to enjoy myself so much more, now that I don’t have the pressure of trying to figure out to cover such a large spread! So YEAH FOR THAT!! 😉
I am LOVING all of the textures that this background technique has created!
I also really LOVE the colors that I have chosen for this page – ACTUALLY, it was my hubby who chose blue and green – his favorite colors!! Thank you, Sweetie! 😉
I also am really enjoying adding art journaling to my spreads!! It has kind of become a game to see if I can figure out a new way to journal on my page each week! I really like the circular journaling though…might be my new fave! 🙂
So, even though this page was really simple to do, and actually came together rather quickly, I am really very happy with how it turned out! I think that this new journal is off to a great start!! I can’t wait to see what comes out next!!!
What do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
Until next time!
Here is to a BEAUTIFUL CREATIVE life! 🙂
If you want to have a different life, live differently!
I am happy to announce that my Art Journal Thursday #23 video has been posted out on YouTube!
This week the materials I used were:
White gesso
Tissue paper – two different patterns, the teal and white chevron patterned tissue paper was from Paper Source
Gel medium
Dina Wakley Media Heavy Body Acrylic Paints: Lime, Magenta, Tangerine, Night
Apple Barrel Craft Paint: White
Balzer Designs Stencil: 12X12 Stones Divided
Balzer Designs Stencil: 6X6 Mini Fifties Clock
Dylusions Stencil: 9X12 Flossie
Fineline Bottle with White Acrylic Craft Paint
Distress Ink Reinker: Festive Berries
Uni-Ball Signo Broad White Pen
Pilot Permaball Black Pen
#2 Pencil
Scissors
Uhu Glue Stick
Well, what can I say about my Art Journal Thursday this week? I was so excited to be finishing up with this particular art journal that I really had no idea where to begin. So, maybe that is where I will start in my explanation for this week’s art journal – my art journal. The journal that I have been using is a Strathmore 500 Series, Mixed Media Paper Journal, which I ABSOLUTELY LOVE this brand, and the paper is SUPER tough, and is so CREAMY to work on…the problem that I have been having is the S.I.Z.E!! I saw that Donna Downey (who I LOVE, by the way!!!) was using this size, 11×14 sized pages, I thought, “I CAN DO THAT!!!” Well, when you are a newbie art journaler, which I am, and you work full time at a non-artsy kind of job, which I do, and when you have committed to yourself to do a two page art journal spread EVERY SINGLE week, and NOT ONLY that, but to record your process and post out on YouTube EVERY SINGLE WEEK, which I SOOO INSANELY DID – you quickly come to the realization that THIS IS A LOT!!! 😉 You DO NOT want to make things harder for yourself by buying the LARGEST art journal that you can possibly find!! What was I thinking???
So, the next art journal, which I will start using in next week’s art journal video, is a MUCH more manageable 8.5 x 11 size!! I CAN’T WAIT!!!
Anyway, back to this week’s spread! When I started I didn’t really have a plan, I usually don’t, but I knew that I wanted to use this AWESOME new tissue paper that I had found a Paper Source!
Once I got my colors, patterns, and textures started it was very VERY tricky for me to reign it in, but I was having some good fun playing, and staying in my head!!
I decided that I wanted to use all of that pattern as an element that would pop off of the page by covering a lot of it with a dark color, and a silhouette stencil. Once I had done that I wasn’t really sure where to go from there, but I had some deep, stop-and-listen-to-your-soul-cuz-she’s-a-speakin’ kind of thoughts going on, so I decided to grab my Fineline bottle with some white acrylic paint, and decided to journal some of those thoughts out onto my page.
“She knew that she was going to have to get out of her own way if she were ever going to make her dreams come true. No one was going to do the hard work for her. She knew it was going to have to be all up to her!”
Yeah, I am not sure where that came from, because it came from someplace deep, deep down, and even as I write it now, I KNOW that it is the TRUTH that I am living with right now!
I am not sure if I really love the design of this finished spread – when I look closely it is kind of a bit of train wreck, and I know it definitely had parts of it that I would do differently (for example, the Distress Ink Festive Berries never did really dry – even after 48 hours!! UGH!!! I should’ve used my Dylusions spray ink with a dropper!), if I were to do it again, but for some reason that this spread really resonated with me, so my final thought is that I really LOVE it!!
What do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
I am very happy to announce that my Art Journal Thursday video #21 is up on YouTube!
The supplies I used this week were:
Gesso
Dina Wakley Media Heavy Body Acrylic Paints: Tangerine, Magenta, Lime
Tim Holtz Distress Ink Re-inker: Peeled Paint
Alesa Baker Designs Wood Mounted Stamp: French Handwriting
Art Impressions Wood Mounted Rubber Stamp: Squiggly line (that’s what I am calling it)
Apple Barrel Acrylic Paint: White
Paper Towel that had mopped up various Dylusions sprays
Scissors
Uhu Glue Stick
Fineline Applicator filled with White Acrylic Paint
Black Pilot Multiball Pen – my new FAVE doodling pen!!!
If you watched this week’s video, you already know that I really didn’t have any kind of plan when I went into this week’s art journal spread! In all honesty, I just knew that I had to get an art journal video done for this week, but I was so tired from a week of not really taking very good care of myself sleep-wise, compounded with losing another hour of sleep due to daylight savings time, I wasn’t sure exactly how I was going to get this one done!
I decided to help get me into the arting mood that I would listen to some loud happy music, and it worked! Before I knew what hit me, I had found my stride, and was once again a very VERY happy girl! 😉
I had a lot of fun this week just putting down colors, doodling, and just really letting myself play! I find that when I revert back to my inner, kindergarten Chrissie, that I have a tendency to be really happy with my art journal pages!
This week was no different!!! As soon as I released my inner me, I found myself having fun, and pulling from a pile that I haven’t really played with in a while – and that was my stash of used paper towels, which may not seem like something to be proud of, but trust me, I am!!! I just LOVE finding new ways to use treasures from my stash!!
Anyway, I really hope you enjoyed watching this week’s video! I really hope that these weekly videos can, in some way, inspire you to try something new in your own art journals – that would be so AMAZING to me!!! 😉
What do you think of this week’s spread? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
Until next time!
Here is to a BEAUTIFUL CREATIVE life! 😉
If you want to have a different life, live differently!
I am very happy to report that my 21st Art Journal Thursday video out on YouTube!
The art supplies I used this week were:
Tim Holtz Idea-ology Decorative Tissue Wrap: Postale
Uhu Glue Stick
3×5 Gelli Plate
Blick Studio Acrylic Paints: Cadmium Orange Hue, Primary Red, Phthalo Green
Apple Barrel Acrylic Craft Paint: White
Brayer
Art Advantage Double Ended Stylus
5 Miscellaneous Wood Mounted Rubber Stamps: one is from Great Impressions (3 concentric circles), one is from Inkadoo (Carte postale), one is from Delafield Stamp Company (XOXOXO), one is from Hero Arts (Painted Circle), and I am not sure where the last one is from, but it is the one with small doily design
Ranger’s Black Archival Ink Pad
Black Stabilo All Pencil
Uni-Ball Signo White Broad Pen
Scissors
Scarlet Lime Black Doodling Pen
When I started this week’s layout, I was determined to try something that I had felt failed miserably last week; and that was creating a background using my 3×5 Gelli Plate.
I felt like the reason this didn’t work for me last week was the fact that I didn’t limit myself to a selection of a handful of colors. That background ended up being so busy that there was no way that anything could stood out on its own in the foreground. This time I made sure to limit my colors to just three, not counting white!
As I was laying my color down with my Gelli Plate, I started seeing this layout as kind of a paper quilt, which made me start thinking about my mama, and my grandmother, and all of the strong women who came before me. It made me really happy to reconnect with those memories, and to understand just how blessed I am that I come from such a long line of really strong, and AMAZING women!
Thinking on the women of family, also made me think of a favorite song from my childhood, that has a way of popping up in my life at exactly the right moments. This song is called “This Little Light of Mine”. It has been showing up a LOT in my life over the past year, and it again this week. It reminds me that I need to shine my light, which is where my my sentiment came from this week. You may be the only light in the world someone sees today, make sure you shine bright!
I think this background turned out much better than my attempt last week, hands down! This week’s attempt has inspired me to try this again, but this time on an art canvas! I am thinking that this might be a really cool background for a new piece of artwork that I can hang in my new office at work!
What do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this week’s art spread!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
I realize this is better late than never, but I am happy to report that my Art Journal Thursday #20 has been posted out on YouTube!
The art supplies I used this week were:
3X5 Gelli Plate
Brayer
Blick Studio Acrylic Paints: Titanium White, Phthalo Green, Cadmium Orange Hue, Green Light Permanent, Primary Red, Primary Blue
Dina Wakley Stencils: Mod, Organic Shapes, Halves
Dylusions Stencils: Circles Large, Shattered Large, Triangles Large
Huey’s Mask Stencil: Bubbles
Liquitex White Gesso
Dylusions Spray Inks: White Linen, Vibrant Turquoise, Calypso Teal, London Blue, Fresh Lime, Cut Grass
Apple Barrel Acrylic Craft Paint: White
Uhu Glue Stick
Black Stabilo Pencil
Blue Stabilo Pencil
Ranger’s Archival Black Ink Pad
If you watched the video this week, you might notice that I was really struggling to get this spread to a point that I was happy with!
I also, generally, frown on completely whiting a page out and starting over…I usually am a firm believer that every spread is salvageable in some way or another! So, when I finally hit day three, try three, and I was still feeling really stuck, I knew that whiting the spread out was going to have to be my solution this week!
Although I felt the need to completely white out my backgrounds and start over, I really had fun just playing with my Gelli Plate and playing some with a few new stencils!
My final attempt at this spread, which is the one that I was finally happy with was so much fun to create. I think the reason that I felt I was finally successful was that I finally got out of my own head, and started to really just go with the flow! I think I was having so much trouble because I was overthinking what I was trying to do…I have a tendency to do that at times! 😉
I also think that where the genius of this spread shows up is in some of the close up photographs! I can say genius, right??? Yeah! I can do that! I just LOVE all the yummily-scrumptious color combinations that unexpectantly showed up!
I also really LOVE the very textured background that was created by all of the layers that I had inadvertently created with all of my ugly background tries! It has resulted in a very tactile friendly kind of spread, which I surprisingly LOVE!
See what I mean??? This green and blue are just AMAZING together!! I love the pop that it creates!
And somehow, I ended up with a few speckles of a deep burgundy, red – I am not sure how that happened, but I am really LOVING that too!! 😉 So, all-in-all, I think that after more than a few heartbreaking tries, this page turned into something that I can be very happy about! 😉
What do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this week’s art spread!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
Good morning! I am happy to announce that my Art Journal Thursday Video #19 has been uploaded out on YouTube! 🙂
The materials I used this week are:
White Gesso
Dina Wakley Mixed Media Acrylic Paints: Lime, Turquoise, Sky, Magenta, Lapis, White
Baby wipes
Dina Wakley Media Stencil: Essentials
Ceramcoat Acrylic Craft Paints: Green, OJ
Folk Art Acrylic Paint: Medium Yellow
Finalize bottle filled with white acrylic paint
Uhu Glue Stick
Uniball Signo Broad White Pen
Black Pilot Permaball Pen
Ranger Archival Ink Pad
This weeks video is rather short and sweet. That is mainly because I lost part of my video footage in the beginning…oops, sorry about that! In case you missed how I got this page started out, I coated my spread with white gesso by using a palette knife to scrape white gesso all over my spread and letting that dry completely. I then used three of Dina Wakley Media Paints to add color to my page, and before those colors dried, I used a stencil and baby wipe to pull some of the color up through the stencil. As I added another color, I made sure to overlap some of the previously stenciled areas to incorporate all of the colors together, and then continued with my stencil technique. I kept doing this until my spread was color!
That is why my video today begins!
I really like the way this spread turned out, at one point I wasn’t exactly sure where I was going with it! 🙂 But as always, it usually seems to turn out exactly as it is supposed to, and I really love it! 🙂
What do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this week’s art spread!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
Until next time!
Here is to a BEAUTIFUL CREATIVE life!
If you want to have a different life, live differently!
I am happy to announce that my Art Journal Thursday Video #18 has been posted out on YouTube!
This week, the supplies I used were:
Dina Wakley Heavy Body Acrylic Paints: Tangerine, Lime, Magenta, Sky, Turquoise, Lemon, Lapis, and Blackberry Violet
the circular Dina Wakley Media Mask from her Graphic Shapes set
Baby wipes
Fineline bottle filled with black acrylic paint
This past weekend, I was very excited to have gotten the opportunity to take 5 classes taught by the lovely Dina Wakley, over a three-day period!! I learned sooooooo many new skills and techniques, and I am just raring to start incorporating them all, but for today I thought I would start by showing you all how to do a very simple technique that not only had I not seen before, it was one of my favorites!
You choose a mask or a stencil, something with not too small of holes, as well as not too large of holes either!
Spread a thick layer of acrylic paint to cover a surface roughly the size of you mask/stencil.
Lay your mask/stencil over the thick coat of paint, and rub all excess paint off with a baby wipe. (Many baby wipes, actually!) While you are doing this, you will transfer color onto your spread from the baby wipe – that is alright, just make sure to overlap your background colors to make it look intentional and to incorporate all of your stencil shapes together.
Just keep repeating this process until you have as many stencil/mask designs that you want! Make sure you do not clean your mask/stencil as you change from color to color. Part of the coolness of this effect is the color transfer that will happen when you go from color to color!
I hope you get a chance to give this technique a try!!! I KNOW I will do this one MANY times over!!! 😉
What do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this week’s art spread!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
I am happy to announce that my Art Journal Thursday video #16 has now been posted out on YouTube!
The supplies I used today were:
Liquitex Gesso
DecoArt Acrylic Paints: Tropical Blue, Tuscan Red
Folk Art Acrylic Paint: Medium Yellow
Dina Wakley Media Heavy Body Acrylic Paints: Lemon, Ruby, Sky
Ceramcoat Acrylic Paint: Green (02662)
Golden’s Molding Paste
Palette Knife
Adirondack Metallics Acrylic Paint Dabber: Gold
Fineline Applicator (18 gauge tip) – 4 of them
Stencil – I apologize, I have no idea what this stencil is called or who created it – I remember purchasing this at Michael’s in a pack of 3 or 4 stencils
My inspiration for this spread was this cute little wooden wall hanger that I had found on sale at my local World Market. I immediately fell in love with the beautiful colors, and all of the interesting designs. I am thinking it looks very Moroccan in design, which I also LOVE!!
I wasn’t sure if it would be possible to translate this cute tile onto a two page art journal spread, the size difference was a little daunting to envision – a 4″x4″ tile versus a 22″x28″ art journal spread. BIIIIIIIIIG difference!! 😉Anyway, I really like the way that this spread has turned out! The textures are scrumptious!And the little doodling designs turned out better than I expected. I am really in LOVE with my Fineline bottles!!! 😉 I also really REALLY like the color combinations! I would have NEVER used this mix if it weren’t for my inspiration piece!I also really like that in some parts of this spread, it really does look like this was painted on wood! Doesn’t it???
And the coppery-gold section in the lower left hand corner, is very texturally interesting too!
I really like how this page turned out! I may have to look for more inspiration pieces, in the coming weeks, to keep me arting out of my comfort zone!! 😉
What do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this week’s art spread!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
Until next time!
Here is to a BEAUTIFULCREATIVE life!
If you want to have a different life, live differently!
I am happy to announce that my latest Art Journal Thursday post is now up on YouTube!
The supplies I used this week were:
Golden’s Fluid Acrylic Paint: Teal
Delat Ceramcoat Acrylic Craft Paint: Pop Pink, OJ
Decorated deli paper, and cardstock
Golden’s Matte Light Gel Medium
Golden’s Matte Medium Bodied Gel Medium
Palette Knife
Balzer Designs Stencil: Blazonry
M Graham & Co Full Bodied Acrylic Paint: White Titanium
Hero Arts Artsy Circle Border Stamp
3 miscellaneous circle stamps – I don’t know brand or name
Stabilo Black Pencil
Paint Brush
Black Pilot Multiball Pen
Uhu Glue Stick
Dylusions Ink Spray: Calypso Teal
If you watched today’s video, you will already know that I did not have any kind of plan for today’s layout. I just knew that I had three or four colors in mind when I first started and I wanted to just let the page take me where it wanted to go!
I also knew that I had some leftover deli paper and cardstock pages that I had decorated using a Gelli plate that I wanted to see if I could somehow incorporate into today’s spread.
After getting all of my colors on my layout the way that made me happy, I then decided I wanted to use one of my previously unused stencils, to overlay all of the bright color with some white – to help tone it down!
Then I created black marks with my Stabilo pencil, and black doodling pen, and I must admit this page was turning out to be a very happy spread!!
I know that this week’s sentiment is very close to the sentiment from a few weeks ago, but this message just kept popping up in my head over and over, so I just went with it, and put it down! I am so glad that I did! 😉
I am just loving how bright and colorful this spread is!
Yep, it’s official – this spread might be my favorite to date! 😉
What do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this week’s art spread!! 🙂
Also, if you have any ideas, or techniques that you might like to see me try in one of my future layouts, please let me know in the comment section and I will see what I can do to be accommodating! Also, I really do LOVE answering any questions you may have about art journaling, mixed-media, or anything you might have seen me do here! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I will try and get back to you in a timely manner!!
