Enough …

here we have the last spread in a visual journal that I started working in back in 2009…

as finishing this journal this month has been a challenge I set for myself I am entering it in Susi’s Art Journal Journey May challenge…

lots of my painted pages began because of inspiration from a Julie Prichard online class that taught me so much (she is a wonderful teacher!)…

the first spread I completed above in this 1958 Funk & Wagnalls  Encyclopedia was inspired by a Pretty Paper Hearts challenge blog that no longer exists …

 links to several other spreads can be found here… 

below you will find a bit of my creative process for the last pages which got quite thick…

strips of my citra solv paper and torn vintage map (thank you Carmen ♥) blended in with some white gesso…

using some of my unmounted rubber stamps on pattern tissue paper…

and lots and lots of layers of Distress Stains (one of my favorite Ranger products!!!)…

using my hand to blend and smear the stains and YES it DOES stain your hands :)…

to finish off the gutter of the book I wet my hand a little and used a small paintbrush to gather enough color to finish off the center of the pages…

above you can see my pages before I found my tiny seashells and starfish from a trip to Florida…

I did try and not make the pages too bulky but you know how it is once you get going…

I am a big mermaid fan…

twenty-eight spreads (double pages) in the recycled encyclopedia that originally covered French Literature — Gothic Architecture and now all it needs is a cover…

“Enough is abundance to the wise.” ~Euripides

and a bit of extra fun with my mermaid and free Photofunia…

Quirky Dutch Summer #3

Marit’s challenge and inspiration last week was all about “Word Play/Met woorden spelen” …

time seems to be moving at warp speed and I am one week behind…

found poetry is something I really enjoy and it is always surprising how words will pop off the page and find you…

a favorite book to use is Simple Abundance but this time I copied pages from Mists of Avalon which is a great escape book and fabulous read…

to find the words for my altered poems I let my eyes float across the lines of the page noticing which words pop out at me not trying too hard at all to make it happen…

I circle any words that interest me and then see how they flow together…

here are a couple of examples from two different pages…

“my old friend wakes and cries in the night

she had come this way

blessed

forgetting face

and lips

and faded hair”

and another …

“cloak wrapped tight

the messenger captured her memory

her bones

her eyes

concealed within that veil

the answer

hidden in the unyielding sky”…

back in the fall of 2009 I was lucky enough to take some super on line classes with Julie Prichard (which she still offers btw) …

that is how long these blue monoprint pages have been waiting for me…

kinda felt like they were too nice to cover up…

my art cave was calling me today especially with it being crazy three digit hot outside so I got busy…

 the dramatic feel of my found words really inspired me…

along with the perfect piece of pretty golden sari ribbon and other golden bits…

having background pages ready certainly helped move along my creative process…

you can click here if you would like to see other pages in this art journal

*sorry I do not know who to give credit to for the lady image*

Relax!

hadn’t played in my Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia journal for a while … I picked two pages that I had already monoprinted back when I took Julie Prichard’s Super Nova on line Journal class … great fun!

my “before” pages

and here are the after …

the bird image on the left hand page is from the back of a greeting card … much too good to waste … random bits of paper from my work table … the word Relax! popped out at me after I’d glued it to the page …

“Voice and Expression” came with the neat diagram …I really did not want to cover up too much of my background and favorite colors …

paints … gesso … rubber stamped lines using Brilliance Moonlight White … one of the best white stamp inks I have found … another K&Company 3D sticker … this time a dragonfly … on sale at Michael’s just now … Mr Magpie thought I’d outdone myself making the bee and the dragonfly … I like to fiddle but did not have to in this case ;) …

now what will I ever do with these monoprinted pages in my journal … so not my usual colors … they will make a good challenge!

“The time to relax is when you don’t have time for it.” ~Sydney J. Harris

down the doll head path once again

Honeysuckle Breeze Marlynn and I connected as we are known to do … this time it was the same doll head that made us think of one another

*got so excited to post this, I see I forgot to do my shading, it does add alot … better get busy*

having a few monoprint painted pages in progress in my art journal … they were done while taking Julie Prichard’s wonderful Art Journaling classes late last year … I saw Marlynn’s recent blog post… you must check out her “Nevermore” and other fun art creations here

that fab doll head from Digital Collage Sheets had been patiently waiting to be “attached” to my journal page … Lady Gaga (I am captivated by that little performance artiste … total escape is good sometimes) was on Oprah and I went crazy over her spiky headpiece … one thing leading to another … one side of the journal spread is complete … all I had to do was glue on the head and collar and outline my white lettering … what was I waiting for

when times are hard finding beauty can be extra challenging … what is beauty … I had done the wording on this page around the holidays

thanks to Marlynn for inspiring me … Love how that works here in blogland!

Still Here…

feeling a little blue …

I decided to let these pages flow … with less censoring …

it’s a fine line, I feel, on how personal to get here in the land of blog

then again … what is a blog  if not an expression of ourselves

Julie’s Super Nova art journaling workshop is wonderful on so many levels … there are discussion groups and of course Julie’s inspiring lessons … monoprinting is something I am really getting into and I am crazy about stenciling with plastic doilies

some days I wonder how I can feel joy at all without our special boy here to hug … always grateful for healing that comes in many mysterious and wondrous ways

John Mayer sings beautifully about the heart of life  here … I can listen to this song over and over and ….

monoprinting

Julie has done it again … I am thoroughly enjoying her Super Nova Online Journaling workshop … it is jam packed with techniques and inspiration … being able to watch Julie create is a joy all in itself

here we are already on Lesson 7

I will have some very interesting backgrounds before it’s all said and done

and I know I have words …. they are here somewhere … just waiting to be released onto the pages

every little thing

it all began with Julie’s monoprinting workshop lesson

using Alicia’s Altered Bits image in the upper left hand corner

I doodled (purple Sharpie and White Signo Gel Pen) and stamped and even got to use some of our “found” paper Carmen … Love those holey strips

I had a piece of purple plastic netting that slipped over the page perfectly …  may still tuck something under it on the bottom of the right hand page

I am submitting this for the Mixed Media Monday “pink” challenge in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month

there is still time to join in Monica Magness’ amazing Pink Artist fund raiser here

have I mentioned there are fantastic prizes … be sure and check out the prize wheel!

Art Journaling Super Nova “A Really Good Art Journaling Workshop”

Julie has done it again … she is teaching a really

fantastic on line journaling class … you can still sign up if you’re interested (it’s a great value) … she is an excellent teacher … I could watch her create and play all day

I finally got busy on some of my first journal backgrounds … the actual journaling part (my words) are still to come

I can see that the pages will need more shading too … it is always helpful to look at something on the computer screen, things pop out that you might not notice just looking at the piece

*****

a couple of days left to sign up for my giveaways

Marion’s Zetti Swap

Thought I would try my hand at creating some Zetti style ATCs. Marion is having her 3rd annual ATC swap and the theme this year is Zettiology.

I cut up one of my Layer Love pieces for the backgrounds (you can still sign up to take Julie’s terrific on line painting class btw), stamped with acrylic paint, adding my cut out Zetti body and other blue painted paper pieces, highlighting with white gel pen

You too can join in the fun with Marion and players from all different countries!
You make just three ATCs, and mail in time for 15 August

Layer Love: Final Exam

Nine amazing lessons from the talented

Julie Prichard fromThe Land of Lost Luggage…..WOW, I’ve learned so much.

Layer Love was my first ever online class experience.  I could not be more pleased with how it all came together.  The videos and instruction are excellent, detailed, clear and…..can you tell I’m a big fan!!!

Lesson #9 was ‘The Big Gel’, and as Julie says, gel medium is good for more than just expensive glue

There was enough paint on my palette to do two canvases, here are some detail pics from my first 8 x 10″ canvas

*clickable for a closer look*

I went to sleep with it looking like this…..feeling like it needed something

I had THE most wonderful dream about our middle son Alex, it’s been a long time since he has come to me in a dream, when I awoke I knew exactly what my canvas needed

the sunshine was a piece of fusion paper (made with paper towels and paints) that had been kicking around for awhile now, the cardboard frame was also handy, the words at the bottom are blended better than they appear here, there is glare which takes away from the washes I added

My second canvas measures 12 x 6″

using Julie’s “Julification” techniques

I may try stamping on this one to add some interest

GREAT NEWS: Registration is still open for Layer Love, have a look here. I highly recommend it.   Julie will also be doing an “Art Journaling Super Nova” on line class toward the end of the summer.  You can check her Land of Lost Luggage for details.

La Fee Verte

Time again to pick a theme for Wednesday Stamper.   I chose the magical world of “fairies/faeries”.   My 6 x 8 inch green fairy canvas was inspired by, of all things, an alcoholic beverage. Absinthe first came to my attention when I saw vintage posters depicting the mysterious green fairy.

Since Google knows everything, I investigated to learn more about it all :)

I began with one of my Layer Love backgrounds, trimming it down to size.  The background is a B Line Design stamp that I brushed acrylic paint onto, along with a dot stamp.  I used liquid acrylic paints to make the fairy glow.  She is standing on a piece of the wonderful lace curtain my good friend Michelle shared with me a couple of years ago; I savor each and every piece I use.

Absinthe has quite a history,  originally made with Wormwood, it  was believed to cause hallucinations and delusional behavior.  It was outlawed at one time in history.  It has made a come back since the ban was lifted and is now made without the controversial Wormwood.  It seems the high alcohol content is part of what accounts for its reputation.  Some call it the most maligned and misunderstood drink in history.

There were many well known artists who enjoyed absinthe in Europe near the turn of the 20th century.  Among them were Vincent Van Gogh, Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemmingway and Toulouse Lautrec just to name a few.  It was associated with a bohemian lifestyle.

“Any man can lose his hat in a fairy-wind”
Irish Saying

Layer Love 4: Cracked Up

Crazed or crackle finishes have always been a favorite of mine.  Julie has us working with Distress Crackle Paint this time around and I like it!!!

I have been making two pieces for each lesson.  Here is my first canvas

*click for a closeup of the crackle highlights*

It’s another rainy day here in Virginia and my favorite photo spot on our back porch seems to be giving my canvas, that is shades of gray and black, a blue look

Here is my second crackle canvas and my first Layer Love background piece that I’ve actually created something with.  I added color by using Caran d’ache Neocolor ll crayons, along with bits of lace and a rubber stamp dipped in paint.  The images are from our Memorial Day visit to nearby Oak Hill Cemetery in Georgetown.

I also tried out my new Higgins Black Magic Ink, it will take more practice to get comfy with a ‘real’ nib pen

If you ever have the chance to take one of Julie’s classes, I highly recommend it.  She does a fantastic job and is a gifted artist and teacher!

My brushes are washed and ready for Layer Love 5 next week :)

Layer Love 3: Old World Golds

Lesson 3 with Julie Prichard taught us a lot about blending and using Polymer Medium Gloss to add texture

a little glare below, sometimes I rush the photo process in my excitement

knowing the amounts of paint to begin with seems important since you are mixing constantly to get different shades and depths to the canvas…..I will continue to practice, practice, practice

next we’re using crackle paste :)