Grey Journals

I was tidying up my deskspace and found enough leftover chipboard for two new journals! So I ran across the street and selected some gorgeous grey papers this time. I also wanted a bit of the old spray ink through the lace look. 

Available here.

Exciting New Art Journals

Above is the journal I made while giving a private workshop this weekend, which is now available here.

But what is very new and interesting is a small set of super duper little art journals listed below. Have you figured out what is new and fun about them?

They're filled with a RAINBOW of Fabriano papers! I went to the supply store to get my huge wall of chipboard and the Fabriano display caught my eye. To my delight, they were nearly as heavy as my usual Stonehenge and so I had to grab some. 

The journals are slightly smaller by about an inch on both sides (because the paper is smaller) so they look like kid sister versions of my regular joes. Very cute, very super duper colourful. 

Look at the colours! Aaahhh! I think these would be pretty fun for pencil sketch journalers, collage artists or just plain written diaries (I had one of those in rainbow and it was pretty fantastic). Great for "Smashing" as well, or for any of us who can't put down their white spray inks!

The violet paper got a bit of a "fading" during its stay at the art store and so it has subtle faded lines here and there. You can see it in the photo above. I'm pretty okay with that but some people aren't.

Get a rainbow journal here. 

Journal Covers & Garden

This weekend I'm doing a private workshop so I'm trying out some easy cover layouts to use with the Gelli Arts plate! I started out with two layers of colour, then a white layer (with a word written into it), then a bit of collage. Other than the printing plate, I'm trying to use items that most people would have around the house - basic acrylic paint, scrap paper, pencil crayon. That's it!

If anyone remembers the balcony garden, here's an update:

Another super wet year, so the tomato has been growing pretty slowly! I think it will keep going though.

Blueberry is still very much alive (and lively)!



Clovers are happy!



Strawberries are VERY happy, and soooo tall!

100% success rate for the nasturtium seeds. I don't usually grow from seed because I'm not that good, but these ones are looking pretty happy! I planted them a bit late so they have to catch up. 

The mini roses are still alive somehow (except for #3 but he may still come around from the ground up, who knows) but they will probably not have a great year. 

Art Journals - Blue Diamond & Summer Flight

Two new journals are in the shop now. Here is lovely "Blue Diamond" with some sparkly yellow sequins on the front (the back is the same except without the sequins). 



This one is "Summer Flight"! Both also have the fun, multicoloured pages inside. 

New Art Journals - Lantern & Strawberry Butterfly

Last night I was crafting up a bunch of journal covers and managed to assemble two of them today! You saw photos of the first one "Lantern".



Here's another one called "Strawberry Butterfly." The colours remind me sooo much of bubblegum! 



I will probably do a quick flip of them on video later in the week. In the meantime you can see a few photos of the insides here. What is special about these books is that I used four different colours of the usual Stonehenge paper (white, natural, fawn, grey), but I also tore them up into different sizes!

I do remember liking the random half-pages that some of the first journals had - they were a bit fun and quirky! These journals had their quirkiness amped up a bit, and I might have to make one for myself when my current journal is full! 

handmade art journal - flutter

This is the last art journal that I will be making for a little while. I really like this one!  I'd love to see it filled with drawings, papers, photos, memories... whatever!



Available here.

Pretty Cake Journal

Seems to be wedding cake fever around here! Can one make a text-collage wedding cake in real life? I don't know. I bet there is an edible pattern sheet that can do this. It would look really neat! 



Available here. 

Handmade Art Journal - Violet Blossom

Today we went to the Honeybee Festival and watched someone extract honey. There was also a bee beard! I tried a root beer flavoured honey stick and it was pretty good! I'm not an avid honey eater, so the sticky texture was a bit... uncomfortable. Kind of reminded me of cough syrup, except it actually tasted good.

And then I came home and got to work putting together this journal!



Available Here.

Art journal "Summer Rain"

I was so pumped about being able to go wherever I wanted without worrying about dragging stuff onto the public transportation system that I just had to go out and buy paper for more journals.

And I've been thinking about applying for another late-year craft fair, so it would be nice to have something to take there. 



Available here.

Snail Art Journal

I made this journal over the weekend and I really like it! It's definitely cutesy-poo, complete with silly whale scrapbook paper on the inside cover!

More photos here.



I definitely have more energy this week, though I feel like my free time is filling up fast! If you follow my facebook, you may have noticed that I've been thinking about outdoor spaces, how people decorate their backyards,  specifically.

I am playing with that, and maybe trying out decorated sugar cookies too.

What projects do you have going this week? Do you give yourself simply too much to do?

Journal Post 5/22/12

 Just finishing up the Life Like Weeds journal! I had a weird nagging feeling the other night, like all of this stored energy was building up pressure inside of me and I had to get it out. So I ended up finishing the last few layouts of this journal.



When I fill them with words, I'll do a journal flip of it.

I'm kind of nervous about going back to the blank journals. I'm pretty sure I don't want to do the scrappy kind again because of how limiting it felt with the chosen surface materials. In short, glossy magazine pages don't work for much of anything. At all.

Have you ever tried the scrappy format? How did it work for you?

 

It was nice having a base to start out on (such as this cake photo on the last page), so that I could focus more on the journaling than the "art" so to speak, but I am itching to play with sprays and stencils again! I also have a canvas I'd like to "do-over". I'd like to make a few more journals maybe. 

Ever have a rush of desires and responsiblities all come out at once that you don't really know what to do at all?

Handmade Art Journal - Wire

This is the last one for a little while, or until I can get more paper :/



Things have been a little "up in the air" lately.





Available here.

Handmade Art Journal - Koi

Made a new art journal this morning! Just enough paper to make one more after this...







Available here.

Hope everyone is having a cheerful sort of day!

Handmade Art Journal - Golden

Here is another art journal - I have materials to make two more after this one and then I will stop for a bit.



Since the art show I admit that I've been feeling a bit self conscious with my pricing! Mine were not the smallest pieces, but they were the least expensive ones by far.

I don't think they were incorrect (I use a wage + overhead equation for accuracy and consistency), but I feel a bit uncomfortable. Researching helpful websites didn't pull up any more information than what I'd already learned, it's just that the numbers were inexplicably inflated. I feel lost in pricing, yet certain in my numbers.

Is everything so subjective as the art itself?

Handmade Art Journal - Green Roses

Managed to pull together another art journal last night despite being soooo sleeeepy! This "weekend" was more of a social break for me.



I used a marker to draw the roses, which was a bit of a struggle actually. I guess the paper was still a bit wet.







Newsletter was sent out today :)

Art Journal - Red Poppies

Here is the newest journal, Red Poppies. Love, love, love.



Available here.



Oh my goodness, I can easily see how keeping up at this pace can be a full time job. Even selling one of these every day wouldn't be enough to live off of, but it certainly takes time, doesn't it? It has turned my day job into even more of a chore, having to drop everything I'm doing to leave the house to do something much less mentally challenging. And much less satisfying.



But this experience says a lot about how I feel about making books and art. I may go into more detail in the newsletter due out next week...

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It is very cool to feel productive every morning, but frustrating too. Frustrating because I am working against the clock. If I had a full day to do all of the things I want/need to do, who knows what could be done?