Art Journaling

I have been reading a new book that I got, "Art Journaling Workshop," it is beautifully done, by a watercolor artist. I love looking at art journaling, but say to myself, I can't do that. But the idea is not to make beautiful pictures, it is to sketch ideas, add thoughts and be your self! I have been journaling in a lined notepad that I can carry in my purse, and I use a ball point pen. I want to improve my drawing skills, and add some color, that's not too much to ask. Watercolor paints intimidate me, but I like my watercolor pencils, they are just like colored pencils, but you paint over them with water and they washout into a watercolor paint. You have lots more control of the line, intensity and blending colors. I have played with them on fabric, but not on paper. My sketches book usually includes quilt design options, free motion quilting doodles, grocery lists, flower drawings, minutes from the art group meeting, so I can write the blog, drawing whatever I can see when I am bored, notes on photoshop, phone numbers,

etc... And then there is my hoarded supply of dirty jokes I don't want to forget. ;) I would love to add collage found objects, pressed flowers, photos glued into the pages, fabric scraps, more color, with pencils, crayon or paint, more quilt ideas, sketches of more things, landscapes, etc... I have already made a needle felted journal cover for a button challenge. It is made with green commercial felt, couched yarns, hand embroidery, sisha mirrors, and has a vintage button as a clasp. The pages inside are loose, brown paper bag, and watercolor paper, I had earlier made several sketches of flowers with pen and colored pencil. The idea was that I could add more pages as it filled up, and yesterday Peggy suggested I could book bind the finished pages as I add more. Of coarse I want to jump right in and do something, so I made a quick sketch of our house, in pencil on watercolor paper, the house is detailed but there is a lot more garden than what I drew. I colored it in with the watercolor pencils, washed over it with a Q-tip, and then outlined and drew in more detail with a Pigma pen. I am pleased with it, though it is NOT perfect, but I wasn't trying for perfect. If I want perfect I'll use my camera. I decided to write on the back, notes on my technique, then ended up journaling also about what the house means to me. I really liked the writing part of it, it was very expressive about what I felt at the moment, stream of consciousness stuff.

The next day I made another sketch for a front page, "My Illustrated Journal" with sketches of a spool of thread, rotary cutter, bottle of paint and brush, section of quilt pattern and some flowers. It all colored very well and the pen really adds wonderful detail, and makes it look crisp and finished. I journaled about what I want to achieve with the journal, and also my thoughts on my Mom's birthday that day.

So this had been fun, we'll see if I can stick with it, mostly because it is not something I want to carry all the time in my purse. My purse is full enough as it is, maybe I'll make up a small carry bag with paper, colored pencils, glue stick, my small camera, etc... It would be good to have a small art bag in the car, that I could use when ever the opportunity arose.

Jump starting the creativity

I have been very blasse about quilting the last month, I've done nothing, except take photographs and sort them on the computer, I did play with photoshop and got some really cool textures and color variations. I'll try to post a few. I did print several photos onto fabric of a "Hen and chick" succulent, close up, with color and value changes. Now to figure out what to do with them quilting wise. I'm trying to use the photos to jump start my creativity, I would like to use them in my quilts, or as patterns for quilts. I also have a collage of photos I am working on, with an old barn, trees, fences, rusty farm equipment and lambs in the foreground. I finally got some good sky/cloud photos, but they didn't print out very blue, I might have to enhance with paints or colored pencils, which would be fine with me too. A little extra red on the barn wouldn't hurt either. "Fyber Cafe'" group is doing a new project for a group exhibit. "What's My Line?" is the theme. I have been sketching in my notebook, which I carry in my purse, but I have to have an official "journal" for presentation, so I had to copy my sketches over to it. The journal is too big to carry in my purse. I had started on some ideas from a theme of "Color and Line" which I didn't like, but had finally gotten some ideas going. So switching up themes was difficult in mid stream. I finally got some ideas going and have expanded on them, so I think I have some viable ideas to work with. My purse notebook is usually done with ball point pen, rather challenging, to shade and color, so at home with a journal I got out the colored pencils and added color to some of the sketches. This adds a lot of options, tho I never have the color pencil I want either. When I choose the design I will finally do, then I will use paints, crayons, fabric swatches etc... So now I am back at the sewing machine, doing simple piecing for a baby quilt, but it has got me going again. And the sketching has got my creativity bubbling inside of me. So I see great thing ahead of me!!!