Art Journal Every Day Update...

I've been having a ton of fun with my art journal this week!  The Blue Kitten Journal is almost full!  Here's what I've been working on:


This page was inspired by Traci Bunkers' 21 Secrets class "Self-Awareness through Visual Journaling..." 

Both images are from the web. Raven and deer are two of my animal totems.  I'm noticing that my pages are coming together more intuitively lately.  I'm not thinking about them, just letting them flow.  Lots of layers here. Patterned cardstock, magazine images, tissue paper, spray ink, gesso, acrylic, and tape.

 This one was inspired by another 21 Secrets class - Jane Davenport's "Frolicaholic," 

which was tons of fun!

 Supplies used include colored pencil, watercolor, and a black journaling pen. 


 The next two are for "A Year In The Life of an Art Journal..."

The first one for the April 30th prompt, and is a quote from Thoreau (I forgot to put his name on the bottom before I took the picture)...

THE PROMPT:  Nature is a wondrous thing
ie: use pics of nature
THE STUFF: Don't quote me on it
ie: use a quote or quotes
THE TECHNIQUE: Gesso & stencils ie: try something different and use Gesso on your stencils for texture!

I followed the first two parts of the prompt, but didn't do the gesso and stencils part.  I decided to experiment with a different style of writing, and had a lot of fun with it! I wanted to use a mallard because I see them every day in our neighborhood, and they are so sweet!

 
 This one is for the May 15th prompt, and I put it on the inside back cover of my Blue Kitten Journal, so the base is chipboard...

Spring is coming!!
THE PROMPT: Bloom Where You're Planted
ie: count your blessings
THE STUFF: Scrapbooking flower embelishments ie: prima flowers, stickers
THE TECHNIQUE: paint/stamp/stain the flowers

This was a ton of fun!  I'm not one for using a whole lot of flowers on my layouts, so I had a pretty big stash to choose from!  I used a combination of Maya Mists and Mr. Huey's to spray about 2/3 of the flowers.  Then I just started glueing them on randomly.  Fun, Fun, Fun!

I get into bed each night and one of the things I thank God for is the flow of creativity.  It's amazing to me how therapeutic it is!  It truly calms my soul.

How has your week been going?

Thanks so much for visiting and for your kind comments - they really make my day!

Project Life Tuesday - May 14 - 27...

I've got two weeks of Project Life to share with you today.  May 14 - 20, and May 21 - 27.

Here's an overview of May 14 - 20...

Closeup of left side...

The postcard that says "hello," is something that came in a SiStv kit back in 2008.  It's actually made of wood, and I love it; but could never figure out a use for it until now.  Another reason to love Project Life!!! The red "everyday life" card is from the Clementine kit.  Everything else is from my stash.


Closeup of right side...

The only ephemera here is the advertisement for the Summer Crop coming up the week of June 4th, at Noel Mignon's site.  It came with my latest NM kit. The orange "this week" journaling card is from the Clementine kit.  Everything else is from my stash.


Moving on - we've got the week that just ended (May 21 - 27)...

 

 

 Closeup of left side...

 Did you know that if you go to google search and type "site:addressofyourblog" and click on images (on the left column), you can get a mosaic of all the images that have been on your blog?  I learned that from my computer whiz hubby, and it's so cool!  That's what the bottom right pocket is.

 Closeup of right side...

The little kitty and turtle card is from october afternoon.  Pic of American Idol winner Phillip Phillips is from the web. (Yeayyy Phillip!)

One thing I am noticing now that I am almost halfway through the year; is that putting a week's PL spread together is suddenly flowing much more smoothly.  Is anyone else noticing that?  I love it! 

Thanks so much for visiting!

P.S.  There's only one scrappy box left for sale!  If you've been thinking about buying one, now's the time!  Click here for details and photos.

Meditation Monday...

Acrylic paint, Graphic 45 Alpha Stamps, Neocolor II Crayon, Washi Tape, Poster Paint Sharpies, Cityscape Packing Tape, Vintage Glass Glitter, Antique Book Endpaper (the word Joy).

I wish you much joy this week my friends.

P.S.  The slideshow is up at Scrapping The Music.  Check it out here.

Art Journal Everyday Update...

Note:  I still have some boxes of fabulous scrappy goodness left to sell- one could be yours!  Click here to check out all the pictures and information.

I'm still working away in my Blue Kitten Journal.  I've got three new pages to share with you today...

This one has been developing in layers over a few weeks...

 The layers went like this:

magazine collage

gesso mixed with acrylic paint

tissue paper

stamping

more collage

journaling with india ink and a paintbrush

 This next one is a collection of bits of paper leftover from miscellaneous projects I completed in May...

 I really enjoyed doing this.  Maybe I will make it a monthly practice.  It might be fun to see how the colors and patterns I'm drawn to vary month to month.

More layers here...

This one has modeling paste as a bottom layer, and texture drawn into it with a paintbrush.  The turquoise bubble wrap part was stamped with versa mark ink and embossed with zing embossing powder.  In real life you can really see the difference between the rough, matte background, and the shiny blue embossing.

Did you art journal this week?  How did it go?

Project Life Tuesday...

Note:  I still have some scrappy boxes left to sell- one could be yours!  Check out all the pictures and information in the post below or click here.

I I have been so busy working on my scraproom reorganization I haven't done my project life layout for this week; but I did reorganize my Project Life workstation, and I've got a few pics to share with you...

Here's an overview.  I really love how my current week's layout fits right in the middle, so I can leave it out and add to it all week...

 I inherited an antique wooden salesman's suitcase from my mom; and inside it has two drawers.  I discovered that the compartments inside one of the drawers were just the right size for project life cards!!!

 Here's a closer look at the drawer...

 On the right side in the front compartment are all the 3x4 cardstock pieces that I cut from patterned paper scraps.  In the back I've got the blank PL grid cards, Other little cards like OA Wildcards and mini-bingo cards, and Smashbook pads.  On the left I have mini-alphas, Journaling tag stickers, and Ormolu date badges.

My 7 gypsies library drawer still holds my official Project Life cards, plus 4x6" cards in the back that I've cut from paper scraps.

So there you have it!  I feel all organized and ready to tackle project life again!  Can't wait to dig in!

Don't forget about the scrappy box sale!  It's really a heck-of-a deal!  Check it out here.

Scrappy Box Sale!!!!!

I worked all night last night purging my supplies and getting some super fun boxes of scrappy stuff ready to sell!  I ended up with five boxes instead of ten, cuz I wanted to make sure they were super full for you!

Here are some photos of the process:

FYI - These are all things that I would still use myself....

Some of the brands include:  Studio Calico, Sassafras Lass, American Crafts, Pink Paislee, Hambly, Cosmo Cricket, Jenni Bowlin, etc.  I've only included full packages of embellies - no leftovers...

Each package has at least two full alphabet sets...

Here's a side view of the paper piles - they are huge and heavy!

And these are the final five piles before I put them in the boxes.  Each one is different, but I tried really hard to divide things up equally so no matter which box you end up with you will be happy!

 I am asking $30.00 per box plus shipping ($11.95). U.S. Only 
Edited to add:  I weighed the boxes and each one is over 7 pounds!  This is a lot of stuff!

I'm so sorry that it has to be U.S. only.  I looked into making these available internationally, but I would have to use different boxes and the shipping would have been astronomical.

If you would like to purchase one of these boxes, please email me at michellelapoint@yahoo.com, and put BOX REQUEST in all caps in the subject line (this will make sure I don't miss your email). I will send you a paypal invoice for $41.95.

The first five people to email me will get the boxes.
As of 6/1/12 the boxes have all been sold. Thanks so much!

Once the five boxes are sold I will post that here so you know.  Okay?

Finish 'Er Up Friday...

For this week's Finish 'er Up Friday, I am focusing on getting all of my unfinished projects sorted out and into some kind of order; so I at least know what I have - ha.  This is what my unfinished project collection looks like right now...

 Just looking into these boxes is a little overwhelming...

 I don't even know how many are in there, but I know it's even more than it looks like it is...

 My plan is to drag them all out, and find a way to repackage them so that they are organized and attractive. Possibly even labeled!  Then I can make a plan to finish them.  I will keep you posted on my progress.

I am also in the midst of a huge purge in my scraproom.  I just have too much stuff.  Here's what the mess looks like right now...

I am working this weekend to fill up 10 Medium Flat Rate boxes with miscellaneous patterned paper and embellies to sell here on the blog.  I am hoping some of you will be interested?  I will jam as much as possible into each box.  It's all good stuff, It's just more than I can use.

I will be back tomorrow with an update!

Art Journal Everyday Update...

I have a couple of completed art journal pages to share with you today.  Both are in my Blue Kitten Journal.

The first one started out as an experiment with modeling paste after watching Christy Tomlinson's 21 Secrets Workshop video "The Art of Texture" (which by the way is fantastic - Christy is an awesome teacher)...

A recent Rolling Stone magazine had favorite playlists of some musician's; and Norah Jones' happened to be all about Neil Young.  I'm a huge Neil fan, so it inspired me to create this little tribute. This lyric is about not being ready to leave your childhood behind, and it goes perfectly with my ongoing midlife crisis - ha.

The background is modeling paste on watercolor paper.  Then spray inks, acrylic paint and gesso.  In the future, if I am going to use modeling paste this thick and heavy, I am going to be ready to stick stuff in it while it's wet.  It's sorta hard to add anything to it after it's dry.  A great learning experience for me.

The next one is a simple little collage that I started in a hotel room, and finished up last night...

Still loving to learn and experiment in these journals.  Isn't it amazing that we never run out of things to learn?  Creativity is truly limitless, and so freeing - don't you think?

Thanks so much for visiting me in my little corner of the world.  I really appreciate you!

Two Weeks of Project Life to Share...

Project Life has definitely become a way of life for me and I love it!  Today I've got two weeks to share...

Here's last week's layout...

and a closeup of the left side...

 Ephemera on this page includes a copy of an email postcard I got from the Ministry of the Arts; and a comment from a blog reader that made my day extra special (I tucked it inside a tiny Amy Tangerine envelope). 

I recently got a question about what kind of paper I print the movie posters and ads on: I use matte photo paper - works fabulous!  I actually use matte photo paper for most everything project life related, cuz it avoids the glare (exception would be the top left card where I forgot and used glossy - see the difference?)


here's a closeup of the right side...

 The only ephemera on this page is the little studio Calico shipping card on the bottom left.  Their little cards are so cute, and now I have a place to put them - yeayyy!  The middle left pocket with the little boy and his sailboat is an October Afternoon Wildcard.  Love those!

I find myself looking at everything in the scrapbook stores now in terms of whether it will fit in a project life pocket - ha.



And I realized I forgot to share April 9-15 with you...

Closeup of Left side...Daughter Becca gave me a Flavia calendar, specifically cuz she thought I could use it for scrapping somehow, and it's so cool that it happens to be 12" x 12,"  The April page was a perfect background for this week...

 Closeup of right side...

Ephemera on this page includes the little Cocoa Daisy business card that came with my kit (top left pocket).  I just love how their cards always come with an artistic quote on them.  Also included is some Smash tape packaging, my name badge from crop night with the girls (upper right), and the cat and dog in the middle left pocket were part of the reminder card for the boys annual vet appointment - just too cute to not keep!

I know alot of people are saying that their life isn't interesting enough to do Project Life.  Well, what's cool about Project Life is - it makes you realize just how interesting your life is!  There is soooo much to be grateful for, and filling these little pockets each day is a great visual reminder of that.  That's one of the things I love love love about this project.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog and for your kind comments - they really are so special to me!!!

Two New Scrapping The Music Layouts...

The new challenges are up at Scrapping The Music!  I had so much fun with these challenges!

The song this week is "Golden Years" by David Bowie.  Here's what I did...

Michael and I were on a getaway weekend and saw this group of adventurous souls just off the coast of Lake Superior. It was such a cool scene, I had to take some pics, and this song gave me the perfect excuse to scrap them! I used Amy Tangerine paper for the background, and cut the clouds out of another sheet of the same paper to pop-dot up for a 3D effect.  The title is handdrawn/cut.

The second prompt is to scrap about a movie where the music moved you.  I of course, had to choose Harold and Maude...

My favorite movie of all time is Harold and Maude, and one of the things I love about the movie is the musical score, which is all by Cat Stevens.  This layout is inspired by one of the songs called "If you Want to Sing Out, Sing Out."

The layout itself is a recreation of the final scene of the movie. I substituted patterned paper for the rolling hills.

Come on over to Scrapping The Music and play along with us!  We'd love to have you!

I'll be back tomorrow with a Project Life Update.  Thanks so much for visiting and see you soon!

Monday's Meditation...

I've decided I want to start each week with a meditation page to share with you.  This one is for my blue kitten journal...

Welcome to the new week my friends.  May yours be magical!

Curious Georgie...

Michael and I had fun working together on a creative project this weekend!  Our little niece Georgie, was having her first birthday party on Saturday.  Michael came home with a "Curious George" doll on Friday, and we turned him into a Curious Georgie!

Here's how he looked before:

And here's what we did...

I made the bow and embroidered the "i" on George; but Michael and I worked together to add the lace to the bottom of her shirt.  The thing that made it difficult was - the shirt doesn't come off the doll!   It's sewn right on, so we had to stretch in all kinds of weird ways to get the machine to stitch the lace all the way around.  You should have seen us trying to keep the shirt straight as we fed it through the sewing machine! Ha.  It was super fun tho, and we heard from Michael's sister (Georgie's mom) that she likes it!  Yeayyy!

Not bad for two non-sewers, eh?  We were pretty proud of ourselves!  :0) 

I hope your weekend is going well.  Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there!

Thanks so much for visiting and for your kind comments.  They truly brighten my day!!!

Finish 'Er Up Friday....

If you are anything like me I'm guessing you might have just a few half-finished projects sitting around?  OMG I have wayyyy too many!  So, my plan is to work on those unfinished projects once a week and share my progress with you here.  I hope you like it!

One of these projects is my travel journal for Honeymoon Five; from last October.  We went to  DisneyWorld and Harry Potter World in Orlando, and had so much fun!!!  Anyhoo, it's a handbound book I made, using a Harry Potter Gameboard for the cover. I still plan to collage the cover, but right now it looks like this...

 (that's Johnny in the background.  He loves to get in on pictures!  You can see the beginning posts about this journal here and here.



 I decided to look at each day of our trip as a separate little project, to make it seem more doable.  Tonight, I finished day one, which consists of three two-page spreads...

 Ephemera on this page includes our baggage claim ticket, which I made into a tab on the left-hand page; and a piece of a Disney World brochure which has the little rat and castle on it. I embellished the pages up with a bunch of washi tape, and some Amy Tangerine stickers.

 When you are on your honeymoon at Disney, they give you huge "Happily Ever After" buttons to wear!  I duct-taped them right onto the page, even though they are pretty heavy!

 I love this spread because the right-hand page was all done by Michael.  I love when he adds in stuff!  He worked out a plan so that we could hit all 6 theme parks in the week that we were there! Yeayyy!

That's it for today.  I can't believe it's Friday already, can you?  I hope you have a fantastic day!  Thanks so much for visiting!!!