Sketchin' Into Spring...

I signed up for Alisa Burke's "Sketch Into Spring" workshop that started on March 28th.  It's the kind where you get a mini-lesson/prompt every day for 30 days and you have forever access, so you can take all the time you want - yeayyy!

I've finished the first three lessons...

#1:  Use your words...

(All the writing was done with acrylic ink and a paintbrush)

 (Lukas watercolors, and gesso on the left side)

(acrylic paint, molotow markers, white uniball signo, and pitt pen)

#2 Use Nature for Painting...

(acrylic paint)

#3: Capture Color

These are the colors of spring out my window today...

(lukas watercolors)

I'll keep you posted as I work through the lessons...

If you want more info on Sketch Into Spring, click here.

Thanks so much for visiting!  I wish you a sunny day, my friends!

Creativity is Contagious, and other Book of Days Spreads...

The first 2014 session of Book of Days has been going great!  I still look forward to Mondays when the new video comes out and I get to play!  

What I love about the Book of Days experience is just that – the “experience” of it. We get to go along with Effy, as she takes her thoughts and feelings, and turns them into beautiful pages. I love how some weeks are more involved than others – just like life. I love how during times that are more challenging, she looks for positive lessons and puts that spin on the page. I love how she encourages us to take the inspiration of each week’s lesson and do with it what feels right to us.


Here are three of my latest BOD pages...

The gift of a new day...

 (acrylic paint, stencils, text paper, oil pastel, and journaling pens)

 You are a Child of the Universe...

 (black and white gessos, acrylic paint, gelli plate prints on deli paper, stars rubons and 

white acrylic ink)

Creativity is contagious...

(acrylic paint, spray ink and stencils, gesso, molotow paint pen, vintage atlas index page, neocolor II crayons, pitt pen, oil pastel)

Only one more week to go in this session!  I'm already signed up for the next session, which starts on April 28!  Yeayyy!

For more info on Book of Days, click here.

Have an awesome Sunday my friends!  Thanks so much for visiting me today!!!  I would love it if you leave a comment, so I know you were here!   :)

Planner Journal Week 9...

It's only March and my planner is already getting so fat!  Eek!

Here is the beginning of March...

 February 24 - March 22...

 On the right is my monthly envelope used to collect workshop handouts, receipts and other tidbits of life.  The No Excuses theme for March is authenticity and my artist of the month is Chagall.  The "It's Summer Somewhere" flap is cut from a junk mail postcard.


 Here's how the page looks with the postcard flap open...

 

 The Documented Life Challenge of the week was to collage with something recycled...

 

 Recognize the guy in the parka???  It's Paul Simon - I used an old record album sleeve as my base to collage on.  Other recycled things on the collage are two tea tags, a bunch of postage stamps, a quote from an old calendar, a vintage sewing pattern, and a cartwheeling sailor cut from a snack package!  So fun!

 On the back of the album sleeve is a collage and some writing about the authenticity theme...

  

In other news, I'm excited cuz I signed up for Alisa Burke's "Sketch Into Spring" workshop, and it started yesterday!  I'm working on the first exercise tonight.  Maybe I will be able to share tomorrow!  Wish me luck!

Thank you so much for visiting!  I wish you a superb Saturday! 

Finish 'er Up Friday: Life Book update...

Hey there everyone!  I've been working (or I should say playing) hard on my Life Book 2013 lessons, and making progress!  Here are some pages that I finished last weekend at my girlfriends retreat...

Unfinished Project:  Life Book 2013
Lessons completed this week:  5
Lessons left to go: 10


Week 31: Healing and Authenticity with Jeanette Maisy House...

(acrylic paint, collage papers, rubber stamps, modeling paste, stencils, neocolor II crayons, black watercolor pencil, matte medium, diamond stickles)

 Week 33: Bunny Party with Mindy Lacefield...  (I call mine "Fox Dreams.")

(acrylic paint, tissue paper, pencil, neon water soluble oil crayon)

Week 47: Celebrating Color with Jane Davies...

 (ledger paper, acrylic paint, photo of my Grandma and Grandpa Thompson, pencil)

 Week 25: True You with Mitsi B...

(collage papers, acrylic paint, acrylic ink, stencils, gesso, neocolor II crayons, 

black watercolor pencil)

Week 24: The Eyes are the Windows to the Soul with Kelly Hoernig...

(collage papers - text, and different shades of green, acrylic paint, punchinella, white signo unibal pen, pitt pen, prisma color pencil)

I learned something different from each one of these lessons; and was reminded of what a fabulous class Life Book is!  The insight gained from learning from so many different super talented artists is priceless!

How about you?  Are you working on any unfinished projects?  How's it going?  I'd love to hear!

Thanks so much for visiting!  I really appreciate you!  Have a fabulous Friday, my friends!

One Little Word is back - it's a Celebration!!!

Hey, everyone!  The One Little Word challenge blog has returned, and we are celebrating with  TWO words and PRIZES GALORE!!!

The two words are "CALM" and "DREAM."

Here's my creation for CALM...

 


I am providing this prize...

K& Co. SmashBook - Cutesy Style

but it's just one of OODLES of prizes!

Check out the One Little Word blog, to see what you can win!  We hope you want to play along with us and help us celebrate!!!!!  Click here to check it out!

 

List #2: How I would Describe Myself to a Penpal...

The second challenge in the 30 days of lists project:

How would you describe yourself to a penpal?

Thanks so much for visiting today!  I will see you again soon!

Everybody's Listing...

Hi friends!  I'm excited to share another Project I'm finishing!

My sister Renee made this beautiful journal for me a few years ago, and I absolutely adore it! (Thanks Renee!) I was a Nancy Drew Fan growing up, so that makes it extra cool for me.  She prepainted the pages with beautiful backgrounds too... 

I added the title, and used it for the 30 Days of Lists Challenge back in 2011. Even after doing all my lists, I still had 28 pages left!  So......

I'm finishing it this month - yeayyy!!!  I signed up for the March 2013 30 Days of Lists challenge!  If you are not familiar with the 30 Days of Lists challenges, they are lots of fun!  You sign up and they provide a new list each day to a private blog.  They now have a facebook and flickr group for sharing too.  And it's cheap - only $10 to sign up!

Anyhoo, here's my first list...

How do you add magic to your life???

If you want to play along, check out the 30 Days of Lists challenge here.

Thanks so much for visiting!!!  Have an awesome Sunday!

Finish 'er Up Friday...My journal is FULL!

Unfinished Project:  Book of Days 2013, Session 2
Finished this week:  One Lesson - Front Facing Portraits
Still to go: Six Lessons (out of 36 total)

Here's how it turned out...

(background: vintage wallpaper & giftwrap, handmade paper and vintage text; gesso, adirondack spray ink, golden fluid acrylic. Portrait: pencil, acrylic paint, neocolor II crayons, neon oil pastel, pitt pen)

An extra-exciting thing about this spread: It was the very last page in my big canvas art journal! Another thing finished - yeayyy!  Here's how it looks - all ready to go on the bookshelf...

 The pages are 9x12, and are made out of 140 lb Stonehenge paper in 4 colors - white, black, kraft and grey.  There are 200 pages total (50 spreads).

 I learned how to make this style of journal in Effy Wild's free bookbinding class.  It was easy!

 That's Johnny modeling with the book...

Next time I will share the new journal I'm starting.  It's not new, actually - I'm finishing one that I started a few years ago.  Can't wait to share!

Thanks so much for visiting! I really appreciate it!  Have a great weekend!

Planner Journal Week Eight...

Hi friends, how's it going?

I'm excited to share week eight (Feb. 17 - 23) in my planner with you today!

In the No Excuses journaling method, it is suggested that you do a tiny watercolor sketch each week.  This month, I chose to do one big one instead...
 

 (gelatos, watercolor, pitt pen)

 The Documented Life Project challenge was to add a flap to your flap, so I added a tiny flap to my bird page...

here's the front of the flap...

 

 and when you flip it up it looks like this...

 

...then, when you open the bird sketch flap, you can see my tribute to my chosen artist of the month - Jean Michel Basquiat...

 He wasn't the actual No Excuses artist of the month, but I really wanted to learn about him, so I substituted him in.  I'm so glad I did - it was really an interesting experience!


and here is how the week 8 planner page looks all finished...

(Tombow markers, sakura moonlight gel pens, pitt pens, stickers, rubber stamps.  Photo in the middle is of Basquiat with Andy Warhol)

Combining it all in one planner - Weeks Six and Seven...

Hi friends!  I'm so excited to share the progress I've been making in my planner journal with you!  I've been busily combining a number of projects and challenges, which is making it tons of fun!  Here's how it's coming along...
(remember you can click on any of the images to see them larger)

WEEK SIX:
The challenge at the Documented Life Project, was to be inspired by something on pinterest.  I chose one of my very fave art journalers, Julie Fei-Fan Balzer!  I followed along with this amaaazing video, and here's what I came up with...

 (gesso, dylusions spray ink, acrylic paint, stencils, washi tape, collaged text paper, rubber and foam stamps, paint pens, pitt pens and pilot permaball pen)

Next is the One Little Word page that I shared in this post, and on the right is the first challenge in the Words of Me Project...

 (daily ritual page:  collaged text and gelli printed deli papers, gesso, black sakura glaze pen, paint pens)

...when you open it up, you can see my journaling about the No Excuses topic for February - Sacred Space (the photo is of Jean Michel Basquiat in his studio).  The right side is cut from a magazine...

WEEK SEVEN:
The Documented Life Project Challenge was to pick a shape and repeat it.  I picked hearts for valentines day, and made my tip in short, so you could see the inside page peeking out...

 (background on the planner page (left side) created with gesso and spray ink)

...and the second challenge in the Words of Me project was to create your own mission statement.  I used the free Franklin Covey Mission Statement Builder, and then tweaked it a bit.  You can see it in the middle when you open the hearts flap...

Thursday I will be back to share the pages from Week Eight.

 I hope it's helpful for you to see these pages!  It's a lot of fun to share them!

Resource Links...
The Documented Life Project
No More Excuses Journaling
The Words of Me Project


Thanks so much for visiting me here today!  I really appreciate you!  Have a great rest of the week my friends!!!

One Little Word - Calm...

 Edited to add:  The One Little Word Challenge is on hold right now.  I will let you know as soon as it is back in business!  :)

It's the 15th of the month and that means.....

It's time for the new challenge over at the One Little Word blog!  The word for this month is "calm." 

In this hectic world, we all need a little calm in our life - I know I do!  Here's my page...

 

(Color Shine Ink Sprays, Acrylic Paint, Signo Uniball White Pen, Black S Point Pitt Pen)

Here are a few process photos...

Title painted onto watercolor paper with Pebeo Drawing gum...

Here's a detail shot so you can see the dimension of this stuff.  It goes on in liquid form, and dries to a rubbery finish to create a resist.  Fun stuff!

Then I added some layers with spray inks, masks and acrylic paint.  At the end is the magically fun part!  You get to rub off the drawing gum and see your title appear...

 Here's a pic of the title partly rubbed off.  It creates an amazingly clean resist!

the last step is to add the doodles.  Here's the finished page one more time...

What do you think of when you hear the word calm?  What makes you feel calm?  What colors inspire calm for you?  Come on over and play along with us! We'd love to have some new participants, and it's lots of fun!  Click here to go to the challenge blog.  See you there!

Finish 'er Up Friday: Check her out!

Hey there everyone!  I was thinking I wouldn't have anything to talk about today, because I didn't work at all on finishing old projects this week.  Some weeks are just like that I guess, and that's okay.  I will get back on the bus next week.

But, I am excited to say that a friend of mine did GREAT this week on getting caught up with her Project Life!  Check out Dawn's awesome post by clicking here.

Congrats Dawn on your awesome work!

I will be back tomorrow with the new One Little Word challenge!  See you then!