Art Journaling Adventures
Welcome to Day 1 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge that will be taking place for the month of July. Over the next 31 days I am going to be sharing different ways to encourage yourself to be more creative and I will share the different ways being creative has encouraged and inspired me. If you give them a try they may encourage and inspire you too!
Today we look at Art
Journaling - which can come in a variety of forms and everyone has their own style. Essentially art journaling is a great
way to express your creative thoughts and emotions or just have a play with
your art supplies. In your art journal you can add color, layers and find ways
to represent how you feel on paper.
I love creating my own Art Journals and work in a variety of ways in them.
Sometimes I might not be able to
articulate what is on my mind, so I start with color on the page and create a series of backgrounds. I might also do some mark-making adding
shapes and patterns, and will also use stamps and stencils. Spending time on the activity helps relax me
and enables me to process my thoughts.
In this video I share an example of art journals I created using recycled materials
Where do you start?
You are going to start
from where you are. Look at your supplies, and start there, and of course if you have a wide selection
of supplies don’t try and use everything.
An example of some of the things you can use are paints, paper ephemera,
magazines, markers, glue, or fabric scraps - whatever you feel like playing with.
There are no rules. It is not about creating “beautiful” pages, but about
making space for expression and experimentation.
Start by creating a
background. You can use washes of color, collage pieces, or even scribbles.
From there, follow your instinct. Perhaps a word or phrase comes to you.
Maybe you draw a shape that reflects how you feel. You might choose to layer
materials or textures that tell a silent story. You can
also write a sentence on the page: “Today I feel…” Then start to build color,
shape, or texture around that feeling. Layer over it if you want.
Art journaling offers a daily creative check-in. Even ten minutes can help you reconnect. Your journal is a creative playground that you can tap into
whenever the mood takes you. Over time you might even get the urge to create
your own journals. Allow yourself to go with the flow and see what your
needs are at the time.
Remember: your art journal is your well. You can use it to refill, restore and reflect
Takeaway Nuggets:
- Art journaling invites you to blend emotion, imagery, and reflection into your creative practice.
- There are no rules - go at your own pace!
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