Realityarts - Inspiration, Art and Creativity: Stepping Out Challenge - Day 30

Tuesday 30 October 2018

Stepping Out Challenge - Day 30 - Gratitude's and Celebrations Journal

Welcome to today's post, I have been taking part in a 31 day blog challenge posting everyday in October. I have been talking about different challenges that I created, reflecting and gaining new insights.

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I created an Arts Gratitude and Celebration’s Journal after a year of writing on a weekly basis for the 52Weeks of Colour and Inspiration in which I would write about things I was grateful for, so I have been working in it for quite a while now.

I wanted to have a way to visually look over my work, as well as read about the things I wrote and look at how I felt about them whenever I reflected back on them. I use creativity as a form of expression, not to just paint a picture but use it as a means to express in ways that words may not.

It is easier to look back at the months and see those things that I was grateful expressed in image form creatively, we don't have to have a reason to create and it is important to think about how you can get time to express when you can rather than look for a long stretch of time that you never seem to find.

I never put a time limit on how long I would work in the journal I kept some of the pages small so that I could finish a page if I had 15 minutes or bigger pages if I had longer. I created a weekly page which generally also had a word that summed up either what I was grateful for or was celebrating, and once the page was complete I wrote about the things I celebrated and was grateful for on the same page. Keeping it as simple as possible makes it easier for you to show up and do what you need to do, and it is a great reminder over the preciousness of life and the choices that you have

Gratitude and Celebrations Journal - Amanda Trought

It was great making the journal, I used an assortment of cards that I had in my supplies which I had intended on making greetings cards with, but had been neglected. Who would have guessed that they would come in handy for a creative project? That is the essence of ‘Clearing the Clutter challenge’ so many creative things can come in handy if you give them a chance.

Gratitude and Celebrations Journal - Amanda Trought

I made several signatures of the cards and kept the sizes random, and they were varying thicknesses which then were able to take paint or could be collaged over. I then covered the journal with fabric and used cowrie shells, beads and seed beads and attached them to the different types of material used for the journal. It is lovely and chunky and I still add embellishments even now, as it is about constant use, enjoyment and play.

Gratitude and Celebrations Journal - Amanda Trought

Creating a working art journal can be done very easily and it is a fulfilling activity on many levels. Then I began, I didn’t think about how long it would take I just enjoyed the journey.

Tomorrow is the last day of the bonus challenge. I will share the second part from my Gratitude's and Celebrations Journal and share reflections. I hope you have managed to find some time to challenge, be creative and stretch yourself.

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