I know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Art Journal Page

 

Come and join me as I share an Art Journal Page using the same name as the book by Maya Angelou - I know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Great book if you have not read it yet, Amazon has a reduced price at the moment.  Check out the video below:

I show you from start to finish how I would work on a page, using Neo-colors and stencils and some pens at the end.

This is a good example of using up the paint on your pallet and using it to create an image in your art journal. Hope you enjoy seeing how it takes shape.

Art Journal Page - CD Art Journal

This page has been created in my CD Art journal that I shared with you on Sunday, hope you enjoy.

You can check out a selection of exclusive art journals on my Patreon membership page which starts at $3 per month or look at the Free selection on my YouTube

Have a blessed week!
 

52 Art Journals - CD decorated Journal

 

Join me for the latest art journal in the weekly series, this is going to be called my CD Art Journal and I give you a flip through of the pages.  I prep the pages as I go, when I have a spare moment I will add paint to the pages. 

 Check out the video and my Art Journals playlist

Art Journal Page - Hot Air Balloon

 

Come and join me as I complete my latest Art Journal Page - Hot Air Balloon.  

If you want to see the video in real-time with discussion and a look at my Composition Art Journal Page as well, you can join me on my Patreon Page

Grease Proof Paper & Button Art Journal

 

This is a lovely art journal to work in, made from slightly different paper than my other art journals.  The pages are made from Grease proof paper.  I had been using the paper when I had been working with a wax resist technique on fabric and it seemed a shame to throw away the paper just because it had residues of wax so I decided to turn the pages into an art journal.

Each one of the pages then underwent the first few layers as the supplies have a difficult time adhering to the surface even if you do add gesso first.

One of the things you can do is to roughen the surface of the paper with sandpaper and then apply the gesso or preferred paint

Each page has different elements added as well which will make a nice jump off piece when I come to work in the journal.

I also used recycled card to act as tabs on the edges of the art journal.  It is lovely to have a space where you can just play with supplies in.  Hope you feel inspired to create your own art journal from some of the supplies that you have in your stash!

52 Weeks of Art Journals - Recycled Clutch Art Journal

 

Come and join me for the latest art journal in the series 52 Weeks of Art Journals. The Art Journal on show today is what I am calling a Clutch Bag Art Journal

Check out the YouTube Video and you will be able to get a good look at how it is made.

This is the third art journal that I have made using Tetra Pak -

(a recycled milk carton it has 3 layers (foil, cardboard and plastic). You can check out the other two below

Chunky Journal - https://youtu.be/4PTFBdZaKdo

Jigsaw Journal - https://youtu.be/5f7uHJmm74I

I loved creating this art journal, as it started out as an experiment and then it all just fell into place and the clutch bag was formed. Using the tetra pak milk carton as the base and it is a great way to recycle, especially for us here in Barbados as there are no processing operations that exist for this sort of packaging so it all goes to landfill.

After being cleaned I covered it with painted fabric, I have added quite a few elements such as the lace/ribbon detail, inspiring words, beads, the bead droplets and additional texture around the art journal.

The texture was created by applying gesso through sequin waste and allowing it to dry before applying metallic paint.

Beading also added a nice touch and I also used it to cover some of the spine of this journal. The pages of the journal uses recycled collaged and painted card and measures approximately 3 x 5 inches, so great for making quick pages or when you only have a limited time to create.

I am sure there are many other things that can done to make use of the packaging, I have seen it used in building materials, making bricks, and put though recycling plants. You need special machinery to separate the layers for recycling, so why not come up with a creative project that you can enjoy.

Some of the supplies used - some of which you may have already:

Fabric - recycled school uniform - or fabric you may have

Gesso - https://amzn.to/3yGjtdL

Jacquard metallic paint - https://amzn.to/3yH7XyR

Sequin waste - https://amzn.to/3qZ6l0F

Beads - https://amzn.to/3AMmcEs

Thread for stitching - https://amzn.to/3k1yfYH

White pen - https://amzn.to/3e40Mc9

I look forward in seeing what you come up with

Arts and Wellness Café - Word for the Week - Confident, Art Journal Process Page and New Art!

In the Arts and Wellness Café the word for the week is confident and I share with you some new art work, it is a sculptural piece made with lots of yummy texture.

I loved working on it as it also uses a lot of different supplies and you get to use some of the things that you have in a different way.

I also share with you an art journal page process - This is especially great if you want to keep it simple and just want to create an image, but you can also do it if you just want to add marks to the page.

Art Journals

I wanted to work on a background page that already had paint, and just wanted to create an image, this young lady came up and I will be working on the page more and add additional details. You have to be able to step away from work and then revisit it - you come with fresh eyes to then add to the work.

Amanda Trought - Art Journal Page

I look at the need to be confident in your approach to the materials that you use and in turn you will be confident about the work that you are producing. I hope you can join me and let me know what tips you use to stay confident.

Let me know what tips you have for remaining confident and some of the strategies that you might use to get you back on track if you come off.

Hope you are having a blessed week so far.

Join me on Patreon

52 Weeks of Art Journals - Jigsaw Art Journal

 

What can you do with a milk carton - make an art journal from it of course.  Check out the video I share how I made it.  Here are some close ups of some of the detail.

Stitching and buttons are on the front alongside some doodling.   I experimented with some of the stitching and added French knots, back stitch and had fun with some faux stitches by adding the white lines with the acrylic pens.

I embossed the large jigsaw puzzle piece and pressed a stamp, then added a rub on to it.

It was great fun to make and a way to recycle the milk cartons.

I included 3 different areas to write so I could vary the activity in the art journal.  Let me know how you create your art journals and if you use any recycled materials.

Creating an Art Journal Page - Use up your Supplies

 

Join me in the studio as we work on an art journal page, the aim is to use up supplies that you have been sitting on and allowing to dry up and feel neglected.

It is time for you to dig them out and give them a new lease of life, create an art journal page with me, or create something else with what you have.

I am looking forward to see what you create and you join the journey.

Join me on Patreon for some behind the scenes look at the work that I do, for as little as $3 you get monthly art videos, downloadables, printable backgrounds and much more!

CHECK IT OUT HERE

Arts and Wellness Café - Word for the Week - Profound. Art Journal Page, Slow Stitching and More!

Come and join me in the Arts and Wellness Café where the Word for the Week has been Profound.  Check out the video below to hear about some of the things that I am sharing:

Here are the time stamp sections - 

Welcome: Click Here

Slow Stitching: Click Here

Use Your supplies - Art Journal Page - Click Here

Explore and Express - Click here

One of the things that helped me through our first lock down as we dealt with the Global pandemic was to start stitching, and I completed many projects. I didn't realize how much I enjoyed slow stitching and creating projects.

Here are some projects that I am working my way through and I have been creating some smaller pieces as well.

This piece incorporates stitching with hand dyed wax resist fabrics

I like working on more than one piece at a time and here are some additional stitched pieces that are coming to a close. (I will share in another post.

Art Journal Page

You also get to see in this video how you can get rid of some of your neglected art supplies and create a lovely art journal page and here are some that I shared.

Applying the paint and using stencils to create a design enables you to make some really lovely background pages ready for when you next have time to work on them.

I had intended to use several stencils, but only used two for these pages.  It was lovely working in the journals, I had one main one and used two others to use up the extra paint I had on the pallet.  The paints are reasonably priced and over they years I have collected quite a few, so want to use some of them up before they dry out.  I have put the links to some of the supplies I used.

Supplies:

Folk Art - https://amzn.to/2Rw6MT9

Martha Stuart Paints - https://amzn.to/3yrKqTr

Apple Barrel - https://amzn.to/3vdYhL0

Stencils (one of the stencils is a recycled lid) - https://amzn.to/3hL5bmY

Come and join me on Patreon

For as little $3 each month you have access to patron only content and will receive the following

• 30 minutes of creativity monthly video Tutorial

 Reference Photos

• You will have access to two albums of high quality reference photos.  You can use them in your own art, art journals etc
• 2 Additional downloadable backgrounds

 Art Journal Bundle (after 2 months) Includes

• 5 Downloadable Art Journal Backgrounds
• 31 Art Journal Prompts Book
• 4 Handmade Art Journal Tutorials
• 4 videos - Creating Backgrounds

Monthly Art Videos 

• You will receive a short Monthly Art video sharing either a technique/Supply/Hints/Tips or prompt
• Weekly Inspirational shorts video
• Patron only content
• Arts and Health Network Free membership
• Early access to any discounts promotions 
• A copy of my free eBook "25 ways to fit Art and Creativity into your Life 

• My undying gratitude & genuine thanks! 

CHECK OUT PATREON HERE

Creating a Fabric Art Journal Page

When I am sewing I save all of the fabric scraps. No smaller than say an inch in size. There are so many things that you can do especially if you have amassed a large amount. Usually what I will do is stitch them into some small wall hangings or art pieces and they can often go to make quite larger pieces of art.

When I don't want to sew I will take them and add to an art journal - you create a fabric journal page that you can paint on in your art journal. I am sharing in this video one of the pages I sometimes create when I want to use up some of my scraps. - check out the video above.

 Art journal page

They are a mixture of jeans material and lighter Africa fabric material. They have been glued to the page using pva glue and then covered with gesso so that it will absorb the paint better.

Adding paint of choice becomes easier once you have added the gesso and you also create lovely texture as you can see from the different fabrics.

Sometimes you need to step away from the piece and as I am applying paint I can see a figure coming through but need to give it time to establish itself. Check out the video to see more. I will be doing some more work

 

I hope you enjoy playing around with a fabric art journal page and see where it takes you.

Creating in Faith - Eager (Word for the Week)

Welcome on the Podcast today we look at a new word each week.  The Word for this week is 'Eager'.  When we think of our creativity and the words we should think about how it relates to us and how we can use the encouraging aspects of the word to motivate and propel us forward into our creative pursuits.

You can listen to the podcast below.

Did you catch last weeks Art Journal Page video and the word 'Quiet'

Thank you for watching, Stay blessed and be a blessing

Turning a Composition Notebook into an Art Journal

I recently brought myself a Composition notebook to create an art journal with.  The are fairly cheap and you can pick them up at the Dollar or local store.  In this video I share with you how I transform the first pages.

I wanted to use supplies that I had been holding on for a while and got a selection of handmade papers, words, atc cards and Gelatos that I had sitting in a draw.

We can sometimes be really precious about our supplies, leaving them for what we call 'best' and not ending up using them at all and before you know it the supply has dried up and you have wasted your money.

What I plan to do with this art journal is to share some of the process pages - sharing techniques and ideas so that you can try them as well in your journals.

The more I played with the page the more supplies came out and I stencilled on the page and made marks and brought the page together.

I realised how many cards and papers that I had painted on and left in the bag that I was able to use. They now have a home in the composition art journal and it is also a great escape for me to be able to be a lot freer with my supplies.

If you would like to see the FULL version of this video in 'real time' you can do so HERE on my Patreon account.

Stay blessed and be a blessing.

Everlasting Art Journal - Art Journal for Beginners - Video included

Welcome to the post, I created this art journal from greeting cards that I had printed out and for some reason or another just didn't use them.  They are A6 cards of a variety of colors and some have shapes cut out of them for inserts.

 

It is a lovely size to work with as it fits quite neatly in your hands.  One of the things I like with this art journal is that it uses the scraps of paper and card that you may have especially those smaller pieces from other projects.

Check out the video below to see how I have worked on the pages, and get some hints and tips of how you could use your hand made art journal.

Let me know if you have any questions about the Art Journal and pages and if you decide to make one I would love to see your results!

Art Journal Page - Ideas

Here are a couple of Art Journal Pages that I did recently. The first one is called Triumphant and I start out with a blank page adding gesso and Neo Colors water soluble wax crayons, then the face developed and I allowed it to take shape.

In the second video I start out with two figures on the page and spent time playing with color until their features started to form.

The supplies used are Neo-Colors - https://amzn.to/39DL45d

Gesso - https://amzn.to/3rL98JU

If you have not yet subscribed to my YouTube channel why not consider doing so and click on the notification bell.

Recycling a Phone Case - Art Journal

 What do you do when you have a phone case that is too big for your phone?  Make an Art Journal!!

Phone Case waiting for the magic!

Check out the video to see what I did to transform it

Here are the finished details with a lot of pattern and mark making at the front and back

The interior has been created with water color paper cut to size and then glue bound.

It is always great to have a new art journal on the go and this one fits quite tidily in my bag.  I shall be sharing some of the pages in the coming weeks and showing a few processes using both collage material and acrylic paints, so would love you to join me.

Let me know if you have recycled and repurposed an unusual journal.  

Stay blessed and be a blessing!