Stepping Out Challenge - Day 7 - Creating Art Journals

Welcome to today's post, I am taking part in a 31 day blog challenge where I post everyday in October.  I love creating challenges for myself and joining ones by others.  My challenge for the rest of the month is to reflect on some of the series I created for myself and inspiration that I have taken away.

Listen to the Podcast

Today I am sharing about the 31 Art Journal challenge that I did by the same name in which I share 31 different Art Journals that I had made or altered, over a period of time.

I have been creating for as long as I can remember, and embarked on Art Journaling for around 14 years.

I was trying to find my particular style and wasn't sure how or where to find it but found that working in an art journal allowed me to experiment.  I created small pieces and built up my confidence.  I would use my art journal in the same way as my written journal.  I would create pieces that spoke to me and told my story, not necessary for others to see but to enable me to express myself visually.

Journals enabling you to combine art and encouraging words

At one point I did try to combine my written journal and my art journal but for me both fulfill a necessary function on their own and use both, and more recently I have been putting journaling on my art journal pages.

Over the years of taking many course I became confident with making my own art journals and also re-purposing.  I used to buy them but found when you make them or altered them yourself it added to the uniqueness and has an integral part to the stories that the particular art journal held.

Collage Journal

As time has gone and playing about with my own style I have my own way of doing things.  I create a lot of Art Journals from recycled materials and it is wonderful to see what would normally be thrown out be transformed into a thing of beauty, combining collage, and mixed media supplies

Creating the 31 Art Journal Challenge enabled me to see just how many art journals I had created - the time put into each and there are a lot more than 31 now.

Soul Restoration Journal

I encourage you to try making a journal of your own out of the supplies that are currently available to you, try making different sizes and see which one works with you best and let me know how you get on!

Tomorrow I will share the second part from my 31 Art Journal Series, which also looks at some of the courses that I have taught on.  I hope during this month you find some time to challenge, be creative and stretch yourself.

John Lewis Journal

Why not join me each day for the rest of October as we dive into to some exciting challenges and look at ways in which they can impact on your own life. 

I look forward to seeing you tomorrow, it is never too late to start! The main thing is to take one step at a time and do something that you find interesting.

Stay blessed and be a blessing.

Ps: Check out some books and art supplies in the links  below:  

Adorn it - http://bit.ly/AdorAT18

Dollar Tree - http://bit.ly/DolAT18

Blick - http://bit.ly/Blick18

Book Outlet - http://bit.ly/BOOKAT18

Stampington - http://bit.ly/STAAT18

C& T Publishing -  http://bit.ly/CNTPAT18

Dover - http://bit.ly/DOVPAT18

Craftsy Kits - http://bit.ly/CrafAT18

Amazon Store -  https://www.amazon.com/shop/realityarts

Stepping Out Challenge - Day 6 - Getting the most from your Garden

Welcome to today's post, I am taking part in a 31 day blog challenge where I post everyday in October.  I love creating challenges for myself and joining ones by others.  My challenge for the rest of the month is to reflect on some of the series I created for myself and inspiration that I have taken away.

Listen to the Podcast

Today I am going to continue with the second part of the series I did on my Gardening Channel called 31 Plants in my Tropical Garden  

Gardening can have it's challenges, ups and downs but it is also extremely rewarding.  I have spoken on the previous post about the joys of growing your own.  I get a real buzz from being able to go and pick some herbs for cooking or fruits and vegetables for a smoothie or salad, and I am increasing the plants that I am growing all the time.

 One of the things that the garden has taught me is the need for patience, at times it felt as if I was checking on the seeds that I had planted every day, expecting growth and nothing would happen, like with my Basil and Coriander seeds.  Then at other times it would seem as if plants just grew over night when I wasn't watching such as with my Mexican Sunflower plants.  Patience also taught me that just because you want to do a particular job in the garden, doesn't mean that it is going to get done and some jobs take a lot longer that you might have originally thought.

I have learnt how to adjust my soil and deal with sloping land and also had to learn not only how the weather will effect the plants but I had to spend the first 6 - 8 months understanding how the lay of the land and what would work in regards to the type of plants that would thrive in particular places.

The space that I was growing on had quite a large slope, I didn't have money to bring in additional soil to balance it out and so I had to figure out how best on a budget to stop the soil from washing away during the heavy rains, and during the dryer season deal with the cracks in the heavy clay soil.  It has definitely been a challenge, but I am glad I persist and take it as it comes. I ultimately want the land to work for me and look at the examples found in nature.

As an artist I have been very excited to find plants that can be used in a creative way, either as fibers or as natural dyes and I have found a number of plants that can be used in the Art Studio - such as the Clitoria Ternatea, Clammy Cherry, Banana leaf, Mahogany and other trees around the garden, and some of the leaves create natural dyes.

I have been adding to the 31 Plants growing in my Tropical Garden over time and I think that I probably have double the amount of plants growing in my space. These are many  different plants that I have been able to successfully grown from seed or friends have given me cuttings or small plants.  I was recently given a Tamarind Plant and Sour Sop plant and then the Sour Sop seeds that I planted amazingly started to grow, and I popped about 20 seeds into the tray.  I am hoping for a tasty harvest.

I feel very fortunate to be able to spend time in the garden and grow all the plants that I have always dreamed of growing, it is such a blessing and it is great to share the information on my Gardening YouTube channel.

I am transforming the landscape and creating a haven and it is definitely one of the coolest things that I have been able to do and I would love you to join me on the adventure.

If 'growing your own' is something that you would like to do then I encourage you to think about how you can use the space you have to grow something whatever size.  It is a therapeutic activity, even weeding can sooth away the stress and there is much to learn as you gain more confidence.

Here are the tips again If you are on a budget and want to start growing your own:

• Why don't you start with growing some of the seeds that come from the fruit or vegetables that you eat, 
• Sprouting pulses is another quick way to start growing
• Many of the seeds that you can purchase are quite economical and you can start quite quickly.
• Check out your local Pound Store/Dollar Store they usually have a garden section and you can pick up some supplies for cheap.  

Keep an eye on my Gardening Channel - for those who want to grow and garden on a tight budget I will be sharing some hints and tips so please subscribe and click the notification bell so you know when a new video has been uploaded.  I currently post 2 or 3 new videos every week.

Have you had anymore thoughts on what your approach needs to be to your green space?  

Check out some of the resources, you only need a pot and some soil to start growing. If you don't have outdoor space you should get some pot plants that come in all sizes.  Most of the indoor plants that grow in a colder climate are found outdoors in the Caribbean and with the right care can thrive with no problems in your home. 

Tomorrow I will share the what I have been doing with my Art Journal Series.  I hope during this month you find some time to challenge, be creative and stretch yourself.

Why not join me each day for the rest of October as we dive into to some exciting challenges and look at ways in which they can impact on your own life. 

I look forward to seeing you tomorrow, it is never too late to start! The main thing is to take one step at a time and do something that you find interesting.

Stay blessed and be a blessing.

Ps:  If you are on a budget and would like to check out some gardening supplies/books at a discounted price, check out one of the links below:

Amazon suggested gardening books

Adorn it 

Dollar Tree 

Book Outlet 

C&T Publishing 

Craftsy Kits

Stepping Out Challenge - Day 5 - Tropical Gardening

Welcome to today's post, I am taking part in a 31 day blog challenge where I post everyday in October.  I love creating challenges for myself and joining ones by others.  My challenge for the rest of the month is to reflect on some of the series I created for myself and inspiration that I have taken away.

Listen to the Podcast

Today I am going to be talking about a series on my Gardening Channel called 31 Plants in my Tropical Garden  

I moved a few years ago with my family to the Caribbean, Barbados to be exact, and I try and spend time between Barbados and London where possible.

I decided to do this challenge when I started growing my own food, plants in a space that could accommodate some of the things I wanted to grow in a tropical environment.  

 I had been collecting and purchasing seeds for the longest and in our current home was set with the challenge of planting on a slope and having an extremely tight budget, so I had to be creative in what I did.  The Creative Gardener was born!

As I traveled round Barbados I came across many trees and plants that intrigued me and I wanted to know more about them and see if I could grow them myself.

It has been an exiting journey to see many of the plants grow and I was able to get quite a few going from seeds, some of the herbs I found that they didn't grow for me and I brought a few small plants then as they started to grow I propagated them, which was the start they needed.

The 31 Plant series was a way for me to share the plants that I was growing and how they looked in their small state,  I found it encouraging as it took the mystery out of growing cause if I could do it then you could too!  Filming the series was a way to document the progress and something for me to look back on to see how far I have come

Some plants have done really well, others have died and it is then the adventure to see what I need to do to correct the soil for next time.  Some plants gave the appearance of having died, but then resurrected themselves and that has been really great to see.  

One of the rewarding things that has come for sharing about what I am growing is that it has been so exciting seeing something that you put in the ground grow especially fruit trees, and plants that have so many beneficial and medicinal properties.

There are so many plants that I have wanted to grow over the years but being in a colder climate wasn't able to.  I am now able to create a food forest, an edible landscape that is pleasing to all the senses and provides medicinal and nutritional benefits to the family as well.

Garden Nursery Set up - DIY

I encourage you to think about using your space to grow something whatever size you have.  It is very rewarding and you will learn much about yourself in the process.

If you are on a budget and want to start growing your own, why don't you start with growing some of the seeds that come from the fruit or vegetables that you eat, you could start sprouting pulses and grow them on from there

Many of the seeds that you can purchase are quite economical and you can start quite quickly.

Places like the Pound Store/Dollar Store have a garden section and you can pick up some supplies for cheap.  I have not brought seeds from them so can't say how good they are.

I will be sharing another series on my Gardening Channel for those who want to grow and garden on a tight budget so please subscribe and click the notification bell so you know when a new video has been uploaded.  I currently post 2 or 3 new videos every week.

What has your approach been to your green space?  You might only have a balcony but you can add a couple of pots and get some plants growing.  If you don't have outdoor space you should get some pot plants.  A lot of the plants grown in the Caribbean can be grown indoors in a warm environment so you can bring the tropics to your own home.  

Do the plants you have need to have a new lease of life? you can look for some ways in which you can do some DIY and create a green space of your dreams.  

Elephant Ears - gorgeous plant

Tomorrow I will share the second part from my Tropical Garden Series.  I hope during this month you find some time to challenge, be creative and stretch yourself.

Why not join me each day for the rest of October as we dive into to some exciting challenges and look at ways in which they can impact on your own life. 

I look forward to seeing you tomorrow, it is never too late to start! The main thing is to take one step at a time and do something that you find interesting.

Stay blessed and be a blessing.

Ps:  If you are on a budget and would like to check out some gardening supplies/books at a discounted price, check out one of the links below:

Amazon suggested Gardening books

Adorn it 

Dollar Tree 

Book Outlet 

C&T Publishing 

Craftsy Kits

Stepping Out Challenge - Day 4

Welcome to today's post, I am taking part in a 31 day blog challenge where I post everyday in October.  I love creating challenges for myself and joining ones by others.  My challenge for the rest of the month is to reflect on some of the series I created for myself and inspiration that I have taken away.

Listen to the Podcast

Today is the second part of the challenge that I did called 31 Art Studio Essentials.  Yesterday I looked at the necessity for not only spending time everyday in an art practice but work with what you have and spend time getting to know your supplies.

Click for the PLAYLIST

For those people who are starting out you have to resist wanting to purchase every single art supply that you can get your hands on.  It is tempting I know, I've done it, I used to get this inner urge that felt as if it were driving me and the feeling wouldn't stop until I had pressed buy now on Amazon.  Once the item came there was some initial excitement, and then it left. 

There are several things that you can do if you are on a budget:

One of the things that you can do is to swap with a fellow artist.  They may have the supply you are thinking about buying and visa versa, you can try it out before you commit. 

Also some companies give away samples, you could contact the company that makes the supply you want to purchase to see if they will send you a sample.

Is there a sale on where you can purchase the items at a discount - If you are in the states and shop at Michaels you may be able to use a Code to get a discount off your total spend.

Are there things around your home can double up as art supplies?  You might be able to save some money by say making your own journals, stencils, stamps.  In one of my videos I spoke about how you can make your own art journals by making your own from directories - the department store directories are made with quite nice paper as well.

It has taken me a while to know the different mediums I like and I realized over the years that I had many favorite mediums and through experimenting became confident in using a variety of them together. 

 I also go through phases when I only want to use just one particular medium, but end up combining it with other things say clay with textiles, and jewelry embellishment.  When you experiment you come up with some exciting surprises and combinations that just fit together.

Working on the challenge enabled me to look at my materials in a different way that has worked for me.  It is vital that you give yourself time with your supplies and get to know them.  I discovered with supplies that I had brought, I didn't do any of the points such as check to see if a friend has pastels I can try out I just went and brought them. 

They were quite pricey and for some reason I had to have them I should have started out with a cheap set or a smaller set but once I had brought them I realized that I disliked the dust and getting my hands dirty, the feel was uncomfortable and they just stayed in a draw for the longest. I didn't play around with them, but because of the cost I didn't want to let go of them either. Years later I saw an artist use them with gesso - which is one of my favorite supplies to use in an art journal and when I tried it it worked for me and I was able to give my pastels new life.

Day 4 Insights

• Some of my favorite supplies are jewelry pieces that I use with some textiles, I love collecting different supplies but they all tie in together and can be used interchangeably. You don't have to spend a fortune, you can find jewelry at the thrift or charity store, or you may have some that you don't wear that you can re-purpose.

• I also enjoy creating moulds to use with clay work.  Some of the store brought moulds can be expensive, but you can make your own You can also find unique molds that you can create your own embellishments.

What has your approach been to your supplies?  Do you have some that are just hanging around waiting for a new home or could you breath new life into them?  Why not combine them with other supplies and give them a new lease of life.

Tomorrow I will share snippets from my Tropical Garden Series.  I hope during this month you find some time to challenge, be creative and stretch yourself.

Why not join me each day for the rest of October as we dive into to some exciting challenges and look at ways in which they can impact on your own life. 

I look forward to seeing you tomorrow, it is never too late to start! The main thing is to take one step at a time and do something that you find interesting.

Stay blessed and be a blessing.

Ps:  If you would like to check out some art supplies and materials at a discounted price, check out one of the links below:

Adorn it 

Dollar Tree 

Blick 

Book Outlet 

Stampington 

C& T Publishing 

Dover

Craftsy Kits