An Altered Journal Journey

Journey Thoughts

2007-11-03T00:00:00.000-04:00

Occasionally I notice a little traffic to this blog, and even more
oftenI feel a tug of my heart to get back to journaling. Oh, I jot
down my thoughts in a plain-jane notebook now and then, but it's
been so long since I embellished a page. Or kept it up as a habit.
So much to do, so little time...

I do post a bit of chit-chat now and then on my other blog,
and I have a list of links there, including some that used to be here.
Links for altered book-related sites and projects and just fun,
interesting stuff...
Maybe I'll see ya there? Or here! I don't know about you, but I'm
all over the place!

Still creating...

2006-08-19T13:48:00.000-04:00

I have yet another blog where I'm trying to post occasionally about what I'm working on: TREASUREFIELD ...random plans & projects....
I'll be adding tips there, now and then, and some free photos & ephemera for you to download and print as well.
Thanks for visiting!

New journal, new blog

2006-01-24T14:14:00.000-05:00

I decided to start a new journal for the new year and post it to a separate blog called,
Another Journal Journey.
I'm trying a new "canvas" there: a composition notebook with lined paper. I'm missing the text of a regular book, but I know I can let my imagination loose and see what happens!

I think I'll paint.

2006-01-10T14:13:00.000-05:00

No altered book covers finished yet... Sometimes I want to start something totally fresh. This is a painting I did on brown paper. I made the frame with chip board. ~~She's for sale in my Etsy Shop.~~ SOLD Thanks!

Full Circle

2006-01-06T10:16:00.000-05:00

January 6...
GOOD-BYE... HELLO...
I was thinking about what seems like YESTERDAY --when I decided to start an "art" journal at this time last year. My goal was to keep a record of thoughts/feelings/events for one full year, and also to make a habit of creating something regularly. My journal was the place to do it. What I thought would fit in one book ended up covering three.
Now the year has come full circle and I'm trying to decide where to go from here. Do I keep filling books? spend more time on other creative pursuits? or should I just focus on keeping up with the laundry and yard work??? ;-)
I have plenty of options. Skipping the creativity is not one of them! But in the time it takes me to make a decision, half a year could go by! (That's one of my New Year Resolutions: learn to make decisions! I will say that "forcing" myself to create a journal page has helped with this...)

I made the above page with circles because I was thinking how one year ends and another begins. I wanted to add pictures, but when I found my favorite pen I just began writing (part of the purpose of a journal!) It's good to look back, but the excitement --the Hope-- lies ahead, as Soren Kierkegaard said...
I used green because this is the time of year I start looking forward to Spring. I love how new life springs from the old. I love the way things circle around, but never stay exactly the same. Today, I am NEW!
I hate good-bye's, so I'm happy knowing there's a Hello to follow!
While I decide whether to add to this blog or start a new one, I want the visitors here to know I appreciate your input. I feel like one of the best things to come of this project was the friendships forged, limited though they may be. Because of the comments, emails, and links, I've learned new things and been inspired.
And thank you, Blogger for providing this space!
God bless you all!

Coming soon: the covers of my altered book journals...

The Gift that keeps giving....

2005-12-29T18:27:00.000-05:00

December 29...
I know I'm late posting (i.e. finishing) my Christmas spread, and now I wish it weren't all glued down so I could change it. And if only I didn't obsess when I decide I want a certain something on a page. In this case, it was the letter tiles my sister made for me, and they were lost so long I almost gave up. Then I discovered I didn't have P-E-A-C-E to go with L-O-V-E. Oh, well, necessity is the mother of creativity. ;-)
The idea for this spread came from a discussion with my kids about "what makes it feel like Christmas?" I told them how, as a little girl, I didn't feel it was truly Christmas until a lady in our church sang O Holy Night at the evening service. It was as if everything else disappeared except a midnight blue sky full of brilliant stars, this angelic voice, and the Christ child bringing light into a still, cold night.
So... while Christmas is technically over, I still celebrate that most precious of gifts: the One who came as the ultimate sacrifice. With Peace & Love

To Gather Roses in Winter...

2005-12-05T12:17:00.000-05:00

December 4....
The focal point of this page was an image of a girl (thank you ART-E-ZINE!) I transferred it to sheet music and, on the opposite page, applied a rose torn from tissue wrap. The rose was so large it became the focal point, but it made a great place to do my journaling. I used a silver gel pen and I love how I can only read it when the page is turned to the light. Frosty glitter on the tag and other spots also catches the light; the scanner just doesn't pick it up. A couple of the buttons are mother-of-pearl and have the same pink, grey & cream tones of the page. These are some of the details that make an altered book page better in real life. Not to mention the texture. So if you haven't created your own altered book journal, let me urge you to do so! When done, you have a real keepsake treasure of your artwork as well as your thoughts.

My Baby Blue

2005-11-30T09:11:00.000-05:00

My baby turned 11; I can hardly believe it!
The diet book I'm using as my journal had a page of pancake batter recipes -perfect to illustrate our tradition of birthday pancakes for breakfast. (I seem to have different angles of perspective in the stack of pancakes, and a crooked candle, and the colors aren't quite right, but hey, I finished the page! I mixed a gloss varnish with brown acrylic for the syrup, so in person it looks wet and more realistic...)
I wanted to document the day and some of the favorite things of the birthday boy at this time of his life, including the color blue. Baby blue, bright blue, almost any blue makes him happy. And he makes me happy! My sons are two of my greatest, most treasured blessings.

Perspective

2005-11-13T23:54:00.000-05:00

November 13...
After finding this little aristocrat in a blue dress, some random thoughts about my week began rattling around in my brain. ...Thoughts about looking at things through the eyes of someone else... So this cute little rich girl has borrowed the eyes of a tsunami victim. Other eyes surround her (us?), available for a different view...
(I used all gold sequins on this page; funny that some of them turned to bright colors when scanned!)
A tiny accordion book holds my thoughts, inserted in the niche, made with a game piece as the cover.

Transformation

2005-10-24T18:52:00.000-04:00

October 24...
Another one of my green-y/yellow-y spreads... It's one of those things (like a lot of my other work) that I learn from by looking at the scan. As usual, it's also the kind that just evolves.
I like the subject because it reminds me at once of altered books and of people... altered... changed... transformed... It can be an evolving, unfolding process or it can happen in an instant. But a transformation is different than mere change or being altered. I think the word conveys a deeper experience, something more wonderful. And when we have been transformed, we have a greater desire and better ability to transform things around us.
They say change is good; but transformation is better!

Colorful Fall

2005-10-18T18:07:00.000-04:00

October 18...
I was hungry for a little raspberry RED, so I painted this bkgd. and added the viney, leafy things. Decided to finish it up with a pumpkin today, plus the journaling. It's such a colorful time of year with the turning leaves and pumpkins, squash and gourds everywhere.
I found out when I scanned this page that gessoing with a rough brush, and then going over it in the opposite direction with the red paint, made a scritchy-scratchy background which blurred when scanned. In real life, it's nice and texture-y and completely legible.

Tears in the Gulf

2005-10-16T22:53:00.000-04:00

October 16...
This spread took me quite some time to get back to, and finish, after all the heartbreaking news of Katrina in August.
I wrote my thoughts on several pages torn between the two shown here.
My husband and I drove to New Orleans around 1987 and much of the route we took was the path of the hurricane's destruction. I couldn't help but wonder what ever happened to the little boy who came out and cleaned our windshield when we first arrived in New Orleans traffic. Or the little boy who spun a bicycle tire in the air for tips in the French Quarter. Were they there? Did they have families? Were they okay? What about the little restaurant called "Mom's" --the only place we could find with good southern grits. Was it flooded? I was glued to TV and radio for days. Still, it took a long time to hear much of the in-depth story. I'm still so sad for all the pain and suffering, loss and devastation... but the stories of triumph I'm hearing today are such a testament to the power of love and compassion!
I hope the people in the Gulf know how much we care!

Inner colors...

2005-08-27T23:04:00.000-04:00

August 27...
Just playing around with paint here... And color. :-)
Is it obvious? I love color! Bright colors, soft colors, just COLORS! I think everyone should create something colorful. Very therapeutic.
:-)

Myrtle Beach Days

2005-08-22T17:17:00.000-04:00

August 21...
I had a good background going here, inspired by the colors on the last Somerset magazine cover, but I found the little postcard and just had to use it, so this spread didn't turn out elegant like I first intended. (Will have to try the background again some time...) I coated the whole thing with a pearl white metallic paint, and I was surprised how well it took colored pencils.
There was nothing really elegant about the vacation I was documenting either --lots of sweat and frizzy hair, drippy swimsuits and sandy sandals-- but it was relaxing and fun and worth it, even though I was really hard up for art supplies. I always say this, but next time I'll plan ahead a little better!

Listen...

2005-08-05T23:10:00.000-04:00

August 5...
I like it when I can make a page that comes together really quickly, like this one. But then... I already had the flowers on the background of gold handmade paper. In fact, I'd had it so long that some of the color from the paper bled into the paper of a flower stem. Of course... the stems and leaves were cut from a magazine, and the background paper is non-acid-free, so I shouldn't be surprised at the discoloration.
I called it "Listen" because I'm learning to listen to that still, quiet Voice that calms my soul.

A date to remember

2005-07-27T17:48:00.000-04:00

July 27...
This spread really lost something in the scanning! I used black gesso on the pages, a gel pen to draw the swirls and a stamping of a cherub painting a flower. Then I brushed mica powders over it all, and did my writing, followed by a coat of sealer spray and a (generous) sprinkling of glitter. It's much brighter in person, but I still wish I had those powders shown on Carol Duvall this a.m.!
Even so, the colors are bright enough to make me think of the colorful 26 years I'm celebrating with my husband today! (And yes, I did get married terribly young.)
:-D

Dear Sol

2005-07-24T20:10:00.000-04:00

July 24...
How can I journal about anything but the H E A T ??? It seems to consume every ounce of my energy (as if I had any to begin with)! Anything I do or plan must take the heat into consideration. I know I was begging for winter to be over, but this is ridiculous. Not that I'm wishing for the opposite extreme, but couldn't we just have the mild weather?
I cut the sun face from construction paper long ago; loved the pattern! The colors didn't quite match the background, so I doctored it up with paint and crayons.
It wasn't that long ago that I truly disliked those warm colors, but now, even in this heat, I'm crazy about orange. Fickle me! :-)

She'll save seashells from the seashore

2005-07-13T22:49:00.000-04:00

July 13...
We only live a couple hours drive from Myrtle Beach, so we used to go often... so often that it feels like home away from home. But in the past few years we've been lucky if we get there once a year. I must have been thinking about our beach plans for next month when I started rummaging through boxes of stuff for this page.
The denim color didn't do much for me. It seemed to want something purple-y. Boy! I seem to be stuck on color themes! And going back through my journal, it's obvious I dream about the ocean quite a lot!

White Squared

2005-07-09T10:22:00.000-04:00

July 8...
I really like this page, with its soft whites, although I intended to draw small pictures in some of the empty spaces and then forgot! Probably just as well... It was a fairly quick page to do, and drawing could've taken me forever.
I'm really hooked on working with squares. There's so much you can do with them, and I like the assymetrical aspects to offset the geometric quality.

What Time Has Given

2005-07-01T09:46:00.000-04:00

June 30...
For this background, I was inspired by an altered book spread I saw on Gotta Make.
I wrote the bit of prose several days ago, not intending to use it, but I found this pensive looking girl with the crackle-aged face and the two went together perfectly.
The gold foil border came from my favorite ebayer, "rosie_peachstate" (gotta plug the good guys!) I thought it made the perfect frame for a mirror image.
I didn't really want to use a clockface --that motif seems to be way over-used these days, but I thought a large one was needed in the space. Of course I would screw up stamping the numbers, and the hands look lame, but you get the idea. ;-)
To read the words, click the picture, and I hope my bad-as-usual handwriting is legible!

Firefly Summer

2005-06-28T18:57:00.000-04:00

June 28...
This is another "prefab" background --i.e. one I made ahead of time when I was just in the mood to paint colors. As I said in the journaling, there seems to be an explosion of fireflies/lightning bugs here lately, so I stuck on tiny amber jewels to represent their lights. The scan doesn't quite catch their sparkle. And I didn't have a stamp of a firefly, so I used this beetle and tried to dress them up a little. Still too fat, but at least it's not the larvae; yuk! they are creepy! I guess insects are a part of summer, but at least the flashy beetles put on a good show. :-)

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow...

2005-06-27T21:39:00.000-04:00

June 26...
Today was tomorrow, soon to be known as yesterday. ;-) The past week (and weekend) was so hectic I hardly had time to think, much less contemplate any tomorrows. But of course when I did I dreamed of what creative things I might do when I found time.
I made the background of this page ahead of time and glanced at it now and then, but couldn't really plan anything. I found the old fern fronds, pressed and faded, and covered them with tissue, then journaled around them; added the "quotations" underneath pieces of mica.
The quotation on the bottom right says, "Intervals of dreaming help us to stand up under days of work." --Pablo Neruda
How true that is!!!

A Princess in a Tower Kept

2005-06-09T00:16:00.000-04:00

June 8...
I started cleaning off my art table today and picked up some bits and pieces... ended up gluing them into my book... I thought of the title, but didn't like it because I don't want to be that.
Then I heard a radio interview with singer Natalie Grant. She told of learning about the horrors of "human trafficking" --especially children sold into slavery. Kept in cages. And worse. And yes, this is now. Here. In America.
Natalie described going to the Red Light district of Mumbai/Bombay, looking up at a window and seeing a little girl kept in such a prison. In her song, "Home" she says something about a princess (I don't have the lyrics). When I heard that word in the song, and thought of a child, looking out from a prison-- the title came back to me and rocked my senses! No disease could be as bad as this evil! Nothing on earth could break my heart more!
Then I realized I am that: a princess in a tower. Maybe not imprisoned against my will, but insulated from such horror in the world outside my "tower walls".
All I know is, I have to do something to help somehow! If you feel the same way, see The Home Foundation.

Let's remember:
"All that is needed for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing." (Edmund Burke)

Cup & Saucer Water Lilies

2005-06-07T10:29:00.000-04:00

June 6...
Painting with a very dry brush was a fun way to do this background, and the colors reminded me of Monet for some reason, so I wanted to add water lilies. Silly me, I didn't know the flowers grow beside the leaves, not on top! Oh, well, too late to change without ruining my background, so I just created a new breed of lilies. Haha!
The colors do seem perfect for the time of year here. The lilies at Landsford Canal were in bloom a couple of weeks ago, and I wanted to visit but I think it's too late now. Although they're not pink, I know they were beautiful in their dazzling white.

Wanderlust

2005-05-24T00:10:00.000-04:00

May 23...
This background was painted with a ginger-coloured paint, then stippled with a bit of celadon green ink, and I tried out my new crackle stamp. I added some wall-paper samples and cut-outs from an old encyclopedia and dictionary.
It's funny how, after choosing the background color, I found the shells and map that matched so well, then realized a travel theme matched my mood so well! Ahhh... wanderlust... Well, they say you can travel through books. I guess it's true --even altered books!

pLAyTimE

2005-05-22T09:23:00.000-04:00

May 21...
I made this page while sitting under the steering wheel. No, I wasn't driving at the time! I was waiting for my kids to finish their skateboarding. The park is too far from home to leave them, so sometimes I sit in the parking lot (inside is too noisy!) and do something creative.
Isn't it true that when you've had a rough week, you crave laughter and playtime? And all the simple pleasures you may have taken for granted before are suddenly very precious!

Finding my "niche"....

2005-05-19T11:26:00.000-04:00

May 18...
I carved out a shallow niche in my book and wished I had made it a little deeper. Added scrapbook paper and paint to match. But the color was a pale sea green that reminded me of our kitchen walls when I was a little girl. I never liked that color. So I added a wash of Aztec Gold metallic paint (Folk Art brand) which made it glow!
After attaching a key, sea glass, and a tiny vial of beads, I couldn't figure out how to secure the scrolled page of journaling. Decided to use wire, but it was too late to add eyelets to the holes because I had glued my pages together. I have trouble thinking ahead sometimes!
I wanted a burnt edge on some of the paper but a candle flame is too unpredictable. I tried the electric burner on my stove and got a good, controlled, "toasted" edge.
As I said in my journaling, this page illustrates how I feel on the verge of finding my niche --in my art, maybe in my life... At least I feel a few steps closer...

Perhaps it's time

2005-05-12T23:54:00.000-04:00

May 12....
The title phrase was cut from a magazine because I found it thought-provoking. I saved it in my cutouts collection for a while. Seems I came across it again at a time when it had a lot of significance.
Again, I used my favorite medium for backgrounds here (acrylic paint) with one of my favorite color combinations (brown and blue). Stamped with copper ink then dusted on a red Pearl Ex powder, and journaled with a silver pen.

Vacant Chair

2005-04-17T09:20:00.000-04:00

April 17...
This is another one of those paintings I saw in my mind just before falling asleep one night. I had been wanting to get it down; it just didn't turn out quite like my "vision." Should have sketched it before applying the paint, but there was a conflict between wanting it to look kind of wonky (like in my vision) and wanting to perfect little details (in the actual doing)! I used so much paint, I decided I really would like to learn to paint with oils someday....

Catching up with myself

2005-03-30T09:50:00.000-05:00

March 29....
This is two sides of the same face, just transposed. Reminds me of the conflicting emotions within me.
And I definitely need a minute (or more) to catch up with myself sometimes!

One crazy week

2005-03-25T23:18:00.000-05:00

March 25....
I'm taking a kind of "cyber workshop" with "Altered Belly" involving watercolor collage, and though I haven't learned all the techniques yet, I'm enjoying the play with these obstinate but colorful paints. ;-)
For this spread, I gessoed the pages and added the paint. Not exactly the effect of watercolor paper, but still fun. I swiped off most of the paint to make it very faint.
One of my latest "elements" is writing in a long, loose hand across the page. It's not very visible here since I journaled right on top of it.
I've been in a kind of creative slump, expecting too much of myself sometimes, and then things have been hectic around home, but color always picks me up!

Cat worship

2005-03-16T12:00:00.000-05:00

March 15....
No, I don't worship my cat, HE WORSHIPS ME! I do love him to pieces, though. So this page is in honor of Bandit, the cat who stole my heart. My favorite thing is when he throws himself at my feet. =^..^=
My favorite thing about this spread is the way the two illustrations echoed each other, with the bigger creature arching over the smaller. The one on the left is a "glue-stick transfer" I did after printing the image on freezer paper. I just smear glue stick on the page, then burnish the image down.

Teach us to count the days...

2005-03-09T20:49:00.000-05:00

March 9...
About the pages: for these I glued in black bond paper, which nicely resists tearing --good because I left the edges unglued so they can serve as pockets for slipping in momentos. The gate is stamped on acetate and also works as a pocket.
I wish I had spent more time "designing" it, but I wanted to get something down for this particular time in our lives.

About the journaling: I speak here in memory of my mother-in-law who died March 6. My heart is heavy with thoughts of all we didn't say (why did we never get around to recording some of her memories?) ...of pictures we didn't take (she was extremely camera shy, though) ...of the things we didn't do (we never got to make her dream-trip to Hawaii come true) ...of the years she didn't have...
My mother-in-law was addicted to smoking and had emphezema. I feel her life was cut short because of it. Not only that, but the years she did have grew less enjoyable and more painful. I don't think it has to be that way.

The whole thing has had me singing the following song (credits follow). I thought it especially appropriate for my journal.

Every day is a journal page
Every man holds a quill and ink
There's plenty of room for writing in
All we do is believe and think

So will you compose a curse
Or will today bring the blessings
Fill the page with rhyming verse
Or some random sketchings

Teach us to count the days
Teach us to make the days count
Lead us in better ways
Somehow our souls forgot
Life means so much
Life means so much
Life means so much
...excerpt from Life Means So Much by Chris Rice, from the CD Smell the Color 9

A Piece of Spring

2005-02-24T23:11:00.000-05:00

February 24...
This "paper piecing" is one I did months ago. I cut freehand from magazine pages. Glued the petals and leaves to a page torn from an old Reader's Digest book.
Hmmm... I think it needs something in the bottom left corner. Sometimes it helps to see my work up on a screen.

~Skyward~

2005-02-21T20:03:00.000-05:00

February 21...
I know, I know... the yellow looks quite garish! But I think that's a trick of the scanner; in daylight my book page looks more subdued.
I considered adding a word to the right-hand page, but honestly, I was tired of working on it. The little "vignettes" at the bottom took longer than I bargained for! Everything is craft paint except for some outlining done with gold paint pen. It's the metallics that I like best, including a coat of gold over the yellow arch.
Thanks for looking! :-)

i dream

2005-02-18T16:45:00.000-05:00

Februrary 18...
Sometimes you just need a new paint color to jumpstart the creativity... I got a bottle of metallic "Platinum" craft paint (Anita'sbrand)and really liked the shade and the highly metallic quality of it. Blue seemed to coordinate. But still a blank canvas, so to speak...
For a while I've had a small obsession with drawing faces where the head is tilted down but the eyes are looking up. This is just another attempt. I used colored pencils and acrylic paint this time. Still don't think I've quite "got it," but I had fun trying!
No journaling this time, but the small black square on one tag says "i" and another tag says "dream." Sometimes that's all I have to say. :-)

(true) Love never fails

2005-02-15T10:59:00.000-05:00

February 14...
After my sweet Valentine's day, I sat down to do a page. These weren't the colors I first had in mind; they're a little too saccharin, but it's just what happened. *grin*
My view of this unfailing Love is beyond description or illustration. I wish for everyone to find it: real, deep, true Love.

Something Medieval

2005-02-10T23:51:00.000-05:00

February 10...
With oil pastels, I made a quick border, then found (in my stash) a printout on acetate that reminded me of something medieval. I cut it into squares (one of my standby elements). Found the raven picture at one of my favorite sites: The Medieval Bestiary Go ahead and look at the beautiful art there! And don't miss the funny misconceptions held about certain animals in the past. LOL!
I had the big "R" stamp and found a great font that seemed a close match at Medieval Fonts. This German site has a lot of other beautiful scripts as well.

goodbye to the leaves

2005-02-05T19:19:00.000-05:00

February 5...
Playing with paint colors again, I added some leaf stamps to commemorate the day we cut down the apple tree in our yard. A very sad day to me. I love trees. And we've enjoyed the leaves, blooms and apples on that tree since we moved here. I'll miss its shade in the summer... and looking at it out my kitchen window.
Journaling is beneath the tag, which is "hinged" with pieces of painter's tape that I painted turquoise.

Under My Feet

2005-02-02T18:06:00.000-05:00

February 2...
As I was getting to sleep last night, I "saw" this painting. Not sure whose feet they were supposed to be, I just painted. And tried not to be too detailed or true to life. Just paint. As I did the background, I kept thinking of a verse about everything being under someone's feet... I looked in the Psalms and found this verse that fits so well, with the reference to the stars!

Art.

2005-02-02T10:26:00.000-05:00

February 1...
I found a magazine picture of these vintage labels (see far right of this spread) and although I know the "Art." stands for "article," I liked reading it as "Art. Period."
So... is this spread art? It's a color combination I like, and it includes some stamps I like (even though the one at the bottom didn't make a good impression). It's MY creativity, then I can define it however I wish. Sometimes it's the process, not the product that makes it art. Period. ;-)
The entry says, "...Managed to get a lot done today, even though I didn't feel my best. Just wish I wouldn't wait so late to get a surge of creativity. But w/ so much else to do, it's the only time left in the day. Except early a.m. and I'm still not a morning person!"
Thing is: sometimes when I'm not feeling great, art is what dissolves the pain or discomfort.

Snow Day

2005-01-29T21:36:00.000-05:00

January 29...
A good day to stay in and play... I started with a brown bag on one side and used kraft paper on the other. The difference in color is not as obvious in person as it is on computer. My favorite part was the "Frozen Opals"; they remind me of ice. I stamped with Brilliance "Frost White" ink. Pressing the ink pad against the puzzle piece and tiny card made a fine sponged look, like a dusting of snow.
Oh, sadness... :-( My journal is getting too fat! I intended to use the bag on this page to hold some ATCs my sister & niece sent, but they bulk up the page too much. My plan was to use this book for the entire year; I didn't realize I'd be doing this many entries! So I'll probably continue this one through March and get other books to alter for each quarter of the year. At year's end I'll have a set of 4 and maybe I'll decorate the spines with parts of a picture that make a whole when standing in order.

Some days are diamonds!

2005-01-27T20:46:00.000-05:00

January 26...
My birthday page. I had an awesome day staying home being a wife & mom --just what I love. And I had fun with this page, making it festive and colorful. One day I'll learn not to write freehand. With a Sharpie. :-p I'm going to add a snapshot behind the journaling pages. I like interactive elements.

Perchance to Dream

2005-01-25T10:15:00.000-05:00

January 24....
I have a notebook where I jot down all sorts of ideas for my art, including color combinations I've seen and like. For this page I followed one that said "light blue + light green + caramel brown." I chose those colors from my paint stash and started putting down the blue and green. I couldn't imagine why I'd found that combination attractive. Then I added a "pool blue" and spatters of brown with a Blo-Pen and I just fell in love! It reminded me of the sea, so I searched for a mermaid image. I don't have a lot of relevant stamps, so the page is sparse, but it reminds me of a dream. I sprayed it with a clear matte finish, and while that was fresh I sprinkled on clear/white glitter; then I added tulle and "seaweed" fibers to make it look dreamier. In person it's my favorite page so far!
(I journaled around the edges.)

Tell the world to wait

2005-01-21T10:42:00.000-05:00

January 20...
Knew I would stall on a page sooner or later. After painting the background here I was stuck for days. Finally decided to add more to the background! I held a torn edge of paper against the edges and painted with bronze metallic paint and stenciled dots with bronze & purple. Then I found this reading woman image which is perfect because our house is filled with the sound of turning pages. I used a copper gel pen to write my journal entry, but it can only be read if you turn the book to the light.

Drop me a line...

2005-01-18T09:22:00.000-05:00

January 17...
My mom gave me a Ken Brown calligraphy set when I was around 20. I played with it a good bit, but never practiced enough to make "beautiful writing." Ahh... one of those many things I want to do but never take enough time for... Like writing to friends. On real paper. I've let quick-n-easy email take the place of handwritten letters. Which is what I wrote about here, and mentioned how much I used to enjoy --and now miss-- the letter exchanges with my sister "back in the day."

Word Nest

2005-01-16T23:42:00.000-05:00

January 16....
As usual, half the fun of this spread was painting the background. It reminded me of peeking through trees in summer. Which made me think of birds. When I found this magpie, I thought of nests and I thought of my own "nest" --how I've filled it with bits 'n' bobs of all sorts, especially the sparkly stuff. And I've always found words and letters and fonts just as irresistible!

A little more LIFE in my day...

2005-01-13T23:56:00.000-05:00

January 13...
An easy page, gluing down button-print paper and clippings. The flower "stem/leaves" are thin peacock feathers. I'm a little nuts over chairs, so I collect them for collage; they also make nice models for drawing or making stamps.
My journaling subject is TIME...

In the eye of the beheld...

2005-01-13T10:29:00.000-05:00

January 12...
This is a tricky color... sometimes it looks pink, sometimes purple.. but it's really a "Vivid Violet" that I'm crazy about! While the paint was wet, I stamped all over with an uninked rubberstamp. I like how it removed color in some spots and added in others. I stamped along one edge with real dice. Made a sort of pocket with a piece of matching mesh that my cat had his way with! I forgave him though because I like the distressed look. ;-) The eye was altered by lightly sanding the iris and painting it violet. I added a circle of mirror paper which gives a vague reflection. Journaling is on the black "Thoughts" paper which is tucked into a slit. It reads, in part: "It wasn't until I found the words "in the eye of the beheld" that I realized what's been on my mind lately --aging... ...I sometimes feel as if people who see me can't really SEE me. My body is aging, but the real me is learning and growing..."

If teacups could talk...

2005-01-09T16:09:00.000-05:00

January 9th...
The Victorian lady pic was in a catalog, so I glued the page into my book. The lady was colored with pencils, then I went over that with an eraser to lighten the look. Pages were painted with "Lemonade"-colored craft paint, then coated with a pearly white. The edges were stippled and the spoons were stamped with ColorBox Fluid Chalk ("Amber Clay") --I love those stamping inks because they're permanent; no smudging! Did my journaling on the computer then cut & pasted, which is a bit labor-intensive, but since I hate my handwriting I'll probably use that trick again.

Stay up late and create...!

2005-01-07T17:55:00.000-05:00

January 6th...
In this entry I talk about how life sometimes seems to be an endless succession of Walmart bags coming through our door... (sad commentary!) but Walmart is where I picked up the vibrant green paint used in this page. It had been a grey day and I needed some color! Used sequin scrap to stencil on dots, and I dabbed a few with the end of a pencil. Various bottle caps around my art desk were dipped in paint for the "bubbles". I wrote along the edge of the page, "Can I stay up all night and just make art???" (And I almost did!)

Mind your "P"s & "Q"s...

2005-01-07T17:42:00.000-05:00

January 5th...
Tried layering different colors of paint (Folk Art metallics) and didn't like the effect at first, but it grew on me. And complemented the peas. ;-) Stickers on the right read, "Mind your PEAs and Qs?" and in the journal entry I talk about eating better, loving grape tomatoes, and needing to set up some menus. I also wrote, "note to self: chocolate makes my clothes shrink!"

"Give me the splendid silent sun with all his beams full-dazzling!"

2005-01-07T17:26:00.000-05:00

January 4th...
Tried a technique where I rolled a brayer across an Adirondack "Ginger" ink pad, then spritzed and brayered the pages. But I had painted over the text with white paint beforehand and it didn't take the ink well. Still... in person, I kind of like the look. However, I didn't like the look of my calligraphy ink blurring when I wrote my entry... which reads: "It seems it's been a long time since the leaves in our yard were green. But usually, most years, I miss it more. Maybe I've been busier this year. Or maybe just happier because we've had more sun. I have enjoyed the sun! I thank God for every patch of blue sky I see. Small wonder that blues and greens are my favorite colors!"
(Note: the cut-out text on the round, altered coaster is by Whitman, quoted in the title for this post. I also journaled around the coaster.)

New day... new year... new me?

2005-01-07T16:24:00.000-05:00

January 3rd...

The first entry in my altered book journal... Text was covered with a thin wash of craft-grade white paint, then the entire page was painted with Folk Art metallic gold. Stamping and doodling were added with a few things glued on. Journaling is done inside the folded paper on the left page. It's a note of optimism about the new year... :-)