Second Verse, Same as the First

Repeated projects today.  More coffee dyed papers, file folders, index cards, book pages.   I’ve been using up a lot of my coffee dyed stuff.  I hope I won’t have to do this every couple of weeks…

Then I moved onto more ephemera folios.  These are really handy to keep near my work desk.  I’ll be organizing what’s in them once I have enough of them for everything.

Speaking of organization, I did some of that as well.  My embellishment three tiered rolling cart is pristine.  My 16 box embellishment tote was filled and is now labled.  I moved the smaller coffee dyed stuff into a box, everything standing upright, for easier access.  This lives on my shelves too, along with my ephemera folios.  The larger papers are in a 12×12 Iris tote.

I bought a kids lunchbox at my neighbour’s garage sale and it holds my DIY fun foam stamps.  This, too, is on the bookshelves.  Because I used up so much of my 6×6 cut up patterned papers, I have more room on the shelves.  This has become my art journal area.  I moved the jewelry making supplies lower, leaving the three center shelves for most often used items.  I reorganized the fabric and trims canvas totes too.  I combined some, which left three empty spots in the wall of cubbys.

After much consideration, I’ve decided to leave my sewing machine out for easy reach.  I’ve been doing a lot of sewing while making embellishments, and it’s so handy to have the machine nearby.

Slowly I’ve been rebuilding my recycled stuff stash.  I have two journal covers ready to go, several mini journals to tuck into the larger ones, a few recycled books and 5 composition notebooks all glued and waiting.  I also have several book covers and spines, without the pages, ready to be made into journals.

There are a few essentials I’ve run out of, like several types of glue and tape, which I need before I can really dive into my art journaling.  I am truly amazed by the volume of stuff I’ve used up in this (seemingly) never ending marathon.  Stuff I couldn’t quite get rid of in the huge organization/purge of my work room.  And now it’s been turned into things I’ll actually use in my arting.  Of all the benefits from building my embellishment stash, that’s the most satisfying I think.  To use up so much which has been hanging around for years.

Some for decades.

And other than filling up my rolling cart and purchasing the 16 box tote, the space in my work room remains pretty much the same. The space taken up by the supplies I used hasn’t been filled with what I’ve made.  I may even have room for the future journals.  Which, by the way, I’m getting really excited about.

Nik the Booksmith has lit a fire under me!  Her work is amazing!  She has creative uses for commonly used elements, and terrific ideas using things I’ve not considered including before.  Creativity is busting out all over!

Quick and Easy Label Templates

After watching several popular you-tubers and what their most used art journal embellishments are, I’ve recreated some of my own.  I have templates for a variety of pockets, journal cards, tags, tabs, mini journals, and countless others.  Today I discovered an easy solution for labels.

When searching through a tote, I found a nearly used up sheet of holiday sticker tags.  I removed the sticker sheet with all the empty spaces where tags had been.  I laid it carefully on a file folder, pressed down, and drew the missing shapes onto the file folder.  Then I removed the sticker backing and cut them out. I have 12 different shapes and sizes of templates to use as lables in my journaling.  They are all small, which makes them perfect for words, tiny journals, paperclip embelishments, charms and tiny tags.  They can be backing for thin ephemera, 3-D embellishments like flowers, numbers and letters, embossed and used for envelope closures, page tabs, tag pulls, borders, titles and button backs.

Time and again I’m impressed with the truly delightful things which can be made from scraps.  Old file folders have become one of my essential supplies.  Old fabric ripped and gathered into decorative trims, scrap paper, book pages, junk mail, broken jewelry, yarn, twine, and cereal box chipboard.  Just these few things can be used to make an astonishing amount of beautiful stuff.

And simple techniques like collage, stenciling, stamping, and doodling can turn even the humblest of materials into something truly special.  This lengthy art journal embellishment marathon has unleashed a whole new appreciation for creating amazing art from the abundance of recycled materials available.  Hundreds of lovely embellishments made from what’s on hand and at a cost of pennies (or less) a piece.

 

Mod Podge Madness!

Today’s project was using napkins and sewing pattern tissue paper over playing cards, price tags, guest checks, index cards, and time cards.  Nearly 80 pieces later-and dry-I’m trimming off the excess paper.  Some I cut off cleanly, others I rip leaving the jagged edges of the paper showing.

These are the perfect bases for journaling cards, pockets and tags.   I added paper behind the price tags to cover the writing, but the others I’m pretty much leaving as is until I use them.  Tomorrow I’ll be adding ink around the edges and some small details like holes punched into the top of the tags for ribbon or twine.

The napkins are brighter colors than I’ve been working with lately, but they look really nice.  If, when I’m adding them to a journal, they seem to bright I can knock back their color with a smear of gesso.  The ones with the sewing pattern tissue paper are my favorites.  The playing cards look particularly vintage with this over top of the red and black.  The backsides of the cards are a blue, which I’ll be covering or washing over with my “distress” colors of ivory and a bit of brown craft paint.

Oh, and fair warning:  Mod Podge has a very noticeable odor.  I rarely use it, and remembered why I don’t today.  It caused my nausea to kick into high gear and a fairly severe worsening of my headache.  Fortunately, it took very little time to mod podge the napkins/tissue paper onto the bases.  I left my work room for several hours until the smell cleared out completely.  If you have a sensitivity to smells, please be cautious using mod podge.  Or at the very least, use in a well ventilated area.

Back at It with a Vengeance

Taking a bit of a break from art journal embellishments has reinvigorated me. Over 100 more empemera pieces today.   I finished several other things and am about to start working on an art journal.  I’m pretty sure I have a large enough embellishment stash to choose from at this point.  LOL.

It’s often easier to add things to your pages before you sew them into the spine of your journal, whether by hand or machine.  Things like lace edges, sewn in pockets and fabric details are much easier to do when you can run the page beneath the presser foot.

I start by selecting the number of pages per signature, then the paper I’ll use in each one.  I prefer sturdy paper as my page bases because it holds up better to heavier embellishments.  Often I glue two thin papers together to make one.  I don’t count doilies and other thin add-ins as pages.  They are not adding bulk to the journal.

If you don’t have a theme you’re working with, a common color works well to bring a journal together.  I like to choose a color which goes with just about everything.  Green, for example, can be used with any floral or nature ephemera.  It also works well with a large variety of colors.  Blues are also quite versital.  Browns work for any vintage-inspired ideas you might have.  Your color choice doesn’t have to be dominate within the journal, but small bits of it throughout will give the journal a cohesive feel.

Another thing to remember is an art journal takes a lot of extras to make it complete.  250 items might fill 2 to 3 journals, depending on their size.  Every pocket, tuck spot, belly band and corner need something in them.  Often two or three things in one.  And the extras add bulk.  So you want your journal spine wide enough to hold the expansion.  This is why I use fewer pages per signature. Say three full sheets, which gives you six pages folded in half.  Three signatures is eighteen pages to work with.  And by decorating your pages before adding them into the journal, you can tell if they’ll fit.  If they’re to much, just keep one signature (or individual pages) out and use it in another journal later.

Obviously what you add into the journal makes a big difference in how sturdy you need to make it.  If you’re making a journal which is primarily for writing in you’ll probably include things like journal cards, tags, pockets, etc.  If the journal is a mixed media one you plan to paint and use texture paste in, you’ll probably want less extras and more plain watercolor or mixed media paper as your signatures.  My own choice for mixed media art journals is the Strathmore Visual Journals.  I like the 140lb. watercolor paper as it takes anything I throw at it.  My handmade journals are for less robust mediums, but the pages are strong enough to hold up to all the extras added in.

Once you sew the signatures into the spine (or as you’re sewing them) you can add decorative elements to it.  Beads, charms, mini photos or tags.  I often add a beaded bookmark or two, which can be dangling from the outside or flipped inside to mark a page.  Making a hidden spine is also an option, which we’ll cover in another post.  And, as always, date your work.  This may sound unimportant, but you will really appreciate looking back through your journals, knowing when you made them, and seeing your artistic progression.

 

Massive Haul!

For next to nothing!  It was Christmas in July at the Craft Outlet.  And the sales were huge!  I bought two large double wreaths, two huge pine boughs, at least 20 large floral pics, a beautiful decorated wreath, four stamps/sets, 24 12×12 sticker/ephemera sheets, plaster mesh, 2 ephemera packs, holiday tags, an 8×8 paper pad and a couple chipboard packs.  Oh, and two glue sticks. For less than 30 bucks.

Since the wreaths will be either Christmas gifts, or sold at the art market, they were a fantastic deal at 2 bucks each.  And all the paper products go with the paper I bought last week.  The stamps and sets were .25 cents each.  I’m surprised everything fit in Laurie’s car.

Sometimes, when a phenomenal deal presents itself you need to take advantage of it.  Today was that day for me.

A Change of Pace

Since yesterday was a struggle from beginning to end, I thought I’d change it up a bit today and do something else.  I’ve been downloading copyright free images, as well as printing some.  This has taken a long time, but it’s been worth it.

Since beginning this particular marathon of art journal embellishments and extras, I’ve made a list of 25 theme journals I would like to make.  Today I found images which go with some of the themes.  Labels, tags, journal cards, envelopes, printed tickets, seed packets, cards, holiday everything, foreign language ephemera, vintage advertisements and catalogs, and the list goes on and on.  I have a file folder filled with printed stuff, all ready to cut out.

We all know computers and I don’t get along, but printing was surprisingly easy to do.  I printed the images on card stock, as I like my tags and journal cards to be a bit thicker.  Others I printed on regular printer paper.  I have been very impressed with the quality of images I get from our new printer, which is an Epsom ET-2550 series.  It’s a bit more expensive up front, but the refill ink is much less expensive than others.  And you can print huge amounts of stuff without running out of ink.  We’ve had ours a while now and refilled the black once, but the color inks are only partially used.  And I print a lot of stuff.  This printer has truly been one of our best purchases.  Before I was always thinking about how much ink I was using up, because the refills were so expensive.  Now I print whatever I want on the highest quality setting.  The results are lovely.  I highly recommend it to anyone who prints a lot.

Gayle Agostinelli is on a couple digital artists design teams.  She has a collection of gorgeous kits.  Seeing what Gayle does with them has inspired me to give them a try.  I’m creating my own theme kits and you can too.  There are also several free printable papers and sets you can use if you don’t want to search for individual elements for your own.  My kits will be an eclectic mix, which suits my style.  And it’s a nice break for those days when nothing is going right.

Who Knew?

Tim Holtz has a product called Antique Metal Loop Pins. These are sold in packages of 24.  I think they’re adorable, but are pricey for the amount you get.

Yesterday I was out with Laurie.  She’s a fiber artist, as I’ve mentioned.  We went to fabric stores and a yarn shop.  While at the yarn shop I noticed a cute, round box on the counter.  Inside were 60 stitch markers used by knitters.  (I am not one.)  Guess what?  They are exactly the same thing as Tim’s antique metal loop pins.  I bought them for just over eight bucks.  Later, I looked on Amazon and found several offers for these pins in different colors and metals.  1000 for $9.00. Seriously, that’s an amazing deal and I’m ordering the set of 1000, with five different metal types per package.

You remember, I’ve often mentioned you can find the same art materials marketed to crafters in the art department.  Often the amounts sold to crafters would be a sample size in artist materials.  And the price for the small amounts would buy substantially more of the same medium in art supplies.  Well, apparently this is true in other things too.  Because I am not a knitter, I would never have reason to use stitch markers.  So I had no idea those adorable safety pins were used for that purpose.

Look at the products marketed to crafters.  Then keep your eyes open in whatever type of store you’re in.  You just never know what you’ll discover.

 

Unsettled

Today has been unsettled.  I can’t seem to decide what I want to do.  I began working on more folios to hold ephemera, then bounced to organizing all the tags, journal cards, envelopes, etc. I’ve made in the last few days.  Then I went to paper embellishments.  Next came printing copyright free images.  Then I started a journal.  Then I went to stamping.  I think my next thing might be coffee dyeing file folders.

Days like this don’t hapoen often, but when they do I become frustrated.  Everything I touch seems to go wrong.  I can’t get things to turn out the way I want, I cut paper wrong, I spill embossing powder everywhere, I can’t find stuff I had in my hands seconds before…It’s a hot mess sort of day.

Maybe it’s time to take a break and do something else.  Read a good book.  Watch a funny movie.  Go for a ride with my husband.  I don’t know what I need, but I hope I figure it out soon.

Where Do You Find the Time?

A few people have asked me recently how I have time to create the vast amount of stuff I make.  Because, let’s be honest, I make a tremendous amount of art.  Grab a cup of coffee and let’s talk.

When my kids were little, I was determined to make art anyway.  I didn’t have a daily art practice as I do now, but I did work on things several times a week.  These weren’t large projects, but I was creating.  This took planning and hard work.  Here’s what that time in my life looked like:

My husband was an over-the-road truck driver.  He would be gone two to three weeks at a time.  I was a stay-at-home mom with four children.  When Scott did come home, he often slept two days, then headed back out.  This poor man worked like a dog!  He never complained, just did what he had to to provide for our family.  Because his schedule wasn’t set, we had to be flexable too.

I’d get whichever kids were in school ready and out the door by seven a.m.  Then I’d begin laundry, do a quick bible study, and the babies would get up around eight.  After their breakfast, I’d set up the gates to keep them corralled and do my housework, laundry, and get dinner started or at least out of  freezer.  After lunch, I’d run any errands I needed to.

Once the kids were home from school, we had snack time and they went outside to play.  As dinner cooked we did any homework they had together.  Then dinner, the kids watched  a movie while I pulled the kitchen together.  Then bath time.  In their p.j.’s and storys before bed, which was at eight p.m.  And this was not negotiable.  It was important to me they had a set bedtime, because my kids needed a lot of sleep.  Once they were in bed, I’d whip through the house and pull it back together.  Then I had a couple hours free to do what I wanted.

Sometimes I’d read, okay quite often, but I had a rolling luggage thing filled with some art supplies.  Not all, obviously, but a nice variety.  And I’d art at the kitchen table.

As the kids got older, I set up a space in the livingroom with some of my art supplies.  This was, and remains, my favorite work space.  The kids did their homework on one side of the table while I arted on the other.  And if we were watching t.v. or a movie, I could art at the same time.  This worked really well and I had this set up for several years.

Once the kids were all in school, I started my painting business.  This seriously cut to my art time, but it was a creative outlet for me.

When our second daughter wanted to do a summer theatre camp at about the age of seven or eight, I began working in theatre.  They needed help, I was a paint contractor and muralist at this point, so I worked on the sets and props.  Theatre became my art.  This continued for the next 20 years or so. (Oh, and I taught Sunday School for 26 years too.)

As the kids grew, my time for arting became more precious as there was little of it. I tried to do something every week, but there were times I’d go months without being able to do anything.  This was also the time my health problems became more difficult to ignore.  I wasn’t able to “muscle through” them the way I had my whole life.  This was a shock and really sent my depression into a downward spiral.

The health problems worsened significantly.  I was no longer able to work.  My oldest daughter was back home with her kids, my two youngest were in college and daughter number two working full time.  All still living at home, with the two youngest home from college on weekends and breaks.  We made an agreement with our oldest daughter, she would do the housework and cooking as I was not able to anymore.  Once those struggles were no longer draining me of all my strength, I began arting again.  Scott built my workroom downstairs and I had a space I could create and distract myself from my health junk.

I took art classes on line.   I jumped back into my former recycled/art journal stuff and painting, both acrylics and watercolors. Later I started bible journaling as well. As my heath worsened, I used art to cope.  The worse I feel, the more I do.  Art is my life line.  It keeps me busy.  I’m always thinking about projects, techniques, and new areas to explore.  It keeps me moving.  My hands and arms are functioning surprisingly well, and I think that’s because I keep using them.  My legs have improved because I have to go up and down the stairs several times a day.  My depression hasn’t spiraled because I have things to occupy my mind.

While my arting time has changed through the years, it’s always been part of my life.  Now that I’m able to use my energy creating, I have more energy to use.  And, I should mention, I’m fast.  I always have been, which means I can create a tremendous amount of stuff in a short period of time.  I have tried many times to slow down, but I haven’t been able to yet.  I have a pace I work at and that’s the way it is.

So that’s how I found time to create through the years.  My advice is to know your priorities.  My family came first, always, but art is so much a part of me it was important too.  And sometimes the house needed attention, but my soul needed to art.  I chose art.  The dirt will still be there tomorrow.

Very Easy Beginner Journal

This journal can be made from any paper you have.  It can be a stand alone journal or a small book added to a larger journal.  Here’s how:

1. Gather the papers you want to include.  Patterned papers, book pages, painted papers, whatever you have.
2. I cut my thicker, double sided 12 x 12 paper down 3″.  This makes it 12 x 9.
3. Score down center at 6″ and fold
4. Lay your pages on top of each other (I use three or four, depending on the thickness of the papers) and stitch down the center.  This can be done with a sewing machine or by hand.

This makes a small journal great for travel or arting on the go.  It’s the perfect project when you don’t have much time but want to make something. You can leave it plain for written journaling or add pockets, tuck spots, and corners to hold tags and journal cards.  You can add trims, lace, fabric, doilies, etc.  These are also a handy make ahead project.  You can use them both as an individual journal or as signatures in a larger one.