Today I actually did some get-your-hands-dirty arting!
Not long ago, Scott and I went to the storage unit and grabbed several totes of my stuff. Most were my books, but a couple of them were art supplies. I dove into each tote to find what I was looking for-and of course it’s not in any of them-and noticed one tote was my water-soluble media. Another tote held watercolor paper and purchased journals.
This morning I riffled through the water-soluble media tote and found my sprays. Then I found a mixed media journal from Canson. It has 60 pages, which are perforated. I had started putting backgrounds in this journal, although I don’t remember this at all, and decided to fill it all with backgrounds today. So I used my beautiful, bright colored inks and sprayed every page with a couple of them to make backgrounds. This was a tremendously messy activity and I absolutely loved it!
Spray inks-which are my DIY sprays, can really soak your paper. I spray and then roll the paper towel over top to sop up the excess. Another option would be to use tags, another journal’s pages, loose paper, etc. as your mop up material. I try not to waste any product, but I had no tags or other journals on hand. (I will let the paper towel dry and use them in my art somewhere.)
Once every page had a background, I very quickly used my arting blow-dryer on each page. They are not fully dry, but enough so the pages won’t stick together as they dry completely. Tomorrow I hope to make some pages in this journal.
These last several weeks have been a struggle for me. This very simple, and very quick, art break has already improved my outlook on life. (Hopefully, I’ll begin working on the art studio soon-I need it!)Another thing I’ve been doing is making small booklets, 12 so far, to hold quotes, different hand lettering samples, and simple drawings commonly used for bullet-type journaling. I’ve never tried bullet journaling, but I am in the mood to make a few DIY Midori journals. These booklets are small with 12 pages each. Perfect for tucking into a bible, journal or purse for some art on the go.
In the last month or so, I’ve made 11 different types of journals and notebooks for Bible-related stuff. I have a gratitude journal, prayer journal, research notebook to hold my notes for another book I’m working on, two notebooks for the two seminary classes I’m taking on line, a couple for bible journaling, and some for in-depth bible study. I didn’t realize just how many I made until I had to pack everything up and put it away because our 3 year old granddaughter was coming over. (She has two speeds: Run as fast as possible or sound asleep.)
So I’ve spent most of my time doing bible study and journaling. Scott recovered from Covid very well, without any hint of his remission being affected. That is such a blessing and relief for me. (I admit, I worry more about his health than he knows.) So he’s back to work, and they’ve even started overtime again. He continues to enjoy his job, so another blessing to be thankful for.
Hope today finds you, and your loved ones, well.
Purple Whimsie 