Current In Progress Mixed Media Art Journal Pages

Hello (my how beautiful you are!)

Back to a proper 'weekly ramble' format this week, meaning this post is a quick snapshot of where my creativity is at & view of in progress stuff rather than any completed things.

My creativity has been going crazy the past week, but most especially the past 48 hours. I literally got zero sleep last night; ideas kept jumping, twisting and turning through my brain, I barely put my light out long enough for my eyes to notice let alone close. I am running on fumes today but I think it's gonna be worth it I have FINALLY found the structure(s) I want to create the Daily Rituals Class in (a class I have been trying to mould, shape and create for what feels like forever, all about about creating a daily creative journaling practice that supports you). So today I took my Ideas Journal to my outdoor studio and had a loooong Planning Session (a concept for creating I share in my Creative Goal Journaling Class) to form the Classes that will be (hopefully, with a bit of work) be coming soon...

The other main area my creativity has been channelled the past few days is journal pages.

Here's some in progress ones: 

Puppy dog needs some more layers and pen work I think

This is a 5 min collage I think I'm gonna leave as is, and do some more of these, very freeing

Here's some progress shots of a now finished one:

So that's the snapshot of my creative week. 

How has yours been? Share in the comments below, I'd love to hear (I read every one!) 

Have a great weekend

Much love

PS don't forget to check out the Monthly Art Challenge Video if you haven't already, you can find it here: http://tinyurl.com/aprilsartdate

A Look into my Everyday Hartbags (Art Handbags) & Journals

Hi guys, a quick video post today to share a peek at my everyday Hartbags & take around journals. 

Click on the image to be taken to Youtube, enjoy:

Do you have a Hartbag or take around journals?

Share in the Gallery on Journal Workshops.

Bunch of Backgrounds (Take Two)

So lately all I can be bothered to create journaling wise is backgrounds...you ever feel like this?

Much like I did half way through the Monthly Challenge video - using the same altered book too (click here if you haven't seen it: http://journalworkshops.ning.com/group/monthly-challenge/forum/topics/july-2015)

And they're taking me a while too, this one above for instance took two or three visits to the table.

Apart from journaling I did share this little make below on facebook yesterday of using jewellery box inserts as mini recycled canvases:

But as I'm really feeling the backgrounds I'm just going with it. I'm really enjoying the slowness of it too, as I normally journal so quick taking my time and coming back to pages is a nice change of page. So on I'm gonna crack with a bunch of backgrounds, here is a video I did titled the same if you feel like some background play too, much love and happy weekend xoxo

...on Altered Books

So my ramble this week is on, altered books...because that is what I've been up to and where my head is currently at.

Saying I have thousands of suitable vintage and antique books to alter is probably no exaggeration & it's always something that appeals to me, however when I come to create I'm usually drawn to a journal I have handmade. Not so much at the moment though, at the moment I am just thinking books, books, books.

It's not like I need to start a new journal, I have plenty going but the muse is calling and she usually gets her way (plus I do have a fairly good idea of a particular use I have for the journals I'm making so she has swayed my logic brain somewhat to her thinking too - which makes a change). 

Here is a lil video showing how I am prepping two altered books for my next art journals:

...and I did make something in it, 

I started this lil page...

using the same techniques shared in my recent pastels and charcoal video tutorial here, but this time I favoured the charcoals.

That's it for today my sweets, I am super busy making my 21 Secrets Lesson *awesome*, I have to keep this ramble short and sweet. If you wanna come join in the 21 Secrets LOVE click the link to take a goosey gander at what's on offer:

Much love

Friendship Journals

Hello beautiful artifolk =D I’m posting a small vlog right now on friendship journals, something I’ve done for a loooooong time before I discovered art journaling. 

Just sharing as I haven’t done any art or projects ‘for me’ of late as I’ve a few arty requests of me from other people recently (that’s what happens when you’re the ‘crafty-one’ right?!) so for that reason you might not see me posting so much, may be a pic here or there on facebook of what I’m making, but as my usual downtime of art is now taken, my actual downtime is usually doing something else entirely. I may get the inclination to do a journal page or two at some point, I dunno we’ll see.

So here's my vlog for now, enjoy:

Have a great weekend beautiful!

AEDM & NaNoWriMo Day 26

Today for AEDM is the first project for the paper beads:

It's a mini scrapbook I altered/decorated years ago with the intention making it into an art journal, I thought the beads gave it a bit of colour. I thought it was about time I started using it as a journal so grabbed some cheap old 6x6 paper and got painting this:

My Grandmother loves angels so I'm going to collage her one for Christmas, this is really a just practice at how I want the wings. I did originally want to sew her a soft angel art doll but with everything I'm doing I doubt I'll have time to spend a couple of days at the sewing machine (I'm not the best machinist so it takes me twice as long to get something done).

Day 25's final word count for NaNoWriMo was: 1,083, only managed a thousand :( and these were an absolute struggle, though I've no idea why - I know exactly where the story is going, what I want to write next but just couldn't get it to come easy. Hoping today it will :) Totalling: 35418.

Oh and Lovely Gwen asked yesterday if I would be posting my novel here, erm no, I wouldn't dream of putting you through that - although I have put an excerpt of it up on my NaNoWriMo novel page. Click here if you want to read it. Although don't come crying to me if you do, 'cause I didn't make you lol

AEDM & NaNoWriMo Day 7

Today's creation for AEDM is a face I drew onto recycled board like my friend's ornament yesterday. But then I decided I didn't want to hang her or something similar so I grabbed one of my trusty Winsor and Newton Sketchbooks:

I love them, they are lovely quality paper and really quite cheap (if you shop right) so I brought all sizes, thinking I can just use them for random doodling, cut them out & add them to the art journals I have bound myself, then once all the paper had gone use the boards for painting or more journals. The trouble is though I CANNOT DESTROY A BOOK! Yes I can alter them, or even turn them into something else completely if I know it will breathe new life into them, but every time I pulled out a doodle I heard it saying (in a Dobby the house-elf type voice) 'master, please no master, save me!'. So I've designated each of them with a role, the smallest one in the picture is to be a journal for practising faces. Here's the before:

and after it was painted & board added to it:

The faces inside are more 'serious' sketches than her, so it's a little misleading but I didn't care. I went all girly with scraps of fabric tied to the spine with an old bracelet dangle, simply hooked to the top spiral binding by the clasp. And who knows I may end up drawing a few more cartoony looking faces inside too. I ended up painting the back too:

Day 6's final word count for NaNoWriMo was: 1,397 - boooooooo!

Totalling: 7,679, still behind should have been at 10,000 eeek. So today I'm even further behind and, really, it's too early to be lagging. I'm going to have to try my hardest to turn it around otherwise this time next week I'll be so far back my post will be a resignation. It's not that I even find writing hard, argh get it together you frustrating girl! I did originally sign up for this for fun, can you tell?? Lol

Happy week one finished to all doing AEDM or NaNoWriMo!!!!! Xxxxxxx

AEDM & NaNoWriMo Day 2

Today's creation for AEDM is:

It's a vintage ladybird book I picked up on one of my recent treasure hunts (car boot sales/flea markets/charity shops etc) and I thought I would alter it. It has a damaged spine - which to me is fantastic as I can add some dangles of broken jewellery before I repair it. I am also showing my desk as I'm linking to What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday over at Julia's Stamping Ground blog as I didn't want to miss the weekly fun just because November is AEDM & NaNoWriMo time.

Today I'm just going to be gessoing pages as below, leaving all of the artwork as part of the altered design:

But what I thought was really cool is that it is from 1984 - my birth year - so I think I'll turn it into something to do with that year, or perhaps my journey from that year to this, we'll see.

Tomorrow I'm going to have to get some painting (other than painting of another new book) done, otherwise by the end of this month I'm going to be swamped in new journals and altered books to fill up, if I continue the way I seem to have started.

Day 1's final word count for NaNoWriMo was: 1668. The last 1000 words were a lot easier than the first 600 so I'm hoping (in my naivety) it is like writing a university essay - it's the first few sentences that cause the most pain, but then leads into you realising you have a lot more to say on the subject than you ever thought possible.

Here's hoping anyhow, thanks for stopping by, much love Jennibellie xx