I made this using real fur from my angora rabbit. Yes, I really spun it on the miniature spindle, knitted it with a pair of tiny skewers for knitting needles, and glued actual fur onto the rabbit. It's a bit hard to see all the texture and detail from this photo, but it's very 3D... It's actually so fat I had to take it out of my journal. I think I'll glue it to a piece of wood and hang it on the wall.
I want to make sure I remember (and learn to act on) all the Enoughness from my recent read. Usually when I read a book that impresses me, I write up notes - a summary. I've done that and posted it here on my blog. But I also wanted it in my journal, because as I flip through it, it forms a daily reminder for me. Today's page is about being content, striving to "modestly enjoy the day" rather than striving to live inside a peak high. I'm pretty pleased with how I managed to arrange the text onto this page, and also with the girl I drew - more learning from my Petite Dolls course.
I've worked my way through several lessons in Les Petites Dolls, the online art course I'm doing. This page in my journal is my first attempt to put a doll onto a mixed media background, following the process taught by Suzi Blu. I'm loving all the texture. I have learnt so many tips and techniques from the course that I'm finding myself lying awake at night trying to process it all, and merge that information with what I already know about art journaling, painting and drawing. For this painting I was also very much inspired by Nicoletta Ceccoli - I love the way her illustrations have a sharp "edge" to them, and I wanted to incorporate that idea along with the prettiness of the doll and background.
I did this page in my journal following another tutorial in the book Art Saves. The painting is based on an original by Stephanie Lee, so I can't really claim this as my own work, though I did add my own theme to it: seed collecting. I'm trying to learn how to save and store seeds at the moment, a project which feels both daunting and slow, but I'm sure I'll get there eventually. Anyway, back to the painting, Stephanie Lee does heaps of amazing art with plaster, and her original painting had amazing texture as a result of putting plaster onto wood as the base. I don't have any plaster on hand, but I found a pot of texture paste in the bottom of my art box, and used that. I love the textured result, and I really really love the colours. I hope this somehow marinates itself and leads to an artwork that I CAN call mine.
A quick rough page in my journal. I glued in one of the girls I scribbled as part of my practise for my art course. It's been a time of tight discipline lately. I wrote an entire novel, the third book in The Grimstone series, in one week, just before Easter! I had to work fast, so that the book will be ready for release in December - just in time for Christmas. In order to pull off this feat I needed serious discipline, not only to do the writing, but to manage my back so that it didn't seize up with all the computer time. That meant yoga and pilates practise twice a day, being a good girl and taking actual computer breaks for the first time in my life (I can never pull myself away - can't bear to break up my focus). It also meant that the week before my writing retreat, I had to make sure my garden and work was all caught up and ready to go on without me for the week, which meant another week of discipline before I even started the writing! Now I'm home, and the discipline aint over yet. I've got my first author talk, which includes a cameo appearance by Martha Grimstone, this Thursday. Martha's appearance needs considerable puppetry practise from me, and the author talk needs work, so I have a fair bit to do to get ready for that. Next week? Maybe!
I did this page in my journal following a tutorial in the book Art Saves, which has been real fodder for my pages lately. I created the girl as a part of my online art course, where I learnt to shade her face with coloured pencils. I used an easter egg wrapper for the eyes, to really make them pop. While I was working, this page looked really naff, and I just didn't think it was going to work. At the very end, I blotted cream paint over it, and suddenly it came together. Go figure. I'm very pleased with it now.
This is the page I did in my journal after Jenine left. It was such a treat to have her stay with me for a few days. I was feeling much improved since our book launch at the Arts Centre, but still a bit flat on the creative front. Jenine's visit transformed all that. She generously let me flip through her art journal - after getting the impression she'd just done a few doodles in it, I was stunned to see page after page of rough, (and some very refined!) raw expression, each one so unique in style, so many ideas I wanted to try out in my own journal... wow! I renewed my conviction that I can use my journal quickly and roughly, that every page doesn't have to be a work of art. And Jenine and I sat up late into the night, journaling together and chatting. Bliss. After she left, I was so fired up with inspiration, I whipped out two sewing projects (the bags collaged onto this page) and went into a journaling frenzy.
I was also very inspired by a book from the library, Art Saves, with beautiful artworks and tutorials to show me how to do them. That's fueled a lot of my journaling frenzy lately. The portrait on this page, of Jenine, was inspired in style by both Suzi Blu and Kelly Rae Roberts (featured in Art Saves). They are both fabulous, amazing artists and I'm really grateful for their inspiration. And grateful to Jenine too, for setting fire to this newest round of creativity. I feel like ME again. Yes!!!
I made this journal as a gift for my dear friend Jenine. Here's how I made it:
When I was in the op shop, buying the book, I actually planned to make two, so I could keep one for myself. But I told the woman in the op shop what I was planning to do with the books. This was good because it meant she fetched me a box of old books with lovely embossed covers from out the back. The downside was that the other book that had a gorgeous embossed cover, she refused to sell to me. "It's too good for you to cut up!"
Another tip, if the book is to be used as a collaged, painted journal, make the innards somewhat thinner than the original book. Once the book is filled with collaged items and paint, it will bulge outwards. With this approach, the finished book should sit nice and flat.
Good things are happening in my world. The best is that since my book launch at the very glorious Spiegeltent at Victorian Arts Centre, I feel better. I posted a while ago about my summer, feeling like I've just needed to have a good long lie down. I think our book launch was very healing - it was wonderful to do a show of The Grimstones that meant so much to me. Paula and I enjoyed the whole gig, the preparation, and even the pack up. It was immensely satisfying to see my book launched into the world, and to feel good about the show again.
And immediately afterwards, I started noticing things had shifted. I had all the triggers that would normally put me into a black mood, with the need to lie down for a few days, and it just didn't happen. I sighed, shrugged, and got on with things. I found myself doing all the old things I used to do with Jesse, and that I was back to my old self. And best of all, after feeling a bit flat, creatively, for a while, now I'm on fire with inspiration!
I'll post more about that next time.. but part of my inspiration is this: I found an artist whose work I really admire: Suzi Blu. I discovered from her website that she does gorgeous faces, fantastic texture, great colour combinations, and picture after picture that I just fell in love with. I was just thinking I had so much to learn from her, and was all set to try to analyse why I like her work so much, when I realised that she teaches online classes! See the lovely picture I above? That's one of Suzi Blu's dolls, and she teaches how to paint this and other adorable dolls in her course: Les Petite Dolls. She promises to teach EVERYTHING, even for complete beginners. I thought her workshop price was very cheap, and for that I'll get to join her online school: Les Petites Academy, and I'll be admitted to her online Petite Dolls classroom. This means that until the end of the year, in that "classroom", I'll be able to interact with other students who are also studying Les Petite Dolls, I'll be able to submit my work and get feedback from Suzi Blu, and I'll be able to see everyone else's work. I feel really excited by this opportunity to be part of a community of artists, instead of going solo. I'll also be able to download Suzi's videos and watch her make the pieces of art real time, so I can learn her techniques. And finally, I think the course also includes fortnightly "assignments". No obligation for me to submit them, but if I do, Suzi will critique them.
No doubt I'll be posting some of my assignments here too, so stay tuned.
I've been in a sewing frenzy this weekend, making this bag for my art journal. It's a whole kit-in-a-bag, with pockets for pencils, pens, paints, and collage materials. I'm so rapt to have this. I used the Ich Liebe Dich patch Jesse embroidered for my birthday, and a bird that was on a T-shirt he had when he was a baby. The other fabrics are from my stash, long time favourites.
I have wanted to make a journal bag for ages, but have been stuck on how the ultimate bag should be. It should be small and light for travel. But it also needs to be big enough and sturdy enough for my bigger journals and my larger sets of supplies. My friend Jenine had the answer: make two. I don't know why that didn't occur to me before. I'll make the travel one when I need it, before I embark on a big trip. For now though, this is perfect.
