Thursday, September 25, 2014

Society6 : Art Journal Mug



Art Journal Mug
$15
Click Here


There is something about mugs that just makes me HAPPY.
I love collecting them when I travel. 
I love remembering where I purchased the mug and the events of that day.
 I love selecting the perfect mug for my hot coco or tea in the morning.

I love my collection of favorite mugs
...the one I purchased in Portland 17 years ago at the
Betsy Johnson store. I loved everything in
that store but I could only afford the mug.


...the mug I purchased from Anthropologie on
sale after watching it for months.
(That mug still makes me do a little dance just before I take a sip)


I love mugs so much I wanted to make my own contribution to mug lovers everywhere.

ladies and gentlemen
I give you...

the Art Journal Mug

Enjoy!

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Mixed Media Art Journal : Flip Through





Here is a look into one of my mixed media art journals. I started this journal in 2012 and "lived" in it almost exclusively until mid 2013. 

As you can see, my journals are a mix of styles, colors and techniques. I get to experiment and develop a specific technique. In a few places you may see repeated images. If I love an image I often scan it and use it a few times as I learn how I want to develop the image. 

There are pages in this journal that I love and pages that I ( I won't say "hate" but I will say "don't like as much"). Thank goodness for the volume of pages that gives me many opportunities to try and try again.

I do not work in sequence. I work all over my journal ...front, middle and back. I create by backgrounds and then come back to add images and words. I often work on 3-4 pages at a time then narrow in on 1 or 2 with the fine details or text. 

I hope you enjoy watching the results of a year of art journaling.

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

The Ritual of Creative Time




Sometimes when the day is done and everyone has gone to bed, I go to my studio to create. I start by pulling out materials I want to "play" with. This usually includes items I've been saving for a rainy day. I fill a jar with water and pick my favorite brushes.  I find a journal and open to a new page, canvas 
or decide to work on an existing page in my journal. 
Then I find music that inspires me. I love Pandora because I can create stations that fit many different moods. Pandora provides music based on my mood. I often get introduced to new music and that adds to my inspiration.



Tonight I began to play with images and textures from magazines. I started by ripping pages that captured my attention. Then I went back and cut out the portions of the page that inspired me. I then cut the pages in to smaller shapes. 

Tonight I was inspired by stripes and lines.


My next step was to paint, stencil, scrape and drip colorful paint on my canvas. I let the canvas dry completely and then added my magazine strips
on the canvas with heavy gel medium. 



The result begins a story that I will add words or poetry to on my next session in the studio.
Tonight was a happy night of creating.




Monday, September 15, 2014

Words of Wisdom: Khalil Gibran


"Let there be spaces in your togetherness 
and let the winds of the heavens 
dance between you. 

Love one another 
but make not a bond of love: 
let it rather be a moving sea 
between the shores of your souls."

~ Khalil Gibran