Adventuring in my Mini Art Journal - Day 10

I'm so glad you're continuing on this adventure with me!  Hello, again, and I've got Day 10 of my Art Marks Challenge journal to share with you today.  It's been pretty busy around here, but having a little creative time is just the ticket.  The Art Marks Challenge is from Rae Missigman and Sandi Keene.  It was technically last month, but I'm still catching up.

Day 10 - Quit

 

For some Art Marks Challenge history, you can click here.  And Rae's Instagram account here shows Rae's interpretation of the prompts.  Rae made tiny cards and put them into this gorgeous little pocket journal, which is super thick.  I'm pretty jealous.

It also got me thinking about rules.  Art has some rules.  Mix certain colors of paint, like red and green, you'll get mud.  Bookbinding has certain rules and tools to make those gorgeous journals I've seen.  However, the idea of making little cards and then adding those cards to an already existing journal, as Rae did, never occurred to me.  And I love the chunky books, so it makes great sense.  And gives me permission to do the same, which I intend to do at some point.  For now, I'm still working in the journal I made, though I pulled it apart to help with photographing.  I'll share a picture of it once it's actually done and put together again.

I'm going to be posting all my pages.  For the most part it's been individual pages, but a couple have been groups and I may do a few more posts like that.

For the Day 10 prompt of Quit, I had to pause for a moment.  We all know the phrase quitters never win and winners never quit.  We also all know people in our lives that run the gamut from ready to quit at a drop of a hat to those that won't stop even when all the signs are saying to make a smart retreat and try a new angle.  In both of those scenarios, and everything in between, there's the behind the scenes of leaving.  What is wrong with the situation to make a person want to quit or decide it's not worth it and a different tactic is better.  It's usually reasons or excuses.  What the difference?  Excuses gets you out of stuff without blame, while reasons are considerations to either stick with it or leave or come up with a plan that's in between. 

I used some fun paper for the background. I've played with my gelli plate and I have my underpaper, but I've also played with the backside of patterned paper.  Sometimes you get a patterned paper and then later on, you're asking yourself, why did I get this?  Well I took those, flipped some over that were white on the back, and played with my supplies.

The background combines several of my stencils, including an alphabet and circles stencil from Dylusions and a stencil designed by Ronda Palazzari for The Crafter's Workshop called Subway.  Looking through my stash, I found a stamped image of the ladybug woman's head from a Dylusions set I have that I had colored with my Tombow markers.

 

I added a banner die-cut from my stash and colored in the silver part with my Sharpie yellow paint marker.  Sharpie makes oil-based and water-based paint markers.  My paint marker is water-based, which seem difficult to find.  There is this set, which includes yellow.  And it has several colors to play around with, so it's a great find.

 

I added some letters stickers, and a phrase sticker from my stash, as well as stamped "excuses" with a mini alphabet stamp set using my Ranger Archival Ink in black.  I also used my Sharpie pen to do some doodles. 

 

Along the same vein as not quitting, I have a quick question for you.  You could use some extra money, right?  Who couldn't, of course.  I'm certainly no different, and I was in a real bind.  I work a day job, like many of you, and I was struggling.  Crafting takes money, and so does life.  And I thought about and pursued a few different options.  Then, I was having a conversation with a friend, about struggling financially, trying side jobs, and trying to find something that would stick long term.  I wasn't looking to make millions, just a little something extra so I can breathe a little very month.  One thing led to another and I want to share my good fortune with you!

So to help me continue my crafting and have a little wiggle room every month, I have a couple side hustles.  One is very simple, no tech skills required, and takes about 10 minutes a day.  It's an e-mail marketing system called Cliqly and it's a great!  Perfect for those short on time, which is all of us.  It's all set up, and you get your own referral link to up those commissions!  You don't have to bug family and friends, and you also start with a list, so no starting from scratch.  Don't waste another second if you're interested.

I've also included affiliate links for the products I've used.  I earn a commission for any purchases you make, with no price increase for you.  I truly appreciate the support! 

I'm also entering this in Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday Challenge.

Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out my art journal page.  Bye for now!

Art Journal Mini Adventure - Day 9

Hello there, my friends!  I'm so glad you could join me today.  It's been pretty busy around here, lots of things to do.  I'm glad I have my little art journal to help me get that little bit of creativity in during the day.

I'm sharing Day 9 today in my little journal of the Art Marks Challenge from Rae Missigman and Sandi Keene.

Day 9 -Invest

For some Art Marks Challenge history, you can click here.  And Rae's Instagram account here shows Rae's interpretation of the prompts.  Rae made tiny cards and put them into this gorgeous little pocket journal, which is super thick.  I'm pretty jealous.

It also got me thinking about rules.  Art has some rules.  Mix certain colors of paint, like red and green, you'll get mud.  Bookbinding has certain rules and tools to make those gorgeous journals I've seen.  However, the idea of making little cards and then adding those cards to an already existing journal, as Rae did, never occurred to me.  And I love the chunky books, so it makes great sense.  And gives me permission to do the same, which I intend to do at some point.  For now, I'm still working in the journal I made, though I pulled it apart to help with photographing.  I'll share a picture of it once it's actually done and put together again.

I'm going to be posting all my pages.  For the most part it's been individual pages, but a couple have been groups and I may do a few more posts like that.  I also took apart my journal to make it easier to photograph, so you may see peeks from other pages.

For Day 9, the prompt is Invest.  

What do you invest in?  What's important to you to invest time, money, your attention into?  Usually an investment means you want to focus on something.  Invest in more time with family, investing in learning a new skill or taking the time to pursue a new hobby.  In a general sense, I think investing in being happy is also important.  And investing usually involves a plan or agenda, it doesn't just happen.  So I'm investing in a happy life for myself and adding it to my agenda or to-do list to give it the priority it needs.

I used underpaper for the background.  For those who are new to that concept, you're gonna love it.  Basically, it's the paper you use as a work surface.  I got a big pack, but I want to make sure I send you to the right one, so if you can be patient, I am going to work on that.

Most everything in the background is my underpaper.  Different paints, stamps, and stencils from other projects I worked on.  You can see one section of orange chevron made using the Crafter's Workshop Chevron stencil.  I have to say that's one of my favorites.  There's also some Balzer Designs and Dylusions stamps, and different paints.  All yummy goodness.

On top of that I have some die-cuts from my stash.  The star and heart are from an old stamp set from Studio Calico, I think.  The star was colored with my Tombow markers.  The heart was stamped with light purple dye ink.

The repeating x's and the "Boom Shakalaka" sentiment are from an acrylic stamp set by a Polish company called Badass Art.  Very interesting art style and lots of nice attitude.  I will warn you that some of the stamps have curse words, in case that's not your thing.

I also used my Sharpie pen to do some doodles.  I also made some doodles with a purple paint marker from Craftsmart for some added fun.  This set from Craftsmart gives you plenty of colors to experiment with.  As you can see from my marks, it's a broader, round tip.  I've used several colors in the past and loved the results.

I have a quick question for you, switching gears a little bit.  You could use some extra money, right?  Who couldn't, of course.  I'm certainly no different.

To help me continue my crafting, I have some side hustles going.  One is a very simple, no tech skills required, and takes about 10 minutes a day.  It's an e-mail marketing system called Cliqly and it's a great system.  You can do it when you have the time, and it's got click and referral commissions, so the potential is there to grow.  I wouldn't waste another second if you're interested.  I've also included affiliate links for the products I've used.  I earn a commission for any purchases you make, with no price increase for you.  I truly appreciate the support! 

I'm also entering this in Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge.

Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out my art journal page.  Bye for now!

 

Mini Art Journal Day 8

Hi there, friends!

I'm working to catch up with posting the pages from my mini art journal for the Art Marks Challenge from Rae Missigman and Sandi Keene.

Day 8 - Attention

For some Art Marks Challenge history, you can click here.  And Rae's Instagram account here shows Rae's interpretation of the prompts.  For those joining us, I'm working in a mini art journal I made out of envelopes, a hole punch, and some baker's twine.

I'm going to be posting all my pages.  Some may be in groups, or individual pages, but I will post them all.  I also took apart my journal to make it easier to photograph, so you may see peeks from other pages.

For Day 8, the prompt is Attention.  All of these prompts have been giving me a pause to think.  Attention is certainly one that calls to one, right?  What gets your attention?  What needs your attention?  Is there something in life you've been neglecting?  Your art, your health, your peace of mind?  I want to make sure I do things.  Not just give them attention in my mind, but actually do them.  Whether it's getting out more, giving attention to my art, my family, all the things that are important to me.

I made the background in several layers.  There was already some paint on it, so I used blue paint with a stencil from The Crafter's Workshop for the honeycomb pattern.  The stencil is 6x6 and has three side-by-side sections: stars, circles, and hexagons (honeycomb).  Then I grabbed a stencil I used on a previous page.  It's an alphabet stencil that reminds me of school art supplies.  It's made of that thick, transparent plastic that many school supplies seem to be made of so they can handle a lot of wear and tear.

  

First I used black paint, then offset the stencil a little and added white.  I adhered the large journal card and used some orange paint through the same pattern stencil and used little x or plus sign stamps from a Balzer Designs stamp set with some orange dye ink. 

 

The paint drips were made using a Moodclue chalk marker.  Here is a basic set.  Since these are chalk markers they have a matte finish, as opposed to glossy.  I pressed the tip to the spot I wanted until the paint pooled, then helped the paint drip down.

The tab at the top, two sparkly x's, and the heart are from my stash.  It's some packaging I had lying around that I cut a heart out of, and then did the same to some punchinella.

 

To help me continue my crafting, I have side hustles going.  One is a very simple, no tech skills required, and takes about 10 minutes a day.  It's an e-mail marketing system called Cliqly.  It's set up for you so all you have to do is send e-mail and watch the click and referral commissions come in.  It does take time, but you get your own referral link to use with all your e-mails.  You can also post it on social media.  As I said, very simple and takes very little time.  We could all use a little more of that.  I wouldn't waste another second if you're interested.  I've also included affiliate links for the products I've used.  I earn a commission for any purchases you make, with no price increase for you.  I truly appreciate the support! 

Thank you so much for coming and checking out my art journal page.  Bye for now!

 

Mini Art Journal Day 7

Hi there, friends!

I'm working to catch up with posting the pages from my mini art journal for the Art Marks Challenge from Rae Missigman and Sandi Keene.

Day 7 - Create

For some Art Marks Challenge history, you can click here.  And Rae's Instagram account here shows Rae's interpretation of the prompts.  For those joining us, I'm working in a mini art journal I made out of envelopes, a hole punch, and some baker's twine.

I'm going to be posting all my pages.  Some may be in groups, or individual pages, but I will post tham all.  I also took apart my journal to make it easier to photograph, so you may see peeks from other pages.

On to Day 7's prompt, create.  What do you create?  When do you create?  Do you make time to create or do you get involved in all the other day to day things that you let creative time fall by the wayside?  Also, what do you want o create?  As I mentioned in a previous post, that's why I like working small at times.  It's easier to carve out 10-15 minutes of creative time when life gets busy.  And I'm sure we can all relate to that. 

Carving out that little bit of time is also important for other things.  To help me continue my crafting, I have side hustles going.  One is a very simple, no tech skills required, and takes about 10 minutes a day.  It's an e-mail marketing system called Cliqly.  It really is simple, I can do it when I've got the time, and it's got click and referral commissions, so the potential is there to grow.  I wouldn't waste another second if you're interested.  I've also included affiliate links for the products I've used.  I earn a commission for any purchases you make, with no price increase for you.  I truly appreciate the support!

For this page, I made the background with both yellow and orange paint through some stencils.  First I painted it yellow, then used a baby wipe through a Dylusions star stencil to remove the paint in the openings.  

 

Also, in my adventures in arting years ago, I found this large 12x12 stencil that had several designs on it.  Somewhat related, but I really wanted to use the different designs separately.  I had read about cutting up you stencils, but couldn't entirely bring myself to do it.  Then one day I did it, to this one stencil.  And I'm so glad I did!  It actually helps me use the stencil more because I can choose which part I want to use without having to work with a large stencil and parts of the design I may not want on that particular project.  This part is a line of chevrons, and I did the same thing as before but with orange paint.

 

I also used my Sharpie pen to outline some of the chevrons, but I did learn you still have to wait for the paint to dry.  The rest of the layers are a bunch of things.  I stamped the word "create" with my black Archival ink.

 

I used a blue Molotow paint marker for some doodles, added some die-cuts from my stash, and used an older stamp called Boy Star from Dina Wakley with the same black ink as "create."  I adhered the negative of a die-cut butterfly with the other die-cuts, as well as part of a border stamp from Dylusions Bordering on the Edge stamp set.

I'm also entering the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge.

Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out my art journal page.  Bye for now!

Mini Art Journal Day 6

Hey there my crafty friends!  Thanks for coming to see me today!

I have yet another page in my mini art journal for the Art Marks Challenge from Rae Missigman and Sandi Keene.

Day 6 - Envision

Crazy is Our Fame August Challenge

For some Art Marks Challenge history, you can click here.  And Rae's Instagram account here shows what's she's making for each prompt.  For those just tuning in, I'm working in a mini art journal I made out of envelopes, a hole punch and some baker's twine.

I'm planning to post all of my pages.  Some will be individual, some may be in groups of two or more.

Today's prompt was Envision, which is an strong concept.  How do you envision yourself?  What do you envision for yourself?  Perhaps being with family, maybe exploring a new hobby, could also be a focus on your health.  Envisioning yourself, regardless of what it is, should be positive.  Even if you want to, say, lose some weight or work on a better diet, it's still seeing yourself as being healthier.  I envision a transformation of sorts for myself.  Transforming into my improved self.  Healthier, happier, around family, and contributing to a better world.

Seeing yourself as happier can take many forms.  Happiness itself can take many forms, but it can include not struggling as much.  I imagine all of you struggle in one way or another.  Do you struggle financially?  I'm thinking for many of you that's a resounding yes.

For those it does resonate with, I want to share something with you.  It's a great way to earn some extra cash, though it does take time.  It's not a get rich quick scheme, which usually end up with you losing the money just as fast as you made it or faster.  No thank you.  This is a super simple, no tech skills needed, e-mail system that's already set up for you.  It's so easy; it's called Cliqly.  When you sign up, you get a referral link.  With the system, you earn money two ways: clicks and referrals.  You take 10 minutes, and send e-mails.  You can include your referral link in the e-mails.  And you're automatically given a list of subscribers.  The hard work is done for you.  It can grow slow or fast, depending on how much you do it and other factors.  I wouldn't waste another second if you're interested.  I'm not messing around, at least not when it comes to this.  I mess around with art, not making money.

I also share links as an Amazon Affiliate to products I like and want you to be able to get to make the fabulous artwork I know is in you to create.  Just follow the links, make a purchase, I get a commission, your price stays the same.

For this spread, I already had some green paint on it, so I worked around it.  The background is two of my Sakura solid paint markers, in yellow and neon orange.  These come in many different colors, including black and white.  I discovered them years ago and love them for adding paint fast that dries fast too.

 

Then I added black paint through a stencil from The Crafter's Workshop called Stripes Explosion.  The butterfly is from a stamp set called Butterflies.  It was designed by Balzer Designs and released by the company Impressions Obsession.  I stamped the butterfly onto smooth white cardstock, cut it out and glued it so it could fold over and the journal  can still close.  I also added an image in two parts.  Part magazine cutout, part digi image.

 

The purple panda face is a digi image from Oddball Art that I colored with colored pencils and Tombow markers.  I really love Oddball Art for its quirky, and sometimes sarcastic, images.  Definitely weird, sometimes sweet, sometimes edgy, but always enjoyable.  The Tombow markers are such a delight to use.  They're watercolor, dual-tip, and have a variety of rich colors.  Since they're watercolor, you can add water and spread the color around.  It's lovely!  And the fine point and brush tip works no matter what you're doing.

 

I then grabbed a face from a magazine and used a paint marker to add color to her hair.  I also used one of my Studio G mini alphabet stamp sets for the word "envision."  Then I had some doodle fun with my Uni Posca white paint marker and my Sharpie pen.

Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out my art journal page.  Bye for now.

Mini Art Journal Day 5

Hello once again my crafty friends!

I'm so glad you're visiting today!  I have another page in my mini art journal for the Art Marks Challenge from Rae Missigman and Sandi Keene.

Day 5 - Commit

 

 

I'm also entering Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Bright and Cheerful.

For some Art Marks Challenge history, you can click here.  And Rae's Instagram account here shows what's she's making for each prompt.  For those just tuning in, I'm working in a mini art journal I made out of envelopes, but you can use many different things, including scrap or underpaper, so some pages already had stuff on them.  A hole punch and some baker's twine and a mini art journal is born!

I'm planning to post all of my pages, though some may be individual pages and some may be in groups.

All of the Art Marks prompts are making me think.  Think about what the prompt means, not just to me, but in general.  Committing is big; you're promising something, even if it's just to yourself, for the long haul.  You can commit to training for a physical challenge, commit to education, commit yourself to family, or make a commitment to yourself.

But underlying any commitment is keeping the promise to keep doing it.  Even this challenge is in a sense a commitment, even though it's supposed to be fun and there's not exactly any consequence for not finishing it.  However, something I've committed myself to in my own life is improving my financial situation.  I know, people aren't supposed to talk money in polite company, but I think this is something we can all relate to in some way.  And I lie helping my friends, when I can.  I like to consider you all my friends.  That's why I'm sharing my artwork, and maybe a little money talk to help us both.  Committing myself to improving my financial situation involves a couple side hustles.  And I'm guessing we all either have one or have thought about one at some point.

In the spirit of helping you, my friends, I want to share a couple things with you.  Both are great, but take work.  One is Cliqly.  Super simple, You log in, spend 10 minutes sending e-mails, earning click commissions.  If you include your referral link, you can also earn referral commission.  No scams, honest.  Anyone can do this, no tech experience needed.  I mess around with art, not making money.  The other avenue is being an Amazon affiliate.  I share the products I love to use with you and I make a small commission on sales, without a price difference for you.  So thank you!

There's a lot going on in my background, so I'll go step by step.  First I made circles using my Sakura solid paint markers in blue and neon orange.  Next I sponged teal paint through a piece of punchinella.  Here's an example of what punchinella can look like when you purchase it.

 

What is punchinella?  It's sequin waste.  All those little circles are punched out sequins, but the waste is just wonderful.  You can do so much with it.  I've used it on its own on projext, you can cut it into shapes, or use it as a stencil.  There are some stencils with a punchinella pattern, but if you have some punchinella, you can use that too.  I discovered it years ago and fell in crafty love!  

After the punchinella, I traced a few letters through a stencil I have that looks like something you'd get for school supplies, and I sponged blue paint through the circle and star of a Dina Wakley stencil called The Basics.

 

A little black paint through my Dylusions Chequered Dots stencil and I outlined the border squares with my white-out pen.  I used mini wooden alpha stamps for the words "STAY THE" and American Crafts Thickers, similar to these but regular aqua in color, for "COURSE."  I think I've mentioned how much I love Thickers and how I have several sets.  This is another of those sets.

 

I added several details with my Sharpie pen.  The girl is actually a combination of a stamp set and a digi image.  The head and body are come from a Dylusions stamp set called Mini Moo that I colored with Tombow dual-tip watercolor markers.

 

I purchased mine individually, however this set is a good place to start.  The legs I cut off and decided to use later.  Instead, I grabbed the legs from the thinking girl I used earlier in my journal and added them here.  I think it looks just right.

Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out my art journal page.  Bye for now!

Mini Art Journal Day 4

Hello my crafty friends!

I'm so glad you're visiting!  I have another page in my mini art journal for the Art Marks Challenge from Rae Missigman and Sandi Keene.

Day 4 - Think

 

I have done my fair share of thinking, and then some.  About everything.  The direction I want to go in life, the choices I need to make; thinking is a neverending process.  Thinking take up a good portion of most everyone's day, regardless of how big or small the choice is.  I also hink about art supplies and what direction I want my projects to go.

Part of thinking of where I want my projects includes what parts am I going to compose my project out of, and do I need to get any of them?  That may, of course, require making a purchase.  That's why I've been working on a couple different strategies to increase my cash flow.  One is being an Amazon affiliate.  All you have o d is follow the links Ive included to some of my favorite products and make a purchase. I get commission, but your price does not increase.  Another avenue I'm pursuing is a very simple e-mail system called Cliqly.  You log in, spend 10 minutes sending e-mails, earning click commissions.  If you include your referral link, you can also earn referral commissions.  You don't pay to get the referral link and this isn't a scam.  Anyone can do this, no tech experience needed.  I'm not messing around, at least not when it comes to this.  I mess around with art, not making money.

I'm also entering my page into these challenges:

Creative Fingers Challenge #260 - Anything Goes

Crazy is Our Fame August Challenge

For some Art Marks Challenge history, you can click here.  And Rae's Instagram account here shows what's she's making for each prompt.  For those just tuning in, I'm working in a mini art journal I made out of envelopes, but you can use many different things, including scrap or underpaper, so some pages already had stuff on them.  A hole punch and some baker's twine later and a mini art journal for the challenge is born!

I'm planning to post all of my pages, though some may be individual pages and some may be in group.

I covered my page with a couple different paints colors, including black through a handwriting stencil similar to this one and some yellow through my chevron stencil from The Crafter's Workshop.

I added some details using some circle stamps from a set designed by Julie Fei-Fan Balzer and a red dye stamping ink cube from a rainbow set I've had forever.  I also put some darker green paint through an older Dylusions stars stencil and then offset the stencil a little, grabbed my Sharpie pen and traced the stencil with my pen. 

The doodle border on the side is me playing with my Sharpie pen.  The letter tiles are from a old kit from Studio Calico, I think.  I have a set in blue as well.

My thinking girl is from Oddball Art.  I love my Oddball Art images.  So fun, and a little bit sarcastic.

Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out my art journal page.  Bye for now!