Love - Hope - Imagine Art Journal Page

I have been trying to do something creative every day since I've been home.  Yesterday we had a first day of virtual preschool so I didn't get a chance to do anything arty.  And I noticed.  Creating is very therapeutic, I've found.  Today I got busy before school started to work in my mini art journal.

This little journal is pretty small and there wasn't much space left for written journaling; or at least not space that I wanted to write in.  My words weren't entirely random though.

I chose LOVE because as awful and disruptive as this pandemic is, I've found that I've really enjoyed all of this time at home with the people I love.  Without the distractions of work and school we have truly had some quality time together.

HOPE is because, of course, I hope this all ends soon.  I have been very fortunate so far in that nobody near to me has succumbed to this awful illness.  I do have loved ones that are vulnerable though and fervently hope casualties can be minimized for all.

I picked IMAGINE to remind myself that as time passes, while it certainly won't be forgotten, this relatively (hopefully!) quick blip in the grand scheme of things will be a distant memory.  I'm imagining the time when we'll all get back to work, school, social lives, etc. and doctors, nurses and other essential personnel won't be working themselves to exhaustion and putting themselves in harm's way without needed supplies. 

Wishing you well, my friends.

Mini Journal Page

My little 3" x 4.5" mini journal has been really fun to play around in.  I think I can attribute that to my love of ATCs - just something about a small canvas works for me.  :)

I arted on a couple of the pages today.

I found these red flowers stamped on a scrap piece of paper on my desk.  The background page wasn't really working for me.  I just kept adding layers of paint and stenciling until I was happy with it.

Kate Crane showed a video of her drawing a dreamcatcher.  I'm not much of a hand-drawer...stamps are my friend.  I went ahead and sketched a little dreamcatcher over one of the backgrounds anyway and filled it in using acrylic paints.  I discovered quite a few paint pens that I'd forgotten I had.  Sweet!

Happy arting everyone.  I hope you're all staying healthy and sane.

Under the Sea ATC

I'm sending this ATC to somebody who really likes the ocean and all of it's mystery.  :)

There are glittery bits on the words and on parts of the seahorse.  I tried to capture it in this next photo.  Can you see them?

Are you getting some time to create these days?

A Colorful Mini Journal

Like most people around the world these days I've got a lot of unexpected time on my hands.  I'm not sure how I wound up there, but somehow I got to Dina Wakley's Facebook Live video showing her making a mini journal using her new gloss sprays.   I like mini journals.  I was absolutely inspired to get to work making my own.

Dina used scribble sticks and her gloss sprays on her pages.  Her binding was made using adhesive canvas strips.  I don't have those so I used Dylusions Ink Sprays, Tattered Angels Glimmer Mists, Mr. Huey's Color Sprays, and Lindy's spray mists with various stencils.  I also used my Neocolor II watercolor crayons and my binding is black duct tape.  My hands were a mess...it was awesome.

I'm now trying to take a little time each day to do something on a page.  There are only 8 pages (16 sides) so this may actually be a little journal that will be completely arted up in no time at all.  Woo hoo!

Another bonus?  I'm digging around in my stash and using things I've just been hoarding. 

The video can be watched on YouTube.  Check it out!

Yee Haw...Some western-inspired ATCs

I've been doing a little light cleaning around my work space and found an ATC kit that somebody sent me.  It had a bunch of papers and embellishments with a western theme.  I saddled up and put some stuff together.

It was fun to do something outside the box.  Hoping you're getting some creative time in.  Cheers!

Keeping Busy

In my part of the world, schools are closed, public events are canceled and people are being told to stay home unless it's absolutely necessary to go out.  I've been heeding the advice as best I can.  Baseboards have been scrubbed, laundry has been done, shelves have been dusted.  There are still several 'shoulds' on my list, but I decided some arting is in order.  You know...therapeutic and good for the soul and all of that.

I ran across an umbrella-themed swap over on SwapBot and decided to see what I could come up with.  Being in the Seattle area, rain came to mind.

Well, no.  Not an umbrella in sight but in my rain quote search the definition of a pluviophile came up.  My daughter is definitely a pluviophile and this is my little tribute to her.  

Even though I grew up in sunny Southern California my many years living up here in the Pacific NW have given me an appreciation for the pitter patter of rain.  I kept being drawn to the uplifting or happy quotes about rain.

I've had this boots stamp for SO long and I think I've used it maybe 5 times.  I colored it to look like my old rainboots that I loved until they got a hole in them.  Too much jumping in puddles with my little peeps!

I just noticed as I posted this that I gave her purple hair.  Kiana's (my daughter) hair is purple, too.  Coincidence?  Maybe the subconscious hard at work...

Last one is this happily-colored confetti rain ATC.  I suppose if you have a wee bit of sunshine you might actually see those colors in the raindrops!

So that's it for now.  I keep thinking I'm going to be more artistically productive but we're also having unseasonably lovely weather here so I've been getting outside and getting dirt under my fingernails, too.

Wishing you good health and clean hands.

Flowery ATCs

I mostly only have time on the weekends for arting.  I love the days when The Muse feels like coming out to play.  She hung with me today while I made a couple of ATCs.

It would appear that there is a bit of a green theme going on.  Well...it IS March...😀

Cheers and I'll see you next weekend.

Sympathy Card for MFT Color Challenge #136

Sympathy cards are so tricky for me to make.  Perhaps it's because I just don't want there to need to be an occasion to send them.  One of my co-workers lost her brother in a car accident last week; my heart aches for her. 

The second pic shows the glimmer from a Wink of Stella pen.  Because I'm impatient, you'll notice the gold Liquid Pearls in the middles of the flowers are still not dry (just try not to look too closely!).

Cheers.

Hello From Arizona!

Well...not really.  Cacti just remind me of Arizona.  😃

I made this card for my sister and also for the MFT Color Challenge #136.

I hope she likes it!