Use it up, Fill it up Instagram Challenge

I love a good challenge to get me making things so over on Instagram I've been taking part in Tiffany Goff Smith's Use it up, fill it up 2 challenge.  It's been great to use favourite gelli prints in my Salvaged journal, and in particular, to use this ornate coffee pot stamp that I've had forever and had never used!

I'm loving these little dies by Simply Graphic.  I was very happy that google translate worked as they are a French company, with a French website!

My gelli prints are results from Birgit Koopsen's '31 days of gel printing' Instagram challenge from last Summer.  Putting them in a book means I get to stroke them ...lots!!

Teeny Tiny Journaling

Probably about eight years or so ago I included some small journaling in one of my art journals ...

... and over the past few months I've wanted to get back to it, but hadn't found the right way, until now!

This teeny, weeny, traveller's notebook is made by Monica, on Instagram as @moon.4.life, and available in Cafe Analog's Webshop.

It comes beautifully packaged in a tiny little box.

Being tiny, it makes it extremely portable (but you have to keep your eye on it so it doesn't get lost!).  I love being able to take a pencil case of papers, glue stick, scissors and pencil and journal wherever I am.

Gelli printed deli paper makes for a great background,

.. and it's a great place to use up the tiniest of snippets of paper!

The trouble is, Monica's produced some new colours ... I can feel a collection coming on, oh dear!!

apothecary, a step by step journal page

I've been playing with some of my Christmas present goodies so thought I'd share a step by step to this journal page.

I've ummed and ahhed over these Prima watercolours for a while as I have watercolours already but decided to put them on my wishlist and my kind bro-in-law bought them for me for Christmas. [If you've not already discovered it, it's worth knowing that That's Crafty has a wishlist facility.  I just add things I'd like and relatives hop on and choose things for me for Christmas and birthdays!!]

I added the watercolours to my new star stamp by Carabelle Studio and stamped on the page, then added some puddles of colour.

My next step was some collaged papers as I wasn't sure where this page was going.

Stencilling with white is one of my 'go to's when things are looking a bit busy on a page.

I added some stamping using some of my favourite numeral stamps and some textured Paper Artsy images.

My family know me well and my daughter wrapped up some White Company tissue paper (it's very architectural) as a Christmas pressie!  I added a bit to the page..

... before adding patches of letraset lettering.

I finished off the page by stamping out some images on white paper and cutting them out.  The leaves and bottles are by Paper Artsy, the Apothecary label is by Makistamps, and there are a couple of Chamil Garden stamps in there too.

 I am a much more frequent Instagrammer [@sarahthemoodler] than I am Blogger.  This time I had a bit of a play with the filters on IG and rather liked how this piece looks in black and white.

                                      

Making Marks

My goodness, I knew it had been a while since I'd blogged, but April?!!!  My internet presence is much better over on Instagram which is, well, pretty instant when it comes to sharing photos!

I have been using a LoT of PaperArtsy images lately and their latest challenge really caught my eye (I've been challenging myself to making my own marks rather than always using stamped images, as well as allowing myself to use stamped images to make marks as that's what I love and part of who I am!!), followed by Roxanne's (or 'By Bun' as I know her as I follow her on Instagram and love her work) wonderful step by step post today.  I don't have vintage photos in my stash but instead decided to apply her principles to a stamped image to see where it took me!

 I started by adding some fresco paints to my paper with my fingers.  I watched a fantastic video by Roben-Marie Smith this morning which also influenced this piece, starting with finger painting!

I added some splashes of watercolour ..

..followed by some sprinkles of PaperArtsy infusions.  I love how the colours merge and fleck.

I selected an area I really liked and wanted within the flower petals .... and missed!!  It's that splashy bit to the left of the numerals 487!!

I painted around the flower image with Snowflake fresco paint (I didn't have the same colours as Roxanne) which picked up some of the blue from the Infusions.  At the time I really wasn't keen on this but seeing it again now I'm not sure why!  I carried on though, telling myself it was a learning experience!

I added some yellow fresco paint, stencilled with some distress crayons, and stamped with Snowflake paint...

... and then got so involved I forgot to take any more step by step photos!!  There's lots more splashing of watercolour paint, some mark making with fresco paint and distress markers, some stamping and finally lots of collaged stamped images.  I had a great time rediscovering PaperArtsy stamps I've had for a long time!

I'm linking this to PaperArtsy's 17th blog challenge, 'Making Marks'

five layers of journaling

Still catching up on sharing my pages from my moleskine planner, inspired by the Original Documented Life Project and this is another of my favourites.

Art Challenge: Using at least Five Layers

The challenge was to use at least five layers and I was hugely inspired by the fabulous Art to the 5th Cardboard Crush workshop.

I painted up a strip of paper with a repeated mark and created five separate 'pages' that I then stitched together.

Each of the five 'pages' has five layers on it....

...and they lift up so are journaled on both sides.

I hope you get a good idea from these photos; it was hard to get good images of the way this page was put together!

I'm loving adding doodling to my pages :)

The above 'page' started off as a scrap of paper that I'd added some watercolour paint to.  I then doodled around a leaf shape and added some collage.

I'm not sure where this little guy came from - possibly an old lotto game.  I just loved him and decided he'd be happy in my journal.  I added art journaling to the other side of the card ...

Another page featured a verse from Documented Faith

I really can recommend this art challenge.  I'm loving it :)

butterfly collage

Apologies for being AWOL last week, work was manic, including the weekends!!  Life of a teacher eh!

But this weekend just gone I made time to play around with some stamped collage elements in my journal.  I'm particularly enjoying using pencil on my journal pages

This weekend I'm meeting up with crafty friends so they'll be more journaling happening I'm sure :)

Stampotique stamps used:

paris postcard  #8964  Carol's Collection

small butterfly  #3018    by Jo Capper-Sandon

baroque background  #7109  Amy Wilson-Wellenstein

numeric  #7164  by Amy Wilson-Wellenstein

art journaling on the train

It might look like it ..

but this isn't quite the same journal that I've been enjoying working in recently.  I took a baggie of art journaling supplies away with me on our recent trip to London, including my little Daler Rowney journal (which is about 4"x 6" in size, a nominal A6) but when it came to the journey home I realised I'd accidentally packed it into my suitcase!

Fortunately we'd happened to shop at the Chelsea School of Art and Design shop (next to the Tate Britain, open to the public, very very cheap :)  ) and that journal I did have in my bag! It's a proper square but similar in size to my Daler Rowney (Sea White chunky small, approx 5.5" square)

What I LoVe about working in artist quality sketchbooks is that the paper is heavy enough to take wet media so no gessoing, no gluing of pages together to make them thick enough etc

Having said that, I did glue in a brusho background before collaging on top (with more brusho backgrounds, letraset and those gorgeous stamped numerals!!)  !

It was a very therapeutic activity for a train journey!

Stampotique stamps used:

numeric  #7164  by Amy Wilson Wellenstein

antique description  #7228  by Amy Wilson Wellenstein

romantic text  #10028  by France Papillon