almost jumping up and down with excitement!!!

It's a tough week this week, getting reports and assessments finished at school, so I was so, so, so, so happy when I came home to this!

My copy of Art Journaling with my article inside :) :) :)

I'd seen the draft copy but it's quite different seeing it in print, amongst so much gorgeous work!

It's lovely to be featured alongside another northern journaler ;)  the lovely Kate Crane (who's work is on the front cover, how cool is that!) [edit: just discovered Gail Milburn's in here too!  So that makes three of us!]

Right, back to the report writing, will treat myself to a good browse later on!  Wendy, down at The Stamp Attic has copies of Art Journaling if you want to get your hands on a copy - I can highly recommend it ;)

I still can't quite believe it!

"In every quarterly issue of Art Journaling, artists open their journals 

and share creative techniques for capturing their emotions"

and I'm going to be one of them!!!

I received an email from the editor last month, and have duly written my article and now just have to wait to sign off the final copy in May :)  

It being the Easter hols I've had lots of time for some art journaling (in between gardening, shopping, tidying, feeding the family....)  I came across some gorgeous pages by Amanda Hawkins on Pinterest and was inspired to use pencil on my pages.

I added pencil lines amongst splashes of ink...

...and between collaged lines of paper...

I've also been playing around with my collection of envelopes (the insides have great patterns) and letraset rub-on letters

and enjoying that relaxing feeling of just playing in my journal.

Anyone else use an ordinary HB pencil on their pages?  Or fancy the challenge of trying?  Link your page in my comments section, I'd love to take a look :)

The StampMan ATC Swap - Rhymes and Tales

The start of the New Year and the start of lots of new challenges!  [My brain's been whirling all day with plans for those I'm joining in with!]  This is my DT contribution to The StampMan ATC Swap where this month's theme is 'Rhymes and Tales'.   I used a Karen Foster stamp by Stampington that I've had a long while

and I really enjoyed getting reacquainted with it lol

the bird

Yes, Julie guessed right, I painted a bird on the wall once everyone had gone home on Saturday night :)

She's the bird from Hero Arts Clear Design:  Birds and Branches and I fell in love with her after putting her on my art journal. 

  

On the journal I stamped the bird on scrap paper and paper pieced her body onto the cover.  And fell in love with that flourish by Mr Holtz :)

Miss Bird's painted with Adirondack acrylic paint dabbers and the texture was created by stamping a variety of stamps, mostly from Tim Holtz.  She just needs a bit of company now, and to be surrounded by nature ... over to you Sue, you're there next ;)

Back to art journaling, I know you'd love to see some of the pages everyone created on Saturday.  I love how people's styles, personality, interests and sense of colour shine through even the background pages. 

  

Jen's backgrounds including dabbing, stencilling, masking, and printing with bubble wrap and cardboard.  Gorgeous yummy colour combos.

 

Lesley's pages stacked and ready to stamp onto.  The top page ended up with a Buddha stamped in white, with the words peace surrounding it - beautiful!

 

Laura's background pages now stamped with images she loves...aren't those images beautiful :)

Kathy's 'time' pages, with masking, stamping, collage and highlighting.  What did we do before white Sakura gel pens were available? ;)

 

Joan loved the bird too!  I work very 'parallel' to the sides of the page and love how Joan uses diagonals.  Her pages reminded me of Kandinsky's work.

Every single one of us used the Pool coloured paint, and I loved it when Kay combined it with Lemonade/ Peach Bellini.  In fact, when I drove to school this am the sky was these colours plus grey...colour inspiration is everywhere :)

Paris atc

Yesterday's atc kick-started me enough to make the Paris atc I had to do for a swap :)