Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Art Journaling

I'm finally making a go of art journaling. The last 9 months (or more) have been a bit stressful and maybe a tiny bit depressing with a few wonderful times mixed in. But the sheer lack of regular creative work has left my brain fried. So this year I actually managed to stick with journaling thanks to some very interesting prompts from Journaling Junkie on tumblr and A Writer's Book of Days by Judy Reeves and Janet Fitch. I don't have time to write every day but this is the first time I've kept going back to my journal instead of writing for three or four days and quitting when I missed a few. I'm learning that writing when I can (or when I remember) is better than trying to do it every day and getting frustrated with myself when life gets in the way.

With some confidence in committing my thoughts and feelings to paper, I'm also trying an art journal. I got two small Art Journal Kits with mixed media paper and several sheets of pretty textured paper for Yule. What you see here is my design for the simple teal cover. I've already made 6 pages (2 still works in progress) and I'll share them as I'm certain I don't want to add more layers or write more words. With another creative outlet, I really feel like can start improving on my drawing skills as well. I think the one that has kept me going is my roommate. She's super supportive and has all the best art supplies. Check back soon for my first few pages. I'm sharing them on my tumblr page also. If you have art journals you've shared, post a link in the comments. I'd love to see them!