Circles and Walls

In my last post I mentioned that I was taking a class by Tammy Garcia at Daisy Yellow Art that was introducing me to new products and techniques. I have loved painting with my fingers ever since I started painting circles (see post here and tutorial here). So when Tammy introduced her technique called The Wall, and she did it with her fingers, I was hooked! I thought I would share a few insights and tips on the pages I made from this technique. I didn't plan on doing this post so I didn't take pictures along the way. I also will not share many details of the actual Wall technique in order to not infringe on Tammy's class material.

This was my first attempt at The Wall technique:

I loved the grungy look that resulted from the technique, but I don't think I used enough paint on this one. In figuring out the differences between the heavy body acrylic paint I was introduced to in this class, and the craft acrylic paints I usually use, the opacity of the heavy body acrylic requires using it a bit more and in layers to achieve the look I want. I tend to like the text of my background paper to peak through the paint. I usually get this effect by painting the paper with gesso before I paint it with color. However, it was recommended in the class that for these techniques that we NOT use gesso. At some point, though, I will experiment with gesso and the heavy body acrylic paints.

The next session added circles on top of The Wall technique. Now, if you have followed me for a while then you know how much I like circles. They pop up often on  my art journal pages, often without any forethought or planning. So, I was all about this project!

As I played I decided to put my own twist on the project - also no big surprise for me! But I think that is the beauty of taking classes or using tutorials - we learn new techniques and then add our own unique styles to them, rather then making cookie cutter copies of the artist's original. In the class we are using an altered book art journal for our class projects. I decided to do this piece on a loose piece of paper. One of my favorite types of paper to use to make background pages for my art journals is index pages from older atlases.

There a few reasons why I like this particular paper:

• It's large - anywhere from 9x12" up to 12x16".
• It's heavyweight, especially those from the older books. The weight of the paper holds multiple layers of paint well. And I enjoy building on layers of paint to achieve the types of backgrounds I enjoy.
• The text is tiny, like in a dictionary, but dictionary paper is usually fairly thin. Tiny text makes for a wonderful subtle background. 
• The older books generally used a cream paper, which ages to a nice tan-ish patina, while newer atlases use a brighter white paper. I'm sure it doesn't really matter too much what color the background paper is since I cover most of it with paint, but in my mind I think that the whiter paper affects the paint color. I'll have to test that theory at some point. Besides, I just like the patina of aged things!

I played for a long time, layering the paint, until I achieved the look I wanted. Then I tore the finished Wall page into strips and glued them slightly out-of-line onto a page in my class art journal. Although it's subtle, I like the effect of the torn, out-of-line strips on the background. I then added my circles using my favorite types of vintage ephemera, and used both a black Stabilo-All pencil and a black Neo-Colors II watercolor crayon to get the shading around the circles. The finishing touch was spattering paint in black and white.

I was quite happy with the results, and for a change, I didn't add any words to this page. I think words would actually take away from it rather than enhance it.

I had enough of the Wall paper leftover to make a background page in my Traveler's Notebook.

As always, you can find packs of ephemera papers in my Etsy shop. I may even create packs of vintage index pages since I have SO many atlases! Give me your thoughts on that in the comments below.

Thank you to my friend, Diane Kundrat, for encouraging me to write about some of my techniques and tips on my blog. Diane lives in Arizona and we have been online friends for 5-6 years as a result of my blog. A few weeks ago we finally got to meet in person in Cleveland where we spent an afternoon art supply shopping together!

March Traveler's Notebook Art

In my last post I wrote about coming out of a creative slump. During the time I struggled with that slump, it wasn't that I was not making any art, it just didn't come easy. Many times I would sit to make art or write in my journal and just felt blank. I struggled to focus and ideas would not easily come to me. But I did make some art, mainly in my Traveler's Notebook.

As I wrote in the beginning of the year, I kept coming across photos on Instagram and Pinterest of these wonderful Traveler's Journals, so I decided to try something new for art journaling this year. Now after three months I have to say, not only do I love using the TN for my art journal, I also like the calendar and organization aspect of it. It's all working quite well for me!

 A journey through late February and March in my Traveler's Notebook. Many are from prompts for Life Documented.

We don't normally associate flowers with Ash Wednesday, but the Life Doc theme was floral so I just went with it!

Again, sticking with the floral theme, with a prompt to cut a window from our page.

Prompt: Use scraps from your table...I made circles from them!

The right side is one of my pieces for The 100 Day Project. I'm making collages using scraps from my scrap box. More on IG and a post coming soon!

A great quote!

And another great quote!

Advent Day 11

"Yes, we wait during Advent.We shift anxious with anticipation for the coming King. We prepare and plan and plot our next steps, diligently living each day as it comes, but sometimes, forgetting that though we wait, we are invited to dream. We are prodded towards hoping against all that our eyes see, for the heaven that is already here in our midst. Thy kingdom come. It has, it is, it will  again. Might we celebrate the fervent faithfulness of God, the restoration already given through Jesus, and the coming restoration of the earth like dreamers do, with shouts of joy, with visions of hope, with laughter on our lips? 

Let Advent be not only a contemplative time, but a spirited celebration of the joy of the already-here Jesus." ~Kris Camealy, p53-54.

Resources:
Come, Lord Jesus: The Weight of Waiting by Kris Camealy. Available at Amazon.
Come, Lord Jesus Advent Book Club at Creative and Free.
Visit my church's website where we are offering a weekly Advent theme devotion and resources on our blog: Grace Church 

Rolodex Art Journals

(Lyrics by Irving Berlin for the movie White Christmas)

During my visit with my sister last weekend we decided to do a joint art project together. My sister wanted to do something on small pages that she could put positive quotes on and display to see at those times of stress when she needs a diversion. As we were talking about different ways she could do this the idea of using an old Rolodex for an art journal came up. We both have a slight obsession with office products and equipment and the thought of combining this with art journaling pumped our creative juices! We went online and she found one she liked at an Etsy shop. Her find looked like this one:

She plans to collage and paint backgrounds and then add quotes and sayings to them. The circular stand makes it easy to display and leaf through the mini art journal cards. Today I found a different style of vintage Rolodex for my art journal cards in a local antique market.

The cards measure 3" x 5" and I thought I would do art journal cards of things that I enjoy such as birds, quotes, songs, etc. and do them alphabetically. Working on a small scale is fun and makes for quick projects. I'll share the progress of our sisters art project over time as we add to our Rolodex art journals. Tonight I made my first card. Birds, of course.

30 Day Blogging Challenge day 6.

Freedom

I've been listening to a new (for me) song a lot lately. And it just so happens that it goes along with where we are at in my church as we work through the gospel of John. The song is "Dawn to Dusk" by All Sons & Daughters and here are some of the lyrics:

Lord as we turn to you

Come free us from our sin

We only have today

So let us now begin

Dawn to dusk we're waking up

Dawn to dusk we're waking up

Tomorrow's freedom is today's surrender

We come before You lay our burdens down

We look to You as our hearts remember

You are the only God You are our only God

So, the line that really gets me is "Tomorrow's freedom is today's surrender." 

We have been in John Chapter 8 the past few weeks, where John shares Jesus' words about freedom:

"If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." John 8:31-32

Now, Jesus is speaking here to the Jews who He really didn't feel fully believed in who He was. It is interesting to look at the Greek words used in this verse. Hold is the Greek word "meno" which has such deep meaning. It means to continue in, remain in, to abide in. It's the word Jesus uses in John Chapter 15 about fruit remaining or abiding in the vine, a metaphor Jesus uses for our union with Him, The Greek word for teaching in this verse is "logos" which means word or message and is even used by John for Jesus Himself as in John 1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." and and John 1:14 "The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us." So what they are really to remain in is the words of Jesus and in Him - in who He is. So, in John 8:31-32, Jesus is saying that those who hold, continue, remain in, abide in Him are promised two things: they will know what the truth is and that truth will set them free. But what is it that He promises to set them free from? A few verse later in 8:34, Jesus says that "everyone who sins is a slave to sin." so it would appear that Jesus is referring to being free from the bonds of sin. And thinking about that takes me over to Romans 6 where Paul says, "You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness." (6:18). This leads into a wonderful passage in verses 19-23, which describes our freedom in Christ so well! Let me just highlight a few parts of it: Paul urges us to offer the parts of our bodies "in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness", reminding us that "when you were slaves to sin you were free from the control of righteousness...But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, you benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." On the surface it would seem that exchanging one slavery for another is not really freedom at all. But the paradoxical nature of life in God's kingdom turns slavery into freedom. It seems that the more we surrender and submit to God and to His ways, the more freedom we actually experience. And that's where the line in the above song comes in. It describes the paradox so well. We would naturally think of surrender as giving in and giving up in negative terms. But God calls us to surrender to Him and in so doing we find true freedom - freedom to live for God, freedom to live in His power and glory. 

If you want to dig in a little more about our freedom in Christ read the following verses - and read all of Romans 6! Romans 8:2; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Galatians 5:1; James 1:25.

I have started a small journal in a sketchbook of quotes, a lot of them from song lyrics like the one above and this one:

From "Come as You Are" by David Crowder

Enjoy your week and walk in the freedom that is only found in Christ!

November Documented

About the only art I've done this past month was keeping up with the Documented Life Project. Well, I have done art behind the scenes getting ready for the His Kingdom Come Community projects that will launch on January 2, but I'll have to wait to share those. Are you curious? Join us here. I'm pretty pumped up about the projects we have created so I will keep making shameless plugs!

On to Documented Life:

Week 45

Week 46

Week 47

It's time to return to work today and leave vacation mode. :)

Made

I am participating again this year in the Made Course. "Made is an e-course created by Christian creatives for Christian creatives, exploring what it means to be a person who makes things who believes she was, in turn, made by God." This year I won a spot in the course! For week 1 we looked at metaphors - symbols for how we view ourselves in relationship to God, how we view God, and how we view our journey with God.

Birds and circles are symbols that often appear on my art journaling pages. In Matthew 6:25-33, birds are a symbol of trust and dependence on God. They symbolize one who rests in the care and provision God lovingly provides for His created ones. Throughout the Psalms birds also symbolize God as one who shelters and protects His children ~ He shelters them in the shadow of His wings (Psalm 91:4).

Circles are an ancient symbol for God representing His eternal nature, perfection, completeness, being whole. They also stir up a desire to be made whole, representing God's transforming activity in our lives.

"Look at the birds, free and unfettered.. careless in the care of God. And you count far more to Him than birds." ~Matthew 6:26 The Message

I made an altered book journal to hold my Made Course art journal pages.