Such Sweet Serenity

I've been busy playing with my art journals. If you're anything like me, sometimes crafts can get a little stressful. I don't know what it is ... maybe just the pressure of completing the task at hand. Well, I have to say that since I've been playing with my journals, I haven't noticed that stress. What a fun way to just release and relax. I think it's the fact that you know you can always come back to it and add more. You're never done with any page if you have the desire to add more. So, I've decided to really relax and just enjoy getting to know paints again and learn a few techniques. I know my last post mentioned experimentation and that's just it. Maybe it's taken me this long to let that sink in.




I'm going to complete my journal in phases. The phase I'm on right now is learning new techniques. so I plan to complete the first layer of all the pages first. Then I can go back and fill in with more sayings, writings, decorating, and the like. Of course that goes without saying that if I feel the urge to complete a page, I sure will. In the meantime, I've posted a few of the "first-layered pages" I've been working on.





Come back again soon and I'll be posting some of the more completed pages ... although remember a page is never done!

xoxoxo
Kristina

Like usual, I tend to go through my phases of "craftiness" and jump around alot. So, what have I been up to lately? It's all the rage these days and it's call Art Journaling. You get a journal ... the bigger the better. This can be a spiral bound book with decent art paper, meaning the pages should be a relatively substantial thickness. The reason is you want it to withstand all forms of art and use of media (glue, paint, etc). Then it's a free for all. Do whatever your creative heart desires. Experiment!!! This is your opportunity to play with new art forms or just practice the old ones. Once you've used up all your pages, you've got a great little journal of your experience. It can also be a way of expression. Have fun with it!

At first I was a little apprehensive about what to do. I had to keep reminding myself (and still do) that it's not supposed to be a masterpiece. It can be very private or something fun to share with your sister crafters. If you truly don't like it, you can just cover it up and start all over. The other thing that's so fun about this is getting online to see what everyone else is doing. You can watch all kinds of You Tube and You Stream videos and it's really quite fun. I'm sharing a few of my first pages.




I haven't used paints in years and the first few things I did were really just my playing with different kinds of paints. This first image was done with PPA (Perfect Paper Adhesive) and napkins on top of a layer of paint. Added a few stickles and a saying.








On my next few pages I just painted a base color, added a few cutouts and stamped some images. You have to be willing to play a little. Don't be afraid to slap some colors down and be daring with your techniques. It's all about the experience and you'll be surprised by the outcome. By now I'm starting to have a little more fun.







The fourth image I painted the base blue, used a stencil and a shimmery gold paint for the flowers, added a few stamped images and turned in for the night. The next day I started working on the back side and made the mistake of holding the heat gun too long in one spot and this image started bubbling up ... Yikes! What better time to try out that new crackle paint I found. :o)


Check back soon for more updates!

Thanks again for stopping by!

xoxoxo
Kristina

I've just discovered Zentangle! I'm totally addicted. I don't know if this is a good or bad addiction. Despite the fact that within the few weeks I've playing around with it, I've developed carpal tunnel in my wrist, maxed out my credit cards on pens and paper, and completely neglected the rest of my life, I'm really, really enjoying it. This is right up my alley!!! I'm already considering becoming certified to teach (which would really set me back a spell financially). Anyway, I wanted to share a few of my first tangles with you and I'm sure there will be many, many more to come.

Check out a few of my first tangles here!

I'll post more as I create them. Please come back soon and let me know what you think. If you'd be interested in learning this fun hobby, check out www.zentangle.com. I'll let you all know when I've become a certified zentangler and can teach you this fun art. We can start a tangle club. Wouldn't that be a blast!

Thanks for visiting! Come back soon.

This is going to be an interesting adventure. I've wanted to create a blog for a while now. Everyone who's anyone has a blog ... I can't be left in the dusty trails now can I?!?! My biggest challenge is "What do I blog about?" Most of the bogs I've visited were craft related, and that's all good and fine, because I think of myself as a crafty kinda gal, but there's so much more to me than just the crafts I do. Most of what I include in my blogs will probably be related to some crafty project I'm working on, but I'm planning to make my blog interesting, by adding anything and everything. I hope you enjoy.

See ya soon!!