Do-It-Yourself: Art Journal Inspiration
We’ve been long overdue for another art journaling project and the arrival of the Creative Journal by Dyan Reaveley and jumbo beeswax crayons by Faber-Castell to The Shoppe was just what we needed to ignite some inspiration. Both products complemented each other perfectly and when layered with Traci Bautista’s new mixed-media stamps, we were able to create some stunning pages that show off an easy crayon-resist technique.
Instructions:
The Creative Journal by Dyan Reaveley is the perfect palette for art journalers and mixed-media artists. I decided to try creating an art journal page and test out the paper which I found to be of superior quality, along with new Faber-Castell crayons which are delightfully smooth and creamy.
I started by stamping Traci Bautista’s Lily Doodle stamp design across the middle of two of the pages using black StazOn ink. Using a white crayon, I went back and colored in various areas of the flowers. Next, I used the alcohol ink applicator with Distress Inks and lightly rubbed the inks over the flowers. This created a “crayon resist” effect so that the spaces I colored in white crayon stayed white, but the rest of the area soaked up the Distress Inks.
For the rest of the journal page, I added various elements including patterned papers, washi tape, stamping and some extra crayon. On the blue patterned paper, I painted over it with a light coat of gesso and water, and on the polka dot paper, I covered it with strips of white washi tape.
I did some extra doodling around the stamped flowers with the crayons and wrote some quotes inspired by the blue patterned paper. In the bottom right corner, I added a piece of pink patterned paper because it just felt right!
Project and photographs by Vanessa Spencer.
Sometimes while staring at a blank journal page, we need a little inspiration.
Here are some journaling prompts to help you move past “square one” and get you journaling in no time. These ideas were originally featured in the Winter 2013 issue of Art Journaling.
- Write a letter to a non-person: a season, a month, a feeling, etc. Shared by Kathryn Zbrzezny
- What is the best thing about being you? Shared by Karen Grunberg
- Create a page of questions. Sometimes a page of questions can represent where you life is at the moment. Shared by Marcia Beckett
- Use a funny or memorable Facebook status update from a friend as a prompt. Shared by Marcia Beckett
- Write down your thoughts in small, random chunks, in varying directions all over the page. Doodle around the thoughts, connecting them with line work, and later complete the page with color. Shared by Belinda Fireman
- “The color of springtime is in the flowers; the color of winter is in the imagination.” – Terri Guillemets
[This giveaway has ended.] Are you feeling inspired to inspire?! Comment below with your go-to journal prompt for a chance to win the newest issue of Art Journaling! It can be a quote, a question, or a simple list – anything that sparks your creativity.
Posted: Wednesday, February 6th, 2013 @ 9:45 am
Categories: Contests and Giveaways, How-To Project Tutorials.
Tags: Art Journaling, crayon resist technique, How-To, how-to project, journaling prompts, Kathryn Zbrzezny, Projects.
Subscribe to the comments feed if you like.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.
I love Dyan’s art! :D
My go to prompt is to open a book of poetry~ There is so much guided imagery, it is hard not to be inspired~
Thanks for the chance to win!
Love this magazine. It has given me so much inspiration in the past!
My go to prompt is always what the day held for me, or if it’s morning, what I want to happen. There is always inspiration for me when I stop and think about what transpired throughout the day.
My go-to journal prompt are thoughts and questions about my stairs of life. On which step I’m standing, which steps were dramatic, is it a steep stairs or flat, are there steps which going down,… Thanks for the chance to win!!!
My go-to prompt is checking out my list of favorite quotes. They always spark pictures in my head!
Sometimes I will go back to a childhood memory or story. Usually creates a warm and fuzzy page. And your story continues to be told…
Very good ways to jumpstart the process!!
When I am stuck (and I am more usually short on time, rather than ideas) I tend to go to fairy-tale themes (a lot of subliminal space there)or straight to nature. Usually, whatever creature my kids are enamored with. Being the unique children they are, diversity is the rule in their animal kingdoms!
“To stop and be entranced by a wild animal can be priceless” (from the tv program, Wild Kingdom) It’s so true and a fabulous prompt to write about a time you had an entrancing experience witnessing a wild animal just living its life. One night(at midnight) in my suburban neighborhood I was walking my dogs for their last hurrah before going to bed and we saw two cayotes cavorting in the street!!! When they saw us, they moved on and 2 seconds later a beaver walked right across the street in their footsteps!! I could not believe what I was seeing!!! It was a treasured experience, for sure!!
I will go to my pet, a dog call Blackie. He usually does something or reminds me of past pets and stories start there. if you don’t have pets, try using your kids.
“The one absolutely unselfish friend that man can have in this selfish world, the one that never deserts him, the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous, is his dog. . . .He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer; he will lick the wounds and sores that come in encounter with the roughness of the world. . . .When all other friends desert, he remains.” – George G Vest
Things that caught my eye and landed on my desk usually inspire me to get started.
Beautiful quotes are always inspirational, but I also get inspired by song lyrics…they spark a memory and I want to journal it and keep it again. PS Thank you for the mention here!
Of all the fun art things I get to do, seems I keep going back to art journaling. There is something about it that feeds my soul. When I need inspiration, I go to a small book where I have written over many years, favorite sayings, quotes or ideas. They all mean something to me so it’s easy to choose one and start arting!
If a quick stroll thru my garden doesn’t do it, 5 minutes scrolling thru Pinterest will do the trick…it can be an image, a color combination or an actual project I want to do…get it down in the journal! and of course Pin it!
Love this the colours are very inspirational!
I usually check out other peoples blogs for great inspiration – it may not be what subject they are doing but a word they have written or a certain colour which I can translate with my trusty colour wheel something usually captures mynimagineation and gets my juices flowing!
Love this the colours are very inspirational!
I usually check out other peoples blogs for great inspiration – it may not be what subject they are doing but a word they have written or a certain colour which I can translate with my trusty colour wheel something usually captures mynimagineation and gets my juices flowing!
Photographs, my own and others, always bring out the urge to journal!
I find inspiration through pondering who I am, what I am and where I am on any given day. I’m I feeling trapped by all of my responsibilities, am I feeling like the mother-nurturer of my family or maybe I have a feeling like I’m 18 years old and life is going to go on forever. I get surprised just at thinking about myself and the number of ways I see myself or feel about myself any day of any week.
I would LOVE to win a copy of this publication!! I have been art journaling for a long time, but I know I have so much to learn! Thank you for showing these easy, but powerful pages!!
My go to prompt is a song. Music is very meaningful to me and when I am stuck for a prompt, I find a song that I love and just have fun with it!!
Thank you so much for the chance!!
xxDaniella
I’m inspired by day-to-day life and the ephemera that goes with it. A restaurant receipt, the tag off clothing (showing my new smaller size!), sticky notes with jottings from my workplace…
I’ve been doing “smash-style” journaling for just over a year and it’s very freeing!
One prompt that I like to use is – Where to Go Next?
Then I answer the question with relevant hand-drawn images and clippings from magazines, catalogs and travel guides.
What FABULOUS ideas!! A long time ago I started writing down interesting & cool quotes and I have now added favorites movie lines, lyrics, ect. When I am stuck I go to my little quote book & I always find something! I am new to Art Journaling & would LOVE to win a copy of the magazine.
I think this is indeed a good idea to adopt. Thanks!
I don’t have a go to prompt yet…I’m just getting started. I do, however, love quotes and one I was just reading today is “One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star.” Nice imagery there. It’s Neitzsche. Love your magazines.
Pat B.
My go to prompt, is to take any painting of the masters: Cezanne, Matisse, Monet, DaVinci, etc.
and write your own short one page story of what is going on in the painting, then, do a painting about what you wrote and see how the master’s and your work coincide.
I ‘go to’ my front porch with a cup of coffee and a cat or two, and take in the scenery. Each season brings images and colors that boost me into creativity: symmetry of bare branches in winter, spring blossoms and flowers, lazy lush veggies in summer, or the reds and golds of autumn leaves and persimmons. Of course the cats are a great help ;~D
I have lost my beloved dog “Buddy” and I am in much pain of loss. I want to tribute him on a journaling page but don’t know how. Do you have any ideas?
Hello Mary Ann,
I’m so sorry to hear about your loss. I find journaling can be very therapeutic for me during tough times, just the process of putting my pen to paper and feelings on the page. When I lost my dog a few years ago, I put one of my favorite pictures of him in the center of a page and then let my feelings flow out around it in a free-form pattern around his image. No lines, no rules, and no limitations. What I ended up with was a collection of thoughts: all the places we would walk, his favorite toys, the times he got into LOTS of mischief, his favorite spots to sleep, and on and on. The pain did not fade for me immediately, but creating a lasting tribute did help me reflect on some of our happiest memories that I was grateful for.
Sincerely,
Jordan
my go-to prompt is purple…a tear out from a magazine or calendar, craft paper or card, or just my purple pens or inkpads…purple prompts me to thought and action
I get my best ideas by going through art magazines, some of which I get through Stampington and I buy art books that are about things and types of art I’ve never tried. Also seeing color combinations and I learned how to like seal your art with beeswax and that was really cool. There are always new things like encaustic is something I’m thinking about doing next. There are so many things everywhere like Pinterest and even on Facebook for that manner. Also I’m always collecting magazines and then cutting out things to use for background and then I just keep going.