Blog Inspiration

I wasn't going to post today (thought I had nothing to write), but I got a bit of inspiration from a couple of blogs that I visit regularly.

First, I visited Nance; in her post for yesterday, she showed a piece of her art work with a quote about patience. This made me think, because I haven't been having much patience lately, least of all with myself. I've been having some back pain, and I've been impatient to find out what's going on with that. Now I'm impatient for the therapy to start working, and I've only had one therapy session so far (insert sheepish grin here)! Also, I've been impatient with myself to get important projects done, not wanting to give myself time to think and play, and if I do stop to think and play, then I feel guilty! Well, I know better than that, I just needed to be reminded! Thanks for the internet butt-kick, Nance! ;)

Next, I visited Kira; her post today was about choosing an art journal, describing the different types of journals, papers inside, etc. I agree with her, heavier papers are easier to work on with a variety of media. (I hate excessive paper warping!) My two "gathering" journals (one for art/craft ideas, one for inspiring images) are both 9" x 11", spiral-bound. The idea one has medium-weight pages that are blank on half, with writing lines on the other half. The inspiration journal has very heavy pages, which is great when I decide to remove something - I can just peel it off and cover the place with something else! My art journal is spiral-bound, 5 1/4" x 8 1/2", with strange, thin pages. I had it lying around, and thought the pages were too thin, so I'm painting both sides of the pages with acrylics before decorating (I have a description of this process in a previous post, you can find it here). The colorful backgrounds shown here are waiting to be decorated. :)

Watercolor Experiment

Today I came across the "Inspire Me Thursday" challenge, which was watercolors, so I did this experimental project. (I don't know if these Thursday challenges have to be created on Thursdays, but I did it anyway!)

I used heavy watercolor paper (I think it was 140 lb.). First, I drew the design with a clear Sakura Glaze pen, which was kind of hard to do, since I could see what I was drawing with the clear ink! After the design was dry, I colored the paper with watercolor pencils and went over the whole thing with a wet brush. While still damp, I drew around the designs with a brown w/c pencil, to make them stand out more, went over with a wet brush again. What I wanted to know was would the Glaze pen work as a resist, and the answer was yes! Glaze pens come in a variety of colors, and they dry clear and shiny, almost like embossing. Well, I challenged myself, I found out something, and it was fun! Thanks, IMT!

Artful Blogging Party

I was very late to ArtsyMama's Artful Blogging Party, but I went anyway, I viewed a ton of artful blogs with great tutorials and other interesting information! (Since I was late, I didn't get to post a tutorial for the party, but my earlier post below has my non-tutorial for making acrylic paint backgrounds, if you'd like to look.) If you didn't get to the party, or you'd like to go back and check out some of the links again, here is the permanent link to the party page:

New Book!

I received this book yesterday (for my birthday). I picked it out myself, I've been wanting it for a while. The title is Mixed Media Explorations, authored by Beryl Taylor. It's a wonderful book. The author combines fabrics, papers, paints, inks, stamping, embroidery and much more in her projects. I probably won't make any projects exactly like hers, but I think that the book will inspire me and encourage me to try different media combinations in my work. If you enjoy using mixed media, or you use fabrics and/or papers in your art, or you like to browse art books for inspiration, then this book is for you! You can see the book here at Amazon.

Challenge To My Creativity

The weather has been HOT! Good news, though: it might be a little cooler the next few days. We also might get some rain, which we definitely need around here!

Here are two more collage cards, still using the printed papers from the ephemera book. On these two, even the person images are from the ephemera book. Ususally when I make cards, I'm used to adding a little bit of this and that from here and there, but with these, I've been challenging myself to use just the printed stuff, and occasionally some of those leftover transferred images. Sometimes it's harder for me to limit the materials used. Somehow it seems easier to allow myself to use any supplies I have available. I think that it's good not to do art/craft projects in the same way or with the same materials all the time. Change is good; it makes life interesting, also stretches our imaginations!

So Many Arts/Crafts, So Little Time!

I don't know what kind of art/craft project I'd like to work on today! After doing a few things that needed to be done and completing a project that will be due soon, I realized I had some time on my hands. The problem is, I love too many arts and crafts! Over the years, I've tried (and enjoyed) so many different techniques and supplies. At the moment, I have quite a few favorites. By the time I run through the favorites list in my head, there probably won't be much time left for working on a project. Hurry up, brain, decide - I want to do art NOW!

Art Books

If you read my post yesterday about quick fixes for creative blocks, you know that one of the quick fixes is looking through books. Although I mentioned that the books you read don't have to art/craft related, I personally like to get inspired by reading art books.



So far, I have amassed a nice little collection of art books, some of them "how-to" books, others are "eye candy" art inspirations.



These are the types of books I have on my shelf right now: altered art, altered books, paper, polymer clay, variety/general art and craft, collage and naturals. It's easy to see why I like altered art books - I enjoy working on altered art projects. But why do I have several polymer clay books? I don't use a lot of polymer clay, but when I do, I like to have information about it on hand. When I have a polymer clay issue, I like to look in the books and see what the experts recommend. Also, the clay items in the book are beautiful and awe-inspiring!



In my opinion, these are the two types of art books to buy: the "informative" type, to learn about the kinds of projects one would like to make, and the "inspiring" type, to get the creative juices going! Both of these types of books have their uses, and both would make valid purchases.



Of course, if your finances are a little low, go back and look through art books that you already own. Look at those old books with new eyes, and you may notice something totally different! Also, if you can't afford a new book right now, that shouldn't stop you from bookstore browsing. As you browse, you may see something you'd like to purchase at a later date, as well as eliminate books that aren't your cup of tea. So get out those books, and get inspired!