This week I chose a variety of videos featuring the use of stencils. I picked some videos showing usual techniques and some with unusual techniques.
If you have issues viewing the videos here on my blog please click the title of the video on the upper left of the video and it will open up in YouTube for your viewing pleasure.
Washi tape is a neat thing. I've made some of my own and it's super simple. These videos all deal with how you can make your own.
If you have issues viewing the videos here on my blog please click the title of the video on the upper left of the video and it will open up in YouTube for your viewing pleasure.
I do a lot of bookbinding. I've done a class or two about making them. There are a lot of godo tutorials out there and some really horrible tutorials as well. I've picked a selection that I like and feel have sound technique.
If you have issues viewing the videos here on my blog please click the title of the video on the upper left of the video and it will open up in YouTube for your viewing pleasure.
I don't always write in my art journal. Often when I do I paint over it. Sometimes, writing in an art journal is an absolutely essential part of the process.
If you have issues viewing the videos here on my blog please click the title of the video on the upper left of the video and it will open up in YouTube for your viewing pleasure.
One of the questions I get pretty often is about composition. "How to make a good looking art journal page, that is composed well?" It's one of those questions that usually annoys me, because I dislike the idea of planned out pages in an art journal. But as someone who has studied composition for art and photography, I intuitively arrange what i'm doing around the rule of thirds and the golden mean. I no longer think abotu composition, unless I'm working on a specific project.
So my initial response is that you should study composition. In school we spent a lot of time looking at art and photos. Looking specifically at how things are aranged on a page and how our eyes moved around in relation to those objects and color. I filled pages of a journal with little doodles based off the covers of magazine.Simplifying the objects down to simple shapes. faces became ovals, bodies triagles and rectangles. Works becames rectangles. And so on. Now when I work in my art journal I simply don't think abotu these things. So go to barnes and noble, pull a dozen magazines off the rack, grab a cuppa coffee and look at each mag, and block the cover and a few pages out in basic shapes. Think about how you look at the page. Do this a dozen times across the next 6 months. Composition will become much more natural to you over time.
If you have issues viewing the videos here on my blog please click the title of the video on the upper left of the video and it will open up in YouTube for your viewing pleasure.
Colored pencils are great in an art journal. With just a few of the right colors you can get a lot of colors. Layering is easy with GOOD colored pencils. Though I've included a video with crayola colored pencils, I do not recomend them. They will only leave you frustrated. Get a 12 pack of colors in a good brand.
If you have issues viewing the videos here on my blog please click the title of the video on the upper left of the video and it will open up in YouTube for your viewing pleasure.
(More videos after the break, having all the videos load at once was making the page load slow.)
If you've been reading my blog for any peruiod of time you know I love me some fauxdori Midori traveler's notebook covers. I find them ingenious, easy to use, and encourage journaling every day and every where. I've added some of my videos on the fauxdori as well as some great instructions from others about things you can make and add to your own notebook covers.
If you have issues viewing the videos here on my blog please click the title of the video on the upper left of the video and it will open up in YouTube for your viewing pleasure.
I needed a small pocket for my notebook cover. all the instructions I could find online were for large 6 pocket folders that were as bulky as both my notebooks. I needed something thin that I coudl stow some receipts, my train and van schedules for school, and other odds and ends. I also wanted to be able to stick a few post it notes and flags to it.
My first version used a recycled mailer, but the card stock was brittle and thick. I went through my paper stash and found some 8.5×11 inch card stock.After some measuring I created a 2 pocket folder that fits in my fauxdori Field Notes sized notebook cover.
It can fit inbetween 2 notebooks or wrap around a notebook. When closed the contents are secure, but a flap could be added
Glenda Slann on facebook recently posted a picture of an ingenious pen loop, one made of a binder clip and leather, something i’ve been thinking of for a long time. I just couldn't figure out how to do it. Seeing the pic I figured it out. Here are instructions on how to make your own.
To make this you will need the following:
leather, knife, small binder clip, ruler, pencil
To make a clip sized for a slim pen, like a cheap ballpoint click pen or a Retro 51 Hex-o-matic. First you’ll need to cut a piece of leather 1.5 inches (4cm) high by an 1.75 inches (45mm) wide. Depending on how thick your pen is you might want to cut the strip longer.
Mark off 6mm along each of the short ends. At the center of each of the short ends, cut a slot in the middle of each of the short ends. The slot should be cut so that it is 1mm wider than your binder clip. For mine I cut a 15mm slot. After you cut a slot in each end. After you have cut the slot you need to wedge the binder clip through each slot.
After you wedge each side of the binder clip into a slot, all you need to do is attach it to your journal or notebook cover. I like to remove the handles of the binder clip so it slips in and out of my pocket smoothly. The clip holds to the cover of my simple notebook cover very securely. I can pick the journal up and shake it with considerable force, and the clip stays put. 
Watersoluble crayons are a staple in any art journaler's toolbox. You can use them like a regular crayon or you can add water for fun effects. I think it's important for people to explore their tools, so I'm opening this series with JournalArtista's awesome couple of videos on Watercolor crayons. In these 2 videos she really shows you all about how they can be used, explores what they look like on a variety of surfaces, and really shows you have to explore your media. You should really test out all your supplies the Paula does in these 2 videos.
If you have issues viewing the videos here on my blog please click the title of the video on the upper left of the video and it will open up in YouTube for your viewing pleasure.
(More videos after the break, having all the videos load at once was making the page load slow.)
