Sunday, June 29, 2008

My Homemade Journal

About a month ago Soulcomfort and I got together at her house, and we made our very own homemade journals. Although both were made by hand, they were very different from each other. Mine was simply a journal made from a Composition Notebook with manila file folders sewn into the cover of the notebook. Rita's was a bit more homemade than mine and had a Coptic stitch that is really neat. To see both her journal and mine, you can visit her blog entry from Tuesday, May 27, 2008. She's even got pictures of both of us and the outcome of our afternoon. It was a fun time! And for someone like myself, who can barely sew a button on a shirt, it was fun to say that I was able to make my own hand-sewn journal!

About a week after making the journal, I decided I wanted to cover it with some paper and make it pretty. Off to the local scrapbooking store I went. I picked out some funky paper and took out my Mod Podge. After covering my journal, I dubbed it my Pop Culture Mixed Media Journal. Here are a few pictures!

It may be hard to tell but the two black objects on the left hand side of the front cover are cassette tapes. I also bought and added the rub-on transfer "This Girl" to the cover.



Here's a shot of the pages. That's right - they are plain old manila file folders. Good heavy duty and thick paper. Perfect for collaging and mixed media art!


Above is a close-up shot of the paper and the front cover. Pretty funky huh? This paper really caught my eye in the store. It has keys, airplanes, light bulbs, cassettes, and even spacemen. It's a lot of fun!

Where did I get the idea to make this journal? From a great mixed media artist on YouTube by the name of samanthakira. She's a very creative lady! Here's a link to the first part of her instructional video to make your own "Easy-Peasy Journal." It was cheap (less than $10), easy, and a lot of fun!



I followed her directions for the most part. I made my own adjustments, of course. For example, I took and cut one file folder to the size I wanted them all to be, and that file folder was my template for the rest of the pages. She cuts them crazy with an Exacto knife. I wasn't that brave. I just sat with a pen and my scissors. I used my template to mark each file folder and cut them one by one.

I haven't started filling the pages yet but will very soon! I also bought a few more composition notebooks and a box of file folders to make another journal...or two...or three! :)

Happy Journal Making!

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Where Has June Gone?

So June has been super busy!! I've been sketching a bit. (More posts to come soon.) But mainly I've found myself in my little art corner working on my Wishbook which is really just a visual journal that inventories what I really want out of life. This activity has made me really think and realize that a lot of change needs to happen and that I need to get busy!

This weekend is going to be a busy one. Last night I attended the Relay for Life rally in Valley City. I'll post more pictures and talk about it in an upcoming post. It was an amazing and very uplifting event!

Today I really need to get busy because one of my very dear friends from my Minnesota State University Moorhead days is getting hitched! And I'm helping out. It will be a grand time. Many other mutual friends will be there and I'm planning on just enjoying life tonight!

I have a feeling that things will slow down just a little bit in the next week and soon I'll be able to get back to posting and creating and sharing on Blogger. Until then I hope you are enjoying a busy summer complete with great memories!


"He who's not busy being born is busy dying."
~Bob Dylan

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

My Trip to the Twin Cities & the Saga of the Pentel Pocket Brush

Over Memorial Day weekend, I escaped town for the day with my best friend, Tickpuppy. The plan was to go to the Twin Cities to hit used bookstores for the day on Saturday. (We both are big readers and love books.) I also had another destination in mind; I wanted to find an art store called Wet Paint. And our trip was a huge success! We visited three Half-Price Bookstores, including our favorite location in St. Paul. AND we even managed to find Wet Paint. And once I walked in to the independent art store, I was in heaven but quickly became a bit overwhelmed. I had more than a few wishlist items on my mind and no idea where to start!

I also had a special pick-up request for my friend, Soulcomfort. She wanted me to pick up a Pentel Pocket Brush Pen. (Just one more item that was also on my wishlist.) But I quickly found other things I wanted, so I decided to get my stuff and then purchase Soulcomfort's pen for her.

At the counter, the girl who helped me told me that she hoped the Pocket Brush was for me. I told her it wasn't but that it was for a friend. She immediately told me I needed to get one too because I would love it. I thought about this. Yes, I wanted one but had already spent tons of money on books and also already hit my limit at the art store. She continued to persuade me by getting out their sample pen for us to try. So both Tickpuppy and I tried it, and IT WAS SO COOL! I was very very tempted. But I was good. I said, "No, I better not get one today." She said she understood and told me I could call them to order one and that they'd ship it to me -- if I changed my mind.

So after I paid, we were on our way. Sadly, me without my Pocket Brush pen. But Tickpuppy didn't let me get too far. We just left the store and were taking a few steps away when he asked me, "Are you sure you don't want that pen?"

And man! Do I have will power! I thought about it longingly but once again answered, "No. I better not get one today."

To abridge the saga a bit, Tickpuppy turned me around, took me back in the store, and bought me a Pentel Pocket Brush pen for an early birthday gift! JOY! :) So after all the employees in the store teased us for coming back to get the pen, I did walk away with my very own pen with special thanks to him! AND it is my new favorite pen to draw with! Thank you Tickpuppy!


Here are a couple of drawings I did over the weekend with my beloved pen!

This one is called "Sleeping Kali." As you can see my dog is very serious about sleeping, and she's good at it too! Lots of practice taking naps.




The 2nd one on the left side of the page is titled "Kali on Her Tummy." The 3rd drawing is a bit of nothing. I was trying to capture the way her ears looked while she was napping in the recliner. From where I was sitting on the couch, that is all I could see -- her big radar ears. This also made me realize that when sketching her, her ears capture a lot of hidden/comical expressions that I don't normally focus on.



And that's the story of my new favorite pen! If you have one, you already know what I'm talking about. If you don't have one, go and get one! They are awesome!

~Click here for a link to info about the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen.
~Click on the link to purchase a pen or refills for it from the Wet Paint store in St. Paul, MN.


"I dip my pen in the blackest of ink, because I'm not afraid of falling into my inkpot."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson