Gesso

I finally ordered a gallon of gesso from Utrecht. I had been thinking about this for a really long time and finally just did it. I've heard this is the best gesso out there and let me tell you, it is! It is not runny. It is thick, but not crazy thick. I tried it on a little journal I made out of a Whole Foods brown bag and it was like buttah!!!!!

Room Complete!

My art studio is finally complete! Everything is together and it is so roomy....it's fantastic! I still have work to do organizing my materials, yet I'm ready to get going again. Now that it's summer vacation and my kids are around, it's hard to find time to myself to be alone in my space!

Expansion

This week began the expansion of my art room. I'm SO excited!!!!! The room will be twice the size as before and hopefully I'll even get a slop sink on the other side in the storage room. This was a surprise Mother's Day gift from my husband and kids. The drywallers come Monday and I've started looking for furniture. I can't wait!!!

Documented Life Project

I've been participating the Documented Life Project (DLP) since January 1, 2014.  I have been having fun with the idea of documenting the mundaneness of my life while combining art journaling. From day 1, I knew the Moleskine wouldn't hold up.

After the first 6 weeks, I cut apart the spine which loosened everything up and gave me some more space. Doing this also allowed the journal to lay flat when I opened it. I rebound my journal using some bookbinding tape.

Now that it's been 4 months, my journal was starting to curve. A LOT! It was driving me crazy and I didn't like how my pages were curving inside…kind of getting tucked in.  So, I decided to rebind it again. I didn't want to sew in each signature b/c I really didn't think the delicate paper would be able to handle it.

I have no idea how it will hold up or if it will make it until December 31. I will post here every so often to let you know if it's working and what I will do next time.

Here is what I did. 

1.  I cut the covers off by slicing down the spine with an exacto knife.

2. Using the exacto knife, I cut apart the 3 signatures.

3. I glued the covers to the first inside page (front and back).

4.  I bought this mending tissue tape from Amazon but I messed up. It's only 1/2" wide. I

guess I didn't bother to read it to see that it would be too narrow. So, I layered it on horizontally using Gel Medium.

5.  I cut a piece of book board the width I wanted for my new spine. I wanted there to be room for the weight gain, so I made it almost 2" wide. I glued this onto a piece of book tape. You could use a piece of cardboard too!

6.  I wrapped the book tape around the front and back and used some Aleen's Super Tacky Glue

to make sure it really will stick. I stacked some books on it and left it overnight to dry.

Not bad! Lookin' good. Hopefully it will pull through to the end of the year.

Some of you know how much I LOVE making my own journals. I love the process and find it incredibly gratifying. I plan on participating in the DLP next year, but I think I will make my own planner with the exact paper I want and binding that will work best for me. I like the size of the Moleskine, but the think paper can be problematic. Just saying'!

True Colors

I've been meaning to post for the last month but I've been engrossed with the DLP, painting and playing around with some new materials. We went to the Dominican Republic for spring vacation and had a great time! It was so nice not having to make lunches or dinners for anyone all week long! Anyway, I spent the morning playing around in my journal and this is who appeared.

Abstract

I've been experimenting with some new mixed media materials and having lots of fun! I'm really enjoying these abstract pieces. What do you think?

Serious Play

I have been making major efforts to really play in my journal. Lately, I've been into using oil pastels on top of acrylic ink. The creaminess is amazing and I love the effect you get when done over oil. I also have been having fun playing around with the Pilot Varisty pen and the painterly effect you get when water is brushed on. I just wish I had more time in the day and I didn't have to do laundry or ever make dinner! They I'd really have more time to play.