A tale of a travel journal

Did you know that I am off to San Fran on April 24 with the shopper.  So I decided I needed to make a travel journal.  I like to get things ready ahead of time.  So when I am there I can collect and add etc.

So I have used this size before and found it suits me fine, not to big, big enough to fit in the purse.  Cream pages that I glued 2 or 3 together.  It costs only 1 dollar at the dollar store.  I glued a favourite piece of paper to the front and the back I covered with  tape. So here is a sneak peek into some of the pages that I have created.  So far these pages have been out of magazines only.  So just so you know if you don't have anything but a pencil and a magazine you can create. I did this while watching TV last night with the hubby

 Sorry I did that have a sign  that said Lombart, I have not showed

you that page but I have been to San Fran before, so I drew the

street, with houses and everything, so just need text dont know if I am going
to walk down it or drive, and I also will take a picture.  I will of course be
taking my camera and then adding photos to the journal as well.  We are only going for
6 days.

 

 This two page spread above is the inside cover of the book

where I am going to put my address and stuff

and a little envelope I have to put little stuff in.

I always need a page to tell the weather, so you can look back and say this is what it was like when I was there.  I am going to clip out of the newspaper when I get the weather and glue it in my book

I loved this picture above when I found it, so I had some words from my magazine "Stay Connected"

and I ripped up an ad I had in the mail that had that green and flower and made a collage.  That

is all I did and I think it looks very cool.

This is just a little page of some of the places I want to go and there addresses, I did not show you the other page..  I find when i am travelling you need to know addresses.

So here is a little peak at my Travel Journal, I am going to add a few stamps, numbers etc.  and of course pick up stuff when I am there.  Hope you enjoyed this peek.

procastination

act of replacing high-priority actions with tasks of low-priority, and thus putting off important tasks to a later time

Thats me a procastanator, I have a million arty things to get done, and I am not getting them done.  Instead I waste my time, putting all this stuff in a bag that I have had forever.  I saw it on Tessha Moores site, go have a look its mind boggling.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMKYSRKUguGqT9xS4I-idHMiMUQFkIv_A_pcrXO_0EgWNrqoXNSp3VdgUFUwK5esUxJoqL-drOdhU8eQ2oREB3EEodQLyCc2fX1LeDDtrrbuc4N6soe18WK-UuyQ2tqdXERSJT/s1600/P1000624.JPG

mine looks piddling next to hers.  I dont think this will work for me. So thats what I was doing instead of doing my many art projects that need to done. So now that you know my dirty little secret that I am a procastanator tell me yours

A bit of this and alot of that

I want to tell you that I have this book, and I love it.  Janet and I are each doing the same project from this book and exchanging with each other.  Just to see how we both interrupt the directions. 

I thought I would show you a few things that I use in my art.. Not that I think that I am the guru of the art world and supplies. I just thought you might be interested.

This is a book I bought awhile ago, I mark all the books I read in it, plus the books on tape, I give them a rating, and this ramble about what was the book was about.  I know how anal am I.  I used to keep buying the same book thinking that I had not read it before.  So this saves me time and money.

 2.  Scissors, ok I use all kinds of scissors, usually from the dollar store, but I have two go to scissors, when I want good ones, these ones which are Cutter Bee, I like them cause they can maneover really good, and the other pair, Tim Holtz, they have big handles and are comforable in my hand.

This is what I store my individual letters in.  I looked and looked for something.  On a trip to Arizonia I went in the container store and found this, perfect in every way, holds all the letters, and then I bought one for numbers.  Sometimes I just go through magazines while sitting on the couch and cut letters out of magazines, and put them in here.  So when you want a letter it is easy to get.  Now If i could only find something for whole words

Now here is my visual journal, I have a picture of the front cover down below.  I love this journal, I did not make it, I bought it, its the mixed medial journal from Strathmore.  The paper can stand up to anything you can throw at it.  I have all three sizes.  Here is a page in my journal that is in progress, I have gessoed it , and then put book pages etc on it.

The only problem with this type of journal, is it a spiral ,but that does not

bother me, but some people dont like it.

Now remember this pages have just been started, tommorow I will show you what they look like after paint.

so here they are all sizes, big visual journal, med I use as a sketch book, lidea book, watecolour book, the small ones goes in my purse and sometimes I use it to sketch out ideas

The cover on the medium ones all I do is when I find something I like I just add it the front or the back of the cover.  and when its finished I varnish the cover.

Now below you can see what I use for white pen.  I have issues with pens, white pens, black pens, they

dont seem to last long.  I am impaitent and try to use them when its wet and i wreck alot of pens.  I have found these three pens work the best for me.

2 of the pens are whiteout pens, 1 bought at staples the blue one, and 1 bought at the dollar store, the white one.

The pen is a Signo pen I think it is 4;00 a pen

Well there it is, some of the supplies I use in my art.





The rest of the Postcards

I call this one birds eye view

I used markers and watercolours on this one

The camera was done with markers and film and mag letters

I must had done this one 10 times trying to get the circle round and it still is not

 The fish were done with markers and watercolours

 The swaying trees were watercolours

Rome below was done with watercolours, and black Pitt markers

Venice was done with markers and watercolours

Now this house does not look so good here, but in real life it was my favourite,

I used hand made paper, time holtz tape, film, cord and watercolours and in real life it is straight

Marhaba means welcome in Morrocan

I had to use this picture when I saw it, it just spoke to me it said I am from Morroco,I know they are probably from New Jersey.  Anyway I printed out the picture, which I think I got at the

http://graphicsfairy.blogspot.com/ note I said i think.

Anway I did the whole transfer thing, which turned out not that great but I liked it, I think it looks vintage .

Step: When you think of Morroco what colors do you think about? I thought, yellows, orange, reds

so I used some Studio G pigment inks, that i get a Michaels for a 1.50 , here it looks quite orange, but I fixed that up later.

3.  Next I decided it needed some rubons, I have had these rubons for ages, and thought they fit the project perfectly.  So I went for it and added them.

Step 4:  I then added some charcoal sticks

 Step 5:  With the charcoal I added red to their

lips, and pink to the checks, and black pen

around there eyes.

Last step I wanted to add words in the lower right, and as you

will notice I took out one of the ladies, but it still looks okay.

Well what do you think does it look morrocan

The last detail of course was the Marhaba which

means  Welcome

The Making of a Postcard

1. cut card stock or use blank postcard

2.  On this postcard, I used a napkin as the background

I applied using soft gel medium

3.  I decided instead of drawing I would use this

bird stencil I had. and used it like a stamp,

with black staz on ink

I then used these dollar store rubs, with a paint brush

and painted the bird, using a white gel pen, and

black pen to highlight

The final step was putting a couple of letters on it.

Tommorw I will show you how I made a transfer postcard

lee

What are u up to today

Today I am working down in the studio, finishing postcards, and making a small journal for my trip to San Francisco.  What you are u doing today, why not join in the fun on Wednesdays and post    Check out the
http://identityseven.typepad.com/themessynest/ and join in  today

Would you take a bite?

watching Seinfeld

2 postcards left to finish for the trade

snowing out fireplace on

finalizing trip plans for April

San Fransisco here I come

eating fresh fruit salad

all you need is love

finishing up the postcard exchange

having pizza and salad for dinner

watching a movie called the Fighter

enjoying the nice weather

walking the dog

surfing the blog

hoping your having a great saturday

Drum Roll Please...

This is a old picture of my dad

Let me first off say, I wish you all could win......when my ship comes in.  Well I just drew the name of the winner.   And the winner is Jeannine of Four Rooms.  A really great artist you should check out her site here is her linkhttp://myfourrooms.blogspot.com/.  I did it all fair and square, put every ones name in a bowl, scrunched them all up and the first name that came out   So congratulations to Jeannine and here's to the next draw.

Do you like pockets

This is the inside cover of my visual journal.  See that white stuff above the bird, well thats where my pocket is.  I like pockets in my journal, I like to put stuff in there that i cut out and then I like to forget that I ever put anything in there (lol) dont get old you lose your memory . ]

Ok bloggers we need one more person for our 6x6 exchange,Feminnie Frills, come on I know you want to join in on the fun, I finished mine already and thats a miracle, usually I am down to wire at 2:00 am working on something. 

Don't forget the big draw for the book Master Collage is tomorrow, I am going to do the draw in the afternoon, any one who has commented in the last little while will be entered.  I want to thank you all for taking the time to write a comment the other day the most comments I have ever had.  I was thrilled.

Tonight I am out to dinner with hubby and the shopper, we are off to our favourite place, its call the KEG

they serve the best steaks, there.  I don't have steak very much because we don't have red meat very often, so I enjoy it when I go out.  I usually have the keg combo, tenderloin teriki steak, baked potato and vegetable, to start I like for an appetizer to have sn mushroom caps with snails in them and garlic butter.\

Ok if you don't like them, I never did but now I love them.

Well I better go and get ready, don't forget we need 1 more person for the 6x6 exchange.  And the big draw is tomorrow.

blowing my own horn

Normally, I dont blow my own horn, but today I am go over  to   http://studiomailbox.typepad.com/tales_from_studio_mailbox/
 which is not only a great blog, an american living in Germany, who married with child and is an artist.  But she did an article on me, yes me.  So get on over and leave a comment, she is also an amazing writer.

The 10 things that turned to 6 things that bug me

I decided to do a post about 6 things that bug me.  I know you are all clinging to  the edge of your seats, saying to yourself, god i cant wait to read this and know that what bugs her? lol  ok here I go.

1.  I hate it when i am in a nice restaurant and I look around and every jackass in the place has his baseball hat on while eating his steak and lobster.  Was this jackass born in a barn.

2.  This one really bugs me, while out driving, the car in front of you turns and decides not to use their signal light, so that you just about back end them, because you don't know they are turning.

3.  Whatever happened to customer service, did it go the way the economy went down the toilet.  Don't companies  want to keep the customers they have. Or are they to cheap to hire enough people to work at their store,so they would rather have you stand in line for 45 minute's because only one clerk is on duty and she is new and does not know how to work the till  and ends up crying and leaving you and the other 50 people in line with nobody manning the till.

4.  Okay this one might make sound like a crybaby, how come nobody but 4 or 5 people read this blog and leave comments.  Tell me I really want to know.  I have been tempted to turn off the comments and just keep blogging , then it would not upset me, when no one comments.  Don't you wish you were one of those people who had to turn off their comments because they are over whelmed with comments. OK I said my say, I am wiping the tears and putting on my big girl panties.

5.  Please tell the media, NO MORE CHARLIE SHEEN, he is one dude who could benefit with less
publicity and a little help from the medical community.  Why do people love to see famous people spiral out of control.

6.  Dont you hate it when the postoffice lady comes to your door at 12:25 and your in your pj/s with an apron and fleece vest on, and your hair looks like a rat made a nest in it.

 I changed it from 10 to6 just because i thought you might be sick of reading this, as I just re-read it and decided enough was enough.  What things bug you???Come on must be something, someone, what?

Just Be

in the moment

because

here

everthing you can be

you

me

there are a thousand Just Be can you think of any?

Is Feminine Frills for you?

Are you up for a fun Challenge.  Janet http://jkbees.blogspot.com/  and I are co-hosting a fun challenge, it's all about finding your inner feminine side.  We have called Feminine Frills, its only 1 6x6 card.  Janet and I will do all the work,pair the partners, set the deadlines/  All you have to do is create, and you know how we all love to create.   So why not join in.  Sign up here or with Janet http://jkbees.blogspot.com/, leave your name and address.  If your comfortable doing that email me.  My email is on my profile page.  So lets have some fun,.  I am ready for some fun how about you?

Are you an out of control spender

Well I hope you all had a great weekend.  I did not do to much, a little art, a little cleaning, and lots of relaxing.  The weather is picking up certainly not Hawaii weather but its getting better every day.  Today I am going out just to get out, I don't know where I am going, well yes I do.  I am off to the Mall, i feel the need to buy something, don't ask me what, just something.  I will know it when I see it.  Do you ever just get that urge to buy something.  No you wont see me on Oprah , on the episode `She is either a Hoarder or an out of control spender.  Well enough dribble drab talk to you soon.

Oh and if you want to see a video tonight on making a travel journal

go to this website, to the end and you will see the infor, I will be there, will you? Who knows we can all make a travel jouranl and then meet up?  Ha ha say in Mexico on the beach?

 http://balzerdesigns.typepad.com/balzer_designs/2011/03/crafternoon-at-my-place.html#axzz1FwK0WXnU

Is your glass half full?

Lately, I have been feeling my glass is half full? What does that mean to me? Well creatively I am feeling like
my art is not going anywhere, that I am at a stalemate not getting any better, remaining the same.  Do you ever feel like that? Then you start to doubt yourself, and then your art.  And the circle begins.  So how do you work it out, fill up that glass and move on. Well here is what I am trying, don't know if its going to work, I am taking online courses to try and push myself artistically.  I am trying to sketch everyday, anything that I see, as an artist you constantly need to try to push your boundaries.  If I am not creating everyday, which I am not, I sketch, or read an art book, just to try and keep ideas pumping through.  If I think of an idea even if it is crappy in my  mind, I write it down in an idea book, I have these books all over the house.  And when I cant think of one thing I go through the ideas books, and try to rework the crappy ones. So far that is what I am doing, if you can think of any other ones leet me know, I want to fill up that glass.

Suffering

The picture says it all, not weather for anyone.  I am disgusted?