Art Journaling - Where There is Love

 

I confess that I was a bit slow to grab hold of this whole art journaling thing.  Truth be told, when I first bought the store (eclectic Paperie), I'd never even heard of folks like Dina Wakley and Christy Tomlinson and the idea of using paint and ink sprays to make journal pages was foreign to me.  I was a card maker and for some reason thought that's what I'd always be.  But the eP customer base was hot for mixed media projects and products so I figured if I was going to sell it then I'd better start using the products.  It was kind of a rocky start, boy did I make a lot of muddy pages, but I kept taking classes, watching blogs, and playing with the products.  And I have never had SO. MUCH. FUN.  I love this type of creating, love journaling, love every single bit of this type of artwork.  Swoon...

I have a bunch of projects, just pages I've created here and there that I've never shared and I'm trying to get better about consistently blogging so here's the first of one of those pages!

This page started as a free make 'n take that I offered in the store, using Dylusions Ink Sprays and stencils to create background pages.  All we did during the make 'n take was spray a page, use a stencil, and added a few stamped images (need that neutral in the background!)  After the make 'n take, I came home with a ton of this colorful pages, just begging for more!  (You can find all product links at the end of this post).

To this page, I added a drip of hot pink ink spray...love the contrast of the pink against the yellow/orange.  I then stamped one of Dina's scribbly women on a piece of watercolor paper and used watercolors for filling in the face and shirt.  A punched butterfly made the perfect hair accessory!  For the tag, I spread Distress Ink on to a stencil, spritzed the stencil with water, and pressed the stencil on to the tag...great technique and I love the look.  Then I glued the tag to my page, added a few pieces of tissue tape, and layered the image on the tag.  I then stamped the sentiment on another tag, cut out the individual words and applied to the tag.  I think this baby may be one of my favorites...

Enjoy today's page and dip your toe into the art journaling pond...the water is fine...(product links below!)

• Dylusions Ink Sprays
• Dylusions Stencils
• Tim Holtz Layering Stencils
• All for the Gals Dina Wakley stamp set
• Strathmore Mixed Media Paper
• Collaged Hearts Dina Wakley stamp set
• Textured Dina Wakley stamp set
• Koi Watercolor Set
• #5 Manila Tags