chocolate eggs

the chocolate way is always the best way...... :))

{supplies:  moleskine watercolor journal, daniel smith watercolors,

micron pens, 6B and 3B graphite pencils, white uni posca pen}

star spangled

this weekend, we're celebrating Independence Day, 

and we're so very thankful to all those 

who have been so brave in protecting our freedoms!

✭☆✭

sending all my sweet friends here in America

many star-spangled-hugs for a very

happy and safe weekend!!

xox

a world of artist journal pages

if you have a copy of dawn devries sokol's book, 1000 Artist Journal Pages, 

then you'll be thrilled that her follow-up book, 

A World of Artist Journal Pages

has just been released!  

this creative treasure trove contains over 1000 journal pages 

that were contributed by 230 artists from 30 different countries….

there's inspiration from cover to cover!

and i'm super excited to have been invited to participate

and share my artwork amongst all of these fabulous artists!!  woo hoo!

thank you SO much, dawn!  

you've curated a beautiful book that i'm not only thrilled to be a part of,

but also one that i'll enjoy reading for years to come!  

{for a peek inside the book, click here!}

3 colors, 1 cupcake

if you're ever wondering what your favorite colors are,
just open your paintbox and take a peek at the ones you use the most…..
on the other hand, the colors you're not-so-crazy-about
are the colors that look brand new.

the trick to using the colors you're not-so-crazy-about
is to think of a subject you're absolutely crazy about…...

and before long, those not-so-crazy colors will start looking
a lot more appetizing!


{this was created for the DLP week 40 challenge
to paint with three colors you never use
my colors:  lemon yellow, jaune brilliant, viridian hue}

{supplies:  moleskine planner, fabriano artistico 140 lb. HP paper,
koi watercolors, pitt pens, sakura white gelly roll pen, 6B pencil, washi tape}

heart shower

the DLP prompt this week is to fill your page with hearts….

and that makes this journal girl pretty happy….

because what could be more cheerful than a 

red-orange-and-pink-heart shower!

:))

{supplies:  moleskine planner, fabriano artistico 140 lb. HP paper, 

pitt pens, PanPastel, derwent inktense pencils, 

uniball signo broad white pen, 6B graphite pencil, washi tape}

inspiration monday

here's a great way to take a journal page and turn it into something new!
first,  look through your journals and find a simple design,
and then scan it into your computer.
(i changed my design to black and white for the transfer.)

then, following the directions on the package,
print your artwork onto a piece of sticky fabri-solvy by sulky.

now, just peel off the backing paper, and stick it onto a piece of fabric.
(here,  i've used a piece of cotton flour sack)

now choose your favorite stitches…..

and add all your favorite colors of thread and other fun stuff!

once you're done stitching, rinse the fabric in warm water
until the fabri-solvy dissolves.  let your fabric dry and iron it, if needed.
at this point, you can call it finished…..

or you can take it a step further and add some more color directly to the fabric!
here, i've used a watercolor crayon:  draw a small amount of color onto the
fabric and use a waterbrush, sparingly, to activate the color.  if you add too
much water, it will bleed out into the surrounding areas.
i added a bit of water to the color, and then i dried it immediately
with a heat gun to keep it from bleeding out.
continue adding as much color as you like…..

and reward yourself with a nice piece of chocolate
for taking a page from your journal, and turning it into
something that you can enjoy as a wall hanging or
maybe even sew it into a sweet little pillow!

to see a complete demonstration of the fabri-solvy, click here!

{supplies:  sulky sticky fabri-solvy,  cotton fabric,
assorted embroidery floss, orange seed beads, needle,
lyra aquacolor crayon, waterbrush}


✭✭✭

happy memorial day to all my friends here in America!
we remember all those who have sacrificed to protect our freedoms!
xox

inspiration monday

when it comes to working in my favorite art journal….

 the pages i enjoy most are created when i allow
inspiration to take complete control…..

and i stick to matters close to my heart.

and speaking of matters-of-the-heart,
please pass the chocolate, and let's talk some happy!
xox


{supplies:  moleskine journal, derwent watercolor pencils, derwent inktense pencils,
pitt artist pens, 2B and 6B graphite pencil}

inspiration monday

there's something about playing with rubber stamps that always inspires me.
but this time instead of using them to create a card, i thought i'd use them in my small moleskine journal , and i started the fun by stamping this large stamp.

then i decided to stamp some of the smaller hearts and paint in those blank spaces.

once they were painted, they still looked a little bare, so i jazzed them up a bit with some doodles.

but when you're having fun with hearts, it's hard to stop at painting just one…..

so now i have a journal page filled with some doodly-heart-goodness,
all inspired by some rubber stamps…..and my little dutch sweetie!


{supplies:  moleskine journal, Technique Tuesday rubber stamps, watercolor pencils,
pitt artist pens, 2B and 6B graphite pencils}

happy artful new year!

welcome to 2014!
'tis the season for setting resolutions for a new year….
but truth be told, i'm still working on my goals for last year!
(and my ever-expanding-chocolate-inspired-hips
tell the story that my 2013 resolution to lose weight is still in progress)

so i've decided my resolution for this year is
to fulfill my goals from last year,
to keep following my heart…..

and strive for the most artful, authentic,
create art-from-my-heart kind of year possible!

wishing you a very artful new year!!
xox


{supplies:  moleskine journal, derwent inktense pencils, koi watercolor,
pitt artist pens, pilot "choose" white gel pen, 6B pencil}

inspiration monday

i was wrapping some gifts the other day, and found myself so inspired by the colored tissue paper i just had to figure out a way to add it to a journal page!  so i started cutting it up into random shapes…...

and used a glue stick to glue them down onto my journal page.

and after a bit more glueing and some play with a pitt pen…..

i had a fun, colorful page in my journal,
compliments of some gift wrap and a glue stick!
'tis the season for inspiration!  :))


{this was created in my moleskine journal using colored tissue paper, glue stick,
pitt pens, pan pastel, 3B graphite pencil}

thankful hugs

we're celebrating Thanksgiving here in America today,
but no matter where you live in this big-while-small-at-the-same-time world of ours…..

please consider yourself thought of…..and thanked beyond measure…..
for all your visits to my little corner of blogland, and all of the tremendously kind comments you leave here.   your love, friendship and support of my artwork mean more than i could ever properly put into words, so please accept the enormous hug of thanks that i'm sending to you right this very minute!!

happy Thanksgiving to sweet, precious, wonderful YOU!
xox


{this was created in my wings journal using derwent inktense pencils, pitt pens,
white pilot choose pen, 3B graphite pencil}

keep calm and be challenged

i was playing with one of my new rubber stamps the other day,
and i decided to challenge myself to finish a journal page
without using my pitt or micron pens.

at first, i thought it wouldn't really be that hard to give up just one supply….
but as i got further along, i realized how much impact those black pens provide!

once i was finished, i decided it was a lot of fun doing something completely different, and i really like the way it turned out!  well, except that the stamp image isn't centered…..but that's an entirely different
trying-not-to-be-so-obsessive challenge that i'll deal with another day.  :))


{this was created in my moleskine journal using derwent watercolor pencils,
 "believe in miracles" stamp, and pigment stamp pad}

dear courage.....

just when you think courage is nowhere to be found.....

 all you have to do is look to your heart of hearts....

and unlock all that fearless-art-girl goodness!
xox


{this was created in my moleskine journal using koi watercolor,
derwent inktense pencils, 3B & 6B graphite pencils, uniball signo white gel pen}

inspiration monday

while i was spending the day with my little bird friends in new york last saturday,
 my family went out into the city for some exploration, and ended up walking across the brooklyn bridge.  out of all the photos my little dutch sweetie took that day, this is one of my favorites.....and i couldn't wait to hear what these padlocks are all about!

as the story goes,  true-loves personalize a padlock with their names and date, and then lock it onto the railing of the bridge.

then, the key to the lock is thrown over the railing into the river,
symbolizing that the bond and commitment between the true-loves is everlasting.

i'm a hopeless romantic, and this story tugs at my heartstrings big time....

  but while i was at the workshop, my mr. romantic was creating a story of his own,
because when he picked me up later that day, he very sweetly presented me with a gift wrapped copy of the new somerset studio magazine, and said "page 22!"

and there, on the pages of a publication that's brought me so much inspiration for so many years, is the story of my "ocean of truth" paste paper booklet.....and i must admit that every time i think about it, i have to pinch myself to make sure it's real!  thank you SO much to the staff at somerset for an absolutely beautiful article!

but most of all......thank you to my little dutch sweetie, a.k.a. mr. romantic, for all the wonderful things you do that tug at my heartstrings.  YOU are my inspiration monday-and-every-other-day-of-the-week, and you will always hold the key to my heart!
love is forever.....xox


{journal page supplies: moleskine journal, koi watercolor, derwent inktense pencils, pitt pens, white uniball signo gel pen, 2B and 6B graphite pencil}

{there are thousands of love locks attached to the brooklyn bridge.....
to see more images, click here!}