My favorite lotion and a lovely new magazine

This is a rose geranium lotion that i first found out about in Victoria mag. I love it, it has such a wonderful smell and the painted label is one of my favorite parts too.

and this is a new magazine by the publishers that do Somerset Sudio magazines. It is so nice it's like a book with so many wonderful articles and enjoying the simple pleasures in life, it is all put together so well, very inspiring. And i loved the cover so much, i wanted to do a sketch of it.

My 'Sketchbookery' class pages...

I'm having so much fun in Mary Ann Moss's sketchbookery class and i wanted to share some of the pages here. I have a really large sketchbook/art journal and a medium sized sketchbook.

This first page is a field guide page i want for a walk to gather some plants to draw and label, i'm not sure if i labeled any of them right though...

This was a page where i tested out some new pens i ordered and a practice alphabet that i copied from one of the really great font/lettering books that Mary Ann mentioned and she probably won't mind if i mention them here.. lettering and alphabets by Albert Cavanagh and circus alphabets by Dan x. Solo. So many ideas in these books.

This was a page inspired by Mary Ann when she created a "splashy page" painting outside of the lines and a lot of water on the brush. Really fun and different from my usual way, which is the fun part of this class its stretching my ideas and inspiration and techniques.

 
This is the smaller sketchbook and a bolder look that was also a lot of fun, i'm drawing with different sized pens and just having fun with it...

a drawing of avocados with a green pen and the other page is drawn with a tiny pen and really delicate

Even though i've been drawing or painted for about 17 years its so much fun to take a class and learn something new. a new way to look at something you've done for a long time. So i'm really glad Mary Ann put this class together. I've only done a few online courses but each time I always learn so much :)

sketching

here are a couple of current sketchbook pages, some mini rose bouquets and i drew my iced coffee today, my favorite summertime treat, i am addicted...

This is the antique book that i found yesterday that i plan on using for mary ann moss's sketchbookery class i am such a fan of hers she is so much fun so i decided to splurge this summer and take this fun class.

my garden and nature sketchbook

This is my new sketchbook, a simple small size, not intimidating so that i will sketch random things when i'm in the mood and i can carry it along on nature walks for easy sketching.

  

this page has a favorite quote from Maya Angelou that i always need reminding of ...

Art journals past and future...

I have about six art journals that i have made and i thought i would share a few pages from some old ones and three pages that have been collaged but not finished yet. I like to go through my old journals every once in awhile and look for inspiration for my newer journals. I wanted to share it all here...

So first some of the pages from past journals...

and these are unfinished but i like to collage a lot of pages at one time and then go back in later with words and more embellishments...

New sketchbook pages...

Hello everyone, I'm back to blogging with some new sketchbook pages, that I've done over the past few weeks, a few of my favorite things like Bonny Doon Farm lotion, some vintage Dennison Labels I ordered on Etsy, a pretty new book, some snacks and a visit to the Mcgill Rose Garden.

I hope everyone had a good Memorial Day...

spring flowers and a little bit of a break...

I'm going to be taking a short break from blogging, I can tell I am going through a little bit of a creative block, and can't think of things to do and post right now, I have two projects I am working on to submit to magazines and that seems to be all the creative energy I have right now. I go through this from time to time and then the creative inspiration always comes back around so I will be back soon :)

My drawing notebooks

These are my drawing journals where I practice drawing flowers, usually from magazines and books and I'm also starting to incorporate more lettering ideas after seeing this image from Pam Garrison.

This afternoon I was looking at this april 1995 issue of Victoria that I bought on ebay and I was happy to run across an article about Aude Kamlet, someone who did a lot of illustrating for Victoria through the years and shes been an inspiration of mine and this article was about her garden journal so now of course I am inspired to start a garden journal this year. I've always done drawings in my sketchbooks but I want a journal where I also write down notes and lists and whats blooming when. It's just a little patio garden but I still think it will be a lot of fun and keep me busy this summer.

How I bind my journals

I thought this week I would try and show how I bind my books. I don't use a lot of proper tools, I haven't gotten around to buying them so I use what I do have...so a nail and hammer instead of an awl and regular embroidery thread instead of stronger bookbinding thread, these things seem to work good enough for me...
I will show a few photos and then instructions at the end...

1. first I gut the book by cutting out the pages with an exacto, along the front seam where they attach and then the back, leaving just the hardcover and spine intact.
2. then i cover the book with the images i want and i like to use washi tape on the spine.
3. cut or tear your paper down to size and create the signatures , i usually do three or four sheets per signature and about four signatures.
4. fold each sheet and use a bone folder to smooth, then gather the sheets in a stack and clip them 
5. measure for the holes, i do every inch
6. poke the holes along each signature and and on the book spine too
7. use embroidery thread through a large needle and begin at the bottom going up the spine in and out and then down and tie a double knot when you reach the bottom. 

I hope these instructions help somewhat and if any one has any questions I'd be happy to try and answer them :)

spring journaling pages...

I haven't done any collage art journaling in over a month and it's always enjoyable to get back to it, I also switched to a different size, a few pages leftover in another journal. I feel like goldilocks trying to find the right size for everything : ). I tried a few pages in a small journal, and then a few in a large journal and now I'm back to a medium size that I like best. Today I will bind a new art journal and do the cover for it, I always enjoy making a new journal.

These are some pages to celebrate spring, the temperature still isn't very warm but it does feel more like spring here, finally...

"the colors of spring emerge with the first sweet sounds of song birds to fill our wintry weary souls: bringing hope, new beginnings, and inspiration."      unknown quote

I hope your beginning to see some signs of spring, it's been a  long winter, hasn't it?

Sketchbook...

I am now doing sketches in my large journal it's about 11x8, a few months back I said I preferred a smaller 5x5 size, but now I think I like this best. I am so inspired by other people and other styles that it has been an up and down trial of trying to really find what I do like best and what feels like me, so now I am mixing drawing with some doodles and lettering and it feels calming and enjoyable so I will see how it goes. I guess sometimes you have to try out a variety of things but I really just want to find my preferred way of working. Has any one else gone through this or did you have your style pretty well down from the beginning ? Or do you like to constantly try something new and not think about it so much?

Paper Love Blog Hop

Today is a special Blog Hop for paper lovers. I love paper and stationery so much and I have since I was very young, also magazine clippings, ideas and articles that I have always saved for years. Paper is definitely one of my favorite things.

For this blog hop I decided to do my post about my love of paper planners, Daybooks and binders.
I am showing some pages from my seasonal daybook first and then my idea binder that I fill with things I clip and save from magazines, I just recently organized it all into a binder with categories.

I also love making my own little paper labels and pretty To Do lists.

More paper love blog posts on the blog hop
Majo Bautista / Tona Bell / Louise Best / Cathy Bluteau / Jennifer Bomgardner / Giova Brusa / Lindsay Buck / Beka Buckley / Joanna Caskie / Jonathan Chapman (Mr Yen) / Halle Cisco / Sarah Clare / Cathryn Clarge / Dawn Clarkson / Rhiannon Connelly / Jenny D'Fuego / Molly Dhiman / Ian Dudley / Ayisatu Emore / Akmal Farid / Monika Forsberg / Claire Fritz-Domeney / Louise Gale / Chrissy Gaskell / Julie Hamilton / Emma Hawman / Rachel Hazell / Holly Helgeson / Claudine Hellmuth / Kim Henkel / Sarah Hoffman / Joanne Hus / Paula Joerling / Beth Kempton / Julie Kirk / Eos Koch / Katie LaClair / Kristy Lankford / Michelle Manolov / Doreen Marts / Rosie Martinez-Dekker / Tori Mears / Maria Mederios / Lise Meijer / Debbie Miller / MaryJane Mitchell / Suzy Naidoo / Grace Noel / Hannah Nunn / Camilla Olsson / Jo Packham / Rachelle Panagarry / Monette Pangan / Melanie Paul / Nicole Piar / Jen Pitta / Liz Plummer / Julie Reed / Michelle Reynolds / Lisa Rivas / Angee Robertson / Natalie Ryan / Aisling Ryan / Elisabet Sapena / Kyrrha Sevco / Jamie Sprague / Elizabeth Steele / Terri Stephens / Juniper Stokes / Mary Tanana / Maike Thoma / Linda Tieu / Gabrielle Treanor / Tammy Tutterow / Deborah Velasquez / Jordan Vinograd Kim / Cat Whipple / Brooke Witt / Katie Wood / Amelia Woodbridge