Dream Voyage

This is another altered picture in a calendar journal. I need a cruise LOL

Jungle Trek

This is another journal page in a calendar journal round robin. This page had a picture I was to alter. Sometimes altering the existing pictures is harder for me than starting a page from scratch LOL I wasn't sure what to do, so I took advantage of the Wednesday Stamper Challenge and framed part of the picture and went from there ...

Resonate

This was weird. I finished my entry for this week's prompt about words on Inspire Me Thursday ... and this sentence popped into my head, so I did a second journal page.

I tried a Kelly Kilmer technique for the background on this page. It is amazing how cool these water soluble wax pastels blend. This was my first try and I didn't pick the best papers for the technique I think ... but I am using this technique again!

Sensitivity Prevails

This is my entry for Inspire Me Thursday. The prompt this week is words and what would a journal page be without words?

This week a friend did something special that shows he was sensitive to my feelings and I am very grateful ... and that is the inspiration for this journal page.

Getting Back to Your Roots

I did an art journal page to go along with some writing for Sunday Scribblings this week.

What are in your roots? Which events have the power to change the direction of that growth?

Tragic acts of violence such as the Virginia Tech and Columbine High School shootings shake me to my very core and stir my soul. My childhood was disturbing … full of trauma and controversy; those feelings of hatred and anger, desperation … feeling like an outcast … the tendency toward self-mutilation and that sense that I was an explosion waiting to happen -- I see those same things in these shooters. It is with great unease that I admit how close I came to wearing the shoes of one who keeps that chain of violence going.

I was one of the lucky ones that crossed paths with counselors that helped me change my destiny. Still you must wonder … what is the difference between me and the shooters. I found my way back to my roots and my roots were planted in whimsy and happiness … yet not everyone is able to make it full-circle back to that beginning. Sometimes events occur that change your path and you feel powerless to stop it.

Perhaps it depends on which is stronger … your roots … or the pull of events that gnarl and twist your branches changing the direction of your growth.

Mournful City

This is a picture in a New York themed calendar I altered for a journal round robin this month. It had a very gray look and feel and yet I felt drawn to it, so I wanted to leave the picture mostly in tact.

I wondered what it would look like if I tried journaling right over the photo, so I added some grit to the page with clear gesso. The sloppy lettering is what you get when you don't really know calligraphy and haven't used a dip-type calligraphy pen in 20 years LOL I just trudged on and went with the leaky fountian pen look LOL

Since I already had a bit of a grunge look going I added a couple rubberstamped images at the bottom for this week's Wednesday Stamper challenge. I was able to manage using my broken carved rubberstamp for this ... hee hee

Claudia's Show

I went to an art show featuring Claudia Roulier recently and this is a journal page I did to include a few snippets I collected from the gallery that day. It was flabberghasted at the amount of work Claudia had done ... and everything just drips creativity and mystery! Yeah!! Way to go Claudia!

Technique Postcard

This is a postcard I made for a swap on the Book Artz group using the Acrylic Paint Blend technique.

More Bird Photos

Thanks so much Kathy for taking my bird page pictures! I thought they looked cool all stacked up, but didn't think to get my own photo LOL

As you can see ... I ended up with skinny birds ... fat birds ... short birds ... tall birds; I even had one that looked like a duck, but he didn't make the cut LOL

I love this second picture ... reminds me of the Princess and the Pea ... hee hee

No Tears

Tears was the prompt on Inspire Me Thursday this week. It got me to thinking about my childhood. Trauma and tears were an everyday part of my childhood. I started thinking about my ancestors and how tears did not seem acceptable in so many situations.

I did this background for my example of the weathered metal technique-of-the-month on the Altered Books group. It was such a hard and cold surface treatment, a spread about "No Tears" seemed more fitting.

Doodle Bird Fatigue

I cant tell you how tired I am this week. It was just stressful all around. All kinds of things going awry at work ... then I go hit with some special assignments ... undercover work LOL I ended up working 10 hour days 3 days this week ... and then coming home and finishing up these fabric bird pages.

These ideas sound so simple in the beginning ... but then I multiple by 30 and reality sets in LOL I think 4 hours is the longest night sleep I've had this week with everything going on ... but I am sleeping tonight LOL

Tag Art

Here are some tags I made for a swap in my local book art group. We each picked our own color theme and made tags to swap to fill the pockets in our books. I found some of the color themes tough with my supplies, so I made several that were fabric or a combination of paper and fabric.

Yellow - Impatient Times

This is my journal page for the Art Words yellow prompt. Yellow is one of my least favorite colors to work with ... in fact this may be my only yellow ... or semi-yellow artwork LOL I've had this page in the back of my mind for a while, but this week seemed especially appropriate to get started and this color worked for me :)

I have a friend who is close to my heart ... he makes me smile and brings light into my little world at the times I least expect it and most need it. This was a particularly hard week, because he was forced to make some choices he knew would not make me happy and he did his best to deliver the news with compassion and grace.

I looked for some phrases from some discarded book pages that I felt best described him. These words jumped off the page at me. They are a little melodramatic, but fitting.

Captivated

I started this page quite a while back and finally figured out what I wanted to do for the journaling. This was meant to be an entry for Wednesday Stamper, but my phone and internet service went out last week and I couldn't get online in time to post ...

Secrets

I've been working on this piece for a while. I decided this would be a good piece for the secrets prompt on Inspire Me Thursday.

This really is about secrets ... about that secret hiding place in my heart for people who are special to me ... a way to lock those special memories and feelings away in order to let go a little.

This will be a sister heart shrine to the Spiritus Vocus shrine I did last year. I started out with a paper mache hert again, but cut a door in it, covered with paper casting spirals, and added some assemblage type stuff inside the heart.

Carving Stamps

I can't believe it ... I finally learned how to carve stamps ... thanks to Nancy in my local art group!! A year ago I was saying no way -- too much work ... but this year I am loving the rough and bold look of carved stamps, so I decided to give it a try. I made one stamp at the group and 7 more over the weekend LOL Mostly I am getting my stamp image ideas from elsewhere, but I'll think up my own designs eventually. I have about 6 more drawings made up already LOL I had no idea how addicting this could be!

Let My Voice ...

I had originally intended this page to be my entry for Inspire Me Thursday, but my phone and internet service were on the fritz and I didn't get uploaded in time.

Phone Journal Page

Of course I had to dedicate a journal page to my phone woes LOL

Enchanted

Here is another spread I did in the March calendar.

Back to Civilization

Yeah ... I'm back!! I had no phone or internet service for a week ... that was a hard pill to swallow LOL Come to find out the first repairman that visited messed up and reconnected the wrong wires LOL