Vintage Cards and Christmas Shortbread

This art journal page evolved over a couple of happy hours crafting in my studio, listening to Christmas songs. The focal point is a Christmas card from my vintage card collection. The card was sent from a father in Italy to his daughter in New Zealand during the Second World War. During a time that was so fraught with heartbreak, with many families being separated from their loved ones, it must have been so special for that little girl to receive a Christmas card from her father from all those miles away across the ocean, and to know that he was all right. It makes me feel blessed to be surrounded by all my family at Christmas time.

To make the page, I painted and stencilled a background, then layered the card with Christmas sheet music, festive papers, fabric, lace and ribbon, finally adding a few little embellishments.

I love doing Christmas baking – homemade mince pies, Christmas cake, and Christmas cookies are enjoyed by all at this time of the year. This is my great-grandmother’s shortbread recipe. I add spices, orange zest, and cranberries at Christmas time to give it a festive touch.

Christmas Cranberry Shortbread

225g butter or non-dairy spread
125g icing sugar
zest of 1 orange
½ cup cranberries
375g flour
25g cornflour
1 teaspoon mixed spice

Cream the butter and icing sugar.  Stir in the orange zest and cranberries. Add sifted flour, cornflour, and spice and mix. Knead well. Roll out the dough ¼ inch to ½ inch thick. Cut into shapes. Prick with a fork to stop the dough from rising. (I forgot to do this, but they still turned out nice.) Bake at 160° C for 30 minutes. (I cook on fan bake so that the bottoms of the shortbread don’t burn.) Cool on a wire rack. Enjoy!

From our place to yours, Merry Christmas!

 

 

Growing Wild

For this collaged journal page I painted and stencilled the background, then added photos of my garden, images and words cut from magazines, washi tapes, and pressed flowers.

I love to cut words from magazines and junk mail and save them to use in art projects. I look for words that speak to me. Sometimes I will add one or two words to a journal page, other times I will arrange random words into a poem.

I have had a plain wooden box sitting in my studio for ages, and decided it would be perfect for storing my words. I painted it and then chose some of the words to create a poem on the lid.

I love how a few random words, some scrappy images, and a little imagination can bring nature to life on the page.

 

Dragonfly art journal page

I created the background of this journal page with gesso, acrylic paints, inks, and tissue paper to add some texture. I stamped on the dragonfly and coloured it with pens, then added some scraps of trim and tiny jewels to the page. I had fun cutting words out of an old book to create a found poem. I was amazed that the book I was using, one that I had put aside ages ago to use for cutting up, had lots of words that related to my journal page.

I love dragonflies and I look out my kitchen window every day onto this one that lives on the wall of my studio.

I am playing along with the Things with Wings challenge at Try it on Tuesday.

Freedom art journal page

I recently discovered the poetry of Erin Hanson after coming across this inspirational quote on the internet and searching to find out who wrote it. I bought one of Erin’s books, The Poetic Underground Reverie, and just love her charming poems, which are emotive, relatable, and often hold a touch of whimsy. She has an amazing way with words and an incredibly deep and sensitive insight into human emotions.

I knew when I began this journal page that I wanted it to be bright and colourful, and for the wings to be made from pressed flowers.I gathered together a selection of papers, paints, and inks in my chosen colour palette and began planning the page.I added pieces of old lace, raffia, and washi tape, and typed the poem on my vintage style typewriter that Nick gave me for Christmas a couple of years ago. After spending so much time on the computer typing my novels, it is fun to use the typewriter for crafty things and to have my studio as a technology-free space where I can relax and unwind.Lastly, I sorted through my stash of pressed flowers and chose some ferns and feverfew and dried heather buds for the wings, and to embellish the pages.

This page reminds me that it is okay to take chances and that you never know where that leap of faith might take you.

Larkspur art journal page

I love purple and blue flowers, and larkspurs are one of my favourites. In the language of flowers, larkspurs signify lightness and levity. They also have magical connections to health and protection.

For the journal page I used paints and inks, washi tape, corrugated cardboard, a stencil, cutout butterflies, a pressed larkspur flower, larkspur seeds, rust-dyed fabrics, a white pen, and impasto gel medium.

Larkspurs self-seed in our garden and come up every spring in myriad colours of blues, purples and pinks. Their soft, feathery foliage is pretty, too.

At the moment, with the end of summer and herbs starting to die off, my studio has become a drying room with bunches of bergamot, lemon balm, and basil hanging from the rafters to dry for use in the winter.

Grow Your Wings and Take Flight

The past couple of weeks I have been watching videos from the Woman Unleashed free online retreat. The videos include workshops by some of my favourite artists including Flora Bowley, Shiloh Sophia, Whitney Freya, and Tamara Laporte. This cute little bird was what I created from Tamara’s workshop Taking Flight. I added the words grow your wings and take flight to remind me that sometimes I should be brave and take chances, that taking a leap of faith might lead to new and exciting things.

If you want to join this free online event, click here to learn more about it and to register. The videos are all available to watch until mid-July.

Owl Journal Page

This owl journal page was inspired by a recent Kelly Rae Unscripted video. I love watching Kelly Rae’s weekly painting videos and get lots of ideas for techniques I can incorporate into my own art.

First I painted the background, then stenciled on a pattern with ink. The tree was collaged with pages torn from an old magazine, then painted over with inks and granulation medium. I sketched the owls on to the page, cut out feathers from scrapbook papers and glued them down with Mod Podge. The leaves are cut out from scrapbook papers and outlined with ink. I used coloured pens for outlining, inks for shading, and paint pens for the moon and moonlight.

 

Guardian Angel

Originally posted on my Wattle Lane blog http://www.wattlelane.wordpress.com

Angeline Dunwich, one of the characters in my Wattle Lane novels, is obsessed with angels. Her little home above the shop is full of angel figurines, angel art, and angel collectibles. She makes paper angels to display in the window of Wattle Lane Keepsakes, and she firmly believes that our lives can be touched by angels. In book three, Christmas in Wattle Lane, the reason for her obsession is revealed.

I, too, love angels. I love the idea of celestial beings watching over us and guiding us through difficult periods of our lives. When I was young, I used to see an old woman sitting on the end of my bed, knitting. I don’t recall if she ever spoke to me, but I do remember that I wasn’t afraid of her. I like to think that she was my guardian angel watching over me, perhaps an ancestor.

For this art journal spread I used scrapbook papers and acrylic paints for the collaged background, and I added a piece of old sheet music and a metal embellishment. I used coloured pencils and ink for the angel, with pressed flowers and tiny pearls on her dress. Her wings are made from a vintage lace doily.

Here is a close-up view of the details.

In My Studio

This is what has been happening in my studio lately.

A whimsical page in my art journal.

A project from Danielle Donaldson’s video Watercolor Illustrations

and one from her book Creative Girl.

Patchwork cushions made from the little packets of fabric remnants I bought at a craft fair a few weeks ago.

Writing Update:
I have finished the first draft of The Air That I Breathe. It feels good to finally have the story out of my head and in the computer. Lots of work still to do, but I am looking forward to working some more with the characters I have come to know so well.

Look For The Magic

This art journal page reminds me to look for the magic in the everyday (or night). A full moon surrounded by swirls of violet cloud, a garden bathed in moonglow, the brilliant light from a distant star, the changing colours of the seasons as trees shed their leaves and plants lie dormant, then a new cycle of growth begins all over again. The feelings of comfort and belonging inspired by a little cottage; a sense of home, of occupying my own little place in the universe.

Patchwork Paper Hearts

I love making patchwork. There is something satisfying about cutting up pieces of fabric or paper and joining them back together to make something new. Patchwork quilts fill me with joy, pretty fabrics joined together to make lovely, functional pieces. Pretty scrapbook papers fill with me with just as much joy, and collaging these paper hearts was a good way of using up some scraps I had left over from other projects.

I began by tearing random shapes from the scrapbook papers. I glued them all onto a sheet of paper with mod podge, then glued little pieces of ribbon and fibres on top.

After the glue had dried, I turned the collaged paper over and drew random shaped hearts on the back.

I cut out the hearts and arranged them on a page in my art journal, on which I had already painted a background with watercolour paints and added a strip of paper lace. I wrote sentiments onto paper, cut out the words, inked the edges and added them to my page.

 

Valentine’s Art Journal Page

I have had this wonderful vintage postcard in my collection for a while now and thought it would be perfect to use on a Valentine’s Day project. I began by layering and handstitching together pretty fabrics and lace as a frame for the postcard. For the background I did some stenciling, inked around the edges of the page, then added some washi tape, buttons, ribbon and paper hearts. A little tag with a sentiment and a tiny paperclip finished it off.

Halloween Mixed-media Art Journal Page

A Visit From The Ancestors

This page in my art journal was made using scrapbook papers, fabrics, chalk, paper lace, and a metal embellishment.
A while ago I was given some quilt fabrics. There were several black pieces with designs of silver stars and swirls, and were perfect for including in this project.

The All Hallow’s Eve scrapbook paper is from Graphic 45’s Time to Flourish collection.

The ancestor pictures are from Kaisercraft’s Betsy’s Couture collection.

The picture of the haunted house is from The Graphics Fairy, which is a great resource for free vintage images, crafting ideas and tutorials.

I love that in my art journal I can tell a story in pictures rather than words.

Garden Journal

Our garden has been fairly dormant over the winter months. A few annuals add colour – pansies, snapdragons, primulas – and lavender and feverfew flower continuously. We have a Wintersweet shrub in the garden beside our front porch, which in the winter has tiny, pale yellow flowers with the most divine scent. I love to breathe in their aroma whenever I walk past them.

Wintersweet

These are the last few pages from my garden journal. I used some pressed leaves for the autumn page, and I pressed some pansies, lavender and feverfew from our garden to use on the July page.

Autumn Journal Page

I love to pick up fallen leaves when we go for walks with Finn. The autumn leaves are such beautiful colours. There is just something about them that I can’t resist, although I am never quite sure what I will do with them once I get them home. More often than not, they will end up being tossed away again. This year, however, I was determined to use some on a journal page.

Although the leaves were already dry when I collected them, I pressed them under a pile of heavy books for a week to flatten them before I used them.

I painted the background of my journal page with watercolour paints, in autumn shades of golds, reds and orange. Then I glued a photo of Finn onto the page and surrounded it with the leaves. I glued the leaves down, then covered them with a layer of mod podge to protect and preserve them. I used scrapbooking letters to spell out the word Autumn.

My 2014 Art Journal

At the beginning of this year, I started a new art journal. I’m using a sketchbook that I bought last year—I just love the cover!

Inside, I created a title page. I painted the background and stamped on random shapes using bubble wrap, corrugated cardboard and a cardboard tube. Then I glued down pictures cut from scrapbook cardstock and cards.

I journaled my goals for the year—nothing too adventurous, just simple things like gardening, writing and crafts. Oh, and most importantly, adopt a dog! Then, throughout the year, I am going to journal about the things that make me happy, the things that make up my everyday life. It might be places that I visit, things I’ve seen, a book I’ve enjoyed, or flowers that are blooming in my garden.

By the end of the year my journal will be filled with thoughts and imaginings, photographs, drawings, clippings, stickers, and anything else I might want to put in there. It will be like a scrapbook, a way for me to creatively document my year, and at the end of the year I will have a colourful journal of memories.

Weekend in Wellington

This is a scrappy collage page I made of our recent visit to Wellington. Although we were only there a couple of days, we tried to fit in as much as we could. We went to the Andy Warhol exhibition at Te Papa, and to the Gregory Crewdson exhibition at the City Gallery, which included photographs from his Beneath the Roses series portraying the dark heart of contemporary Americana, as well as photos from his Sanctuary and Fireflies works. We visited our favourite bookshops and art & craft shops, went for a morning stroll along Queen’s Wharf, and had dinner at our favourite waterfront restaurant.

Today was good

Today was good
Today was fun
Tomorrow is another one

                             Dr. Seuss

For these pages in my art journal I was experimenting with creating backgrounds using watercolour paints and found objects. The wavy lines are made with corrugated cardboard, the circles with bottle caps, and the little square criss cross shapes are made by splodging paint over plastic mesh with a foam dobber. It’s great fun to see what patterns you can make with things you find around the house.

This morning when I was visiting my parents, Mum gave me a box of knick knacks to look through, random objects she has kept over the years in case they should ever come in useful, then forgotten about. I came home with a bag of goodies to use in my craft projects – old keys, wooden cotton reels, pieces of jigsaw puzzle, tiny light bulbs and little shells. I’m already planning what they’re going to be used for!

Things I love about winter

Cuddling up under a quilt
Comforting puddings
Heartwarming soups
Purple pansies
Snowdrops
Wattle trees in flower
Winter sunshine
Steaming mugs of hot tea
The sound of falling rain when I don’t have to go out in it
Thick, colourful socks
Knitted hats and scarves
A warm, flickering fire

Tell Your Story

I recently joined Suzi Blu’s Gypsy Art School  and signed up for her online class, Tell Your Story, an art journal workshop that documents the story of our lives through art, scrapbooking and writing. Each week Suzi posts a prompt for you to write about and then create an art journal page. During the week, she posts online what she has done with the prompt, and at the end of each month she creates a painted art journal page on video, showing how she uses different mediums to create her art. Students can share their pages online for the rest of the class to see, but it is not compulsory. It is very inspirational to see what others have done and how they interpret the prompt. Each person’s art is so unique. The course runs for three months, but you can work at your own pace, as the materials and videos are available to view and download until the end of the year.

I am really enjoying the class. Other than my garden journal, I have never done any art journaling before. I find the prompts really get me thinking. Although when I first see the prompt, my mind is a blank and I don’t have a clue what to write, once I start, the words seem to flow, and by the time I have finished writing down my thoughts in a cheap exercise book, I have plenty of ideas for making the art page in my journal.

I am using a Rangers Dylusions Journal. It has nice thick card for painting on, a sturdy cover for decorating, and a big pocket inside the front cover for keeping notes and scraps in.

These were the first pages I did. The prompt was:

How would I describe — to someone who had never met her?

The next prompt was all about home. I printed out some pictures of my dream houses and tucked them into a pocket behind the journal card.

For these pages I used scrapbook paper, coloured pencils, pens, chalks, stamps, and pressed flowers.

One of the prompts was to take random photos to document a week in our life, then choose one that represented our life right now, to create an art journal page. The one constant in my photos was Cody, who is beside me in everything I do, so I decided to create a page around her.

I think I’ll leave decorating the cover of the journal until later, as I’m sure I’ll be learning more techniques and gaining more inspiration as the course progresses.