Tuesday Tips and Techniques: Mask It!

Leaving areas of your paper white when applying your background color is as easy as using pieces of torn or cut paper!  I had scraps of white copy paper left over from cutting out my zendoodles, so I decided to tear some of them into random shapes to use as masks before painting my background with water color.

I moved them around on the pages until I had a pleasing arrangement, and I decided to use a wash of watercolor in blues and purple.  I held the torn paper down by using my index finger in the middle of each piece.

Using this method, I found it best to apply the paint from the center of the torn paper to the outside of the pages.  This was to reduce any bleeding of the paint beneath the masks.

I removed the masks and was left with three white images that reminded me of a kneeling figure and two angels.  I let the pages dry and added another wash to blend the stark, white images into the page. 

Then I took a wet brush and lifted the paint to make "wings" on the angels.  I  also added a horizon and tree line.

I continued working on my pages by adding background trees in a medium blue, working darker and darker until I was using black for the foreground trees.  I also added black to the kneeling figure.  I used about a 50/50 solution of artist acrylic and water to highlight the angels making sure that the trees and branches would show through the angels so they would appear to be transparent.

I finished the pages by adding some directional strokes on the angels and wings, highlights on the kneeling figure, and little star shapes and swirls.  I also added some highlights to the tree trunks in the foreground.

Masking with paper is a quick way to give your pages some added dimension.  Try applying paint, then masks, then more paint.  The possibilities are endless!

And don't forget to save those pieces of paper that you've used for masking.  They'll be great collaged as additional texture on those next journal pages.  Whatever you do, remember, "Celebrate, LOVE, and Create!"

Do You Hear What I Hear?

OK, I have to come clean.  Most people I know look upon Christmas with happiness and excitement and that's why I largely dedicated this December blog to a holiday theme with my journaling prompts and music playlist.  If I were creating blog posts for my benefit, I have to tell you there wouldn't be much about Christmas included.  It hasn't been a favorite holiday of mine for a very long time, and as I observe some of the things going on around me, the fondness decreases with each passing year.  I think my feelings are evident in my last intuitive journaling spreads.

Do you hear what I hear?  I wonder what people in mysterious places where I've never been might think about all this holiday hoopla.  What do they think about a holiday that promotes excess when they're looking for a safe place to rest or wondering when they'll get another meal?  Do you hear the cries of our brothers and sisters across this great planet who think only of surviving day to day?

Do you hear what I hear?  Do you hear the plethora of TV commercials implying that you're NO ONE if you're not buying expensive gifts for the people you love?  Do you hear the commercials of kids saying their parents are "nerds" if they're not driving brand new vehicles with all the bells and whistles?  Do you hear the commercials telling you that you can only be a "hero" if you buy diamonds for your someone special? 

Do you hear what I hear?  Do you hear the bombardment of "The Machine" telling you that the only way to have a successful holiday season is to spend a lot of money you don't have?  Do you hear "The Machine" telling you that there must be no signs of Christmas in public places?  Do you hear the hypocrisy?

Do you hear the songs of angels?  I know you do.  I refer to the songs of the angels you call your friends and loved ones.  Do you hear the content moaning of your angels after they've eaten too much of a meal you've prepared for them?  Do you hear the hearty laughing of those angels as fond memories are recalled or the compassionate sighing as they nod in understanding to your bad times?  Do you hear them say 'they'll always be here' with a warm embrace before heading back out into the cold to their own homes? 

Do you hear what I hear?  I hope so.  I hope that above all that is wrong in this world and wrong in your own life, I hope you hear the sounds of all that is good and decent and loving.  I hope you hear joy in the voices of the young angels in your life, and I hope you hear the warm echos of those voices who remain with you as just a memory.  Maybe most of all, I hope you hear the sincerity of my wish for all of you to hear the joy, laughter and love in your lives not just at this holiday time, but for every day in your ever after.  "Happy Creating!"

Weekend Art-O-Rama!

Keith left early Friday morning to work Mid-Ohio races. He worked the entire weekend, not returning home until late Sunday evening.  That left me home alone for three whole days to indulge in Art-O-Rama!  It was all art, all weekend and the creative juices were flowing.

As is typical with my journaling, I have no idea what any new spread will be.  I open my journal to the first empty pages and let "spirit" take control.  On this spread, I was humming Bob Marley's "War - No More Trouble", so I took a Sharpie and began the repetitive writing, "We don't need no more trouble" - a lyric from Marley's song".  By the time I finished that page, I had moved on to another song - "The Windows of the World", Hal David & Burt Bacharach's song made famous by Dionne Warwick. I wrote the lyric, "what is this whole world coming to?" in the same manner that I wrote the previous lyric.

After I finished writing, I looked through my folder of items previously torn from magazines to see if anything "spoke" to me to go onto the page.  I found a beautiful, exotic, dark haired woman who begged to be part of this spread.  I was drawn to her beauty and the way she was sitting.  It just seemed to fit.  The word "future" was also on the same page and when I turned the page over, the phrases "it's a mind game" and "restorative powers", also jumped out at me.  I attached the image of the female and the word "future" to the spread using Mod Podge, and then I applied drops of white, gold and black craft acrylic and spread it over the pages with an old credit card.  I removed excess paint with a paper towel.

After the background dried, I applied white craft acrylic over the image of the woman and sketched in wings using my fingers.  Using a brush handle like a pencil, I began adding golden highlights to the wings in a scribbling motion to add texture. I used a black water soluble pastel to scribble in some hair, wing and arm details.

I also added in "Where Do We Go From Here?" (Lyrics from my friend, TRS), and added a few small details to her eyes and lips.  Lastly, I applied the phrases with Mod Podge.

It's a pretty bleak spread but I was contemplating bleak subjects as I worked with my materials.  And that's what journaling is about.  I think the more you abandon yourself to the process, the more your true feelings manifest on the page.  That's where real contemplation and realization occur.  We are multi faceted creatures and I think it's important to recognize the things that we consider to be "dark" or "negative".  In the end, it's all about the "Happy Creating!"