week 37 for 365/2 (part 2)

Aug 8-14

#254 - I've been working on this off and on for a while and am finally liking the direction it's going.  It needed collage! :) And I'm liking the color contrast/use.

#255 - 257 - I've been playing major catch up in my inspiration or restraint journal (as originally inspired by Hanna at ihanna)  I can't believe how many inspiration pics I'd accumulated to put into the journal. Sheesh!

I've been looking for ways to incorporate my photos with my mixed media & so have collected a few inspiration images to get me started. (above)

Usually I use table bits and pieces to collage with my inspiration photos, but this time I used all washi - I have so much and decided it was time to USE it!

I use these restraint/inspiration journals to inspire (obviously) but also as a reminder - of something I want to try or a direction I want to go.  Sometimes I'll have a start to a painting or a card or a digital project, but get stuck.  A flip through these inspiration journals (I'm on my 3rd) often helps me resolve my lack of direction.

Stay creative - do something different this week.....try a new technique, bring something outside and make something inside.....have a blast with your art!

inspiration journal

A simple, clean, unembellished journal.  Novel concept.  I read about this dynamite idea on iHanna's blog and, as with so many things, it hit at just the right time.  She wrote about creating a 'restraint journal' - a small notebook where you can create simple, quick collages on a plain white background and use up the scraps on your table.  You had me at restraint.  Like Hanna, restraint is something I don't usually practice, but once I got started on this journal, I couldn't stop!

I have a stack of inspiration pieces that I've printed out or cut from magazines and didn't quite know how to save them.  I wanted them accessible but not just stuffed in an envelope or box.  I'd been mulling it over for a week or two and then saw Hanna's blog post.  Genius!

Some tissue paper and a dab of one of my new washi tapes above.

 Manilla envelope pieces made it in a stack above.

 I love Chico's jewelry and advertising pieces!

I love the idea of grabbing whatever is on hand from my pile of scraps and concocting a quick composition.  Key word: quick.  I can play with color, with shapes, not so much with actual texture, but with visual texture.  The best part - I can play with my glue and paper and still watch TV - the best kind of multi tasking!

Michelle Ward advocates it as well:  Create a journal page that has minimal elements, less clutter, and more breathing room. I’m not saying that less is better than more; I’m simply asking you to try it. As we know, there are no rules when it comes to visual journaling.

Thanks Hanna & Michelle!