Explore mixed media art journaling with these free printable stencils. Follow these easy mixed media tutorials and make fun and artsy pages.

Hello friends :) Happy New Year, lol! I can't believe that I haven't blogged in 6 months. Life has been busy I guess, right?! I recently had a lot of fun in the studio making little paper houses. I posted several photos on my Facebook page. The response has been great and I've had several requests for a tutorial, so I wanted to share that with you all. Here it is... Step 1: I took some mop up paper I had saved. It was basically a piece of paper I had taped down to my work space to protect it from paint, sprays, etc. Step 2: I cut out some basic house shapes, no measuring! Just wing it, more fun indeed. Step 3: I cut some windows and doors out of a contrasting color. This helps them to sort of pop forward from the house itself and adds some interest. Glue these down with a glue stick. Step 4: I used a water soluble journaling pen (Pilot G-2 07) to outline the house, roof, windows and door. Step 5: I took a water brush and brushed lightly over the lines I drew. This gave a darker definition and helps pop those doors and windows!! :) Step 6: I added doodles, dots and little design elements to unify colors and shapes. I also added some words and hearts. Don't forget to draw a door knob! Below are some pics of various houses I have made. Hope this has helped fuel your creative juices. Have fun making these, but be warned they are very addictive! :)

Create mixed media backgrounds in your art journal with easy step-by-step tutorials with photos for each step. Plus: a background challenge.

Learn 3 Distressing Paper Craft Techniques using The Graphics Fairy Images. Add more life to your paper crafting, Mixed Media art, Junk Journals, & Collage.

Hi there, Susanne here with a quick and easy abstract collage that is done in one of my small spiral bound sketchbooks using handpainted/ handstamped papers. I used stamps from Carved Collection 1 …

“What paper is in that journal?” is the most common question that I’m asked lately, and you can read all about that paper in my last blog post. But today I’m back on the blog, talking about all of my favorite pens for doing hand lettering in mixed media art journaling. You might think that the an

Hi friends! I hope you had a good weekend! A big thank you to everyone who commented on my SSS Falling For You Blog Hop post on Friday. I ha...

This is the book of the PDF pages for this class by Dina Wakley. I love this class. I am practicing up to do the "Graffiti of my Life" online class by Dina Wakley. I have watched the videos all the way through and I absolutely love what she does and I am looking forward to getting started. It is a very neat journal with a coptic stitch which she explains so clearly. I am anxious to sew one up! These two pages are in my larger watercolor journal.

Explore textures shapes and color aka Leslie's 68 photos on Flickr!

10 of the best free vintage ephemera printables/digi scraps sites for use in your planners, scrapbooks, mixed media, smash books and journals. Kerrymay._.Makes

Hand-decorated colorful papers for collage art. Step-by-step instructions for creating your own patterned paper. Easy art project.

Learn how to do asemic writing and how to incorporate it into mixed media or abstract art.

Hi Everyone, I’m thinking a lot about making marks at the moment. Marks on paper and cloth in this case, but I can’t help muse about the drive we humans have to make or leave our mark in the wider …

5x3.5 in. cabinet card for John Chen, paper collage

Would you like to begin Bible art journaling with pretty letter writing, but are unsure how to begin, here is a tutorial on simple lettering for beginners.

Today I gave my poetry workshop an exercise in asemic writing. First time I’ve tried it & they done good. Here’s the exercise, with prelims. (And, at the end, some asemic resources.…

I don’t usually do this, but I am about to gush over a new technique book. The Encaustic Studio: A Wax Workshop in Mixed-Media Art by Daniella Woolf is simply the best, most comprehensive, and most inspiring book on encaustic art techniques I have ever seen-and a video comes with it, too boot. Encaustic with…

With permission, I share some more photos from Laurie Doctor's recent journal/sketchbook workshop at Preston Arts Center in Louisville. See my last post for a few pix from my first day. Here is Connie Newbank's collage - our final project was to make a collage of 6-9 equal parts from various pages we'd done over the weekend. Here is Barb Beattie's collage. Here is a photo of the lovely fruits and veggies that Laurie procured for our contour drawing exercises. Here are Barb's contour drawn asparagus spears. Here are Deb Warnat's contour drawn apples. Here's another of Deb's pages. Here is Deb's collage page. Here is my collage. Not really done in the workshop, but done ahead for the workshop, I decided to save in my journals the many four leafed clovers I find. I have some pages with the clovers taped over, but these were affixed with matte medium. Here is what we were all there for - Laurie's exciting work. I for one hope to achieve something like her integral whole from various five minute sessions. Laurie's pages may be worked on for only five minutes at a time, or completed in one sitting, but they always seem to have such life. The contrasting letter styles and colors and weights all come together beautifully. Here is Marilynn Swan's collage. 'Little jewels' are what we called the bright spots of color. Here is Marilyn Fischer's collage. Another of Marilyn's pages. Patty Bertsch's tiny black and white collage. I hope to upload a few more images if I receive more permissions/photos. If I've misidentified any of these, please let me know and I'll correct it. NOTE: Laurie had work published in The Annual Juried Issue of Letter Arts Review, 25:2. Congratulations, laurie!

In today’s tutorial, I will be showing you how you can add a color effect to your lettering/calligraphy in 5 different ways - step by step! Colors are a great way to enhance your work, and the gradient effect will take that to the next level. Perhaps there are even…

Art Journals & Some Creative Inspiration (or Admiration….) By random chance I have found myself looking at people’s journals this weekend. It turns out that there are some very crea…

Everything you need to know about how to add your own very personal stories to your art using Stacked Journaling is contained here in this primer. Hope you enjoy! Stacked Journaling, A Primer In 2010, while searching for my own unique mark-making technique- something that went a bit beyond the mostly impersonal lines, circles and cuneiform designs I often rely on for texture and movement in my paintings and collages- I hit on the idea of stacking handwritten text in opposing layers to create a simple but lovely calligraphic line design. I originally had very modest aspirations for what I began to call Stacked Journaling- it needed only to yield fine, detailed, intentional lines that could serve as backgrounds, filler textures or other creative “support” roles. Instead, it grew to be not only the inspiration for all of my work since, but also a highly effective therapeutic tool I took full advantage of during the first months after I took over the care of my elderly father. Pouring my worries, frustrations and fears about my fathers’ illnesses into a series of Stacked Journaling “art letters”, written to him and to other family members and friends, allowed me to work through my grief and say whatever needed to be expressed by my heart while still giving me a measure of privacy. “Dear Dad: Sorrow” 5”x7” stretched canvas Hitting on a design that would wind up starring in the show and playing all the bit parts was very welcome serendipity. Stacked Journaling, while incredibly easy to learn, has become one of the most versatile mark-making techniques I’ve ever used. That it is inherently more personal by being in one’s own handwriting makes it that much more appealing. Now mind you, I am not a calligrapher and neither do you need to be to use this technique with great effect! In fact, my own handwriting is generally rushed, sloppy and difficult to read. Whether your handwriting is spiky and artistic, flowing and curvaceous, or tiny and precise, there are easy tricks and tips to make it work with Stacked Journaling, so let’s explore them! Stacked Journaling 101 (The Basics and Some Tips) What You’ll Need: paper (unlined is best for practice), pencil/pen/marker What You’ll Do: With easy, comfortable strokes, begin writing. It doesn’t really matter what you write- create silly poetry on the fly, use stream of consciousness journaling, talk about your kids, pets or spouse- just get words onto the page. Run your words together and leave out spaces that might indicate where they begin and end. Avoid capitalizations for the same reason- you’re looking to create seamless lines of text. At the end of your line of text, turn the paper 90 degrees to either the right or the left, and continue writing on top of your previous line of text. Here is an example of the letter spacing I often use for my second layer of text (turn your head 90 degrees to the left to see it!): Tips For Creating The Cleanest Line Possible In order to “stack” my handwriting and not have my final result not look like aimless squiggles and swirls, I follow a few simple guidelines for keeping things neat and clean. Avoid Punctuation The fewer dots, stand-alone squiggles, and blotchy marks you produce, the cleaner and tighter the final design will be. Add Flair To Your Old Hand Exaggerate your handwriting by adding more swoops, tall spikes, and deep curves. Take advantage of letters that dip below or soar above the others, and add tails and swirls where you can. Allow one letter to overlap and flow into the next. Smooth, gestural writing while keeping your hand, wrist and arm loose will produce a softer, more lyric handwriting. Play With Scale The scale (size) of the letters you make is important to the overall look of your finished Stacked Journaling. Large loopy letters of the same general size layered one on top of another will produce a fine, lace-like quality to the text, as in Example A in the photo below. In Example B, the top layer of lettering is smaller, giving the overall look of a much more full texture, and in Example C, the top layer of text is written in very small hand, giving the overall look a very dense texture. Choosing which scale works for you and your project is a matter of personal taste and need, so experiment! Shapes And Curves Stacked Journaling doesn’t just have to be used as a straight line element! Experiment with using it in curving, loopy designs or as filler for sketched items like leaves, houses, and animals. Change the size of your lettering at will to create whatever shape you need! That’s all there is to it! Simple, right? But there are so many fun ways to create your own personalized Stacked Journaling for your sketchbooks, scrapbooks, art pieces, or textile surface designs, and I can’t wait to share them with you! Techniques Reconnect With History Of course, you can use any writing instrument to stack your journaling, from markers, to colored pencils, to the finest quality calligraphy pens, but one of my favorite ways to Journal is with a dip pen and India ink. What You’ll Need: writing surfaces- paper, tightly woven, smooth fabric such as silk or cotton muslin, painted surfaces such as collage papers or painted artists’ canvases; dip pen nib holder (http://www.dickblick.com/products/speedball-fine-point-dip-pen-nibs-and-holder/); nibs (http://www.dickblick.com/products/speedball-lettering-nibs/); India ink (http://www.dickblick.com/products/dr-ph-martins-bombay-india-inks/) What You’ll Do: Stack your journaling on nearly every surface you can think of! India ink is water proof and permanent (once dry) on many surfaces, including paper, fabric, and acrylic paint, but can be removed- remarkably- with a spritz of Windex. India ink comes in an incredible array of bold, bright colors and yields a clean, crisp line when used with nibs. I prefer the round nibs for writing, but if you’re a calligraphic purist, you might want to try the square nibs, too! Both work equally well with Stacked Journaling. Resist This! Another fun way to play with Stacked Journaling is to use a resist to write it on top of painted papers. What You’ll Need: Masking fluid with attached nib (http://www.dickblick.com/products/masquepen-art-masking-fluid/); pre-painted or watercolored paper (don’t use this product on fabric, you will never get it out, again! There are appropriate resists for fabric, which you can find here: (http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/2935226-AA.shtml) What You’ll Do: 1. Working quickly (this product dries fast!), stack some journaling on top of a lightly colored (or white) background. 2. Allow to dry fully. 3. Paint over the resist with another color to create a strong contrast. 4.Once the paper is fully dry again, gently rub away the resist. Not Your Mother’s Tin Foil One of my favorite ways to use Stacked Journaling is with glue and some lovely, shiny copper or gold textile foil. What You’ll Need: Textile adhesive and foil (http://www.lauramurraydesigns.com/foil.php#foilacc); plastic squeeze bottle with narrow tip (http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/empty-dream-squeeze-bottle-363150/), paper, fabric, artist canvas (really, anything works well with this technique!); hot, dry iron; parchment paper or other non-stick ironing sheet. What You’ll Do: 1. Transfer some of the adhesive into the squeeze bottle and cap it tightly. The tip of the bottle is a perfect size for lettering, so you should now be able to just turn the bottle over and use it as if it was a pencil or pen. 2. As you journal, keep squeezing the bottle with steady pressure to get an even line of glue (practice on scrap paper is always advisable but you should get a sense pretty quickly how fast and how thickly the glue will flow.) 3. When you’re done Journaling with it, allow the glue to fully dry. 4. From the roll or sheet of foil, cut a piece large enough to cover your design. 5. Lay your cut piece face down on your dried glue. THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT---textile foil is a layer of metallic pigment attached to a plastic carrier sheet. It has a shiny side that is the color of the foil you want to adhere to your work, and a dull (often gray/silver) side. The dull side MUST be laid face down on the adhesive, with the shiny, colored side facing UP! 6. Cover the shiny side of the foil with parchment paper or another non-stick ironing sheet. 7. With a hot, dry iron, press the foil onto the glue, holding the iron still and pressing down firmly for a few seconds in each spot, until you feel the foil has adhered to the glue. 8. While still warm, grab one corner of the foil carrier sheet and a corner of your substrate containing the Stacked Journaling in adhesive, and with a firm, quick movement, pull them apart. If some of the glue remains uncovered with foil, you can repeat steps 5-8 as often as needed. "Dear Dementia: You Haven’t Won, Yet" 16” x 20” framed canvas Scribble In Paint Being a diehard painter and mixed-media artist, I always get my most excited when the acrylics come out, and that’s never more true than when I’m creating Stacked Journaling on a large scale. Paint combined with Stacked Journaling is the perfect marriage of medium and technique because the limitless color palette of acrylic paint married with some of the tips and products I’ve shown you here can produce beautiful script of any scale, from small sketchbook pages to fabric yardage for quilting. What You’ll Need: a painting surface- this can be anything from tissue, to the pages of your sketchbooks, to water color paper, to stretched artist canvases, to cotton and silk yardage; medium to heavy-bodied acrylic paint in multiple colors- anything from thick craft paint to high end textile paints will do but try to purchase it in a tube rather than in a tub; squeeze bottle with narrow openings (http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/empty-dream-squeeze-bottle-363150/) AND/OR squeeze bottles with metal tips (http://www.dickblick.com/products/squeeze-bottle-with-tips/); lightweight fusable fabric stabilizer (optional) What You’ll Do: 1. If using fabric and you prefer to do so, stabilize it first. I’ve never felt a need for it when using this technique, but I can see advantages to doing so. Follow your instinct and the requirements of your project! 2. Squeeze a small amount of paint from the tube into a squeeze bottle (this is why a tube of paint is easier to work with than a tub!) You will usually need a little more paint than you think you will. You can now use the bottle with or without the metal tips. If using the tips, just screw them gently onto the tip of the bottle. 3. Turn the bottle over and let the paint flow into the tip, or cover the opening of the tip with your finger and shake the bottle firmly downward. You want to remove as much air as possible between the paint and the opening of the bottle. 4. Begin Journaling as if you were writing with a pencil or pen, squeezing steadily to get a consistent line thickness. 5. When finished Journaling, allow to dry completely. 6. If you used textile paints, either on fabric or on paper, they will most likely need to be heat set. Follow the paint manufacturer’s recommendations for doing this! Monoprinting Variation: For an easy variation of the technique above, try journaling on a piece of plastic (I get rolls of this stuff in the big box hardware stores, but a repurposed plastic bag cut to size will work perfectly, too) or parchment paper. Before the paint has a chance to dry, turn the plastic/parchment over onto your painting surface, and gently burnish it with your hands to transfer the paint from the plastic to your surface. This technique creates what looks almost like a foreign language (maybe even alien!) and adds another layer of mysterious obscurity to your text. Three layers of Monoprinted Stacked Journaling in paint on hand-dyed fabric Just For Fun ~ Layer, layer, layer! Stacked Journaling is- at its heart- a beautiful, often lyrical, fill texture. It loves being heavily layered, particularly in paint, so don’t be shy. ~ Change colors often! No one says that if you begin Journaling with one color, you must finish with it, too, so add layers of colors, one on top of another until you have a complex web of text. If you’re using paint to do this and you don’t want to muddy your colors together too much, I recommend allowing each layer to set up for thirty minutes or so before adding another layer. ~ Maybe you’ve created an appealing or personal Stacked Jouranling design and you’d like to be able to print it off multiple times. Have a Thermofax screen made of it! And you don’t have to own a Thermofax machine yourself, anymore, because artists like Lynn Krawczyk are making it easier than ever for the studio artist to gain access to them! ~Abstract yourself! Need a quick fill texture, but aren’t sure what to write? Try stacking numbers! Give them fancy swirls and swoops just like you do your letters; run them together and on top of each other; turn the page 45 degrees and do it again, and again, until you achieve the density you’re looking for. ~Dye your own fabric? Try Stacked Journaling using thickened dyes, or discharge some Stacked Journaling with a bleach pen, a metal nib and some of your own fabrics!

Gesso is a supply that I think is often overlooked or only thought of as a basic prepping supply. But that is really doing this amazing medium a big disservice. I love to use gesso in lots of different ways in my art journals and I am sharing a really great background idea with you here in this vide

There are a 1,ooo ways to use a gel plate and what do I do? One of the simplest, most basic techniques. Why would that be a good thing? Because it kept me from falling into the trap of overthinking. Over thinking takes all the fun out of the play and I could feel my mind heading towards being stuck in the […]

Learn how to draw calligraphy doodles straight from the pages of Zen Doodle Oodles of Doodles!

We spy tons of common tools and found objects for mixed media art. Rae Missigman takes us on a visual scavenger hunt to find all the ways we can repurpose everyday objects in our art.

Water-soluble crayon and pen and ink. An encouragement from my art journal for those times when it all hits the fan.

Play Along Journal Series Week 5 Part 2

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