Affirmations for Artists, Art Journalers, & Creatives
Being an artist of any kind can be hard work. Harder than most people who don’t consider themselves artists assume. And that even goes for art journalers, who make art only for themselves, in their private art journals. So I decided to make this list of affirmations for artists, art journalers, and any other creative who sometimes struggles making art. I can’t say why we struggle. Is it because growing and learning and stretching as a human is an inherent part of being an artist? Maybe. But sometimes making art – whether on a canvas or in a junk journal or however we make our art – can be downright scary. But I don’t believe it has to be. And I do believe that the energy we have while making our art carries into the work. So if you want to make something without fear, using daily affirmations like those below can be extremely helpful! I’m sharing 27 affirmations for artists, but feel free to exclude those that don’t work for you, and add any that you create yourself that might be more helpful. I’ve also created graphics of most of the affirmations. Please feel free to pin them on Pinterest, and/or Instagram stories (be sure to tag me @joyfulartjournaling if you share them to IG stories! I’d love to see that!) The best way to read affirmations is to first choose those you want to say, and then say them to yourself in a mirror. Mindfully say each word and phrase, look yourself in the eyes, and really take it in. It may feel odd to say the affirmations to yourself in the mirror at first. If you just can’t do that (because it gives you the giggles or just makes you uncomfortable somehow) simply say them aloud, to yourself. Hopefully, in time, they will become natural for you, and you can ease into speaking them into a mirror. Here is my list of affirmations. Again, feel free to add to it, or discard those that don’t fit you or your situation. I am filled with creative ideas. I always have access to my creative higher self. The art I make is important, especially to me. I always have time to make art. I trust my inner creative guide. Getting into creative flow is easy for me. My artistic ideas are abundant and original. Making art is good for my soul. More and more creative ideas are coming my way. Today I will let my creativity guide me wherever it wants to go. I make and create art with ease and flow. The better it gets, the better it gets! I bring joy to the canvas and the canvas brings me more joy in return. Brilliantly creative ideas flow to me every day. Making art makes me happy. I’m progressing in my art practice daily. I celebrate even the tiniest wins in my art. As I grow as an artist, I become more of who I’m truly meant to be. I sell my art with ease. The business side of art lights me up. I love to see other artists succeeding, because it means that it’s possible for me, too. I surround myself with people and things that spark my creativity. My creativity is a gift, and I’m grateful for it. I’m in alignment with my creativity. I love myself even when I make “bad” art. I don’t make mistakes. What I labeled mistakes previously, I know now are just nudges that help me grow as an artist. I make time to make art every single day. There you go! 27 Affirmations for Artists, Art Journalers and Creatives of ALL kinds. Let me know if you like these, and if you do, I’ll make more. 🙂
Our new line of Modern Aesthetic Lined Journals!
While the bulk of what I write about here is art journaling, I also do some more “traditional” journaling (ie., writing down thoughts, feelings, bits of my days, gratitude lists, etc.) But when I realized a lot of other art journalers also love to journal in more traditional ways, too, I started dreaming up how I could create some beautiful, modern aesthetic lined journals. And finally, I’ve done just that! These journals are simple, by design! The lined pages are there for you to fill with things like: A daily diary or journal Gratitude lists Wish lists Quotes you love Your feelings and thoughts about things that happened in the past Journal about your travels A bucket list (things to do before you die) A fuck it list (things you never want to do again) A to-do list A self-love journal Or whatever YOU like to journal about! So far, we have four aesthetic cover options, with more to come! Check them out: These modern aesthetic lined journals make great gifts for the women in your life, millennials, moms, daughters, best friends, basically… all the cool people in your life! 😉 They are meant for writing in (I love using these pens in mine) you can also add things like stickers, washi tape, collage with glue sticks, even these tempera paint sticks. Just nothing too “wet” like watercolor, acrylic paints, etc. You can always see our most current line of journals and art journaling books here!
How to Start An Art Journal Blog
If you’re already sharing your art journal pages on social media, you might be wondering how to start an art journal blog in order to take it to the next level. Well, I’ve been creating websites since 1998 (whoa! Can it really be that long ago?!) After teaching myself HTML (the code you used to have to know in order to create a website) I started an online business from my kitchen when my babies were little. In fact, I remember trying code with one hand and holding my youngest with the other as she was breastfeeding. It certainly wasn’t easy! And that’s why I share that story with you: Because it’s never been easier to create a blog / website! Now, that’s not to say you might not face challenges as you make yours. There’s always a learning curve when doing something new. But I believe anyone can create an art journal blog, and you can make it as simple or as fancy as you want to! In fact, I’m going to teach you two ways to create your blog: one is just for fun and one has the potential to make a little extra money. (I’m in no way talking about getting rich here. But what if you could make an extra $50-100 a month for more art supplies? That might be fun, right?) So let’s get started, shall we? How to start an art journal blog Choosing a Domain Name One of the first steps in starting your art journal blog is choosing a domain name. This is how people will find your blog. Q. “Where can I see your art journals?” A. “Oh thanks! Over at www.MyDomainName.com!” For me, I found this process fun and frustrating! It’s fun because I love to brainstorm different ideas! You could use your name in the domain, a nickname, or even a business name. But sometimes, no matter how many ideas you write down, your ideas will all be taken. But don’t lose heart! There are ways to work around this. For instance, if you wanted to use your name, but it was taken, you could add something to it. Let’s say you were Betty Smith, and bettysmith.com was taken. You could try one (or more) of the following: bettysmithstudio.com bettysmithart.com bettysmithjournals.com bettyjournals.com etc. One thing I recommend against is adding a dash in your domain (like www.betty-smith.com). They are hard to say out loud (ie., “just go to Betty dash Smith dot com.”) and even harder for people to remember (so even if they do remember the gist of your domain, they might just end up at bettysmith.com anyway!) But you don’t have to use your actual name, of course! Like I mentioned before, you could use nickname, a business name, or, kind of like I did, you could even describe the type of art journaling you do. Though I would be careful about this, as you don’t want to box yourself in, either. You might start out with an art journaling blog, but you might expand to hand-lettering or mixed-media art or wherever else your creative exploration may take you! So just keep that in mind. Psst…. still stuck? Try this domain name generator! Once you’ve chosen a domain name and verified it’s actually available, the next step (before you pay for the domain!) is to see if that same name is available on the social media platforms you plan on using, as well. Let’s say you chose bettyjournals.com and you plan to be on Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok. You’ll want to go to each of those platforms and see if @BettyJournals is available. The reason for this is because, ideally, you want all of your social media handles the exact same as your domain. It makes it SO much easier to find you, and it will be 1000% more professional. You may be wondering: “So Jules, how much is this domain name going to cost me?” As I mentioned, I’ve been doing this for a long, long time. My favorite place to buy domains is NameCheap.com. Not only are the domains cheap (hence the name), they also include domain privacy for free. (Most domain registrars charge extra for this!) Domain privacy means people can’t see your name, email address, home/business address and/or phone number when they search for who owns your domain. Without that privacy feature, anyone can easily find all of that information about you… which can lead to things from spam to scams! So even if you don’t use NameCheap.com, please find a registrar that at least offers it Namecheap has a range of prices, but most available .com domains start around $9 a year. Not too bad! (As a comparison: I have a domain with another registrar that was $14.95 per year, plus an additional $15.95 a year for the domain privacy. On that account the domain privacy was free for the first year only. With NameCheap.com it’s free for life. Next Step: Add Hosting While you may not need to learn HTML (or any other website coding languages) all of those files (not to mention your images, videos, etc.) need a place to “live” on the internet. That’s what a hosting company does. NameCheap also offers hosting, but I honestly find it a little… awkward? So I use SiteGround to host all of my websites. You might find having your domain name and hosting all under one roof, so to speak, easier and more convenient, and that’s fine if you do. I prefer SiteGround for hosting, not just for ease of use, but their site speed, security, and tech support are some of the best I’ve ever seen and experienced. If I ever have questions or issues, they are quick and efficient in response. Plus, even for a “hobby blogger” their prices are affordable, starting around $6.99 per month. (I mean, I easily spend more than that on paint for art journaling!) Prices may change slightly, but they’ve remained mostly the same
Collage in Art Journals
Recently I bought the cutest pink art journal (pictured below), and I decided that every page in it would have at least a little bit of pink, in varying shades. I’ve used collage in art journals for years now, but for some reason (so far, anyway!) I’ve only made collages on every page in this journal. Maybe I’ll do some painting or drawing, etc., later on. But maybe not?! That is just one of the joys of art journaling! I do love collage (and I do a ton of it in my personal work), so I thought I’d share what I’ve been making with you here, too! (These images were first shared on my Instagram @joyfulartjournaling.) The first page of an art journal is always intimidating for some reason. I frequently wait until my journal is full to make something on the first page. The reason for that is because, by the time I’m done with a journal, it usually has its own “vibe” or feeling. But because I knew what I was making in this art journal (at least loosely based on the color pink), I felt a bit more confident going for it! (Although I probably created this page 3rd or 4th after some others.) Pink and grey are definitely a theme, at least in the beginning of this journal. But they go so well together, it’s hard to help using them over and over! 😜 The following images are in the order which they appear in the journal, so far, anyway. (I sometimes skip a page because the idea I have for one side doesn’t go with the other.) And finally, this is the (incredibly cute!) notebook I’m using for these collages. Mine is pink and 5.7″x8″, but they come in a wide variety of colors and sizes.
Art Journal Update and Inspiration
Hello friends! It’s been a minute since I posted here. There are a few reasons for that, but for the most part it can simply be summed up as: 2020. Ha! I’m mostly joking. There are some (really) good things going on here, too! Like the fact that I’m creating my first art journaling class! I’m super excited to share that with you, as soon as it’s done. But I didn’t want you to think that I’ve quit journaling, or creative exploring! So I thought I’d share a bit of what I’ve been up to… Like the fact that I tried Gelli printing for the first time, and I’m in love! It’s a form of mono printing that you do on a “gel” or gelatin plate. “Gelli Plates” are actually a brand — and the brand I use for my gel printing. They come in a variety of sizes, as well as kits. Here are two of the gelli prints I made in my journal: Those are definitely not my “normal” colors, but that is one of the joys of Gelli printing: you really get to explore all kinds of ideas! This second photo is definitely more in my comfort zone, as far as colors go. I re-used some of my “stencils” as collage elements for both spreads in my art journal. I really like how they turned out! I made so many Gelli prints, I started to wonder what I was going to do with them all! Well, duh! Making art journals from them was the perfect idea. So I printed on both sides of several papers, cut them down evenly, and bound them with embroidery thread. The journal they produced is pretty small — about 4.5″x7″ — but not tiny. It’s a great size to throw in my bag and work on it on the go! Here is the cover: And here is one section of the inside (I share more of the inside pages on my Instagram): Speaking of small art journals; I found this teeny tiny (about 2″x3″) sketchbook from 2008! I only made 3.5 portraits in it, but I was so inspired by them, I’ve decided to work in it more. Here is one of the portraits (I drew them all with stippling): This stipple portrait was after an Albrecht Dürer painting that I love, Portrait of a Young Venetian Woman. You can see the rest of the stipple portraits I made on my Instagram. Stipple drawing is so fun, but also very time consuming. So future portraits in this tiny sketchbook will likely come in many forms/mediums. Also, I’m really close to finishing my latest altered book! Here is one of the spreads I made recently: art journal inspiration And, of course, I’m still art journaling, too! Here are some recent highlights for some art journal inspiration: So there you have it! What I’ve been working on lately. (I actually tried perfect bookbinding for the first time, too! But that’s for another blog post.) Let’s stay in touch!
Iconic “Retro” Pen Set Review
They other day I realized that, with alllll my markers, I didn’t have a single one I’d call a “mustard” color. I bought this set of 80 Crayola Markers (including 12 scented markers! Hellloooooo 4th grade!) and between that pack and some other more expensive pens I had, I thought it would be years before I needed to buy more. But I was missing any kind of mustard colored pen. So of course I went to my favorite shopping site during this pandemic: Amazon. I searched for a “mustard pen”… The first response was this Copic Marker… a good quality choice, but it was $8 for one pen, plus they wanted me to pay for shipping! On Amazon? No thanks. 😜 But there was another result that intrigued me… This 5 pack of markers – including the mustard color I was looking for, not to mention some other super cool colors – for under $7 for the whole set! With a 4.5 star rating, and the free shipping I’ve grown accustom to with Amazon Prime, I thought it couldn’t hurt to give them a try for myself. I think the overall consensus in the reviews was quite accurate. Here is an overview of what I read that I agree with: Iconic “Retro” Pen Set Pros The colors are amazing The price is right I love the dual tips The chisel tip allows for extra creativity They’re water-based so you can use them almost like watercolor pens Even on my very thin planner paper, there wasn’t any bleed-through until I made 5+ passes in one spot Did I mention the amazing, on-trend colors? Iconic “Retro” Pen Set Cons The small tip is so small, and the colors are so light, it’s hard to read if you’re using it for lettering The chisel nibs are rough, so if you go over a spot more than two times (or more) there will liking be some piling on your paper (see video below) While I listed being water-based as a pro, some art journalers might consider it a con, as they’d rather have a permanent ink. So this one comes down to personal preference Based on my personal experience…. well, I’m in love with these pens. They do offer other color sets, which you can be sure I’ll purchase in the near future. I mentioned the set I purchased is called “Retro”, but check out these delightful color names: Cloudy Blue Brownie Pink Mustard Yellow Pale Vermilion Warm Grey Here’s a quick video that shows how the colors layer. I like that you can create a gradient, but there is some piling due to the chisel tip being so rough. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jules @ Joyful Art Journaling (@joyfulartjournaling) on Sep 11, 2020 at 1:54pm PDT As I mentioned before, there was no bleed-through on any pages, including my thin planner paper, which is great because I will definitely be using them in there. The other Iconic sets I’ve saved to my wish list now that I know what to expect: Deco Retro Mild Highlighters (which is a larger pack that includes the five colors I’ve reviewed here, plus five more – I’d say- brighter colors) Pastel Retro (which also includes the five colors I reviewed here, plus five more light colors) And just so you know, the little journal I used in these photos is an amazing mixed-media sketchbook from Bee Paper Company. They’re a little on the pricey side, but SO worth it! Well, that’s all for today… I just had to share because I’m seriously so obsessed with this pretty pen set! I hope you love it, too.
Ways to Save Money Art Journaling
Art journaling is more than just a hobby for me. It’s my favorite way to be a creative explorer, it’s cathartic, it’s fun, and, well, the truth is, I love buying ALL THE SUPPLIES! Paints, pens, journals, stickers…. This list can (and does!) go on and on! (Want proof? Check out this giant list of art journal supplies.) But today I want to talk about ways to save money art journaling (and in some cases, help save the planet, too!) Ways to Save Money Art Journaling: Use What You Have Using what you have on hand is probably one of the easiest ways to save money art journaling! I’m always trying to think of new ways to use old things – or things headed for the trash or recycle bins – in new ways. Here are some ideas for using what you have: Instead of buying plastic (or other) wells for water dishes for your paint brush, use glass jars that were headed to the bin instead. Some of the glass jars I like (because they’re generally not too small or too big) are jelly jars, mayonnaise jars (I buy my mayo from Trader Joe’s, and those are perfect), salsa jars, etc. I also save tiny jars with tight lids whenever I can to store leftover oil paints. In fact, sometimes you only need a tiny bit of water, and a small space for some paint(s). For those times, I also save the lids from many jars. In this case, I like bigger lids with a semi-tall lip (like the lids from peanut butter, spaghetti, and/or jars from bigger/bulk products that I buy at Costco.) The parchment paper you have in the kitchen works in your art journals (at least) a few different ways: You can use it as a tracing paper or as a transparent paper or page in your art journal. And you can also use it in between pages, especially if you think your paint might still be wet, or if you’ve used a loose medium (like lead pencil, pastels, even crayons in some cases) and you don’t want it transferring to the other side. If you want to try making your own rubber stamps, try carving into things around the house, first. Some ideas that come to mind are potatoes (a long-time favorite for carving and stamping!) and cork. But I’ve seen people get creative and carve into Styrofoam (like the trays meat comes in, after it’s been fully washed and sanitized), etc. I never used to use stickers in my art journals, but now I not only use them (often!) in my art journals, but in my planner as well. Which means I’ve purchased quite a few (ha!) packs. I started storing them in a box on my desk, but they quickly outgrew that. So I decided to store them in a pretty bowl my grandmother left me. Not only am I now using and appreciating the bowl all the time, I can easily see and grab the stickers, too. A long time ago I bought some butcher paper to place over my work surface to spare my desk. But I now realize, I never needed it! I get enough junk mail (for free, of course), so why would I ever use good, clean, brand new paper for that? Now I use catalog pages and other mailers to protect other surfaces, and/or for putting glue on smaller images for collage. PRO TIP: Only use glossy catalogs and mailers. Those that are more like newspaper will smudge and lift and make not only you, but your artwork, a blurry mess. Make your own stencils. Stencils can be really expensive, so why not cut your own? Print or draw on cardstock paper (other thicker) and (carefully!) cut it using an exacto knife on a self-healing cutting mat. Depending on the design (and how careful you are while cutting), you might even be able to use the “inside” cut as a reverse stencil, too. Raid your own junk drawers. You may be surprised what you find in your junk drawers that you can use in your art journals! (Especially if you have or had kids in the house. Even teens need art supplies for school projects, and they usually end up in junk drawers when they’re done.) But stuff like glue/glue sticks, colored pens, stickers/labels, pencils (lead or colored), bold markers, rulers, scissors, punches, staplers, tape, etc., all may be discovered in your junk drawer(s). Start hoarding … I mean saving! 😉 Save all (or at least bits of) all the “pretty” (which may actually be pretty, but may also just be interesting or colorful or patterned, etc.) paper you receive. Think things like: holiday/birthday cards, wrapping paper, interesting/foreign product packaging, etc. I also like to save things like: the mesh from produce bags, doilies from coffee shops, matchbook covers, fortunes from fortune cookies, takeaway menus, maps, etc. Ways to Save Money Art Journaling: Save on What You Don’t Have Not only use your own old magazines for collage materials, but ask your friends for their old magazines, and books too. (If they get “fun” catalogs, ask for those, too. Fun for me might mean an Anthropologie catalog, but whatever you like is the point.) Looking for inspiring images of places you either want to visit or have visited and loved? A lot of places (cities, towns, states, etc.) will send you a free travel catalog filled with gorgeous images. For instance, you can order a travel guide from my hometown of Portland right here. Looking for other cities? Just Google “Town name + travel guide” and you’re likely to find one for the city of your choice. You can also try searching by state, as well. Do an art supply swap! If you have other creative, art journaling friends, why not do a supply swap? In the past I’ve done a supply swap where a bunch of people sign up, and everyone sends out one “large”
art journal video: journaling with jules!
Even though I’m a shy person by nature, I’ve decided to make more art journal videos of my process, etc. But I’m just making baby steps to start, like in the video below where I’m just showing my hands at work. Still, I hope the video provides some insight and inspiration into my art process, that you can then use in yours! Before I started the video, I collected some images that generally went together (based on color more than subject or style, in this case), and then the tools I knew I’d need to put it all together, which was simply a pair of scissors and a gluestick. The only idea I had going in was the floral strip of paper at the bottom, and the vintage botanical illustration. Everything else was essentially improvised, which you will see peeks of during the art journal video… View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jules @ Joyful Art Journaling (@joyfulartjournaling) on Aug 6, 2020 at 10:09am PDT It’s funny, as I gathered different things to include in the art journal video for this spread, I thought I’d use more of them than I did. I do tend to be more minimalist in my art journals, but every once in awhile I’ll just keep adding and adding until a spread is, well, more maximalist! Which way do your art journal pages lean? Minimal? Or filled with layers from top to bottom and back again? Let us know in the comments below! And if you want a sweet freebie for your art journals, check out this offer: Want 3 Free Vintage Flower Images for Your Art Journal?
June Art Journal Challenge: Days 16-30
Well, the June 2020 Joyful Art Journaling Challenge has come to an end… but it certainly won’t be the last art journal challenge I host! In fact, I’ll probably do one every January and June, if all goes as planned. I think you’ll see by the images below, I had a lot of fun with the prompts, and I hope you did, too! Day 16: Vintage It’s funny, I have so much vintage ephemera, yet I used all new materials for this prompt. But what I tried to do was use a palette and vintage inspired ephemera to create the feeling of vintage. Day 17: Layers I used a print of one of my old illustrations (the girl), as well as vintage and new ephemera for this spread. And I actually made even more layers (check them out on Instagram… swipe over to watch the short video.) Day 18: ART + WORDS Art is often political, though I personally usually try to stay away from that in my own art, I just could no longer ignore my own feelings. As a HUMAN and the mother of a black daughter, I had to add my (albeit small) voice and support to the #BlackLivesMatter movement with my art. Day 19: What Makes You Happy The water definitely makes me happy! The ocean, a lake, river, stream, pool, shoot… even a nice bath or shower can uplift my mood. And “Meet Me by the Water” is a song by Rachael Yamagata, and it also happens to be my wedding song! (Of course.🥰) Day 20: Bird This was a fun spread to make… are these birds courting? Fighting? Dancing? It’s up to you to decide. Day 21: Dots + Stripes I did a series like this for the 100 Day Challenge one year. I think of them as color studies in a way, but I also love to look closer and see all the little weird things going on (literal or implied.) Day 22: Flowers I love flowers so much, and this image from a early 1900’s book about them in particular… This illustration was so precious to me I didn’t want to “mess it up” by cutting or manipulating it too much, but in the end, I think by “saving” it, I didn’t really do it justice. It became one of my least favorite pages from this challenge. And I mean, with 30 spreads, you’re bound to have favorites as well as pages you’d rather forget. But I still love the original flower illustration and quote! Day 23: Animals “Stan was the snappiest dresser among his herd of friends.” In contrast to the previous day’s spread, this one, though super simple, was SO fun, and he still brings a huge smile to my face! I’ve made anthropomorphic collages for a long time (I probably made my first one in 2005ish?!) but this one was definitely inspired by day 28 of this CreativeBug “Daily Creativity at Home” class! Day 24: Monochromatic I definitely bent the rules a bit for this prompt, but that’s what artists do, right? Besides, I love this collage! And I really want that car IRL. Day 25: Rainbow I made some little pride flags and then cut them into rainbow shapes. I’m definitely a #straightally and was happy to see there’s a flag for that, too! (If you want to know which flag represents what, check out my Instagram post and swipe over to see the labels.) Day 26: Pattern I made these little cactus cuties with micron pens and watercolor brush pens. Day 27: 3D I made a teeny tiny art journal and decorated a match box to store it in for the 3-D prompt. You can watch a video about it right here on Instagram. Day 28: Abstract Another little color study type collage for day 28. Day 29: Minimalism I used the idea of minimalism to show that you can create a simple, but beautiful and/or meaningful art journal spread very simply and quickly! I used gouache paint for the base (it dries quickly), some magazine/collage elements, and a sticker… viola! Done! Day 30: Transparent I wish I could have taken a better picture for the “transparent” prompt, because I actually really like how this turned out! I cut the square hole in 2 pages of my art journal, and used two sheets of (very vintage!) velum-type paper (it was in a cabinet photograph) on either side of this vintage peach illustration I cut out. In the photo below I had a candle on the other side of the page, but it still doesn;t quite convey the transparency. But hopefully you get the idea! 😉 So there you have it! Days 16-30 of the June Joyful Art Journaling Challenge! I hope you’re looking forward to the next one as much as I am!
June Art Journal Challenge: Days 1-15
Well, we’re about halfway through the #JoyfulArtJournalingJune art journal challenge, so I thought I’d share what I’ve made so far! PLEASE NOTE: I’m about to talk about some things that are HARD. That are not art journal related, but I feel are important to express at this time. There is a LOT going on in the world, and a lot of it feels overwhelming. If you’d rather skip some of my thoughts and opinions on it all and just see and read about the art journals, I understand. Click here and it will skip it and take you to day one. Or, read on… But before I get to that, I have to say that the theme I chose has been tough for a lot of people, myself included. “Joy” was the theme I chose to try to see some light during the COVID Quarantine. But then George Floyd was murdered. And while he was sadly/painfully/horrifyingly not (even close to) the first black man to be killed by the police, his death became a catalyst. A tipping point. A message to the world: this is not a right or left thing, this is a right or wrong thing. The police MUST stop killing black people. The truth is, I’ve been fighting white supremacy since I was 16 years old. But this time in the world has made me realize that even I have become too complacent in that fight. And the truth is, I am finally seeing some hope for REAL change. But yes, it’s hard to find JOY when you’re infuriated. Sick and tired. Afraid for your children… and eventually their children. Worried about everyone’s health. And lives. And more… it can be/IS overwhelming at times. And the truth is, some days I just couldn’t get into my art journal. So I’d spend the next day catching up. I also admit I’ve been numbing out. My version of that has meant copious amounts of time spent playing Animal Crossing. But at the end of the day (or maybe the end of the month, in this case) I still feel that joy is not only attainable, but necessary. And powerful. What are we fighting for if not joy? Okay… having said that, I want to share with you what I’ve made this first half of the month! (And I’ll share the second half when the month is over.) See the end of this post for a list of some of the supplies I used to make these pages. Day 1: Joy In my Instagram post for this day’s prompt, I talked about how obsessed I was with Marilyn Monroe as a teen. I had pictures and posters of her all over my room for years. And while in many ways her life and story are really sad, her radiant smile still brings me so much joy! Day 2: Black and White For day 2 I went back to practicing line drawings of flowers (if you like these and want to learn how to draw them, too, see my review of How to Draw Modern Florals.) Day 3: Collage I had fun with this little collage! I used vintage paper and images, as well as new. Day 4: Portrait I did a bit of collage as well as pencil, pen and paint for this portrait. Day 5: Quote Day 6: Peach This was/is one of my favorites from the challenge so far! Day 7: Watercolor For this day’s prompt I actually made the watercolor on a piece of watercolor paper and then glued it into an altered book I’ve been working on. Day 8: Envelope Day 9: Free Day I made another fun bird-lady collage for our free day. Day 10: Clouds I used a powerful quote from Louisa May Alcott for day 10. Day 11: Home A feeling that is all too familiar for me… Day 12: Botanical I was super busy this day, so I just used stickers. I love it! And I love that an art journal page can be a simple, quick, and easy as this. Day 13: Mixed- Media I’d definitely say this is another favorite from this challenge so far! I wasn’t sure exactly what I was going to make, but I started putting down some watercolor on the page, and the shape of a girl’s head started to appear, so I went with it! Day 14: Favorite Color When I was little my favorite color was blue. In high school it was purple. Later it was red, for a long time. But then I realized, I really can’t choose one favorite! I love all the colors! Even the so called “ugly” ones. They all help enhance and beautify our world. Day 15: Eyes I had so much fun drawing all these eyes for day 15! So there you have it: the first 15 days of the #joyfulartjournalingjune art journal challenge! It’s not too late to join in, and make along with us when you can. See the all the daily art journal prompts for the challenge here. Besides the vintage ephemera used, most of the new art supplies I used in this art journal challenge can be found here. Some highlights include: Journals: Canson XL, Stillman & Birn Zeta Series Softcover Sketchbook, Field Artist Masters Series 5×5 Watercolor Journal, Images from Extraordinary Things to Cut Out and Collage, and Vintage Botanical Illustration: Copyright-Free Images for Artists, Designers and Plant Lovers. PSST…. WANT Some FREE PRINTABLE VINTAGE ANIMAL EPHEMERA FOR YOUR ART JOURNAL? SIN UP BELOW: