FOCUS...

The last few years I've picked a word to focus on that year. This year I'm focusing on focusing! For a woman who no longer has kids at home, I still feel like I'm juggling a lot of balls in the air. I've been working on growing my business, traveling affordably, fixing up my home and garden, using my resources well, spending time with family and friends, and oh yes....cuddling my new grandbaby.

Lately I've started and stopped on my artwork, throwing out things that were a mess, and painting over canvases that I wasn't pleased with...until I kind of stopped and instead threw myself into the holidays. So...I decided to do Journal 52 as a way to focus and get my arty mojo back. The first week's prompt was to pick a word for the year.

So my word is FOCUS. The verse that goes with it is one of my favorites: 2 Timothy 1:7. "for God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, love, and self control."

What a great Spirit to have!

Documented Life...Self Portrait

Here is my self portrait for The Documented Life Project. I like how it turned out, though it doesn't look just like me, and looked less like me before a little surgery to the drawing. But hey, it's more practice!

Here is the picture I worked with, and my sketch. Now when I step back I can see that my eyes in the photo are rounder and my face fuller...and the mouth is way off. Little things can change the whole expression on a face.

After I painted it I covered the mouth and thought I liked the top half of the picture. So I ripped off the bottom part, and collaged the part I like with some underpaper (the paper that catches my drips and all when I'm working) and tape and bits of the border.

I'll have another go at this someday. I'm pinched for time these days, so this works for me for now. Another day, another drawing! Today I'll be working on a drawing of Lou Mitchell's Restaurant in Chicago.

Create!

 I decided to do some pages with Bible verses that I like. I like verses that speak of the strength and joy that comes from God. This will also use repeating shapes in response to the Documented Life prompt.  I also haven't done the 5 layers prompt and this could be for that too. This first layer is blue and yellow paint applied with a credit card.

 The second layer is some ledger paper and some gelli printed paper I made a while back.

 Now we are getting into some repeating elements (circles) finger painted on. Also some yellow repeated in stripes also finger painted.

 Here I've added some highlights and shadows on some of the circles

Next are some doodling and lettering and sketching.  Lots more circles.The photo is one I purchased years ago at an auction when I bought a bunch of glass negatives. Someone had made a print of this one...two little girls painting at easels in what looks like a parlor.

Every good gift and every perfect gift comes from above. ~James 1:7

This could refer to gifts of many kinds, but in this case I was thinking of artistic gifts or talents. I used to wish I had more practical gifts like people who are doctors or nurses or carpenters. Over the years I've learned to appreciate that we are all given such different gifts!

Cover up the good stuff.

 This is a page in answer to the Documented Life Project prompt to "cover up the good stuff." I started with a layer of neon colors applied with a credit card.

 Next I added "the good stuff" which was a layer of journaling all over the page, in black pen. I've had a lot of grief and sadness and angst in the last few years, and today I had lots of good things to journal about how so much healing has happened over that time. It's a lot of good stuff that I wondered if I'd ever be able to write. After I journaled sloppily all over, I spread some gesso over it with a credit card to knock it back a bit and "cover up the good stuff."

 Next I covered it up some more with some music paper, underpaper, and a scrap of dictionary page. Then I added in some acrylic paints.

 More acrylics,  including a lot of happy yellow.

 Here's my messy work table.

 Then I doodled with black, white, green, and red paint pens. I like it right here, but I've also toyed with painting over the whole thing with black gesso except for a few large flower shapes masked off. I'll have to think about that.

Documented Life ...Layers...Don't stop til you get enough.

 

 I wish I had a picture of how this page started...it was a page I'd started earlier and hated. In this photo I'd already used some gesso and paint to block out some of the ugly. The leaves on the edge were cut from magazine pages, and I just couldn't get them to work either. This week's Documented Life prompt was to use lots of layers (don't stop till you get enough!).

Added some yellow and pink...because those colors make me happy. And a bit of blue to repeat.

Here I got out the black and white pens and started doodling.

A bit more pink paint to block out some parts I didn't like, plus added some happy words. It's kind of a happy page now. Keeping going with the layers did help fix it up enough to make make me want to keep it. I think the page facing it will have a calendar. I'm missing having the calendar/journaling aspect of "documented life."

If you are interested in following along with the Documented Life Project prompts, you can  join the fun at: Documented Life Project 2015

Documented Life ....using underpaper

 What is underpaper, you say? Well, it's the paper you keep on under your journal when you are painting, to keep the table clean. I've gotten to where I will empty the brush out on that paper before I clean it out in a glass of water to change colors. You end up with a nice colorful paper that can be used in other projects. This turtle was sketched on one of those papers.

The ocean is also made from underpapers. I found some Hawaiian proverbs online, and since I love Hawaii, I decided to make a page from one of those. The theme for the week was "What lies beneath" and Hawaii has a lot "beneath" with volcanoes and the ocean all around.

Originally I had a page facing this one that included a volcano and lava underground, but it was too bold for this page, and I wanted the turtle to be the focus. So, I cut this page out and glued it to another page to stand alone. Sometimes, you just have to edit a little. When we were in Hawaii, we saw green sea turtles many times, and one swam up to us one day when we were swimming in a lagoon. It was a rather magical moment!

 Gorgeous black cliffs and the prettiest blues ever.

A fisherman and his son with their nets, while turtles sleep nearby.

Color Wheel...Documented Life Project

 This prompt was "The Color Wheel" and the suggest quote by Georgia O'Keeffe. I started with a large ledger page and a stencil, and sprayed yellow, red, and blue inks through the stencil so that they overlapped to form secondary colors. Then I glued it down with some pieces of book paper, under paper, and some tissues printed with the gelli plate.

 The little flowers are pieces of napkins glued down. Then I had fun with some fun doodling with the white and black pens.

 By now, my background was so busy that my quote would have a hard time standing out, so I swiped on some pretty magenta paint.

I've also been drawing some Route 66 signs and scenes in Illinois. I'm working on some projects for the shop with these little drawings.

Words with Friends ...Documented Life Project

The prompt was "Words With Friends" and it reminded me of this Bible verse: Proverbs 16:24.

Here it is while I was working on it. I was away from home when I started these pages, so I had a limited selection of supplies. I have a great honeycomb stencil, but of course it was at home, so I tried to draw the comb. I love the verse, but I was not overly excited about this page. I like it better after doing a bit of lettering and doodling on it though.

Documented Life 2015 Week 2

 This weeks challenge was to use gesso. We were also supposed to be inspired by a Mary Shelley quote about starting today, however, I'm behind and there is also a prompt out right now with the theme of "Words with Friends." So what we have here, is a combo...gesso and words with friends.

I've never started with black gesso before, so this was an experiment...I sketched with a white colored pencil.

Then I blocked in colors with paints. I didn't  know if the color would show up on the black, or allow too much black through, but I like what happened! The pink paint is a Liquitex Basics, and the white and reds are Golden Fluid Acrylics.

I just kind of blocked in shadows and highlights, keeping it loose.

 Then I got out the Pitt pen and did some sketching details and defining edges. Added some highlights and little dots with the Sharpie water based pen.

This was a fun experiment, and I definitely want to try using a black background again.

Documented Life Week 1

The Documented Life prompt this week was to use book pages, and the theme "be your own goalkeeper." I thought about my goals being in my own hands, but luckily I don't have to go it alone, because God promises to go with me and give me strength.

I also wanted to introduce my word for the year, which is "strong." Last year I had the word "move," and it inspired me to move my body, to travel, and not be afraid to move my business along. Having the word there in front of you, really does keep it at the forefront of your mind.

The size of this large Dylusions Journal is challenging. I glued the book paper down, and WOW there was so much space left. I used a large stencil and spray inks in the sky. The hands are life size...I traced my hands on some K & Company scrapbook paper.

Wild and Precious Life....Journal Cover

Tonight I added a line out of one of my favorite poems by Mary Oliver. Originally I wanted the bicycle to be horizontal, but when I had to add the duct tape, I turned it on it's side. I think I like it that way! I think this might be done after a couple of coats of sealer.

I want to ride my bicycle....Documented Life planner cover

 

 Tonight I started to work on my planner by closing the cover, which I had collaged and painted while it laid flat. That was a mistake. When I closed it it ripped in several place. I  know from last year, that the spine is important, and so I went the most functional way I could think of: DUCT TAPE.

 I had some colorful duct tape from when I was making hula hoops, so I chose some yellow and put it on while the cover was closed. I hope that works!

I've done a bit of doodling too, and a packing tape transfer of some red glasses. If you want to know how to do a packing tape transfer, I have a tutorial here.

 I sketched a bicycle on, and painted it in with some acrylic paints.

I used the Scarlet Lime pen to outline, and the Sharpie white acrylic marker to highlight. I did the same to the little glasses, to make them pop a bit.

 This is the back of the planner. Kind of simple, but that's ok.

I like this bike! The pink is a bit more Barbie than I usually go for, but it's bright and fun. I think I want to stamp some words on still, and maybe do a bit more doodling, but I think that's enough for tonight.

Journal Cover 2015..in process...

I went to bed early so I could get up early to meet friends for breakfast and not be tired, but I could not sleep for the life of me. So I got up and smeared some paint around. I guess I'll just go to breakfast tired, but it won't be the first time.

I couldn't figure out what colors to use. All the sudden I was freezing up about it, so I decided to use some new greens and yellows I bought today. And some of my favorite blue. I can see looking at this that I've obliterated much of the blue on the left side, but I can fix that later. Whenever I'm at this stage, I wonder if I've just made a mess of it, but usually later it works itself out as I start drawing on it. We shall see! If not, gesso can usually save the day and give it a fresh start! I think it looks summery and sunny. I like that.

 Ok...now I'm starting to see it. I might end up liking this after all! Pretty sure there might be a bicycle on this year's cover too. Why not? Bikes are happy, active things, and I like to draw them.

This post reads much like this meme: