Conversations like this

As part of the series of Wanderlust 2017 classes we received a monthly prompt for a collage. It told us what to do on it in a timespan of just 5 minutes. The clues will remain secret but this is what I ended up with, sized 9 x 12". I already knew what might happen last as I had done the same project during Wanderlust 2016. The collage is to be cut up. To  my shame I must admit now that I never cut up the 2016 one as I liked it too much. I feel less of an emotional pull about this one, perhaps because I surmised I would be told to cut this one up too. So you will eventually see how this one ended up but I thought I would share it here first before getting the scissors out.

The entire collage started with a layer of vintage text where we had circled some words. I kept the full text that I had circled and it read:

"importance to the world

filling it with words

the good became characteristic

old black silk gown and grey shawl

a waste of valuable time

conversations like this

with great sinners

turned austere"

Other words were added as per the instructions where we were to write down how we were feeling on a given day. There is also more collage, as well as rubber stamping with art foamies and other stamps, as well as lots of doodling in both the back and foreground

I also added some random items (such as washi tape) simply because I felt like it and thought the collage needed it.

Now for the cutting up!

There will be another series of classes: Wanderlust 2018, and I hope there will be another collage activity like this one too.

Why

 As part of Wanderlust 2017 there is a monthly prompt for our Wanderlust Book and the latest one told us to finish the following sentence: The question I sometimes ask myself is..... There are many ways to answer this but I choose to use the single word WHY. That seems to be what I'm asking myself not just sometimes but often. Occasionally an answer can be found but most of the why questions in this life remain unanswered. I can't help but to keep on looking but have gotten better at accepting that some things will remain a mystery.

These pages in a Finnabair Mixed Media Journal (7.1/4 x 9.1/2") started with collage using magazine cuttings, and to that I added stencilling using paints (including fluorescent ones)and Distress Crayons with the large stencil from the August 2013 Stencilgirl Club. 

 I also used the same stencil and sprayed throught it using gold mica spray paint. Then the circle (also from a magazine cutting) was glued on and I stamped on the letters WHY.

I hand wrote the prompt along the black lines I had added with  watersoluble black graphite using a white marker. Ink drops and outlining with white and black markers were the final touch.

The Colour of Sea, Sun and Sand

Our monthly prompt on Wanderlust 2017 was to finish the following sentence: This morning was in the colour of .................. Inspired by my longing for the sea and the warm days earlier this month I added the words: sea, sun and sand. I wish the sea was a bit closer, the sun was out more often and I would love to feel the sand between my toes. Perhaps just looking at this spread will help.

I'm working in a Finnabair Mixed Media Journal sized 7 x 9". As you can see it's ring bound.

The background was collaged with a variety of tissue wrap, and I then used bright sunny colours and stencil L570 Crazy Quilt Crosses and Rounds by Stencilgirl Products to make the background. I added more texture by rubber stamping with the Stitched Mixed Media Background stamp from Carabelle Studio.

The imagery, all coming from the Flow Vakantieboek (Flow Vacation Book), was summer themed too, showing the lounger and toes. The sun itself came from the smallest stencil from the July 2017 Stencilgirl Club and was done with gold paste.

The words were cobbled together from magazine. I finished by outlining all the imagery and words with a black Stabilo All pencil.

I collect Memories

This month's prompt on Wanderlust 2017 was to finish the following sentence: I collect........ Truth is I collect many things such as books, paints, stencils (but honestly, can you ever have too much of any of those!!). In the end though I settled for memories. We all collect those, consciously or unconsciously. When I was young it just happened as life was going on around me. Now I am much more aware of making memories as I pass through life. So I have added a very much younger version of myself to the spread in the form of a transparency.

I am working in Finnabair Mixed Media Journal, produced by Prima, on one of the craft sheets and that inspired me to use gold gesso as the bottom layer.  I collaged with a collection of vintage images and text, music sheets,  as well as wrapping and old scrapbook paper.

 I also rubber stamped using a black Archival ink pad, and one of the foam stamps from Nathalie Kalbach's Santa Fe set, as well as rubber stamps from a stamp set by ImpressMeNow. I stencilled on some text (using stencil L267 Vintage Script from Stencilgirl Products)  as well as the petals (TCW351s Mini Vine designed by Dina Wakley)

 I also added a Dutch stamp (that's where my earliest memories were made).

Never running dry

We get monthly prompt on Wanderlust 2017 for our Wanderlust book. The latest one told us to fill in the blanks in the following sentence: I am like.........that ...... As you can tell I made my own sentence that reads: "I am like a river that never runs dry". I certainly hope so as far as inspiration is concerned and I am lucky to have many more ideas than I could possible all execute.

I interpreted my sentence quite literally and formed the waters of a river by using suitably coloured acrylic paints and the following stencils from Stencilgirl Products: L431 Line Waves and S354 Rolls.

To that I added images from a vintage book about the river Rhine as well as postage stamps.

Then I stamped on the words using a mix of different alphabet stamps on vintage paper and glued them on as shown.

For the Wanderlust book I'm working in Finnabair's Mixed Media Journal sized 7 x 9"

The Smell of Ink

As part of the Wanderlust 2017 classes we get prompts for our Wanderlust book. The latest one told us to finish the following sentence: "I treasure this memory from childhood, the smell of ....."  The first thing I thought of was the smell of ink. An ink pen was how I learned to write and I still love the smell of it. Some magazines arrive and the first thing I do is stick my nose in them to breathe in that smell. And fountain pens have become the rage again all of a sudden. I bought one and it reminded me so much of my student days, scribbling notes down as quickly as possible using a pen filled with red ink!

These pages were done in Finnabair's Mixed Media Journal on some of the craft pages it contains. I gessoed them first though, so started on a more or less white background. Then I collaged on some images mainly coming from collage sheets by Alpha Stamps about the alphabet combined with the inside of an envelope as well as other ephemera. I also obtained the rubber stamps of ink pots and pens from Alpha Stamps.

Colour came next using acrylic paint and Distress Crayons combined with S309 Juxta Pose stencil from StencilGirl Products.  The focal point words come from the medium stencil  in the November 2015 Stencilgirl Club, designed by Seth Apter. The word WRITE on the left hand page was stamped using the alphabet set designed by Everything Art for PaperArtsy.

 Finally I sprayed through the Juxtapose stencil  with gold mica Precious Pearls. With my fountain pen I wrote the words: The Smell of Ink, on the side of the page. The postage stamps in matching colours were the final addition to this spread. I just can't help myself.

Nurtured by Art

Part of Wanderlust 2017 is the Wanderlust Book. We receive regular prompts for that and the latest one said: I am nurtured by...................... We were to fill in the rest of the sentence. I added: art, books and dog walking. I am using a Finnabair Mixed Media Journal ( 7 x 9") which as you can see is ring bound. This spread was done on a set of the white pages (it also has craft pages).

The background was done with collage using Tim Holtz's tissue wrap, magazine images, and deli paper that had been stencilling on a gelli plate using L457 Santiago stencil designed by Nathalie Kalbach for Stencilgirl Products.   I also used Distress Crayons and paint and the medium stencil from the December 2014 Stencilgirl Club. Quite a bit gold paint was added to the background too although that is hard to see on the pictures.

I felt that the clown like images needed to be on this spread so they became the focal point. The text was part stamped, part written and part words cut from magazines.

The pages look quite nostalgic as a result of the colours I used so to brighten it up a bit fluorescent pink paint was added as well as white and blue paint splatters. The pages were edged with a blue stamp pad.

This Month

The last prompt in February for the Wanderlust Book was: This month was....... This is my interpretation. February is never a favourite month although this year it has been a lot brighter than usual due to the weather and the presence of my little Flora girl. It's strange to think that this small, delicate little dog is related to the fearsome wolf portrayed on my page.

I'm working in the 7 x 9" Finnabair Mixed Media Journal by Prima. It's ring bound and this is one of the craft pages. It contains both white and craft pages but as I gesso my pages before I start, this craft page was turned into a white background.

I used collage with scrapbook paper, old stickers with postage imagerery on it, pieces of my under paper and that wolf. It came from a postcard enclosed in one of the Moustache Stationery boxes I used to subscribe to.

I used the S429 Layers stencil from Stencilgirl Products in the background as well as one of the stamps from the Kaffee Klatsch stamp set designed by Nathalie Kalbach.

The page tones in beautifully with the view outside my studio as the garden is still covered in snow and it is very cold.  My own little wolf is peacefully sleeping under my table after her morning walk.

Ready for Anything

Just like last year the Wanderlust 2017 set of classes also has a section for a Wanderlust Book where we get a prompt every other week and we can do with it what we want. I will be working in Finnabair's Mixed Media journal (with rings) that is a bit larger than the journal I used last year. It's 7.1/4" x 9.1/2".  This journal has both white and craft pages and I'll use whichever set I feel like but for this first spread I have simply used the first page.

The first prompt was: I am ready for......, and as you can see above I went with anything, even though I'm fully aware of the fact that it's not true. Sometimes you have to proclaim your courage to yourself before you're truly feeling it.

As I had such a great time with MaryBeth Shaw's lesson on Creative Jumpstart 2017 (see the New Doors spread here) I decided to use it again to make this page, hence no instructions here. I must mention though that it involves Distress Markers. I had a few but felt an urgent need for more so I'm very stocked up at the moment.

I collaged with a wide variety of papers, some from magazines and some wrapping paper, and used all the stencils from the January 2017 Stencilgirl Club.

I also used fluorescent acrylic ink as well as a mica spray but although you can see the former, the sparkle of the latter is lost in the pictures.

Unwind

All the classes and projects for the New Year have started and I have signed up for a fair few. I am however going to do things differently from last year. First of all you will see me combining prompts and lessons from various different sources into one spread and I also won't find it necessary to do each and every prompt and/or lesson every week. I'm going to cherry pick what I would like to do and on occasion also do work that doesn't relate to any of the courses at all.

That's because last year was rather hectic and towards the end of the year the pressure was getting to me so I selected my word for 2017 with care. It is: UNWIND. Finding our intention for the year was the first task in Wanderlust 2017 (a paid for class) and I combined it with this week's prompt on Joggles Art Journal Adventures (completely free) that told us to explore texture.

The other change this year is that I will be working in whatever journal takes my fancy at that time, rather than keep one journal for one specific purpose. I want the freedom to chop and change between large and small journals. The one I'm working in here is not a dedicated art journal. A friend gave me two lovely notebooks for Christmas (sorry there is no brand name mentioned anywhere on them) and I wanted to use them, so even though the paper needs reinforcing with gesso (which I always use anyway) and I need to glue some pages together for extra sturdiness it's so worthwhile working in such a lovely book. It's sized 5.3/4" x 8.1/4" when closed.

 I wrote down my intentions for the year: Be Calm, Be Mindful, Unwind, and took that as my starting point. I collaged with pre-stencilling and stamped deli paper, as well as vintage text. The actual texture (in the form of the squares from a The Crafters Workshop stencil) is from Gloss Beading Gel by Golden.

The background was sprayed through the L450 Fantasia stencil from Stencilgirl. It has virtually disappeared under the subsequent layers but set the tone for the spread colour wise, with that rich magenta.

I used art foamies: the RingTicTac one designed by Julie Fei-Fan Balzer and the SantaFe one designed by Nathalie Kalbach. The former one was stamped onto deli paper and then glued on while the latter one was stamped straight onto the pages. I also used the TCW2038 TinyRing Bits from The Crafters Workshop, direct on the pages to make the small circular shapes.