Pages

Sunday, August 5

Faith Art Journaling Tutorial: Oh How He Loves Us



Have you heard this song?

I love the David Crowder Band and I can't get this song out of my head.



Love.

If you are stuck and don't know what to journal, 
put on some music, start singing, and journal song lyrics.


Materials: 

An old, hardback book

gesso

acrylic craft paints

brushes

patterned papers

wax paper

a super cute paper-snatching monkey
{not for sale}

Mod Podge

Sharpies!


Let's start!

1. Prep your pages.

I like to use old hardback books for my journals, but sometimes the pages are too thin, 
so I glue them together with Mod Podge a



2. Create your background. 

Choose 2-3 colors for your background. 
Crumple up a paper towel. Dip it in the paint, then drag it across the page.
Do this with several different colors, 
but don't blend them too much or the color will get muddy. 
Use your fingers to blend the color, too, leaving part of the page exposed. 

When the background dries, 
paint your text on your page with gesso or white paint.




3. Catch a climbing, paper-snatching monkey




4. Add color to your letters
with your fingers.
(just to make it more fun)




5. Add Paper

Cut up patterned paper in the shapes of letters.
Glue them to your page with Mod Podge.
Add another layer of smaller paper on top of the first layer.


6. Add Details with Sharpie

Doodle the details to finish the page. 





I hope you enjoyed this tutorial! 

Click here for similar tutorials.







Wednesday, August 1

Art Journaling: Just show up.


Hope begins in the dark,
the stubborn hope that if you just show up
and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come.
You wait and watch and work:
you  don't give up.

Anne Lamott


It never fails.
So much of art applies to life.
When I was a Young Life leader (from about 18 to 32)
Young Life club night would come and I'd be dead and not wanting to go
and listing the reasons in my head why I couldn't go
and then I would just will myself to show up
and I would be blessed beyond anything I can put into words.
And not a {smile}  "Oh, I'm so blessed!"
because I have food and clothes and health...
and I don't have any catastrophes or fatal illness

but a real: God giving me eyes to see this hurting girl {his daughter}right in front of me
and she allows me the privilege of opening up her life to me. and everything really isn't okay.
and get to be a part of what God is doing to bring his precious daughter back to himself.
I get to see the God of the Universe at work.
blessed.
And I almost missed it because
I almost didn't show up.


I don't want to do art.
just show up.
I don't want to be nice to this person.
just show up.
I don't want to meet my neighbors.
just show up.
I don't want to exercise.
just show up.
I don't want to read my Bible.
just show up.
I don't want to be brave today.
just show up.
I don't want to meet new people.
just show up.
I don't want to _______.
just show up.



But that is the whole essence of life right?
I think showing up is 90% of life.
I don't want to show up.
I wanna sit on my couch and watch the bachlorette and be comfortable.
And then I miss the life (that is real life)that God has for me.





So, my art making has been on a long hiatus (about a year)
since I had Joshy last June.
And now I want to show up and make art.
Because when I do, I am blessed.



 
So that is my art plan: just show up.
and wait. in eager expectation.

Photobucket