lara

This art journal page was a prompt from LifeBook 2014 that i am participating in. The prompt was to choose 3 materials i like and use my word for the year. This page turned out pretty awesome but it was a long time coming! Truth be told i almost threw it away 4 times because of that damn background. I went way overboard adding things to make it better and my final attempt involved a technique i don't do often at all - taking some baby wipes and just rubbing the shit outta it to see what disappears. And apparently that really did the trick because it turned out very visually stimulating.



My three things are the sheet music, punchinella and burlap. Also on there for visual strength is paper towel i soaked in pink paint, washi tape holding some tears together i made by mistake trying to distress the edges and, of course, letter beads with grommets and floss.



Apparently i was attracted to green this last week after my stretch of orange love. This background was made by a couple of different layers of greens and golds and stencil used with molding paste. It's very very 3D and fun to touch.




After my first successful fail with the baby wipes i attempted the same type of background again, and again it looks AWESOMEness. I've been exploring the concept of fear ALOT in this art journal and this quote really seemed to work with the chaos of the background and what it represents in my head. i added the flower on there to break it up with some peace and stillness.

This fun little page is really from start to finish left overs. The background has been a creation in making for a couple of months as i spray off leftover mists i've been making. The ephemera are also left over bits and pieces from other projects as well as Gauche Alchemy kits. And the quote, well the quote is a mantra i found on pinterest i've been waiting to work into something.
   

Apparently i am subconciously really getting off on the color orange lately. I had no idea that i was as drawn to it as I am, and i'm not sure why. But it makes me feel happiness :)

The gals at Gauche Alchemy joined forces with the team at Punky Scraps  to present a challenge using neon as the theme.

This art journal page indeed used 1980's Madonna as a reference. The background was created entirely by using different punchinella strips as stencil along with three main colors.

Fun little piece to start off the year!

Finally get to use one of my miscellaneous keyboard pieces i've been collecting! In addition to the U2 lyric from "Moment of Surrender" This page was born out of yet another breakup with a boy... forcing myself not to lose hope or worse become bitter...


Putting these pages together i see a theme that i didn't even try for! I'm thinking it's got me my word of the year, which i've been having problems deciding upon, but it appears unconciously i have chosen "believe" ....



Love the simplicity of this quote. Just believe... it's the opposite of fear which is another weirdly unconcious thread in my art journalling lately.



This last page is actually my first page from the Life Book 2014 web workshop I joined. The workshop is geared towards using art for spiritual and emotional growth. This first exercise was to first write down all the negative thoughts i feel about myself then cover them up with the paint and gesso and end up with a message on top that is positive and affirming. Truth be told quite often i dont feel too amazing at all, in fact i feel mediocre which is really scary and pathetic to me. Hopefully i can internalize this page a little...

I've made these cards to sell for African Well Fund at my etsy as all purpose cards to send to people and look at year round
.
I'm actually pretty giddy about them as i mixed paper craft and sewing for the first time EVER thanks for being with my parents on Thanksgiving and my mom showing me how to use her sewing machine. The background uses stencils I've recently discovered and am MAD about them! I fear they are my new collectible item of 2014, luckily they don't take up much room!

I stenciled, painted and misted several sheets of paper then cut them up into different size rectangles then re-glued them together.







The heart is a doiley I Glimmer Misted then sewed fabric scraps on. Fun but a bit frustrating. I'm just not a sewer, unfortunately, since i love the effect so much. I then glued the alpha letters and buttons on. In retrospect i don't know what the hell i was thinking using a glue gun, and i regret how sloppy some of these look because of it, but perhaps that's just part of the handmade quality.







I really enjoyed touching and matching all the different textures and textiles and I expect more experimentation will be in the works in my future!

It seems for the last 3 years i've been trying to find the right drippy tool. I've tried fluid acrylic, acrylic with water, watercolor, glimmer mist, and now ink... and i think i found it. Love the ink drip! I also put them in a mini-mister with water for spray.

The quote on this heart is from an old techno song a friend once put on a mixed tape for me circa 1992 that i recently uncovered. I cant find that song on Spotify or itunes, but it does exist on youtube.





OK, this was another big test for me. I've been trying to find the perfect image transfer technique for years and years (i'm sure more than 3). I've tried transparency and tape, amongst others, and those get the clearest transfer however i hate the shininess of them. It occurred to me the other day, i could use transparency but then put one layer of white tissue over the entire page to unify the image!!! It worked way too well. Especially since transparency aint cheap to print on! The added bonus was dripping ink-water on it and getting those cool drops that absorbed into the tissue!





This last one is just playing with shapes and texture. Oh yes, boys and girls, i've discovered the wonderous world of stencils! The background of this page was from using it as a paint palette during other projects.

Cause i'm a big old nerd, i went to Barnes & Noble this weekend to see my article in Somerset Memories Art Journaling Magazine in the store. What can i say ... I'm proud ...

a couple more new art journal pages.
for YEARS i've been wanting to explore the notion of fear and my relationship with it.
Even creating an art journal just about fear.
Somewhat unconsciously these pages have that theme.



this photo was from a hike i did recently in north georgia. there was a 90 degree side of a cliff i was asked to climb and not only am i scared of heights, but i've never done anything like climb the side of a rock before. This one had lots of roots and vines growing along it that was used to climb. I was super hesitant at the beginning then went for it and at the top was super proud and relieved!

I'm head over heels excited to share that I've been included in the latest issue, Autumn 2013, of Art Journaling Magazine! My favorite!!! It's a pretty crazy honor!!!!

On newstands October 1!
Full size scans at my Flickr

This is an 8" x 8" canvas i made for my friend Aprils birthday. It's her lovely daughter.
The canvas is inspired by a workshop i took with the lovely Anna Dabrowska a couple of months ago.



Lots of textures and layers and droppy paint and glimmer and found object loveliness!

SNAP magazine just published a spread of some of my photos from Benin Africa!!!!!!! To say i'm honored and a little overwhelmed is an understatement! They did an amazing job!!!!!!

I recently made this notebook for a friend of mine's birthday. I've taken two workshops this summer, one from Andy Skinner and three, actually, from Anna Dabrowska. The techniques i've learned really excite me!!

 

The back shows what i picked up from Andy, using different techniques and layers for ultimate texture. And, yes, the base of the journal is cardboard.


 

 The front is inspired by Anna's class. Some of the objects are from her Prima line but a majority is from my "found object" stash. And one last look of the journal in the sun showing all the delectable texture :)

i started a new art journal a couple of weeks ago.
Here are some of the first pages.

 

I'm definitely trying to re-engage that part of my brain that isn't afraid to make mistakes.
Sometimes it hurts more than others...
This first page was made with using only things found on my work desk at that moment. I've been having alot of "getting back into it" challenges so i thought instead of being overwhelmed by ALL the possibilities, to just grab what was in front of me and throw it down.

I've been drinking alot of "yogi" tea lately which prints these "words of wisdom" on the tea bag tags and i save those along with the fortune cookie fortunes i already have a pile of.
The burlap heart was made for Bono's birthday card but i decided not to use it (obviously)

 

This is another "and the kitchen sink" page with things laying around. Again, the lace heart was a thought for Bono's card that got put aside. I also learned how awesome lace doilies take glimmer mist :)
 

This one i went to my "scrap bag" for pieces.
In attempting to get myself back into art journalling and even scrapbooking, i spent a couple of weeks going through the four giant totes of scraps and ephemera i had been just throwing things into and making scrap bags with 12"x12" ziplock bags. So now the thought is, i can just grab a bag and hopefully find some inspiration sifting through it.

And ya, it almost hurts my eyes to look at this page! But pink and yellow are one of my favorite color combos regardless.

And then finally:
 

I created the background using some new techniques i found on pinterest including using rubbing alcohol and sandpaper. I think it turned out AWESOME. The photo is my favorite one i took from the africa trip last month. It's very compelling to me and just always makes me think deep thoughts no matter how often i look at it.


So yeah, none of this is my best work by far, but it's all a part of the process. Gotta re-exercise the creative muscles and get back into a groove but at least i'm taking the first steps which are always the hardest!

This year's birthday card made for Bono was very much inspired by West African art. I was really taken by the use of "natural materials" and the way things were framed with them.




For this years card I used burlap (from a coffee sack from Rwanda I've had for a couple of years not knowing what to do with), this cool birch wood paper i found at a local art store, hemp string, cheese cloth and a glass heart pendent.



Whats cool about this card is that it reflects the recent trip taken to Benin in which we saw well sites and latrines that were built using money from the Bono Birthday fundraiser two years previously.

Knowing how sharp Bono is after meeting him with the presentation of the other card, I am confident he will get the connection!

This was made for my friend Diane's birthday. It's size is 12" x 24". We went to West Africa together and when we took a trip to Ganvie instead of selling postcards this shop sold paintings local artists did of the city depicting scenes of its local life and rich history. Diane bought this, rolled it up and once got back to the hotel realized the paint had chipped off and she considered it somewhat ruined. Being the upcycler crafty person i am, i took it with the thought in mind to use it to create another piece that would bring it back to life.



One of the things i noticed about the West African art i saw around me while in Benin was it used mostly found objects and really at its core, is the grand daddy of upcycling. There is so much garbage around due to a lack of adequate waste disposal systems and many artists appear to use things most of us would just throw away. So, for this piece i wanted to stay as true to that as i could (but of course adding my own lara flair)
 

The cardboard, string and burlap i already had in my house and the birch wood paper was a fortuitous find at a local art store. And then, of course, i had to add the beads, because, well, i love beads ...

I'm so very proud of this piece and she adores it from what i hear. It was a pretty amazing feeling to see this piece of damaged art all the way from benin reborn into not only an awesome keepsake from the trip but a lovely wall hanging with texture and layers and sense of history.