art journal, art journaling, art journaling basics, art journaling tools, artist, craft, creativity

Crafty girl’s guide to art journal making

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Crafty girl’s guide is a way to save on your art journals. Most of us mixed media artists drool over Moleskine and Strathmore brands, and many more, but they make a big dent in our wallets too.

Not that it’s bad to spend on good art materials. I do spend, but sometimes I like to make my own journal because it has “me” branded on it, not spiral binding or ugly covers.

I like to embellish the store-bought covers, but it’s something special about making your own.

I have even made some to sell in my etsy shop because beginning art journalers sometimes have a hard time with the blank page, so I make some simple backgrounds on the pages.

I buy watercolor paper on sale and take the pads apart for easy art making.

Then I fold the painted pages and use a bone folder to flatten the crease as much as possible. I sew the pages together with embroidery thread or hemp string.

The reason I like embroidery thread is that it’s colorful and strong, and flexible.

Crafty girls know how to be creative with the backgrounds in the journal. The more you create, the more your creativity blossoms.

Make your own!

crafty girl's art journal making
crafty girl’s journal

This is the latest journal I made. I covered the front and back with some vintage paper. The cover can be painted or more ephemera added on top. The label can be affixed anywhere or left out.

So much fun!

crafty girl's guide to art journal making

Above is a sample page of a background, and below are a few more. As you can see, crafty girl’s can make this EASILY!

crafty girl's guide to art journaling

crafty girl's guide to art journaling

So easy… A while back I made a video on how to put the pages together into a journal.  HOW TO VIDEO.

I have written some posts about art journaling basics for you. CLICK HERE TO READ.

ART JOURNALING STUFF (mostly cool backgrounds.)

If you need a push, here’s another post about the importance of allowing yourself to make art. BEGIN NOW! 

Now you can make your own journal and get started with art. There are no excuses and there is no time to lose. If you love art, make some today!

xo

Maria

P.S. I made a simple e-course on how to make a variety of art journals. It’s for the crafty girl in you! 🙂 CLICK HERE. 

You can also visit my etsy shop for more journals if you don’t want to make your own. EARTH AND FAERY

 

mixed media, mosaic, polymer clay mosaic

Polymer clay mosaic art

Polymer clay mosaic art is one of the crafts I never get tired of making. Polymer clay is incredibly versatile as it can be used in jewelry and sculpture, but I mostly stick with the mosaic tiles.

I have made these kinds of boxes and frames for years and they evolve as I come up with new ideas. At one point I incorporated recycled Christmas heart ornaments into the art. 
polymer clay Lots of mixed media in this old piece and the altered heart ornament is in the middle.

I also used to embellish paintings with mosaic tiles in the past.

polymer clay mosaic
Wild Bride

The veil is actual lace that I stiffened with Mod Podge.  The face is made with a polymer clay mold and the dress is covered with tiles.

I have made many boxes and continue to do so. My etsy shop Earth and Faery is full of them. 🙂

polymer clay mosaic
Older version of a box

This older box has a dragonfly charm attached to it.

The items below are later creations. I have started making mermaids in frames. When I compare my contemporary work with old pieces, I notice a more cohesive design. Perfection was never my goal though, and cutting straight lines in the clay is still difficult. 🙂

polymer clay mosaic
box lid

polymer clay mosaic polymer clay mosaic

polymer clay mosaic
polymer clay mermaid

My most popular how-to video on YouTube is about painting mosaic tiles. You can check it out here.

It’s not hard to make tiles. It takes time and you have to be willing to follow through with the process to get the tiles you like. Then the fun begins–designing your boxes or frames.

If you’d like to find out how to make a box from beginning to end, you can purchase my self study how-to e-course.  It’s a bargain at $23. Try a new thing today! 🙂

Have a wonderful, creative week.

xo

Maria

P.S. To get my monthly newsletter, you can sign up HERE.

 

art, life, masks, persona

Masks we wear

Masks we wear are many and varied. One person can wear many masks or personas.  We swear the masks are who we are.

I could call myself an artist, a writer, a reader, a nature lover, a spiritual being, a woman. Some roles are more prominent than others. I could go on with more, but I’m already tired of thinking about all the roles I uphold. 🙂

masks we wear

I did some art journaling around masks and it got me thinking about what is behind everything.

We believe our mind is the sole creator of who we are. We have compartmentalized all that we know, all our experiences and beliefs of who we are and who everyone else is.

masks we wear

So much crap is stored “up there,” but to be honest it all hangs out in our energy. The brain doesn’t store all the images and beliefs. The brain is a glutinous mass that sends out and receives signals. (Simplified version.)

Just to digress a little… a bird is a bird, not wearing any masks, a cat is basically a cat, though I have seen mine wearing masks. However, on a more basic level all animals are what they are; they live by instinct.

The wind blows in the trees, the leaves bend naturally to the wind. They don’t say or think that it’s uncool to bend. They don’t have to wear any designer masks to BE.

After my morning ritual I was lifting my arm to scratch my neck and thought, who is lifting my arm? Is it my brain sending out signals? Yes, but there is more too it.

The impulse that got my brain sending out signals to lift my arm to scratch the itch was automatic as is much action involving my body.  We don’t think about it, just do it.

We take everything for granted until it doesn’t work any more.

To cut to the chase, the life force moves the impulses and also creates my art. It makes the whole world go around, sometimes with terrible force like hurricanes.

We are NOT the roles we play.

Roles can only hinder the latent creativity that lies underneath it all.

It can be scary to remove masks. Vulnerability is something we protect at all cost.

However, creativity is vulnerability. If you don’t dare to show up as yourself and you express an artist persona or only copy art that is the latest “trend,” you miss out.

Sometimes I get stuck in limbo between stepping up and “taking action” (as in forcing something to happen,) versus allowing things to unfold at its own pace. It takes courage to stand vulnerable in front of your art. There can be a lot of creative angst yet the reward is great if you follow through and don’t give in to all the imagined monsters in the mind.

We have a great fear of being judged unfavorably. Seeking approval is one part of the mask we have built up. Truth to tell, who gives a sh*t what others think about your art??

We are the hardest judge. We compare the art to the accepted norm and find it falling short of expectation.

What a buzz killer that is.

You have a choice. Do you keep going or do you give up? Do you forgive yourself and allow the art to be just as it is?

We go through many stages as an artist. There are no shortcuts so we might as well enjoy the journey and revel in the moments that feel perfect as everything falls together without barely an effort.

Those moments become more numerous with time, but there is no guarantee.

Be the explorer of a new continent that does not have boundaries like land. Live in the moment and let the wind sing in your “leaves.” That is true art. 🙂

xo

Maria

P.S. If you want to explore art journaling but doesn’t know where to start, sign up for my artist email newsletter and get a free art journal primer. SIGN UP.

art, dream, life, motivational, passion

A bunch of Mondays

A bunch of Mondays was something I used to say when I had a bad week. Nowadays I love Mondays. I love every day in fact, but Monday is a day full of possibilities for the week. “The world is your oyster” as they say…. or “where there is a will there’s a way.

a bunch of MondaysSquirrels don’t care if it’s Monday or Saturday. They want to eat bird seed and they don’t give up easily when the opportunity is there. They are opportunists, as are most animals when it comes to food. They see the possibilities in life.

People are like caged animals, something we created for ourselves.

Why did we divide the days into weeks in the first place? Cavemen went by the rising and setting of the sun (I surmise.)

People hate Mondays because it heralds the beginning of ANOTHER week, also called the grind.

I used to think Saturday was my favorite day of the week. I could go out shopping and meet up with friends and loved ones. There was always some party or event at night. Those were a bunch of Saturdays…

It got boring fast. I bore easily, but the one thing that never bores me is my art. Art is new every day. Sometimes it’s a struggle, but I would never exchange it for the grind.

When we do more of what we love, the days get filled with possibilities. You get a more positive outlook on life in general. bunch of Mondays

Living life from the perspective of possibilities and joy gives existence a whole new meaning.

We can break out of the cage. First, you have to discover what you really love to do. What comes easily to you? What did you want to do as a kid or teenager?

Do more of it. Sometimes it takes courage to choose a new path, but you get more brave with every step. As you keep on walking you discover that it is the only way to live.

Even if you are part of “the grind” do things that fire you up in your free time. Build dreams, see possibilities.

The inventors of the past were admired because they saw possibilities and took dedicated steps towards realizing their vision.

You don’t have to be an Edison or a Tesla to have an extraordinary life (dream.)

All you have to do is to acknowledge that you have a dream and GO FOR IT!

Monday will become the best day of the week if you do. 🙂

xo

Maria

P.S. I have some new and exiting things in my etsy shop. CHECK ‘EM OUT.

 

art, excuses, fear, intuition, motivational, self help, stuck

The dog ate my motivation

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The dog ate my motivation. Good excuse, right?

We get inventive when it comes to excuses to avoid that which we REALLY want to do if we weren’t so scared.

A lack of motivation usually stems from fear. Sometimes we realize that what we have been doing isn’t working so we lose motivation.

I have been sensing a shift lately. I don’t lack discipline (but strong discipline can sometimes work against me.) A feeling that things weren’t working out has bogged me down in the last week or so.

I felt cornered. I made this art journal spread to express my feelings.

art journaling

Then I realized that I have to go back to the moment, to let my intuition guide me. So often I “push through” which is not guided by my intuition, but by my force of will.

I’m stubborn and I want things to happen NOW, not later or on a universal timeline.  As frustration sets in I have to surrender, and then I find myself back on track, motivated to step forward again.

Our body is a great indicator whether we’re “pushing” or allowing. How does if feel? Like rolling a rock up a mountain?

Water flows easily around obstacles. Be like water.

Listen to that inner urge, the subtle force that propels us forward. The turtle wins the race…

If you don’t feel motivated what can you do? If you want to make art, set aside a no-excuse time to do it and stick with it! Everyone can find 15 minutes a day.

Put your art supplies out on a table or counter somewhere. They are a reminder of what you want to do.

Find creative ways around chores and children or involve the tots in art making with you. You might inspire a future artist.

Watch art how-to videos on YouTube. I have a channel with lots of INSPIRING VIDEOS.

To get on track we have to engage with the things that inspire fear. Art is easy as you can’t go wrong! Look at is as exploration.  I’m only addressing art here, but if you have a different dream, what is holding you back?

Cultivate discipline but don’t let it consume you and your inner sense of what is right. There is a balance to everything.

Trust the sensations in your body. They are never wrong.

When you feel inspired, act! Don’t put it off.

When you don’t feel inspired, listen within and trust that everything is okay.

Make a habit of creating some art every day. It bears repeating. Make friends with your art materials. Sometimes unknown materials can be scary. Remember, your art is never wrong. Accept the ugly with the beautiful and keep going.

Stop making excuses, period. Stand “naked” with the pain of frustration and indecision. Allow the stuckness until you feel that inner “go” again.

Make some bold moves.

Don’t blame the dog! 🙂

xo

Maria

P.S. I have some inspiring and affordable e-courses if you’re looking for tutorials. CLICK HERE. 

 

authenticity, illusion

Smoke and mirrors kind of life

smoke and mirrors
smoke and mirrors

Smoke and mirrors belong to Halloween (and politics), but all of us live in an illusion that we claim to be “normal.”

A few years back I went to a huge Halloween event. It had a horror house that was so creepy I wowed never to enter one again (unless it’s a kids’ version.)

The horror house was filled with goblins and creepy crawlies, and one room was stacked with floor to ceiling mirrors and a white fog. I kept bumping into mirrors and could not find my way out.

I found myself almost panicking as I turned around and came face to face with a 7 foot monster, probably some highschool kid making a few extra bucks.

It did a number to my head though, and I could not see my way out until a friend grabbed my hand and pulled me through the fog to another room.

I think it’s a good example of how our mind can play tricks on us.

The whole world is made of “tricks” that we judge as normal.

Do you really know anyone? Truly.  Do you know their fears and deep-seated beliefs or do you only know their persona(s)?  We don’t, and then we get baffled when someone acts out of character.

Somehow we have all bought into the illusion that we are meant to work 9-5 at some crappy job or whatever your illusion.

We feel sorry for the homeless, but what if some decided not to buy into the illusion of 9-5 and stepped into the persona of a hobo.

Who are we really?

That can be a lifelong exploration.

You can only live as much authenticity as you are authentic to yourself.

We inflict the smoke and mirrors on ourselves as we stubbornly hold onto our beliefs and misconceptions.

“I’m right and the other person is wrong.” What a narrow way to live.

The point of this post is that authenticity is something that happens incrementally as we get more clear on our connection to the Greater energy of our being.

I feel a great love in my heart. It’s not for people or animals or trees. It is the essence of me, the power that keeps me alive.

When I feel that the strongest all my games and ideas and ploys fall away and I am only energy, a GREAT energy.

When I’m aligned to that, I can sense what my next step is as far as moving forward in my 3D life.

That can change daily. In other words, there is no way to “lock down” that power, only a way to follow its lead.

At some point you stop identifying with the personas, the smoke lifts, the mirrors break, and you can see clearly through the illusion of everything. Until you fall into it again and start acting out of fear.

That’s why I say that authenticity is incremental in 3D life. There is a constant, pure, authenticity within, but until that is the only thing that leads us, we fall into the fog and stumble against mirrors.

Though, there is one consolation. The authenticity of the heart is always there.  I plug into it every morning and aim to see what my next step is, and how to deepen my connection with my heart.

I express it in my art practice, which is always in flux. It’s too great to control, and that should be a consolation and a big sigh of relief, but I always try to impose my will on it.

That can be the most frustrating and confrontational thing ever.

Your heart and soul will always stretch you through what calls you, and if you’re up for it, it can be a wild ride. Not for the faint-hearted, but wouldn’t you rather live a life based on as much authenticity you can surrender to NOW, or live a meaningless life based on other people’s expectations?

Your choice. Your energy (or lack of it.)

Go within, find your true North Star and trust it.

smoke and mirrors
illusion

Here is another blog post where I talk about fear of living the life you want.

P.S. I have some new cool art journals for sale in my etsy shop. They are primed for the enthusiastic art journalers to embellish. 🙂 EARTHANDFAERY

 

Artist and writer