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Getting Lost in the Land of What If

Letting myself just play in my art journal by asking what if...and it went through some ugly layers in the video but in the end created a map of the Land of What If

What if? This is the question that I asked in my art journal today. This page went through a lot, including some very ugly layers.  Since this was what if play, it didn’t matter if a layer was ugly.  It didn’t matter if it had no direction.

It only mattered that I asked what if.  Little did I know I was making a map as I was letting myself get lost in the play.

Watch Letting myself get lost in the art journal play on YouTube.

Building on an old background, I began smearing paint and adding pattern with stencils.  That yellow paint was slow to dry, since there was so much of it, which led me to asking what if with a baby wipe.  After all, I seem to have a subconscious need to avoid heat guns.

Letting myself just play in my art journal by asking what if...and it went through some ugly layers in the video but in the end created a map of the Land of What If

Oh, did it go through some ugly stages!  But that didn’t matter because smearing paint around brought me joy. I even ended up with a bout of pink polka dot fever.  Letting myself just play in my art journal by asking what if...and it went through some ugly layers in the video but in the end created a map of the Land of What If

The word “what” was redone with my Ransom Alphabet stencil, and I am proud to let my first grade teacher know that it wasn’t because of misspelling (this time at least).

Letting myself just play in my art journal by asking what if...and it went through some ugly layers in the video but in the end created a map of the Land of What If

As I stenciled the 3 Cutouts Inspired by Matisse, I began to see a forest.  I would love to visit a forest like that!  This is when the idea of a map took control of the page.Letting myself just play in my art journal by asking what if...and it went through some ugly layers in the video but in the end created a map of the Land of What If

Maps need towns, so I added castle towns with a mask from the Once Upon a Time stencil.  There was one feature still missing from this land, and that was water. A great big ocean was needed.

Letting myself just play in my art journal by asking what if...and it went through some ugly layers in the video but in the end created a map of the Land of What If

What types of places are in the Land of What If?  The Ocean of Inspiration and the City of Creativity of course!

Letting myself just play in my art journal by asking what if...and it went through some ugly layers in the video but in the end created a map of the Land of What If

Here are the supplies I used. Some of these links are affiliate links which means I get a small percentage. It doesn’t cost you anything extra and it helps keep the free tutorials coming!


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  • Corrine May 1, 2017, 9:09 am

    I enjoy it’s urban/rural combo landscape feel. What if cities had more green space? xox

  • Marie Cimpl May 3, 2017, 6:56 am

    Love the info on the oil pastels. Have a box and don’t always think to use it. (I also have some pens that I have ruined….) It is sometimes hard to just play and wait and see what evolves rather than having a plan. We are evolving and getting better at it thanks to your efforts!

  • Claire Harrison May 6, 2017, 3:52 am

    I love your land of what if 🙂