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The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube

The day had been filled with grown up thinking and decision making and I had become a bit of a stress monster so my family banished me to the art studio to play.  I wasn’t up to starting with a blank page so I flipped through my journals and found a stenciled page to begin the process of shaking off the day.

It is probably no surprise to you that this led to some OOPSies…including an ugly one with black paint.  And then just when I thought I had shaken off the stress of the day, something happened that proved to me that there might still be a little stress left. OOPS.

Watch The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal on YouTube.

Who knows when I stenciled this in my art journal with the Circular Patterns for Play stencil. This paper and paint has patiently waited until I was ready to add more layers. After all, there is no expiration date on an art journal.

The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube

Scribble Sticks by Dina Wakley added the next layer.  I started by adding more color to the pattern and about half way through and feeling quite proud of myself for being so detail oriented for me.  And then my patience ran dry and I took a bit of shortcut.

The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube

The white circles called for a bit of scribble journaling with a fountain pen.  Don’t worry if you can’t read the words I wrote.  I can’t either.

The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube

A bit of black paint and a cosmetic sponge and the women from my Finding Your Tribe stencil were added to the page.  Soon, that sponge full of black paint was going to lead to an O.O.P.S.

The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube

The moment I added the yellow paint, I said O.O.P.S.  I decided to cover it up a bit with what I had nearby, the cosmetic sponge of black paint.  O.O.P.S. again.

Thankfully, baby wipes exist and most of the yuck was removed.  This gave me an opportunity to add more paint to cover up the remaining traces of the yuck.

The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube

My thinking brain was taking a break during most of this play because it was worn out from making decisions all day.  But when it came to positioning the words from the Let’s Go stencil on the page, I needed that thinking brain to get the phrases I wanted to fit where I wanted.

The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube

By this time, I was confident I had de-stressed completely thanks to the play. There was about to be proof that I was not as relaxed as I thought.

The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube

Since the paint was still damp and would ruin a pen at this point, I chose to use a fine liner for some scribble writing.  Which I have used a zillion times before.

Apparently, I was squeezing the bottle more than I realized and each time I wrote far more ink than I intended came flowing out.  O.O.P.S.

What was the opportunity in that?  More play time!

The Black Paint OOPS in my Art Journal that started with stenciling video by Carolyn Dube
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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Washi tape made a colorful background for an art journal page and since it is tape, there was no waiting for it to dry.  Just the right place for a dancing butterfly man to be stenciled.

Watch Using Washi Tape in My Art Journal on YouTube.

Randomly, I filled the page with washi tapes.  You might wonder where I got each of these rolls.  No idea exactly where each roll came from, but I tend to find these online, in craft stores, when traveling and in stationary stores  (great places to find rolls).

A touch of white paint here and there on top of the washi tape.

Having that white space meant I needed to add some color on top of it so I grabbed some Distress crayons.

The colorful busy background called for a playful image, the dancing man with wings.  First I stenciled him using my Dance of this Life stencil, then put the Butterfly Journeys stencil over him and gave him wings. Then the Mixed Media Mail stencil provided the word Inspiration to right under the flying man.

To get my feelings onto the page, I used a Stabilo pencil since they will write on anything, including washi tape. The pencil reacts to water, so I used the smallest brush I had and traced over the scribble journaling with water to make it even darker.

Since I have all my tapes out…I’m thinking of doing this all over again on a loose piece of paper and cutting it up to make postcards and ATCs.  No reason to put those tapes away yet!

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How I Use a Free Spark of Art-spiration to make an art journal page tutorial by Carolyn Dube

Finding images inside free Sparks of Art-spiration is like spotting objects and characters in the clouds.  In this one, I saw Bed Head Betsy, a very happy woman waking up excited about the wonders the day holds for her.

In the video, you can see how I bring the image out and use it to build an art journal page.

Watch How to use a Spark Art-spiration in an art journal on YouTube.

What are Sparks of Art-spiration? They are a printable snippet of a larger piece of art play and a new one comes each week in my free newsletter.  I use them as a zero pressure way to warm up and start playing.  Want to get the exact same Spark I used? Just click the button and the computer elves will send it to your inbox.

Yes, I want the free download!

Using a pencil, I sketched around the image that I saw. No fancy drawing skills needed.  Truly.  Look at her hands.  They don’t exactly have the “proper” number of fingers.

What happens if I “ruin” it or detest my sketching? I just say OOPS and print out another one.  That’s the beauty of a Spark – since another can be printed in snap there is no pressure that it has to be perfect.

How I Use a Free Spark of Art-spiration to make an art journal page tutorial by Carolyn Dube

Once I had her sketched in, I used a thick white paint (heavy body) to cover up the areas around her.  What about the ink smearing when painting over it?

I print Sparks on cheap copy paper on both my ink jet or laser printer.  Both work well for this play. Ink jet prints need to be sealed if you want to be sure zero ink will smear. I put a very thin layer of gel medium on ink jet prints.  I’ve made a video for how to quickly do this in the free workshop, Permission to Play.  If I’m using a laser print, no sealing is necessary.

How I Use a Free Spark of Art-spiration to make an art journal page tutorial by Carolyn Dube

Is it better to cut it or rip it? Whichever way you want to do it is the best way!  It might be wise to wait until the paint is dry to cut it or rip it, but I am not that patient.

What can you do with that Spark?  Anything you use paper for so a card, collage, ATC’s, art journaling, and more.  This felt like the start of an art journal page to me, so I followed that impulse.

It was created on cardboard, for a journal like the one I share how to make in the free workshop, Permission to Play.

How I Use a Free Spark of Art-spiration to make an art journal page tutorial by Carolyn Dube

When art journaling, I like to include words.  I am not a big fan of my own handwriting so for titles I often use stencils, like my Now Is the Time stencil.  A touch of scribble journaling captures my thoughts about her waking up, full of wonder about what the day holds.

How I Use a Free Spark of Art-spiration to make an art journal page tutorial by Carolyn Dube

Another perk of using Sparks of Art-spiration is that you can do more than one thing with them since you print more for your personal use.  Using the Bed Head Betsy, I made a card that I’m going to send to someone I know who has a hard time getting out of bed!

Want to play with Sparks?  Use the button below to have this one sent to your inbox now plus you’ll get a new one each week in my newsletter.

Yes, I want the free download!

How I Use a Free Spark of Art-spiration to make an art journal page tutorial by Carolyn Dube

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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