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As 2018 comes to a close, the circle begins again and we get another trip around the sun- hello 2019!

Thank you for making 2018 such a fun year- and here’s to 2019 having, even MORE play in it!

Here are a few of my most popular videos and posts as we take a look back at 2018

The struggle is real! When there’s a background you love and you also want to cover it up but don’t want to- here’s how I dealt with that!

 

Actually using washi tape can be scary!  I freaked out inner supply hoarder who was positive I would run out of the tape.  Hint, nowhere near that!

Who would have guessed drawing a butterfly could be this hard????

What’s the right way to stencil with a gel plate?  Here’s my answer to that!

Sure, tissue paper is thin but one little trick gives it plenty of superhero strength – okay that might be an exaggeration, but it does make it strong enough to gel print.

Blank pages are so scary! Kind of like the monster under the bed! But they don’t have to be!  

They’re little and mighty these ATC sized stencils!

Impatience + imprecision= stamp carving.  Really! The no pressure way to stamp carve.

If Willy Wonka had a color factory instead of a chocolate factory, I bet it would look like poured paintings!

The exciting thing about home renovations?  The trash and what it can do on a gel plate!

Did I go too far? Maybe but it sure was fun!  Another of the many reasons why you don’t want to get a haircut from me!

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Merry Happy Holidays!  Having some cheap, and I mean cheap cardboard brought Santa to my studio!

Even though there were 500 googly eyes in the package in a bunch of colors, I still ended up with the traditional black and white. One of these days I am going to find the perfect project that needs rainbow eyes!

Remember, the more terrible the cardboard for actually staying together in shipping, the easier it is to rip and get the corrugated parts to show!

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What’s the play for today?  It’s art journaling in the giant, jumbo, vintage ledger- which finally has a name!  As I’m painting the page and tree, you’ll see why acrylic gouache was so handy plus how the Scribble Scratch stencil made leaves on the tree too.

At the end of the video, you’ll see how to deal with a logical left brain squashes the play.

Watch Using Acrylic Gouache in an Art Journal on YouTube.

Acrylic gouache is a combination of watercolor and acrylic paint.  So if you add water, it behaves like a watercolor and spreads over large areas easily.  If you use it straight from the bottle, it behaves more like an acrylic paint.

Once it is dry, it is permanent so it makes it great for layering in an art journal.

What stencil is making the leaves?  That’s Scribble Scratch, one that I designed for StencilGirl. There are no leaves on it, but that doesn’t matter one bit.  It’s going to make great impressionistic leaves!

The final touches to the tree came courtesy of the all-purpose studio supply, the baby wipe.

After the tree was finished, my logical left brain started to ask a lot of questions.  Questions like, what will you add next?  How are you going to finish it? Being pestered and hounded by these questions was taking the fun out of the play.

I not so politely reminded that logical left brain that just because I start a page does not mean that I am required to finish it that same day. And I stepped away from the page.

If you leave it be, step away, and come back with fresh eyes often it’s clear what you want to do next.  What you’re doing is taking the pressure off which makes it a whole lot easier to play!

So what is the name of this big journal?  It’s been a long journey to decide and I so appreciate all the help, suggestions, and ideas that have been shared with me.

It was easier for me to name my children than this book- but I finally have it. MoJo.  It means 2 things to me.  First, Mother of a Journal- this thing is huge. Second, it’s where I go to play when I need to get my mojo back.

Thanks again to everyone who shared their ideas for a name!

Here are the supplies 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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