Videos

Video: Studio Art Journaling Session

     Leave a Comment

How is your midweek going? Mine feels productive but if I were to be honest I am itching for some people time. I feel as if I am working up towards some real shifts in my life-good shifts-but I am getting a bit impatient.

It can be hard to move towards something new while still sitting with the old on a daily basis and it is in the times of feeling uncomfortable or anxious or worried that I do two things: pray and art journal.

Of course that may look different for everyone but when I create in my art journal it allows me to connect sometimes in a more meaningful way. It clears out the noisy thoughts and reminds me to be a bit more aware of what is. And I don’t know about you but it’s much easier for me to focus on what is when there are colorful paints and collage materials around me.

Would you like to have a little midweek creative time with me? You don’t have to work in your journal but maybe 5 minutes with your favorite creative outlet will help you through your day or to unwind from it. I created a little video for you to watch below. If you do join me please comment I would love to hear what you created during our time together!

 

Until next time…

-Michele, aka The Dreaming Dilettante

Music by You ME and the Piano – Merry-Go-Round – https://thmatc.co/?l=4B20EFD1

Music by Julia Pauletti – Yesterday – https://thmatc.co/?l=06E3D048

Video: Playing with Watercolors-Create with Me!

     Leave a Comment

You can watch the video by scrolling to the bottom of the blog post.

Today I wanted to play with my watercolors.

I thought it would be fun to create some images on smaller sheets of paper but really just play with the supplies and see what came about.

Over the weekend I was sketching outside by my marigolds. I was inspired by Anne Butera’s sketchbook class where she showed a snippet of her creating in her garden. The whole family was outside playing over the weekend so I set up a picnic style blanket and plopped on the ground beside my marigolds (dogs clamoring for snuggles).

Initially I started out swatching colors while thinking about the marigolds. Then I tried to create some similar to how I had done in my sketchbook. I learned quickly that my tendency to overwork things lead to more of a circle rather than a flower shape.

Still, I had fun. I was a little bummed that the marigolds lost their shape so I popped over to my favorite color while thinking for flowers. Not any flower in particular I just held the idea in my head and moved my brush around to see what happened.

I used this same technique for some lavender and purple shapes as well.

Lastly I decided to swatch some fall colors and then I made some marks while thinking about leaves-and stopping myself before I could overwork them too much!

Then it seemed fitting to try a pile of fallen leaves. It wasn’t looking like what I imagined but when I let go and just started playing again the colors started to blend and I was very happy with my abstract pile of fallen leaves.

And the tree they fell off of.

I hope you will give your favorite media a try. Perhaps without trying to create anything you just let your media and movements dance and see what they create.

Until next time…

-Michele, aka The Dreaming Dilettante

Video: Making Our Popcorn Journals: No Sew/No Special Tools

     Leave a Comment

Happy Monday!

As you read that we are officially back to home school. Right now I am probably picking up pencils off the floor and trying to keep my now 4 year-old occupied without going through all the special homeschool items I purchased for this purpose. With any luck I was able to get some nice photos of the first day and the kids are excited about some new surprise goodies that the moaning and groaning is at a minimum.

The Michele who writes this is full of hope 🙂

If you remember a few weeks back I shared the idea of a “popcorn journal.” (If not you can read and watch the video here).

The idea was that on those nights when we want to crash on the couch and binge watch our favorite show that we could make a tiny bit of art in the 2 minutes it takes to pop our popcorn.

At the time I had planned to use an actual popcorn box for this purpose but I seemed to misplace it when it came to make the video.

I also realized that I had brought all my book binding tools back home to the Creative Corner and had very limited items here at the studio.

My first instinct was to just do it another time but I had no idea what to film for today. So I took a moment and was guided to just make what I could make with what I had on hand.

Years ago I used to make some “Use What You’ve Got” videos on my YT channel. As much as I love an art supply and I love it even more when creators share links to what they are using I really want to be mindful of what I share. I never want anyone to think you need a specific tool or a specific paint color to create. I think it’s so important to encourage everyone to create where they are at with what they have.

And that’s just what I did in this video.

The journal is no sew, uses a box from the recycling bin and printer paper to construct the cover. You just need some PVA glue or Mod Podge, printer paper and then whatever you want to create with to decorate the cover.

It’s that easy.

You can add a little reinforcement with some painters tape or masking tape but it’s definitely not necessary. You could do the same with some paper bag, magazine pages or more printer paper. You could even leave it as is.

As I was making (and figuring out) this journal what really stood out what how much fun I was having making it. I wasn’t worried about it looking perfect but rather I was just enjoying making a journal.

This isn’t the best way to make an art journal. It’s not going to give you a polished look but it will be an expression of your creativity. It will give you some time with your materials to have fun. I also think that when the journal isn’t picture perfect and pristine, it’s easier to just dig in and start putting some color on the pages. It doesn’t feel so precious this way.

I really hope you have fun and even make yourself a “popcorn journal.” If you do please comment below or on the video I would love to hear!

I am thinking that my journal is going to hold pages for the zines that are bouncing around in my head. I have really wanted to make a zine for a long time now and I just seem to get blocked each time. I am hoping this journal will spark the creative spirit and get me going.

Are you ready to make your journal? You can watch the video below.

I also plan to share some quick videos of my 2 minute art making both here on the blog and my YT channel so you can do the whole subscribe to the newsletter channel thing if you want. Or just stop in and look around from time to time.

Until next time…

-Michele, aka The Dreaming Dilettante

Video: Creating without a Plan

     Leave a Comment

I sat down to create without a plan.

Don’t you just love doing that?

I wasn’t sure what to create so I picked a journal I hadn’t worked in for a while and one of my most fun materials-Tempura Paint Sticks. The paper is black and it was fun to see how the paint sticks showed up. Initially I was just putting color on the paper and deciding to try and blend it a bit. From there a whole magical scene emerged.

Would you like to play? Even if you don’t know what to make-you can always make a mark. Let me be your studio buddy as we play in our journals and listen to what the muses are guiding us to make. You can watch the full video below.

Until next time…

-Michele, aka The Dreaming Dilettante

Video: Making Collage Papers Together

     Leave a Comment

I am excited to share another create with me session. I am planning to make these, or some version of them weekly and next week I am planning on sharing an art journaling practice with you. This week I am making some more painted papers that I plan to use in collage.

If you want to get creative but maybe you don’t know exactly what to make, painted pages can be so much fun! If you don’t like collage and think you don’t have a use for painted pages you can do the same thing in your art journal to get ride of white space and then create over top of them.

Some other uses for painted pages:

  • Homemade wrapping paper: You could use a roll of kraft paper to make marks and paint splatters or even copier paper to wrap smaller presents.
  • Fold them into homemade gifts bags
  • Homemade gift tags
  • Turn them into envelopes for happy mail
  • Use sturdier paper and then bind them together to make a journal
  • Cut the paper down to make homemade greeting cards or postcards.
  • Use as backgrounds for photos in memory keeping
  • Cut them up and use them in your planner
  • Make tabs for your planner or journals
  • Use in your Rainbow Glue Book

The possibilities are really endless! If you have some ideas please share in the comments-and be sure to link your blog so I can stop by and say hello!

In addition to making painted pages I am having a chat about an upcoming popcorn journal video, Bob Ross and making mud.

Mentioned in the Video:

Last Week’s Create with Me:

Jennibellie’s Video on Making a Journal from a Cereal Box

Wishing you a wonderful day!

Until next time…

-Michele, aka The Dreaming Dilettante

Embracing the Planned and the Unplanned & Turning a Tea Box into an Art Box

     2 Comments

Today was a day for doing the planned and the unplanned.

We went up for the town parade which was planned but my oldest two being invited to walk in the parade was unplanned and something they never did before. It was a wonderful experience for them and something I am sure they will remember.

We ended up chatting with our neighbors as we walked home which is always nice. That lead to them offering us their old pool filter for our pool so Scott and our girls are over now visiting and getting the pool filter.

My brother-in-law stopped by to pick up some tomato plants I had for him. We haven’t seem him since Thanksgiving so it was nice to say hello. I tend to have anxiety when people come in my house so unplanned events are actually better for me. My mind doesn’t have much time to work into a tizzy and since it was just decided yesterday he would stop by on his way to something else it felt very low pressure for me and was a nice time.

Now, I am embracing the air conditioning (I get heat sick very easily) and writing to you. I wonder how your day is? Have you been able to embrace the planned and unplanned?

It’s an interesting perspective for me to have since I spent yesterday working in my planner. I am thinking of it more as a container rather than a planner because, as I have said lots of times, I hate to have plans. I love the idea of a planner and filling in the days ahead of time. I rarely ever like the enacting a plan set in place earlier. I never feel like the same person who made the plans. Instead I like to have containers. Something that works as a reminder of all the things that are important to me so I don’t get swept away by my day but not something that is so rigid that I can’t be present in my day.

I am playing around with a new way to incorporate my creative self and my containers and my planner-I’ll be sure to share some updates with you as I get a feel for it.

One thing I am planning on doing is the ICAD 2022 Challenge over on Daisy Yellow’s blog. It looks like so much fun and a great way to have a play with my mixed media and also giving me a container for creativity when I may not be sure what I want to make one day. I decided when I first read about it on the blog that I was going to take part and I was really excited to find that my tea boxes are the perfect container to hold an index card. I decided I would paint it up and have it prepped and ready for June 1st.

I started off just adding a layer of gesso to the box and then some new pastel blue paint I picked up from the craft store during my mini creative retreat. I then added some decorative paper to cover up the embossing the box has and some stickers I was gifted on Mother’s Day.

I am really happy with how it turned out and it was a lot of fun to do. I  was working on this project in the midst of others so when I was waiting for a layer of paint to dry on this project I moved on to another one. It is really easy and I love using things that would other wise be trash (or recycled) and making it into something new. If you love the 80’s themed washi tape as much as I do it’s from artist Mindy Lacefield‘s shop! Not to be a total enabler but she has stickers too-scratch and sniff ones 😉

I recorded the process of decorating the box so if you would like to watch and maybe make something yourself the video is just below.

Are you taking part in ICAD? If so I would love to hear! I will plan on sharing my postcards here on the blog so even if you aren’t taking part you can get a feel for the challenge.

I hope this post finds you doing well and that you are able to get a little bit of creativity into your day today.

Until next time…

-Michele, aka The Dreaming Dilettante