September Projects

In yesterday's post, Blog Hop With a Difference, I wrote about some of the projects I am participating in this month. Here are my art journal pages from those projects:
*Warning: I haven't posted much this month so there are a lot of photos in this post.

30 Days of Lists

The Documented Life Project

DLP Challenge 38: Use a feather

Made Course 2014

That's all for me today, Don't forget to stop back on Thursday ~ I have something to celebrate!

Blog Hop With a Difference

A few weeks ago my friend, Bernice, invited me to participate in a blog hop that is a bit different than a traditional blog hop. Each person participating is asked four questions about their creative life and then introduces their readers to a few other bloggers they follow and are inspired by.

Q1: What am I working on?

As usual, I have a number of projects I am participating in and September seems especially busy on the art journaling front. 

30 Days of Lists September 2014 - I wasn't going to join this time around, due to the other projects, but I'm a sucker for a list, so I caved in at the last minute. The cover of my journal is actually the back of a book but it has my initials on it so I made it the cover!

I wrote about the Made Course 2014 in my last post which you can see HERE.

Kingdom Come is a free online class offered by art by Shonna Bucaroff. Shonna is a new friend, who I was introduced to by Bernice, and participating in her class was a way for me to get to know her better. My first project from her class is still in process. Her class just started last week so it's not too late for you to join in!

I continue to participate in The Documented Life Project and, seriously, I'm so amazed I have kept up for almost nine months! Pretty good for one who loves to start projects but doesn't always finish them!

Q2: How does my work differ from others of its genre?

My "genre" is art journaling which includes so many genres: mixed media art, lettering, paint, collage, etc. Through art journaling I learned to make my own journals, and more specifically, altered book journals, and that led to the start of my Etsy shop {found on brighton}. I don't know how my work really differs from other art journalers, but at the heart of my art journaling is my faith. Art journaling is, for me, another way to express my journey with God.

Q3: Why do I create what I do?

In regards to art journaling, I create what I do because it is a way to recharge my emotional, mental and spiritual energy. I am an introvert who works in ministry full time. I work with people, meet with people, serve people, and help people all day long. Art journaling helps restore my energy, helps me sort out my thoughts and emotions, and helps me visualize and "incarnate" my spiritual journey. It is also a great creative outlet for me. I love doing anything with color and texture and I must use up the creative energy that is usually bouncing around in my head!

Q4: How does my creative process work?

Much of my creative process begins with my morning habit of prayer, Bible study, writing in my journal, and reading. This morning habit is often the kick starter to my pages. Fridays are my day off and the day I protect as a "Sabbath" day. Fridays offer me a day to extend my morning habit without time limitations and then I will spend a few hours recharging with art. I will often simply make background pages with paint and collage. This process requires no thought and I can get lost in it! It also sparks so much creativity. I will jot down and sketch my ideas for art journal pages while I "play". Then, throughout the week on my work days, I will spend time in the evenings making my pages - anywhere from 15 minutes squeezed in to an hour or so. A little bit each day, no matter how little, is so healthy for me!

Well, that gives you a little more insight into my creative life. Now let me introduce you to a few of the bloggers I follow. They will each post their Blog Hop With a Difference stories next Monday.

Felicia Aaron blogs about her art and her faith at her blog There's More To Me Than You See. I actually met Felicia through my blog and through comments she has left. On her blog you will see her art journaling, stamping, Zentangle, and water color painting.

Leigh Ann Lukens blogs at His Artist. Leigh Ann has great posts on her blog about Faith Art Journaling. I stumbled on Leigh Ann's blog and found a kindred spirit! Leigh Ann's combination of Bible study and art journaling drew me to following her right away!

I hope you will enjoy getting to know these two women of faith and creativity!

Come back and visit on Thursday ~ I have something to celebrate and share with you!

A Few Things

Today's post is going to serve as a few things all rolled up into one blog post. How's that for multitasking!

First, I finally decided to participate in the September 30 Days of Lists. I've hesitated because I have a tendency to involve myself in too many things. But I was looking through my previous 30 Days of Lists journals the other day, looking for a particular page, and that stirred up a desire to join in again. And let's face it, I just love making lists! So today they are doing a blog hop to get the challenge going.

We were challenged to go back to the March 2011 list and select a prompt, make a list, share it on our blog and then link up with other bloggers doing the same thing. I chose prompt #1 "A few things about yourself"...although I have a "few" more than a "few" things! (Ironically I labeled this post without even thinking about the title of the prompt!)

I actually just finished this page last night and loved how it fit with the list prompt. It is actually a page I made for a prompt I did with my art group. As I mentioned in my post last week (Read it here), In August a few ladies from my church got together with me and we formed an art group. One of the ideas I had with this group was to use ancient art forms and re-purpose them using paper and mixed media. Our prompt was to make a list of things about yourself starting with "I am" and/or "I am a/an". Then we made mosaics out of paper and put our lists on them. So the above page is the result of that prompt for me. All of my mosaic pieces were cut from magazine pages. Here are some details before and after I added the words:

I love it when I can kill two birds with one stone without even realizing it! If you are interested in participating in the September 2014 30 Days of Lists challenge you can learn more about it here. It's a fun challenge, especially if you love making lists! Even if you don't it helps you be present to things in your everyday life. There is also a Facebook page for today's blog post where you can view other bloggers lists  #30listsbloghop.

If you feel inspired you can make your own magazine mosaic and include a list of things about you. Don't forget to share it with me!