Big News!!

So...alot of exciting things have been happening in my life lately-amazing opportunities have been cropping up all over the place. Here's one I want to share with you:

I am teaching a journal making workshop 

at Delish General Store  on Granville Island! 

Ex Libris Journal Workshop Sample

Yes indeed, owner Tamara Komuniecki will be hosting my Ex-Libris Journal workshop on Saturday, May 2nd at her beautiful store. I am really excited to be partnering with her and spending the day at one of my favourite places in Vancouver! We will spend a full day together and I will be sharing how to transform an old book into an amazing and unique journal to capture your thoughts and art. It's a wonderful way to make some time and space just for you and to meet others who love journals as much as you do-it's always wonderful to meet kindred spirits!

For more information click here and to register, click here.
Hurry as space is limited!

You can also get a peek at another of my journals made using the techniques you will be learning in class here. The book I used to create my 2015 journal is 101 years old! It's a really wonderful way to give an old book a new and wonderful life and it saves it from going into the landfill!

I hope to see YOU there!

Good Mail Day!

Look what finally arrived in the mail!! I love good mail days!

Here's a peek at my page & interview questions. My friends Seth Apter & Penelope Harris are also on this book, but aside from those two, all the other artists are new to me, which will make for an interesting read. Art Journal Kickstarter is full of eyecandy and interesting commentary on each of the artists' creative process and it's sure to inspire anyone who loves art journaling. Want a copy for yourself? You can find it here.

Seeing my art between the cover just never gets old. It's a thrill every time! 

Coming Soon To A Shelf Near You!

I am really excited to share with you that Dawn DeVries Sokol's new book A World of Artist Journal Pages is now available for pre-order on Amazon! The release date is April 7th, 2015. I am very humbled to have work appearing in this book which is filled with delicious eye candy from over 1000 artists from 30 countries. If you're into art journalling, then this book is going to be a must have!

Congratulations Dawn on all your hard work!

Exciting News: October Workshops!

Hi Everyone! I am super excited to share with you that I will be teaching 2 workshops in October at the beautiful and fabulous 100 Braid St. Studios! I am really looking forward to getting back into the classroom. I hope to see YOU there! 

Spark Your Creativity Inspiration Deck

Date: Friday October 17th & Friday November 7th, 2014

Location: 100 Braid St. Studios, New Westminster
Time: 12:00 pm - 4:00 pm   

Workshop Fee: $85

 Let’s face it: as creatives, we all have times when we’re starving for inspiration! A few years ago, artist I hosted a project with friends to create a deck of cards with all sorts of creative tips and tricks to help reignite the spark of creativity during times when it feels like it's gone out. I'm delighted to now share this with new friends.  This two part class will offer you the opportunity to tap into the collective wisdom of your fellow classmates to create a unique deck of cards that you can shuffle through any time you need an inspiration pick-me-up. 

 The first class will cover collage and composition techniques and I will give specific instructions on creating and copying the cards you create. This class will also have some creative time together to begin working on your cards. Between sessions you will have time to create additional cards.  In the second class, you will bring your copied cards and assemble them, create a pretty bag for your deck and have a trading session with fellow students. 

 Supply List will be sent to you via email after registration. 

Limited to 12 people so I can give you personal attention.

Register for Spark Your Creativity Inspiration Deck Workshop

*****

Ex-Libris Journal Workshop 

Date: Saturday, October 25th, 2014 

Location: 100 Braid St. Studios, New Westminster

Time: 12:00 pm-4:00 pm   

Workshop Fee: $80 

 Do you love books? Love paper? Love to journal? Then this workshop is for you! Learn how to take an old cast-off book and turn it into a cool and unique handmade journal using a basic book binding technique and a variety of recycled papers from your stash. This is a chance to finally use some of the “good stuff” you’ve been saving for just the right project. 

 Warning: This method of journal making is highly addictive! Betcha can’t make just one! 

 Supply List will be sent to you via email after registration. 

Limited to 8 people so I can give you personal attention. 

Age 18+

Register for Ex-Libris Workshop


*NOTE: I have added a workshop page up top just under my blog banner, so when this post is archived, you will still be able to access workshop information quickly and easily.

Rescued Journals

New Journal

So in all the craziness that's been my life lately, I failed to mention that my friends Gisele and Jessica came to visit on the long weekend, just before my husband's surgery. I met Gisele in Vivienne's photography classes and later met her sister Jessica online as well. The both live in Alberta and were coming to the coast to visit family so they decided to stop by. It was a quick 24 hour visit, but we had a great time.

Not long after they arrived, we popped down to the local thrift store to rescue some old books to transform into mixed media journals. We had a little workshop at my kitchen table where I showed them how to gut their books, recover the inside and cut and sew new signatures in. They both managed to get their books assembled in a few short hours.

I chose the little navy hymnal because I like small books that fit in the palm of my hand. It measures 5 1/4 tall x 3 1/2 wide x 1 1/4 thick. Gisele very kindly brought me a stack of old maps of Alberta, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories. I adore Canadiana, so this made me really happy. I decided to cut three of the maps into pages for my journal. I love how random they are. Older maps have such great colours and these are all soft vintage shades of browns, blues and greens. There are 4 signatures of 11 sheets (44 pages) each, for a total of 176 pages in the book. 

I am still trying to decide if I am going to do anything to the cover or just leave it. I'm not religious, so I have no attachment to the words on the cover. If I could come up with the exact right thing to glue over it (like a rusty book plate or a great label) I might be tempted to alter it. For now, I'll leave it as it is.

While Gisele and Jessica were working, we were talking about journalling. Because of the damage to my spinal cord, which affects my hands, I don't hand write anymore. My journals have become places where I glue, sew or tape bits and pieces, so they are primarily visual. I kind of love them this way-I get to use all those things that are "special" in such a way that I will always be able to enjoy them. I just keep adding to them, as time goes on. I have several different journals like this on the go and I often just randomly pick one up and start working on it, so they are all works in progress.

The girls were commenting on how much I seem to love to teach. I do and I miss it in many ways. I always enjoy showing someone what I know and then watching as they take that knowledge and make it their own. It makes me happy to be able to light that spark.

YOU RULE!

Photo Credit: Linda Woods

Sisters Linda Woods and Karen Dinino have done it again! Their latest book, YOU RULE: The Art of Taking Charge is a no nonsense guide to using creativity in the form of art journalling to help define how you'd like to be in the world and it's right on the money!

What I love about it is how funny and honest it is. Linda and Karen share some of their hard won life lessons and tell it like it is. They encourage you to figure out what really matters and then create a visual reminder for yourself. I read their book and was so inspired, I immediately created my own life rules, which they will be sharing on their blog soon!

You can purchase and download a copy of YOU RULE for your e-reader here. Don't have an e-reader? Linda to the rescue! She explains how you can download Kindle for free and how to use it. If you simply have to have it in hard copy, you can do that too! There's something for everyone!

So what are you waiting for? Go get a copy of YOU RULE, get empowered and MAKE ART!