Creative Lettering Class

I am taking a lettering class with Nicolette Anderson (http://nickieblog.blogspot.com/). I love it and highly recommend it, especially for people like me who stink with making pretty lettering. So far I have done three assignments: writing out an alphabet, writing a quote ("It's all about the climb") in an alphabet called Tinkertoy, and writing the same quote in a different alphabet and then using color in the negative space. Here's my "homework"!

blue heart

I made this piece after reading about the technique in Violette's "Journal Bliss." I put two layers of gesso on a page in my composition book. Then, I glued on a blue heart made of construction paper. Next, I glued on a layer of light blue tissue paper and used some pearly white paint. Lastly, I applied gel medium.

comp book cover

I decorated the cover of my composition book! I wanted a simple design so that I would not feel intimidated to use my art journal.

I used sandpaper on the cover to get some of the glossy finish off. I used Original Tacky Glue and attached three layers of yellow tissue paper. I attached a piece of pink construction paper and then a red heart made of construction paper. I also attached another piece of pink paper with my name and "Art Journal #1" on it. Lastly, I covered it with a gel medium.

I wish I would have used gesso after I used the sandpaper, so that the writing on the cover would be covered. I may add a few extra layers of yellow tissue paper.

Michael's coupon

I went to Michael's again today! This time, it was to use my two coupons. I bought:

• some acrylic paints
• brushes
• more glue sticks
• Original Tacky Glue
• more gloss medium varnish
• some brads
• some more heart-shaped buttons

I was originally supposed to pay 48 dollars, but, with the coupons, I got it all for 32 dollars! What a bargain! Now, I should be set for a while!

I love you, Ao!

This year, I asked my best friend, Ao, to be my Valentine. I am bribing her with a collage I made! haha. I used three sheets of patterned paper as the background. Then, I wrote "I love you" in six different laguages using a ballpoint ink pen (I have not yet received my fountain pens from www.dickblick.com). I used a glue stick to attach them. I really hope my "Aoica" likes it!

simple piece for a soldier

I made this very simpe piece with markers on plain computer paper that already had "Erika" printed on it. Erika is my "adopted" soldier through Soldier's Angels (www.soldiersangels.com). I am going to mail it to her tomorrow, along with a letter I wrote her. I cannot sleep again tonight, which is a bummer. Oh, well... I will make the best of it by making things and such. Just a note: the bottom of the paper got cut off by the camera.

intro page completed!

I made my new art journal's introduction page. Yesterday, I put white gesso on the page with the intention of making a collage today. But then, I used three different sheets of tissue paper and attached them to the page with a glue stick. Lastly, I used a quote I printed out. It reads, "The cardinal rule of journaling is that you cannot do it wrong!" The quote is courtesy of Tera Leigh (www.teras-wish.com).

Anne the quene

Today I woke up at 1pm, since I had to catch up on sleep. After  I woke up, I at some breakfast, checked my email, and then started to create. I ended up making a tribute to Anne Boleyn (the second wife of Henry the 8th of England) in the composition book I am using for art journaling. I am a huge fan of the Tudors, so I greatly enjoyed making this piece!

newly aquired goods

So, I did some art supply shopping today at Michael's and then at Target. Here is a list of my new treasures:

• White gesso
• Gloss medium
• Brush
• Stickers
• Foam hearts
• Felt hearts
• Button hearts
• A pack of brads
• Lots of tissue paper
• Some rubber stamps with ink pads
• Paper in all sorts of patters
• Glitter glue

Now, I just have to find a means of organizing all of my goodies! I will work on organization tomorrow.

one of my first collages!

I could not sleep last night due to pain from my fibromyalgia. So, early this morning, I decided to whip together a small collage for Colbie. Colbie is a girl I know through the charity Hugs and Hope (www.hugsandhope.org). She is sick and in the hospital. Though my collage is crappy, I sincerely hope it makes her smile! I used the limited supply of materials I had at my mom's house (I'm snowed in today!): three highlighters, a few stickers, images from the internet, printer paper, printer, and a glue stick.

combining old and new

To start, I have already bought a few books about journaling and creative writing a while ago, and one about art journaling that I just received today. Here is an incomplete list of these books:

• Journalution by Sandy Grason
• The New Diary by Tristine Rainer
• Journal Bliss by Violette
• Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg
• Fiction Writer's Workshop by Josip Novakovich

I would like to try art journaling. I think it will be delightfully fun and be a wonderful mode of expression with which I can experiment. To get started, I joined two art journaling groups on Yahoo groups today. Tomorrow, I will go to my dad's house to get my art and craft supplies that I used for projects in high school. They've been in hibernation since I graduated. I will also go to Michael's (the store) to buy a few things I do not already have.

List of supplies I will get from home:

• Crayola markers
• Crayons
• Tissue paper
• Construction paper
• Stickers
• Glue sticks

List of supplies I will buy at Michael's:

• White gesso
• High-quality markers
• A few embellishments
• Golden Gel Medium
• Brush
• CD-ROMs with images (if they have any)

I will also stop by a grocery store to pick up a composition book (yes, the black and white marbled kind). One of the Yahoo groups I joined is for art journalers who use comp books. And, since I am on a budget, this is a cheap alternative to a Moleskine sketchbook.