Art and music therapy when journaling

Music is a wonderful way to inspire your art journal pages and your state of mind! Turn on a favorite playlist, get out the paint and see what happens! Here's a spread inspired by my  personal moments with the song “The Windmills of Your Mind”. For this spread I started with gesso, added layers of paint, stenciling and paper for dimension, and then wrote lyrics around the “circles that you find”. What song speaks to you today? What message is the song telling you? Grab your art journal and playlist to enjoy both art therapy AND music therapy while journaling!

Baby, it's cold outside!

One of my favorite songs is "Baby, it's cold outside". Sung as a duet, usually during the holidays, this song is now the theme of our cold, January month. My studio doesn't have heat, but I do run a tiny space heater to spend a little time there.  I managed to create a few pages in my journals despite the cold. My favorite so far is the quick sketch of birch trees in my mini moleskine.

This journal doesn't take too much wet media, so I sponged ink and added a light spray of silver acrylic. I used an Inktense black pencil and a dry brush layer of gesso for the trees. I always add scraps of paper that are from my personal painted paper stash. This small journal continues to be my inspirational quote journal.

My husband and I recently watched all the Star Wars movies in chronological order - to see the whole story unfold. It inspired me to create a fun spread dedicated to the Force and our fun time together. I practiced a lotus line drawing and then used Yoda's quote: "Liminous beings are we" for my focus! Stay warm and enjoy some journaling of your January!

Started with line drawing over painted background.

Holiday season inspiration

The holiday season is my favorite time to decorate the house and get inspired by the many possibilities! This year I've chosen white poinsettias through out the house. I prefer the white variety because they add a wonderful lightness around the room, especially when combined with lights!

The poinsettias inspired the cover of my December planner, painted with gesso and acrylics, ready to record holiday memories.

I then painted another version for making prints for my holiday cards while enjoying the different color combinations I could create. Enjoy the season and look for color inspiration wherever you are!

This time of year brings many thoughts and focus on trees with the changing season, the autumn colors, and time to "fall back".When my husband and I visit the mountains this time of year I love seeing the oak trees, acorns and oak leaves that fall to the ground.  I'm partial to the oak leaves found in our favorite places because their towering branches symbolize strength. Yellow is my go-to color to signify my joy when among the leaves. I hope you'll try sketching, stamping, painting or gluing a real leaf in your art this month!

Cover of my November monthly insert. Acrylic paint and torn papers.

Back cover with acorn stamp.

Some yummy background color for documenting my November days.

Documenting a weekend in the mountains.

Love this fun poem!

Some watercolor in my Hobonichi Techo.

Continuing with this month's COLORS -- yellow ochre, orange and burnt orange -- I'm sharing my tiny inspirational journal. I chose a quote then used background stenciling, decorated papers, stabilo pencil and a hand-carved stamp on coffee filter paper. Try using this quote and these colors to represent hope and encouragement in your journal!

October Planner Pages

My October planner was inspired by my love of pods and the colors of fall: yellow ochre, orange and burnt orange. These colors represent hope and positivity as well as encouragement and change which we all seem to be seeking these days. I used stencils, masks, rubber stamps and hand-carved stamps for this month's pages. Hope you try it yourself and record your special story in October.

Five months of colorful inserts!

August Hobonichi Techo Flip Thru

I challenged myself to watercolor "Summer Treats" everyday in August!