{ Bookmaking Bonanza! : A Personal Dream Come True } : March 2019 //

In my mind, I had imagined this thing that I eventually named the ‘Bookmaking Bonanza!’ I wanted to gather a group of people together to see how many handmade books we could make in a day. I had tried multiple times to make this workshop happen. Third time is the charm! 11 magnificent women joined me on Saturday, March 23rd at the Floyd Art Center in gorgeous Floyd, VA to make this artist’s dream come true!

We made 5 handmade books in 5 hours—the Accordion Fold, Flower Fold, Smash Book (a variation on the Accordion Fold), Japanese Stab Binding and a 5 Hole Butterfly Stitch Pamphlet.

SO. MUCH. FUN. This group of women ROCKED it! Infinite gratitude to all that participated!

I am thinking that another Bookmaking Bonanza would be great around the holiday season?

{ New Works : Personal Graffiti } Vol 2 //

I am continuing to experiment with personal graffiti, free form calligraphy and COLOR with my newest handmade book collection. And there are so many more to come!

I LOVE this one with the lime green and magenta color combo. I do not typically for for green but I think that may need to change…

‘Let It Go’ : 3.5 x 4.5” : Spine View

‘Let It Go’ 3.5 x 4.5” (Front Cover View)

‘Let It Go” : 3.5 x 4.5” : Back View

‘Let It Go’ : 3.5 x 4.5” : Endcover View

‘Let It Go’ : 3.5 x 4.5” : Spine View 2

Dreamy blues and purples will always be my fall back color combo. Can you blame me?

‘Moving On’ : 6.25 x 4” : Spine View

‘Moving On’ : 6.25 x 4” : Front Cover View

‘Moving On’ : 6.25 x 4” : Back Cover View

‘Moving On’ : 6.25 x 4” : Endcover View

‘Moving On’ : 6.25 x 4” : Spine View 2

Thank you for checking our my newest work! My work is currently only available locally through the galleries that carry my work but that will change after the holidays when I fully update my Etsy shop! Happy Holidays!

{ 40 Day Markmaking Challenge : Part One }

Back in May, I become enthralled with Helen Terry’s blog post about her experiment with the 40 Day Mark-making Challenge. She made her own handmade book with loads of different types of paper with the commitment of making marks for 40 consecutive days.

I loved the concept and decided to embark on my own 40 Day Mark-making challenge. I enjoyed it so much that working in one book a day was not enough. In this week’s blog post, I will share various pages from my own handmade book. Papers include vellum, found/salvaged, handmade, watercolor, drawing, Kraft papers and more!

I used watercolors, India inks, spray inks and of course, my beloved cola pens. There were many failures…the challenge of so many different papers consumed me. Below are the experiments that I found acceptable.

Be warned…taking on the 40 Day Mark-making Challenge is addictive!

{ GRATITUDE } :: An Extension of my *Discipline* //

In my last post, I talked about why I decided to make 'Discipline' my Power Word for 2017. It started in the end of 2016, when I decided to resume my long standing practice of morning journaling. I knew that this morning ritual was key to finding answers I am seeking. Long before the new year began, I put pen to paper and began writing. Some days it is easy to pound out the pages, some days it seems to take me awhile to get the words out. This isn't book writing here, either, this is 'stream of consciousness, no body is going to read this but me' writing...nonetheless, it can be a challenge. One morning, I was writing and noticed that I was being very hard on myself. Berating myself in my journal about all that I was NOT accomplishing on any given day in regards to my art biz. So I made the conscious decision to add something to my journal...a nightly entry of what I accomplished that day. No matter how big or small the task is, it goes on the page. I have recently started to add what made me happy, laugh or feel joyous on that day as well.

What is this daily (and now nightly) practice doing for me...specifically my wonky mental health in the long winter months?

LOADS.

I never noticed how much I laugh on any one given day. My daughter is HILARIOUS. She hits the ground running every morning and it can take me awhile to catch up but when I do, we have these lovely quiet mornings together that I cherish. She sees me writing and grabs her little 'dairy' and sits at the table with me. We share a meal together and get ready for our day. This is truly a blessing.

My mind has been blown by the positive feedback my new approach to art is receiving. I will still make books (that is my true Soul Work) but I wanted to expand my artistic chops so I challenged myself to make one new paper collage per day. (You can check out a few of them right here or you can see them all on my Instagram feed).

Beyond that, now my day does not feel like it is one long to-do list that never seems to get done. I can SEE what I am accomplishing and it encourages me to KEEP GOING.

Do you have a daily practice that keeps you focused, moving forward and assisting you in living a life of gratitude? I would love to hear all about it!

{ Hand Lettering : To Commit to an Art Form }

I have been hand lettering in my art journals for years. Like most people, I was intimidated by exploring my own handwriting and avoided it. I used stencils and stamps but never my own writing.

Several years ago, I was working a program of recovery and was journaling daily.

I was listening to a lot of music in my studio and way too many self help podcasts.

I abandoned both the recovery and the self help. I decided to accept myself for who I am...flaws and all.

I still journal regularly. I continue to explore my own handwriting as artistic expression and my a form of therapy and self acceptance.

How about you? Are you scared to hand letter in your art journals?

Do you use stamps, stencils, stickers or cut outs?

Care to join me in a hand lettering challenge?

I want to challenge myself to practice hand lettering and illustration daily...

...and share my daily progress as a commitment to the art of journaling...

...to grow, to heal, to become the best parent, friend and partner to all in my life.