I stumbled across some blogs a few weeks back about art journaling. Most were very well layed out, Martha Stewart Style perfection. A bit daunting if you’re just looking for a start. So I kinda decided on my own path. I didn’t want it to be a mini scrapbook. I can scrapbook, I don’t need miniature size. Other sites show you how to make individual art journal pages, but that isn’t what I’m after (yet) either.  Right now, I just want a small journal I can doodle my thoughts in. Not write. Draw, paint, attach photos, whatever to catch a moment, a quote or a mood. My favorite of the sites I found was this one.

See the great thing about art, is that it’s a complete work when it makes YOU smile. And the other night I was tinkering around with Cretacolor AquaStics (colors on paper just like crayons, but brush with water and you have watercolor!), some acrylic paint, and some paint pens. By the time I was done, what started out as trying out my new toys made me smile.

Yesterday I completed my second page. You all saw the photos of my Mother’s Day gifts. Well my tulips are dying now, and I decided to use a photo or two and the note from the  cookies as yesterday’s entry to remember Mother’s Day.

Messy? Yes. But it made me happy.

Maybe I don’t need to be able to draw people and animals and landscapes. Maybe I will eventually, maybe I won’t. I was limiting myself by only thinking in those terms. This…is fun. And it’s art.

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