I am excited to have a few new courses starting up this month. Expressive drawing which is a great way of exploring drawing in a new and exciting way. In this course we explore using different mediums each week including pastels, watercolours and even coffee.
The second is an Introduction to Art Journaling which is a great way to get started with fantastic techniques to try each week. You also get a handmade journal to start you off.
I hope you are all well. I have been neglecting my blog for so long now I decided I really needed to get back on top of it. I have been a women on a mission since Christmas with so many projects on the go I don't know quite where to start!
I was bought some encaustic medium for Christmas and have been so excited to start experimenting, I have started up my workshops again. This month it is Intermediate art journaling, I have started a portrait of my youngest daughter and been trying out some abstract landscape painting...... but more on all that another time!
Today I wanted to tell you all about my recent bookbinding endeavours! I am most definitely in a binding phase and am looking to run a whole days workshop in May making Junk journals. Here is a few of my recent makes:
This is a little coptic stitched junk journal. The cover is made from an old book. I am using this as a creative journal to keep family memories in.
This one is made from a gorgeous second hand book. I didn't do anything to the cover cause I loved it as it was. I have tried to keep it pirate/nautical themed throughout.
This last one is made up of random pages I liked and lots of cool embellishments. The cover is an old cereal box. Throughout it I have included things like tags etc that have been sent to me. (apologies for the wonky filming, My 8 year old wanted to film it!)
I love love love making junk journals they are so satisfying to make, so tactile and so lovely to use. I am hoping to start making some to sell on Etsy. I will of course keep you posted on that!
Well I am now a few months into running my new art workshops and I have to say I am absolutely loving them and they are going so well. I have met some fantastic people and it feels wonderful to inspire others to try new things!
The courses I have run so far are 'An introduction to Art Journaling' and I am in the middle of a 5 week 'Expressive Drawing' course. I have also been tutoring one lady one to one in abstract art and getting set for some lovely Christmassy one off workshops over the next few weeks.
While all this means is I have less time than usual I have found myself totally inspired and keep sneaking off whenever I have a minute to work on my own stuff and to come up with new ideas for workshops.
Here are a few shots from the recent workshops:
It is lovely to see how different everyone's work is. I am particularly proud of the drawing course. Some of the participants were nervous and unsure of their abilities to start with however two of them were so proud of their drawings they have since framed and put up their work at home.
As well as the workshops I have been very busy with a new abstract canvas, here's how it looks so far:
At the moment I seem to be attracted to yellows which is unusual because it is not a colour I normally use. That said I am loving how this one is turning out!
What a busy bee I have been these last few weeks! It has been a bit mad whilst I have been setting up my new workshops and planning the next ones as well as taking on some Aerial hoop classes teaching people to be acrobats (which if you weren't aware is another passion of mine!)
The Art journaling workshops are going really well and I am now 2 weeks in to a 5 week course. The group I have is lovely and the feedback I have been getting so far is good. I love teaching, it is fab to get to know my group and watch their different styles develop. Here are a few snaps of the lovely work they have been producing so far:
One lovely lady has also asked me for a few one on one sessions in abstract art which I will be starting next week. Really looking forward to that, it should be loads of fun.
I have also been busy planning some other workshops, one of which is mixed media tags and I have been really enjoying making these in preparation. Take a look:
These are made from recycled bits and bobs and I adore the results! That workshop should be appearing very soon!
Some exciting news! My new Introduction to Art Journaling course is now up and running! Please see the following link for further details and how to book:
Sessions are available in both the afternoon and evening and a separate afternoon session is also available for ages 10-16. If you fancy coming along please take a look!
There are also some one off workshops as well as an expressive drawing course coming soon. I will keep you posted!
The art journaling course is full of fun techniques to try and includes your own handmade journal to work in! Hope to see you there!
