Art Journal Essentials

I started this journal at the beginning of the year. I decided that what I wanted to express in my journals was more important than how much twiddly stuff I could get into it. I wanted to create pages in a short time, not spend days on them.

I chose a simple black-paged blank book. I can customise the plain heavy card covers in due course once the journal has more character. The materials I used were water soluble crayons, some collage, a glue-stick and a white pen.

I like to recycle old journals by scanning and printing out the pages, then cutting them up and using them as borders or rearranging them in a new way. This kind of repetition can add a certain style or uniqueness to your work that becomes your own. So the borders on these pages are just chopped up copies of previous pages of mine.

Basic Art Journal Kit

A blank book with heavy pages able to withstand watercolor. Alternatively, cut/tear sheets of watercolor paper and use loose rings to bind them.

Crayons or pastels - oil, soft or water-soluble; your choice

Glue stick or double-sided tape dispenser.

A selection of pens

Old magazines for cutting up

You can add to this as you go along. It can be fun to experiment new materials.

When you want something relaxing to do, these fabric journals are the perfect way to zone out. I use glorious Kaffe Fassett fabrics and hand stitch each one into sweet little pillows, which are then quilted and sewn together. They don't take long to make and all you need to do is sew in your choice of paper and you have a completely unique journal... or, if you are like me, a whole collection of them. They make fantastic gifts too!

Fabric Journals