Iwanna Wednesday - Art Journals

Welcome to another Iwanna Wednesday post! 

Now that I've started my Art Journey I am realizing how many amazing forms of art there are out in the world and artists that can turn almost anything into Art!

So far I've done some sketching and painting using Acrylic paints on canvas board and canvas and a mixed media art book. My favorite so far is the Canson Mix Media notebook. It's very inexpensive, bought this one at Walmart for under $8! The pages are thick enough that they don't curl and the paint doesn't soak in and damage the other pages below.

Recently I've started learning about Art Journals and really didn't understand the purpose of them. Why do a beautiful piece of art in a journal that you can't frame or give away.

So I started reading blog posts from artists that love to Art Journal. One of them is Marta Lapkowska from the blog Artistycrafty and she also has a YouTube Channel under the name of Maremi Small Art. She's in a word Amazing!

Here's some pages out of her art journals. This one she made into a tutorial on YouTube, Toilet Paper Roll Abstract. Yes...she used toilet paper rolls and I love her message. Be Kind. In this tutorial she was trying to show us also that you can be creative without spending a ton of money. She used inexpensive paints and toilet paper rolls!

Photo Credit - Marta Lapkowska

Here's another one that seems very romantic and almost Victorian to me. Plus she used a Butterfly which I love! I couldn't find a tutorial for this one, but I'm sure it's on there somewhere.

Photo Credit - Marta Lapkowska

But that's what I love best about her is that she is so creative. She has tutorials on creating art with baby wipes, q-tips, watercolors, hot glue, teas, tea bags, coffee, coffee grounds, Styrofoam, straws...the list is endless.

This next one for instance...just wow!

Photo Credit - Marta Lapkowska

The green part you see underneath that she added all these items to is actually a piece of an old television. The two hearts represent herself and her daughter. Two hearts connected, here on her artwork by wire. I just love it!

The reason I'm not just finishing this post and beginning my art journal journey is that I'm not quite sure yet what the purpose is and if it's a journal, how do you keep a piece of artwork like the last one in a journal? Obviously it's big and bulky right?

And here comes the Iwanna part of me. When I watch her create I see her using so many cool tools, markers, watercolor pens, stencils, art mediums, stickers, flowers. I'm really worried that the Iwanna in me would go crazy just collecting items for creating these beautiful pieces. 

I want the Mica Powders and the Jane Davenport watercolors. Colored Markers, Glitter Glue, Modeling Paste. I want Gels and Gelato markers....I just wanna everything and where will I store them??? Hmmm, seems like I really need that art studio right?

For now I will continue to watch her videos and learn and we'll see where that takes us. The funny thing is yesterday I was walking the dog in the park and I saw some beautiful leaves that would make great imprints on a page for journaling...so I don't know, maybe the beginning of my journey is closer than I think.

Iwanna Wednesday - Yes....it's back!!!

Those of you that know what an Iwanna Wednesday is are jumping for joy right? Those of you that don't, well hang on to your hats cause I'm about to rock your world! Ha! Well, maybe not exactly, but hopefully you will enjoy this post.

First...what is Iwanna Wednesday? Glad you asked! Iwanna Wednesday began back on December 3, 2008 and there have been 123 Iwanna Wednesday posts since. I bet most of you don't even own 123 items let alone lust after 123 random items...but I do.

My mom and sister started calling me Iwanna back in 2008 because it seems that I want everything I see! I can walk into any store and see an item and say, "Oh, I've always wanted one of these!" I can even drive by a random house on the street and say, "Oh, I always wanted a fish pond like that" or "I always wanted big rocks like that in the middle of the yard." What can I say, obviously something is lacking in my life!

My cousin Stella especially enjoys my Iwanna Wednesday posts. So much so that she found a pair of earrings attached to a sticker that said Iwanna and I told her I would make that my Iwanna Wednesday logo, which is why it's above, thanks Stella!

Recently I've found a new hobby...Art! I especially love painting in Acrylics. Love it! I feel like I've found my home! My calling, my special purpose in life. Not saying you're going to be seeing any of my artwork in the Louvre or the Met, but it soothes my soul and helps me to relieve stress.

I've always thrown myself fully into all projects and interests that I've found in my life. I always want to have all the gadgets and doohickeys that go along with said project and interest. So of course, when I started painting I had to have all the doohickeys. One doohickey that I don't have but Iwanna so bad is an art studio. A little spot in the world with lots of natural light so I can just paint to my little hearts content.

So for my first Iwanna Wednesday in a long, long time...Iwanna show you some of the Art Studios I have been lusting after! C'mon...walk with me, talk with me...

In my heart I am imagining a backyard art studio built just for me. With lots of space and light and flowers surrounding it. 

Photo Credit - The Owner Builder Network

But even an Iwanna has to be realistic. That beauty above is way beyond my price range, but it's so beautiful! *sigh*

My first art set up was like this. Just an art desk in one corner of my bedroom, but by the time I get home and have time to paint it's nighttime and there is hardly any light at all, even if I turn on every lamp in the room. I tried buying a nice desk lap but the light still didn't work for me. I'm not saying my eyes are getting worse as I get older...but you know how it goes!

So I ended up lugging everything into the kitchen where there was much better lighting and I used one end of the kitchen table. It was so much work getting up to go get a different tube of paint that I made this funky little set up in the kitchen. It's not pretty, but it works...for now. See all my tubes of paint hanging off of S-hooks?

But as an Iwanna I am never satisfied and while I know I will never have that beautiful art studio in the first picture, Iwanna something better than my funky little kitchen set up. Probably something that I can set up in a spare bedroom. Something like these two.

Photo Credit - My Home Decor

Photo Credit - My Home Decor

Just look at all that amazing natural light! And I love the simplicity of plain white walls. I've never been a lover of color on my walls. In my home right now every single wall is a bright, beautiful, cheerful white!

I absolutely love this next Art Space. This is a brand new space for Artist Kristie Moore who is one of the members of my art group on Facebook. It's a great group of artists from beginners to experts and I am learning so much and feeling so inspired from such a great group. Thanks Kristie for sharing this beautiful space and I wish you happiness and love on your art journey!

She also shared this beautiful picture of her blooming Magnolia tree. Who wouldn't be inspired by this view. I have to admit I am green with envy!

I would also love a space where I can hang artwork, whether it be mine or someone else's, just to find inspiration. A space with lots of wall space like this!

Photo Credit - Bella Daze Blog

So for now I will continue working at my little corner of the kitchen table, but someday...someday....

Because Iwanna it!

Karma Karma Karma Karma Karma Chameleon

Meme Credit - quickmeme.com

Short and sweet today...well as short as I can make it as I tend to be wordy.

So yesterday an itsy bitsy spider came down from the ceiling right onto the keyboard on my computer at work. He was the size of a gnat, just a little guy.

I took a piece of paper and scooped him up and carried him into the big area outside my office where there is no furniture nothing, just a big empty room and I blew him into the rest of his life to safety. No need to kill him, he did me no wrong, he wasn't a Brown Recluse Spider or a Black Widow, so why not let him live right?

My co-worker saw and said "Oh, you're one of those people"! 

I told him, "Hey, I need all the good Karma I can get and he did me no harm so why would I hurt him"? A big conversation ensued between him an another co-worker about how they always kill spiders and blah, blah, blah.

Today I had to deal with one of my VIP clients. A client that has no time for dilly-dallying, this is what he wants and he wants it yesterday. You know the type, the world is his oyster and I'm simply a little grain of sand in his oyster that turns it into a perfect pearl for him!

Anyway, he wanted something backdated to 2 months ago and he had his attorney on conference call with me to explain it all to me. I was pretty sure it could not be done, but told him I would do my best.

I was in the process of talking to a supervisor trying to "do my best" when a co-worker told me the attorney was on the other line and saying "never mind". So I put the supervisor on hold, took the call from the attorney who told me she got it taken care of with the bank and thank you so much. 

I came back to the supervisor I had on hold and explained the situation and how now we didn't have to worry about it and she said "See, you must have done something nice cause Karma smiled upon you"! Wow! So I told her my spider story and we had a good laugh and then we both hung up and went on to live the rest of our lives.

But yeah, saving little creatures who do us no harm saved me from a big creature today! Gotta love Karma (and itsy bitsy spiders)!

Do some good in the world today!