Happy National Handwriting Day 2017
I was moved to do my writing with brown and purple pens.
P.S. I did not write the sign at the bottom left. That was printed off the internet.
A place for art, play, and nonsensical musings.
Monday, January 23, 2017
Handwriting
Yes, there's a day for that..
I was moved to do my writing with brown and purple pens.
P.S. I did not write the sign at the bottom left. That was printed off the internet.
I was moved to do my writing with brown and purple pens.
P.S. I did not write the sign at the bottom left. That was printed off the internet.
Tuesday, January 17, 2017
Plans Change
Some notes on how I prepared my planner/journal for this year.
Once I decided on my journal with the grid pages, I wanted to make the pages a little stronger to take whatever media I put on them. I made sure I had enough pages available, then I used glue stick to glue every 2 pages together. I ended up with pages that are double thickness and which should stand up well.
Another thing I did was to play around with calendar layouts in the back of the book on spare pages. I worked on layouts for a full month calendar spread, and also the weekly calendar page. I was pretty proud of myself, putting so much thought into my journal!
After I had my full month sized out, I went to the front and drew out January and was getting ready to ink it in. Then I realized that when I glued my pages together by 2's, I totally forgot to factor in the 12 monthly spreads I would need.
I have no problem changing plans before they even get started! I decided I didn't really need separate calendars for each month. So I went to Mr. Internet and searched for free printables and found a calendar that was bright and colorful. I put that on the page that had originally been intended for a January double page spread. I added some fun washi tape at the bottom.
I like the way it turned out. Works just fine!
Once I decided on my journal with the grid pages, I wanted to make the pages a little stronger to take whatever media I put on them. I made sure I had enough pages available, then I used glue stick to glue every 2 pages together. I ended up with pages that are double thickness and which should stand up well.
Another thing I did was to play around with calendar layouts in the back of the book on spare pages. I worked on layouts for a full month calendar spread, and also the weekly calendar page. I was pretty proud of myself, putting so much thought into my journal!
I have no problem changing plans before they even get started! I decided I didn't really need separate calendars for each month. So I went to Mr. Internet and searched for free printables and found a calendar that was bright and colorful. I put that on the page that had originally been intended for a January double page spread. I added some fun washi tape at the bottom.
Saturday, January 7, 2017
Making a Plan(ner)
Once upon a time in the land of planners....
....I started this year (actually back in December) thinking about what I wanted for a planner or journal or art journal. Several years ago, I picked up a 5 x 8 journal with grid paper inside. It was on a sale table and worked really well for just writing, which is all I wanted it for at the time. I was lucky enough to find a few more pretty cheap over the years, and as time went on, I was adding more to the pages than just writing. Not a lot, but strips of washi tape I had purchased, tags from gifts, stamped images from stamps I got, etc.
So I started looking for a grid journal for 2017, but struck out at the office supply stores. I looked at alternatives. I looked at the Midori Traveler's Notebooks. I looked at the Hobonichi Techno planner. These were appealing to me, but I was on the fence, since I couldn't hold one first and look at it. I was only seeing them online.
I finally decided to order a Moleskine grid journal. I wasn't able to hold one of those either, but I was pretty sure I knew what I was getting. When it arrived, I was surprised that it was pretty much exactly the same as the cheap grid journals I had used for years, except that it wasn't $5. In fact, it was so similar, I think the cheap ones I've been using are knock-offs of the Moleskine and maybe that's why I can't find them anymore.
I put it aside for the time being, but as 2017 got closer, I started thinking about how I wanted this one to have more, to work better for me and all the things I wanted to put in it. That reminded me of the Art to the 5th artists and the journal/planner they did back in 2014. I wasn't in on that year's journal, but remember how fascinated I was with what they were doing. And it led me to sign up for their Documented Life Journal in 2015 and their Documented Life UnPlanner in 2016.
See their 2014 planner (here).
Around that same time, I saw a post on Instagram by Lorraine Bell, who originally came up with the planner they were doing. I immediately signed up for her $12 class, Plan-Journal-Play, where she shows exactly how they set up their planner. See her planner (here).
They used a Moleskine planner, but I figured my Moleskine grid journal would work the same. The only thing I would like to do differently is get the soft cover rather than the hard cover. This journal is already so thick, I'm not sure it will survive the year-long journey without the spine cracking. But there's a fix for that if it comes to that, and I could end up with an interesting cover!
So I punched out some tabs for the months, and I added lots of extra fold out pages, attached with lots of colorful washi tape, and I'm excited to see if this works for me this year.
I'm not affiliated with the websites I provided, nor do I get anything in return for referring anyone there. But I have taken lots of free classes from these ladies (and some paid ones too), and since they have been so generous, I try to throw business their way when I can.
Stay tuned to see where this planner/journal takes me this year!
....I started this year (actually back in December) thinking about what I wanted for a planner or journal or art journal. Several years ago, I picked up a 5 x 8 journal with grid paper inside. It was on a sale table and worked really well for just writing, which is all I wanted it for at the time. I was lucky enough to find a few more pretty cheap over the years, and as time went on, I was adding more to the pages than just writing. Not a lot, but strips of washi tape I had purchased, tags from gifts, stamped images from stamps I got, etc.
So I started looking for a grid journal for 2017, but struck out at the office supply stores. I looked at alternatives. I looked at the Midori Traveler's Notebooks. I looked at the Hobonichi Techno planner. These were appealing to me, but I was on the fence, since I couldn't hold one first and look at it. I was only seeing them online.
I finally decided to order a Moleskine grid journal. I wasn't able to hold one of those either, but I was pretty sure I knew what I was getting. When it arrived, I was surprised that it was pretty much exactly the same as the cheap grid journals I had used for years, except that it wasn't $5. In fact, it was so similar, I think the cheap ones I've been using are knock-offs of the Moleskine and maybe that's why I can't find them anymore.
I put it aside for the time being, but as 2017 got closer, I started thinking about how I wanted this one to have more, to work better for me and all the things I wanted to put in it. That reminded me of the Art to the 5th artists and the journal/planner they did back in 2014. I wasn't in on that year's journal, but remember how fascinated I was with what they were doing. And it led me to sign up for their Documented Life Journal in 2015 and their Documented Life UnPlanner in 2016.
See their 2014 planner (here).
Around that same time, I saw a post on Instagram by Lorraine Bell, who originally came up with the planner they were doing. I immediately signed up for her $12 class, Plan-Journal-Play, where she shows exactly how they set up their planner. See her planner (here).
They used a Moleskine planner, but I figured my Moleskine grid journal would work the same. The only thing I would like to do differently is get the soft cover rather than the hard cover. This journal is already so thick, I'm not sure it will survive the year-long journey without the spine cracking. But there's a fix for that if it comes to that, and I could end up with an interesting cover!
So I punched out some tabs for the months, and I added lots of extra fold out pages, attached with lots of colorful washi tape, and I'm excited to see if this works for me this year.
I'm not affiliated with the websites I provided, nor do I get anything in return for referring anyone there. But I have taken lots of free classes from these ladies (and some paid ones too), and since they have been so generous, I try to throw business their way when I can.
Stay tuned to see where this planner/journal takes me this year!
Sunday, January 1, 2017
Right out of the box
It's a brand spanking new year. It's like taking a new toy out of the box to play with. So much possibility. 365 days for us to use in whatever way we want to. I will try not to squander mine away.
So far this year, I have doodled with this scribble tool online
And in the last few days, I have played around with what I think my journal will be this year.
So far this year, I have doodled with this scribble tool online
Happy New Year Everyone - Hope 2017 is all that you hope for!
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