Handmade Journals, Creating Mandala Papers and More!

Have you tried making your own journals? Although I've purchased MANY journals and blank books and I enjoy every one of them, I absolutely LOVE creating my own journals in all sizes and shapes. This image shows a sampling of books and journals I've made. (Click image to see detail.)

Some of these journals are created from junk papers and envelops. Several of them are made with watercolor paper which is one of my favorite substrates because it handles anything I put on the pages including collage, paint, Inktense and other colored pencils, etc. I even created one journal that traveled around the United States for almost a year. I love making themed journals – holidays, Mandalas, family memories, gratitude, etc., but I also like making journals for no reason at all. I just like the act of putting pages together and enjoying the process. I'd love to read about your book and journal creations. Which one do you like the best? Leave a comment below and tell me about it.

After taking a tour through the journals during this LIVE stream, I showed how to create a large piece of mixed-media paper. The background is created with various stencils and diluted SEI Tumble Dyes that are traditionally used for fabric. I like these very much because once dry, they are permanent on paper. Since I never know what I'm going to use in subsequent layers, it's really nice to have the first layers dry permanently.

Now it's time for MANDALAS! of course. Hey, have you ordered your Mandala Madness Inspiration Cards Deck yet? If not, don't wait! Did you know that you'll also receive an eBook of Designs from the Deck as well as a multi-video Mini-Course to show you how to use your Deck? It's a really great package!! Order them now while they're available. 😉

Back to the page – Once the stenciled layers were completely dry, I used screens (to save time reproducing the patterns) created from designs from my eBooks. The screens are created with a Thermofax machine and images are printed with Speedball Screen Printing Ink. When that layer dried, I colored each Mandala with Inktense Pencils. To embellish each Mandala, I use various gel and paint pens to add the “frosting.”

Be sure to click the images below to see details.

Canson Mix-Media Paper – Stencils and diluted SEI Tumble Dyes

Thermofax Screens

Left – “Triangles and Dots” from the FREE eBook Mandala Madness

Right – “Compass Rose Mandala” from Mandala Melange

Mandalas are colored with Inktense Pencils and later embellished with various gel and paint pens.

Once I completely finished the large sheets, I cut them to 11″ x 17″ and had color copies created at an office supply store. By keeping the original art, I can make additional copies for other projects. I find the copies to be very good quality and useful in journals, for note cards and anything else I can think of.

In this example, I've used pieces of the color copies to create some fun 5″ x 7″ note cards.

Click the images below to see details.

Remember to Get Creative today! It's Easy!!

Barb

PS – Join me for the next LIVE stream on Friday, September 7th at 2pm EST!!