Art Journal Vlogs

A video I made of my most recent art journal.

You know those moments where you "discover" something and you feel like such a genius and want to share it with everyone you know - only to find that the majority of the world already knew about it?

I had one of those moments last night. Did you know that the Internet is full of crafty video blogs (or vlogs) that show you how to do things? Yeah...of course you did. Well in my strange, narrow-minded vision of the universe, I thought the online video world was only good for watching music videos, old 70's television, and cute animals doing even cuter things. But there is this whole crafty world out there too! And of course, why wouldn't there be? My crafty discovery today is the world of Art Journaling Vlogs. 

One of my favorite things to do is craft in my journal. It's easy and fun, with no heavy expectations because I decide who sees it (if anyone). I LOVE looking at other people's journals because they are so real and truthful in a culture that rewards us for looking "pretty and put together" when in reality, life is messy and strange and beautiful.
Here are my two favorite Art Journaling Vlogs:

Samantha Kira
Follow along with Samantha's prolific video series as she gessos, paints, stencils and shares her process. Her videos are nicely edited and use great music. I was so inspired by her work that I checked out her blog, which is also fantastic. And I could spend hours in her flickr page. Both her journal pages and her blog are very intimate and share some powerful words and stories, as well as beautiful art.

Suzi Blu
Suzi Blu is great. Her Vlogs are part technique, part performance art and all inspiration. Watching Suzi's videos was such a great reminder to PLAY. She is all about being FREE and I can really, really dig that. She wears costumes, she rolls around on the floor and she makes really beautiful journal pages. Again, very well-edited and great use of music. And she doesn't just share her journal-making, she makes all sorts of things. She is all about giving permission to make and create. Every one of her videos makes me grin so wide and immediately want to dress up in my silliest dress and make things.

So there you go my fellow makers. Enjoy!

Living the Creative Life

One of the many wonderful books I received this past Winter Solstice is Living the Creative Life: Ideas & Inspiration from Working Artists by Ricë Freeman-Zachery.


In this wonderfully designed book, Ricë has interviewed 15 artists and asked them all sorts of excellent questions about creativity.

I am fascinated by other artists approaches to making. From journal-keeping to when they work in their studios, to time-management - it is all helpful to me as an artist as I find my practice evolving. Reading this book is also a great reminder that even very successful, full-time artists struggle with getting the grocery shopping done and coming up with new ideas for art projects. When I struggle with such basic things in my life, I feel like somehow I am a fraud, because if I was a real artist, I wouldn't have those problems! Not true.

The layout of the book is a work of art in itself - creative, messy and juicy. There are also great "try this" opportunities throughout the book.

If you are looking for some new inspiration, check it out!