Michael's Trip and Moleskine

Whew, I feel like I was lost in work this past week. Despite that and with the long weekend I have managed to get a few crafty things done though. I had hoped that home with the kidlette on Colombus Day we could do a few projects together, but we ended up snuggling up and reading together most of the day instead. I am a almost sad to have lost the project time, but it was really nice to spend time together in that way instead.

This weekend we did get to Michael's though, which was exciting. T added some art supplies to her online wishlist we started for the family. I picked up some DMC floss for TW's Peacock Majesty. I am usually good enough with color, so it drives me crazy when I can't figure out the beige from the medium tan to the light brown. Fortunately that kit has all the DMC colors listed along side the color, so I just picked up some of each of the ones I was nervous about. Who knows, maybe I will even work on that sometime next week.

I also picked up some Prismacolor markers. I had heard alot about them, and Michael's had that whole line of markers and marker packs on sale for 25% off. I just picked up the colors I needed for the Artist Trading Card I am working on. I have the image for one sketched, but I was unsure how I wanted to go further with it. Not wanting to waste the one I had started though, I thought I would play with the markers a bit first with a similar image in my new Moleskine. It is funny that I feel like I have no idea how to use markers to give me what I feel like I could accomplish with them. My child certainly has no such qualms. I have been reading different marker tutorials, but it has led me to feel like I would be happier starting with a grayscale set to establish technique before I start worryign about color too.

And yes I admit it, I broke down and got one. I really want to try art journalling to incorporate more drawing into my regular creative life. After working with the markers and a micron pen, I was a little disappointed by the fact that you can see slightly through the pages with these media. But then I remembered something I had heard a few weeks ago. In Episode 13 of the Creative Mom Podcast, Amy mentions the idea of prepping the pages of her Moleskine with paint before use. At the time, I admit, I didn't spend a lot of time reflecting on the potential of this technique, but when this problem came up, it seemed the perfect solution. I tried this on a few pages today with some acrylic paint I had forgotten I had and I am fairly pleased with the results. It isn't perfect, but I can really see this as a great way to work with more color too.