52 Pages 2011

Page 44. Spark

Definition=A vital, animating, or activating factor

Most of us are pretty good at keeping our cool, but sometimes all it takes is one little thing..often it comes after many other little things, and it becomes ‘the last straw’ what sets you off, what really makes you see ‘red’?

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Only 8 pages to go, how are you doing? are you keeping up?

Tangling with Letraset

Doodles,patterns,zentangles,zendoodles..whatever you call them, it amounts to the same thing. Filling in shapes with patterns. The word 'zentangle' has been copyrighted, so I tend not to use that term.

 Instead I 'Tangle'....I love tangling, and in fairness I do sometimes end up in a tangle with them. Sometimes there are no 'zen' qualities involved as I get frustrated with a particular pattern, but on the whole it is very absorbing and relaxing. many 'tangles' are black pen on white paper, and stunning they are too, but I do love a bit of colour.

So here is my latest tangle..

I started with a freehand pencil drawing of a tree....ok so I know it's not like any tree you might actually see on a Sunday afternoon stroll, but it works for this purpose...and totally proves you do not have to be an artist to create a recognizable shape.

 For the circles I used bottle tops and lids....obviously you can use a compass, but you know household objects work just fine. Using a ruler I found the centre of each circle, this was just so I could plan out my patterns.

I inked the whole of the outline using a fineliner.

Then I started to colour each of the shapes using mainly Letraset promarkers with a few Flexmarkers used too. This was just a base colour, so I blocked in the shapes with just one shade.

Colours used:

Promarkers -
oatmeal - tan - khaki - meadow green - lime green - sky blue - lemon - blossom

Flexmarkers -
soft aqua - aquamarine

Next I shaded each of the areas, on most areas I used the same shade as the base layer.

extra colours used for shading:

Caramel - cinnamon - soft green - duck egg - cobalt blue - marsh green - rose pink

Once all the shading was done the tangling could be done.

I worked on the tree branches first and then the tree trunk. Then I filled in each circle one at a time. I used a 0.3mm fineliner for most, with a 0.1mm for the smallest areas.

Remember to vary the intensity , use both small and large patterns...use dense patterning but also leave more open areas to allow the colour to play its role. think about the shapes you have created and use your patterns accordingly. Note how the bands on the branches curve around to signify the curve of the branch. I also used mainly curving patterns on the foliage/flowers to give them a fluid more natural look.  If, say I had drawn a building, I would have used patterns with much straighter lines.

I hope you will give coloured 'tangles' a try. Get out your promarkers and flexmarkers and see how effective just a little shading can be.

52 Pages 2011

Page 43. First.

My first, is about the first gig i went to in the 80's. So I coloured my page neon green,yellow and orange...most certainly not my favourite colours at all, but they were the colours of my socks back in the day.

next I went rummaging in the attic and found the program from that first music gig....I photocopied a page and stuck that on the back .

yes the first gig I went to was a Wham! gig. I went with my friend Karen, so i found out a photo of us both taken that year and scanned it. I added it to the front with the dates of the gig.

At the time I had a white tshirt with big blue letters on the front that said 'Go-Go' I know I had a photo of me wearing it somewhere but I cannot find it, so I stamped the words 'wake me up before you go-go' over the front of the page.

I typed up my journalling and added it to the back.

Circle journal

So it's that time again, the circle journals are once more changing hands. this month I worked in Catherine's book. I had a tricky start, apart from deciding on pink and blue, I really didn't know what I wanted to do.

So I gessoed the page a little, and added neocolours.

Then I sprayed dylusions inks through a stencil..

and then I completely changed my mind, added different colours, some white acrylic, some bubble wrap stamping, some lines of black and silver acrylic, and some gesso stars at the top.

next i drew a birdie, based very loosely on a hummingbird..it is coloured with necolours and prismas, a little stamping on the head and glossy accent dots added to the wings. All the feathers are cut out separately and stuck on.

For the tail feathers I used 3 layers, a solid bit with text stamping on it, a stamped and cut out swirl , and some stamped acetate.

All the pieces were glued to the birdie.

Then i drew and cut out a birdcage in cardstock. I painted it gold, then added 3 layers of UTEE in golds and in verdigris, when cool I cracked it and rubbed navy wax into the cracks.

I added the cage and the bird to the page, along with some lace under the cage, and some stamped and cut out flowers..stamped on book text.

It looked all the same colour, and needed something more. I made some 'thistle' type flowers from cardstock covered in cosmic bondable film, and lines of embossing powder..

Once everything was glued in place i added the printed title and rubbed some silver wax over the bird.

Close up of the bird.

and keeping in the same theme, this is the tag i made to go with the page. Coloured first with neocolours, small leaves punched out for the edges, they are coloured with promarkers. I drew the tree, coloured that with promarkers and cut it out...yes I cut out all those tiny green leaves.

The bird is cut with a die, the birdcage was done on the cricut, and covered in UTEE.

52 Pages 2011

Page 43. First

Definition=The beginning; the outset

Think about all the ‘firsts’ in your life, first kiss, first driving lesson,first house, first glass of champagne. Pick one and tell us about it.

52 Pages 2011

Page 42 Direction.

I started by glueing a map  to my page. I added an image of the magic 8 ball.

I then pushed gesso through some arrow stencils, and once dry I painted it. I then added some dimensional paint.

The title was printed and glued on.

On the back I added another map, and wrote my journalling over it.

Website review.

This is twofold. Firstly have you heard about Willowing's Life Book online course. This is a year long course, starting in January. Please take a look at that link and treat yourself, the cost is low considering what you get in return, and supplies needed are minimal too. you will have a wonderful year, learn so much, meet and share with over 200 other people who are doing the course...and it will be fun!

I have signed up, and I cant wait to get started in January. In preparation I ordered some new crayons.

Now you may have noticed how I adore my Neocolor IIs, watersoluble crayons. They are gorgeous crayons, beautiful to work with and the results are always pleasing. If you decide to do the Willowing Life Book, you will see that Tamara uses these crayons too. They are mentioned in the supplies list as are Derwent Inktense pencils.

I am very lucky to have the tin of 84 Neocolors, but there are in fact 126 colours, so I searched online to find some single colours to add to my collection. I did first try a local art shop, with no luck.

So I googled 'neocolor crayons uk'...several sites came up and I checked them all out for prices, and came back to the second on the search list which was ..

Pencils4Artists

I ordered my crayons, late at night..and within 3 working days they were here. I popped them away in a drawer, pleased with the prompt delivery and price. The problem came when I went to use the new ones. I selected a blue crayon, used it on a project and then proceeded to blend with a damp paintbrush, only it wouldnt...blend that is. Kinda puzzled, I started the project again, got to the same point, used the blue crayon and again it wouldnt blend. Only at this point did I read the label, and was gutted to see it was a Neocolor I.

Neocolor do two types of crayons. The I's  and the II's. The I's are just regular wax crayons, the II's are watersoluble.

So I was a bit annoyed to say the least and quickly sent off a letter to pencils4artists, explaining the problem and asking them to replace the blue crayon. I checked the rest of the delivery, and they were all correct.

Now this is the reason why I am blogging about what happened.


The next day I received an email from Alan at pencils4artists . The email was very courteous and apologetic. Alan explained he had checked his stock and all of that particular shade were Neo I's, not only annoying for me, but hassle for them too as they don't even stock the Neo I's. He very generously offered to send me 10 other crayons to make up for the blue being incorrect. I thought this was above and beyond the service I would have expected. So I emailed back with a list of colours and within 2 working days they were here, all correct.

So because of their excellent customer service I wanted to tell you all about them. Not only are their communications polite, their delivery is prompt and their prices are very competitive. In fact taking into account postage/minimum spend, I couldnt find anywhere cheaper for single crayons.

so I urge you to take a look at their website 


The site is very well laid out. With the UK postage displayed clearly at the top. I do find it very annoying when I have to search for shipping charges, but here it is the first thing you see.

UK postage £1.95 no matter how much you buy.

next you see the different sections, Clearance. Pencil Type. Accessories.

Scrolling down you see the sections for 12 different brands of pencils. Followed by a further 4 sections for other types of pencils/crayons.

Each section, has a clear photo and main heading, making it easy to decide which area to explore. Within each section are subsections, again all clearly defined. The text for and within each section is clear and concise, with good grammar and punctuation.

Although the look of the website is a little stark, with a plain white background, it is very easy to navigate...and quite frankly ease of use is far more important to me than a fancy background. Also this is very clearly a 'shopping' site. It is not exclusive to working/qualified artists, but effectively  targeted at those who love and use these products, whether they be professional artists or crafters.

The checkout procedure is easy, and delivery is prompt. The option to contact the company is also very easy to find, and as was proved in my case they reply very quickly.

If you are planning on doing the Willowing course then you would be hard pushed to find a better site for  your pencils and crayons.

The Neo II's are £1.06 each, a tin of 40 crayons comes in at just under £50.

In the CLEARANCE SECTION you will find the complete set of Derwent Inktense pencils in a tin for £68.99 ( while stocks last)

All in all my experience with this company was excellent, and I am more than happy to recommend them to you.

52 Pages 2011

Page 42.Direction

Definition=A course or area of development; a tendency toward a particular end or goal

Have you followed true to one direction in life, or have you meandered. Do you feel you need a new direction? Are you afraid to change course?

52 Pages 2011

Page 41. Desire.

Firstly I sprayed the page with ink, then I masked off the word 'Desire' and inked again. next I pushed black gesso through a heart stencil.

Then I ripped up some book pages to make hearts, and doodled around the edges of them. This pic looks dark as it was taken at night.

Then I doodled a large heart and filled it with lots of patterns, highlighting it with white gelly roll pen.

These are the true colours, photo taken in daylight.

On the back I sprayed ink, and edged with black.

Then doodled some wavy lines and wrote my journalling.

52 Pages 2011

Page 40. Invoke.

I coloured my page, both back and front,  using neocolours and white acrylic and versa magic chalk around the edges.

     















I then drew  genie and coloured her with promarkers, adding highlights with a white gelly roll pen and a clear star gelly roll pen.

                              

















I added my title, stamped with midnight blue stazon, and rubbed silver wax around the edges of the page.

I wrote about my wishes on the back, one from childhood, one for now and one for the future.

                                                                                                                              

52 Pages 2011

Page  39. Crayon.

I brushed over the front of the page with distress ink. Then I cut off some chunks of wax crayon...just regular kids wax crayons. I heated the page with a heat gun and stuck the chunks of wax to the top.

Next I stood the page up and heated the top, so that the crayons melt and run down.

 I then brushed on some matte medium to help seal it, though it doesn't stick over the thicker wax dribbles.

I stamped and cut out my images  ( Lost Coast Designs) and stuck them on, along with my title.  I finished it off with some white acrylic.

On the back I first stuck on a photo of a rainbow that I took last month.  I distressed the actual photo with sandpaper and rubbed brown ink into the scratches.

I added red and black faux lumiere paint to the edges, and some white acrylic to match the front.

Finally I added my journalling either side of the rainbow.

52 Pages 2011

Page 38 Author.


I coloured the page using alcohol inks , because it is just card stock the ink soaks in pretty quick. i created the patterns on it using splashes of water and also blending solution. No need to colour the back as the ink soaks straight through.

I used the fabulous new alcohol inks from Letraset, more about those another day, when I have more samples to show you.

I then drew and cut out the shape of an open book, and glued to it images of fantasy characters.

On the back I splodged (technical term) lots of matte medium, dried it with a heat gun then rubbed gold wax over it.

I glued the book images to the front and added my title, and rubbed a little gold around the edges.

Finally I printed out my journalling and added that to the back.