Art Journaling Tips

Art Journaling Tips

Art journaling sharpens your creativity, enhances your visual skills and improves eye-hand coordination. I have been keeping journals for years and they are always evolving and almost never finished! They are a wonderful source for ideas, inspiration and problem solving.

Tips for happy art journaling

Have a few different journals on hand with plenty of supplies and store them in a tote bag to make them easily accessible. Blank journals, old day planners and artist sketch books are all suitable for journaling. My favorite all time tote bag is the Blick Studio Tote. It holds everything needed to create at a moments notice and is ready to toss in the car or stow in luggage for a creative day trip. It’s really cool looking too so it sits proudly visible in my studio.

Loosen up

For five to ten minutes a day, scribble, write random thoughts or paint spontaneously on several blank pages. These will eventually become interesting backgrounds for your journal.

Stay in the Moment

Draw, sketch, collage or paint what is right in front of you at this very moment. It could be a cup of coffee or tea, a rock, a friend or your own foot. Be mindful of the lines, the colors, the shapes and most of all, stay in the moment.

Focus on You

Create a self portrait with a pen, pencil or paint. Take a selfie with your phone or look into a mirror and draw what you see. It doesn’t matter if it looks like you, just do it. Write positive things about yourself next to the image.

Be Grateful and Enjoy Life

Write a list of things you are grateful for using different lettering styles. Sketch, paint or collage your favorite memory and write about it. Go outside and sketch or paint the world around you. Enjoy your surroundings. Drink in the scenery. Paint the big picture or focus on a few blades of grass.

Create a theme

Create a theme to focus your journal or journals. I have several themed journals that help me to focus my creativity. One of my journals is named “Advice for my Daughters” and another is ”My Travels and Beyond”. Search for inspirational quotes that focuses on your theme and create images inspired by the words.

Use technology

Use your phone or camera to photograph something you want to sketch or paint at a later time. Make an art journaling appointment in your phone’s calendar app and set a reminder alarm so that gently prompts you to art journal every day. Technology makes it more convenient to create!

My favorite Journaling Supplies

I have created links to my favorite art journaling supplies, some are affiliate links through Amazon (my favorite place to shop) and some are not. If you do decide to purchase something via an affiliate link through Amazon, yours truly will get a little something for it. It’s all good.

Pentalic Aqua Journal

Moleskine Art Journal

Daniel Smith and M.Graham Watercolors & Gouache

 Folding Watercolor Palette

Niji Waterbrush or Pentel Aquash (get several sizes)

Sakura Micron Pens

Uni Posca white paint marker (perfect for making highlights!)

Mechanical pencils

spray bottle filled with water (for flattening pages)

Zippered pouch (for purse sized supplies)

I will be teaching a two day Creative Journal workshop at the Sedona Art Center in Arizona this August 11-12. Please contact me for more information or go the SAC website to register if you would like to join me!