When I make something, whether it be a piece of jewelry, a functional craft or a piece of artwork, I normally have an idea of what I want in my head. I do not plan any more than that. I wish I could sketch out what I want to make, but I find that for me, I tend to be more inspired by a create-as-you-go approach.
I made this journal using various techniques, mediums and styles. It was fun to make and the end result was rewarding. I can refer to this when hitting a creative block.
I slightly enhanced the pictures using Picnik to more realistically reflect the colors and crispness of this piece. The photos I take tend to be a little dull and not as sharp as in the piece itself. Picnik solved this problem and presents a more accurate depiction of the finished piece. Unfortunately I still cannot figure out how to remove the time/date stamp so my apologies - I tend to find it somewhat distracting.
Creation Journal
Above is the front and back cover. The base was created using a small 6x6 scrap pad to lay the background, lightly stamped, embossed paper in a ecru and sienna natural print and Kraft paper at the edges. Embellishments added were torn/distressed paper, chipboard letters, metal embellishments and terra cotta colored glitter. When finished I applied a light layer of Modge Podge for added durability.
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Contemplate and Inspire:
The 2nd and third pages were created using rusing a stamp (colored with gel pens, marker and colored pencil), handmade rosettes, an old fashioned brass key, glass cabochon with motivational saying, rhinestones, glitter lettering and a pearl button. I cute little pocket was added to place mementos, which were displaced with vintage inspired stickers from Tim Holtz's Lost and Found collection. This was also lightly glazed over with Modge Podge.
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Love, Joy, Art Journey
the base for these two pages were created using a decorative mariposa inspired paper base.
This is Miss N's Favorite!
Glitter die cute border, ribbon, enamel brads, a brass and pearl button, metal tags, die cut journaling bits, and homemade rosettes were added for embellishments. A secret message is found inside the book (adorned with chipboard lettering , ribbon and a brass and pearl button and finished with scalloped edging). Since the paper was so ornate, I used less decorative accents and let the beauty of the paper be the focal point.
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Dream Away....:
Vintage inspired and designed with a reminder of how much I love my life. I feel very blessed with everything I have been given and do not want to take it for granted.
In addition to obvious Tim Holtz products used, I had a stash of embellishments that I added.
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Create:
My favorite is the "create" section. This was definitely the most time consuming. It was a tedious process of drawing, tracing, cutting, stamping, coloring, painting and pasting. I used virtually every medium on this piece. The finished pages are decorated with glitter flourishes, die cut and hand made rosettes, die cut shapes, ribbon, button and rhinestones.
This is the most "me" out of all the pages - it has a ton of color and a lot of bling.
I LOVE the way this project turned out. (See the cover and the back of the journal above). This was also so easy to make that even my 9 year old was able to make own journal with an old spiral notebook as pictured below. 
