I Finally Cracked the Code

I think I finally cracked the art journaling secret code! I’ve been struggling so much with this. Part of my struggle is that I'm a writer...and when I get started I tend to really get going, and I just didn't see how I could do that in an art journal. But including just a few words here felt just fine this time. The other part of my struggle lies in a bit perfectionism. This is far from perfect. But I'm okay with that! I had a bit of a crappy day on Monday. I was grouchy when I got home, and after feeding the girls dinner and giving them a bath, I snuck downstairs for a little quiet escape time and did these pages. I just played. I even broke down and played in the really pretty journal I’d been hanging onto waiting for the right inspiration to strike. Well, it wasn’t inspiration; it was frustration that ultimately cracked the spine and slapped the paint on there, but it worked! After an hour of playing, most of my frustration was gone and I went upstairs, hugged my babies, tucked them in and kissed them goodnight, and then chilled with DH for our Monday night ritual: Antiques Roadshow. Yes, there I said it: I’m an Antiques Roadshow geek. I definitely think I’ll be doing more of this. :-)

8 comments:

Unknown said...

Yay for cracking the code! So beautiful, too!

And LOL, my hubs is an Antiques Roadshow geek, too! He's really good at guessing the price estimates right... totally weird for me to watch. Its like a game show to him!

Kelly Warren said...

too funny Marisa! Benny and I watch it like a game show too! "Sell it! Sell it!" :-)

cath c said...

nice to hear you broke throuhg perfection literally breaking a journal's binding!

Karen Faulkner said...

Love it!!

Kim Mailhot said...

Welcome to the Art Journal Ride, Kelly ! It is all about the process - be it frustration, sadness, joy, fear, inspiration, whatever, it is all good and those pages are a safe place to "feel" it all!
Bravo !

Carmen said...

Awesomeness! Way to go Kel! This spread is fantastic! I especially love the doodled wings and the "follow your dreams never give up" and for the record, I think imperfection is what makes art journaling a perfect escape! It doesn't have to be perfect, to be perfect... if that makes any sense. lol

Mucho love,
Carmen

Wyanne Thompson said...

The journal looks fabulous. Glad you overcame the frustration and just played. We love Antiques Roadshow at my house...especially Logan!

ELLIE said...

love love love the art journal - looks like a lot of fun