Step by step Art Journal spread...

Yes it is 4.15 am.
Yes I am still awake.
Yes I am blogging.
Yes I am barking..!!!

I am awake because I cant sleep and no other reason. And you know me I cant just do nothing. And I have a backlog of work seeping from every pore, but my eyes are so tired that I really wasn't up to much so I thought I would journal as it always relaxes me. And then I thought, hang on a minute,, lets photo and step by step it for you.
I get told all the time, oh it looks so complicated, I wouldn't know where to start. Well now you do. So pull up a chair, strap yourself in, we could be here a while, lol.

This is the double spread I did. And it was all done whilst sat in my bed. I have got in the habit of journaling there with only specific supplies and I have made it a rule that I cant go and fetch anything else, I have to use what I,ve got.

The pages were already painted. I always like to have some prepped and painted pages ready so that when the urge strikes I can just go with the flow.

I also had a co-ordinating book page ready prepared, which I cut into pennants for the top.

Draw a border around the 3 sides with a Sharpie permanent black pen, and outline the pennant.

add circles with a Pilot pen.

Stick in your images. Here I wanted the man to look as though he was on stilts to go with my circus theme so I just drew his trousers longer.

Stick down the other image and outline with the Pilot pen to give it definition.

I,ve got some fab new pencils called Inktense. They are a watercolour pencil with a difference, they contain ink. Therefore you get pure vibrant colours, scrummy.

Fill in the dots with green and outline with brown. Blend with a small wet brush.

Add a scribble of colour where you want your text to go.

Write your title in red Sharpie and the Pilot pen. Draw lines across the bottom and start journaling.

Fill in the gaps between the lines with doodles.

Draw lines the opposite way this time.

Fill in squares with the Pilot pen.

and journal.

colour in the remaining squares with a brown pencil

and smudge with a wet brush.

Oops cant remember what I did here, lol.

colour in the horizontal lines and the border.

Colour in and wet his trousers taking the pencil up and onto the image.

Shade around the spots.

circle the title with black pen and red pencil.Fill in any blank spaces with red and smudge.

Go over the black squares with a white pen to make them pop.

Write on his leg with a Sharpie.

Add a 7gypsies rub on.

embellish

smudge with green pencil and water to merge it into the background.

write on her legs, colour 2 tickets and stick to page.

and there we have it , a finished page.

Now I don't always work in that order, there is no right or wrong, but obviously paint and collaged papers need to go on first.Then I usually draw or add a border and then place my images so that I can work around them. You'll soon find your own style. I usually incorporate stamps, but they werent on the bed, so that was a no no. and I usually add more paint and oil pastels over the top for layers, but again nthey werent on the beb..!!!

These are the pencils I'm raving about. Should of got a bigger tin, with more colours, but I wasn't sure if I would like them or not. Woo hoo get me holding back, there's a first, but I knew I should have just gone for it, lmao.

And here's the state of my bed, ha ha , when I,ve finished.

But don't worry I clear it all away every night, I like things put away.

Hope you enjoyed that and I hope it has inspired you to have a go. Art journaling is sooooooo therapeutic, take it from one who knows..lol.

Enjoy xx