A year ago, I started collecting paper that caught my eye, with no intention of making a junk journal. They were random bits & pieces that landed at our house: business envelopes lined with geometric patterns, branded brochures with pops of color, pretty gift bags, greeting cards, and the like.
I took a mental note when my collecting started because I’m not (much) of a collector. But for some reason, I couldn’t stop myself from setting them aside. I’d tuck each piece into a drawer in my office, imagining I use them for something one day. But for what and when, I had no idea.
While I’ve been in design mode the past week or 2, my creative energy has been next-level. The best analogy is a pot of water that’s simmering. It slowly and gently heats and swirls until, suddenly, it bursts into a rolling boil. That’s what happened to me over the weekend.
And the hidden stack of paper came along for the ride.
Before the lid was removed from the pot, so to speak, I could sense the flurry of activity that was about to happen. So in preparation, on Saturday night, I gathered all my art supplies and laid them across the table. I wanted everything at my fingertips, so I didn’t interrupt my creative work by searching for a particular tool.
Also having a sense I’d be making a collage, I needed something to support the materials. An idea I’d been sitting on, forever, was to draw or paint inside a book. So I thumbed through an old stack of books and found an instruction manual for Adobe Illustrator CS2. I bought it in 2006! I don’t know why I’ve held on to this particular book for so long, other than it was my first introduction to digital drawing and the Adobe software I love so much. The idea of bringing art to an already creative book was fun, too.
On Sunday afternoon, I finally rummaged through the paper drawer. The first thing that drew me in, was a greeting card I created for Copper House North, one that had a damaged corner. The teal on the flower pot was speaking to me, so I searched for a few other pieces with teal on them. I had also placed some fabric scraps in the drawer, which included butterflies I drew, too.
Collaging is something I rarely do. So, it quickly struck me how creative you can be with it, choosing colors, objects, and words you like, arranging them in whatever way seems right to you.
Like a mad scientist, I hurriedly picked up and put down (& picked back up) many supplies in the making of this page. That included paper, ink, watercolor, colored pencil, fabric, ribbon, scissors, glue, tape, and a stapler. A few times I hesitated and had to remind myself that I couldn’t “mess it up”. There was no right or wrong way to do it.
I learned a few things in the process, too.
1) Before beginning, it helps to glue or staple several pages in the book, together, to give yourself a more sturdy support.
2) The yellow ochre watercolor (not easily discernable in the photos) I used to “age” the paper didn’t adhere well, due to the slight sheen of the paper. I’ll probably try a different type of paint next time.
3) I need better glue and a dedicated glue brush. I used Q-tips this go-round and didn’t get the full coverage I would have liked.
But, again, I used what I had on-hand. And that was enough to make something unexpected, beautiful, and meaningful.
A note about the term “junk journal”: it originated because the materials used, in this type of journaling, are often recycled from other sources. If it we truly considered the materials junk, though, we wouldn’t be creating with them, would we? I love the term “art journal” but have to get used to this other one.
Have you created a junk journal? Or do you want to?
Dive in.
It’s quite freeing.
It may just lead to your next creative idea, too.
