art journaling as

creative self-care

Hello sweet creative!

How is your artist heart today? Have you been feeling inspired lately? Or maybe a little stuck? Or maybe your mind is buzzing with ideas but you don't seem to find the time to create anything?… If so, that happens to me too.

This year I really want to make more art "just for me". Not for a class, not for an art show or another event. Just for ME. And I find it so challenging! Yet I know that when I take this creative self-care time, it ripples out into my life in the best of ways.

My art journal really helps, and this week I've played on a few of its pages, and it just felt so good. I even finished a new one, which I want to share with you today! I’m so excited that my journal is almost complete…

To me, art journaling is the most freeing, fun and fulfilling creative practice of all. My journal is like a friend, and every page is a new, completely magical journey. Plus I cannot even begin to tell you how much it helps me grow as an artist, and as a person. It is such a wonderful space to experiment with new ideas, techniques, art supplies... And it is the very best place to explore my style, develop my personal color palette and unveil the stories my soul longs to tell. That's why I'm so passionate about it, and I hope to share more of it with you throughout the year!

Today I want to talk about art journaling as a practice of creative self-care, and the word “practice” means focusing on the process more than the result. That’s why I’m showing you the page above first, because I really want to tell you that an art journal is not just about creating beautiful finished pages! For years, I thought that’s what it was supposed to be, and it left me completely frozen, preventing me from even getting a journal started because it felt so scary. But your art journal can be anything you want it to be!

I especially love to use mine as an experimental playground: for instance here I simply tried out some new paints (caseine-based furniture paints), dabbing them randomly on the page. Just ten minutes of simple fun! I know that eventually, maybe days or weeks from now, I will use this as a starting point, and take it further to tell a story. And when I do, the bonus is that I won't have to tackle a scary blank page. But for now, I like it as it is and that's all that matters.⁠ There are so many ways to get an art journal page started, and to use this space of freedom to loosen up, explore your creativity and become more confident in your art. I share all my favorites in my main art journaling class, The Artist & the Journal, if you’d like to explore this together!

Now, on to the other page. One thing I love to do, especially when I don’t have a lot of time to actually sit at my journal, is to prepare little “bundles” of collage materials. All it takes is five minutes rummaging in my big basket of scraps, intuitively pulling out any bits and pieces that just “feel good” together. And of course, it makes me feel good too! I find this simple activity so fun and relaxing, and it allows me to do something creative even if I only have few moments to myself. Above is how this page started, with a layer of left-over grey paint, then some collage from one of those bundles, then journaling & a bit of gesso.

After that, during another littIe “pocket of time”, I did another quick and fun activity: playing with cut-out words from magazines. I love how this simple process can take me really deep in just a few moments. Inner guidance shows up, inviting me to pause and let the words sink in. Sometimes they reveal themselves at the very end of the page, adding a final layer of meaning, but most of the time, they show up earlier in the process, and I as I paint and glue and scribble, I let them unfold deep within my heart and soul.

“Love yourself in the present moment” is what showed up for me here.

Being fully in the present moment, and taking nurturing time for yourself, this is really one of the best and most important parts of art journaling. It truly is creative self-care. When I take this time just for me, it never fails to ripple out into my life, and my art, in the best of ways. But very often (and I know this is true for many of us when it comes to putting ourselves first), I don't take this time. I let my journal sit alone and abandoned, for days or weeks at a time, and I give myself plenty of "good" excuses. But below the surface, there's always that nasty belief that I don't deserve it. That I "should" be doing something more useful, less selfish (even if being an artist is actually my job!)

Now that I think of it, many of the pages in my current journal have been filmed for one project or another: a class, a free workshop... and I guess it's been a sort of workaround: a way to give myself permission to take this time and keep going. Because every single page is still fully me, with my journal and my personal process. Every page is still a magical and vulnerable journey, even when the camera’s rolling (sometimes even more so). But it makes me realize that I’m still having a hard time making art “just for me”. I still have a long way to go in the self-love and self-care department! I think that's what my journal wanted to tell me here. And also not to beat myself up, and take it one baby step at a time.

What if you dared to book some creative self-care time into your calendar? What if you gave yourself permission, and even better, make it a priority? A little bit of accountability always helps, so I encourage you to not only decide to do it, but say so to your family, flatmates or even co-workers: “Any plans for the weekend? Oh yes! I’m doing some art journaling!” You could even invite them to come along and help you flip through magazines to find interesting words and images!

I find that another really good way to “trick myself” into taking some creative time, is to sign up for a class. Because once I’m in, I feel that “I have to do it”, and it makes me more committed. It really helps when you can say “Sorry, I’m busy tonight, I have this class I’m signed up for.” And it doesn’t even have to cost you anything, just a little bit of your time (although I do find that when I invest in something, I’m much more likely to follow through). You can join a free class like New Beginnings, or revisit a class you’ve already purchased, or sign up for a new adventure!

Join me in a FREE 5-part workshop all about mixed media art supplies! It’s so good to just play with your materials and find new ways to use them. From painting tools, paints and inks to collage and mark-making, have fun and let inspiration flow!

Are you ready to dive deeper into art journaling and really make it a practice in your life? Are you curious to see how it will ripple out into the rest of your art? Then join me in The Artist & the Journal! (As a bonus, you get unlimited access to New Beginnings, yay!)

One of the most exciting things about art journaling, is that moment when you realize that your journal is almost complete. There are not that many pages left in mine and this feels so exciting! One page at a time, my journal has become a magical storybook, an infinitely precious keepsake full of art that will never be hung on a wall, but that I will keep just for me (though I might share it with loved-ones from time to time). I even like to think that some day, when I'm a very old lady, I will love to flip through its pages, and they will take me back to fond artsy memories...⁠ That too, will be creative self-care.

For now, I just can't wait to hold this precious, finished book in my hands. To me, this is just one of the best feelings in the world, even better than finishing a big canvas or hanging a whole art show! I can't quite explain it, but it all starts with taking the time…

Making art is so good for the soul. Whatever the end result, there is so much joy, comfort and love to be found in the process itself. That’s the very reason why I’ve become a teacher: because I believe that your art matters, and I want to encourage you to make it!

Leave a comment for me!