Would you happen to know...

I have been delighted at discovering things about myself through blogland.  Identifying the good stuff and then tackling changes on the not so good makes for a happier and more productive art gal.   Keeping it simple, limiting my choices and sticking with a theme have been huge helps.   But an important key is alluding me.

I get that life is busy and while the viewing seems to be pretty consistent, comments are fewer.  That's okay.  I'm doing less commenting myself.  But I was wondering if any of my 'regular' visitors are seeing something that I am missing.  You know, the elephant in the room that no one talks about!  ;^)

The  grand kids were here for a short visit.   We talked about their books and making them simpler.  Then I spent a good ten days working on their school journals and their personal journals.  Absolutely enjoying myself and making big messes.

Josh just turned 8.  He is a techy/detail kind of guy and has a world view.  His travel method of choice is boats at this point.  Here he is making cabin doors.  :) H is more into pen drawings, cutting and gluing.  I'm keeping the list of ten for favourites.  (and their handwriting)

I hope his planner/journal reflects all that he likes. There will be less photos and more art. The circle punches, maps, and green will tie his binder together.

Eliana is 6 and is a girly girl who is comfortable with rough competitive sports.  She documents her interests with free wheeling art techniques.  She is no planner- 'let me at it'! LOL

Her drawing of a house helped confirm that houses could be her theme.  She likes turquoise, dimensional embellishments and all the messy art supplies.   .

I have concluded her art journal will fill with pages all too quickly so I gessoed all the pages of a zippered  thrift shop binder for her extras.  I hope she can release her creativity in her books.

Jolina's fourth birthday is coming up.  She likes pictures and stories.   She is also a quick study and is already grasping the concepts that I have been teaching her brother and sister in art 101.  She'll be ready to do her own thing in the near future.

I have a great theme/plan for her binder.  A nursery rhyme scrapbook packet.  I'll supplement with some colouring pages and she can make stories about all her favourite animals. 

I have solid colours, the theme papers and lots of animal stickers.   I can always add blank pages.

I, myself, am not doing the unplanner  but I will use the weekly videos and tutorials for ideas.  Once a month we will learn a technique to use in these art journals though.

I LUVED doing all the sorting, planning, gluing.  I felt like I was in the creative zone and didn't want to stop.   So why can I not translate that momentum, that commitment, that  joy into my own finished products???  I try to do as good work in these binders as I do in my own.   Is mine work and theirs fun? :\

oh, dear.  If you can see the elephant that I am dancing around please do tell! 

Snowflakes

Art day with the Grand Kiddies!  We are doing snowflakes.  I got most of my supplies at the local dollar store.  I chopped up Christmas greenery sprays for accessorizing.

Gesso works fine for whitewashing the clothes pins.  We didn't paint the flat side as they are glued together.

The glue gun works for the spokes but the string glued better with the tacky glue.  My little glue gun doesn't seem to get real hot so it will work for the wee ones although I've enlisted their mum for helping.

I was happy to have helpers.  Josh's sore neck turned out to be a sore throat and he faded rapidly.  Poor guy!  Eliana  LUVED the hot glue gun which doesn't work very well but enough to make her want to glue anything and everything. :)  Jolina was just happy to be in 'school'! 

They each made two.  I neglected to get close ups, I was busy, don't cha know, but they turned out quite well.  As I was leaving I almost stopped to take a photo from outside as they looked so COOL!  ;^)

documenting/organizing and then...

The prompt for week 13? was to have someone draw on your page and then add to it.  I only know one willing drawer, Eliana.  so...  But her brother wanted a page, too.  The more the merrier!

I thought I had taken a picture of their start but it seems not.  Josh is learning his numbers and is a detail/tool kind of guy.  He did move out of his comfort zone and added a caterpillar.  Eliana is all about random and every colour and quick.  She also seems to like working small.  I was tempted to just leave them.  I did a bit with coloured circles and maybe should have left off the graphite pencil. I highlighted their names.   The paint pen triangles were an after thought as I thought I needed an accent.  I like it!

A bit blurry but Josh's page opens to reveal the to-do page and the calendar page.  I used up an old rub on and added some parts from my part cutting frenzy.  Sometimes I may add an envelope or pocket to the to-do page.  I'm trying to stop writing things on scraps of papers and keep things in one place.  We'll see how creative and practical works out.

And now I'm off to get some sewing done so I'll have more to show for wow Wednesday!