Tag: Planner

GOING BACK TO WHERE IT BEGAN

A very happy new year to you all and I truly hope 2023 will bring us all peace and prosperity.

As I look back 2022 was a year of reflection for me. I spent a large part of the year either trying to work out where I was going or longing to create something wonderful but not quite knowing what. I think this must be a result of calling myself a mixed-media artist. I want to use everything all of the time and procrastination is my worst enemy.

At the beginning of last year I challenged myself to create at least one large canvas painting which I’d be proud to hang on a wall as well as to fill a sketchbook with drawings I could use in future paintings. However halfway through the year it became obvious that I had neither the urge or the time to create a daily sketch, or even a weekly one and the canvas project was looking less and less likely too. As time passed it became harder to get back into a creative habit. The sketchbook is half way filled and I hope to fill the other half this year.

I’ve decided to scale things down quite a bit as a result and so the shop has gone. This cuts down on the admin side of things and leaves me free to get back to the thing I love which is making art. I’ve opened an Etsy shop again so I can still sell my creations as well as a few supplies. I do hope you’ll visit me there as I start to fill it over the next few days. It’s called simply BASEMENT STUDIO LUXEMBOURG – to the point.

Etsy is where I started my journey all those years ago so it’s appropriate I should go back to where I began. I’ve learned a lot since those days, gained confidence and a bit more self belief. The next few months will be exciting as I explore the possibility of new ideas so I hope you’ll join me from time to time and we’ll see where this path leads.

Jaine xx

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Why I’m Downsizing My December Journal!

I don’t know how many of you keep a December journal? It becomes more popular every season. I love the idea of it and love the preparation but I don’t think I’ve ever managed to make it past day twelve. Well actually that’s not true I think I managed to finish one once but I didn’t get around to it until Easter! Sigh!! In the past I’ve made travelers notebooks, an altered book, junk journals, ringbound, you name it I’ve tried it!

December Journals

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from this past year it’s that the passport sized Misty Rose travelers notebook is the planner which I keep using regularly and seem to have no problem filling out. This made me think that perhaps this size would be perfect as a December journal this year.

With this in mind I made myself an insert, well actually it’s one which I already had – a mixed media insert for my Misty Rose by Prima and sold by Paper Pen and Plan. I simply covered it with paper from the November Sweet Treat Box by Paper Pen and Plan as well as a few stickers from a collection kit I bought from them last year.

I seriously hope that this is going to be easier to fill than previous books! Anyway It’ll look good in my bag plus if I’m out and about it’ll come with me seeing as it’s in my travelers notebook cover.

The Misty Rose travelers notebook and inserts can be found at www.etsy.com/shop/paperpenandplan as well as lots of other planner and Christmas goodies.

Jaine xx

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Getting Ahead For Christmas

“Stop the year I wanna get off!!”…… just kidding! Seriously though, does it feel like being on a very long slide with Christmas at the bottom and you just keep on getting faster? Maybe it’s just me or maybe it’s because of the insanely gorgeous Autumn weather we’ve been having that it became difficult to visualize Christmas.  Or maybe it’s the crazy routine in publishing when you’re planning December in July and by November it’s already Spring! 

Anyway, this was a discussion of sorts way back in July with my fellow teammates from Paper Pen and Plan. We were wondering why we never get to finish up our December Journals/planners even though at the beginning we always seem to be so focused. We came to the conclusion that if we planned things earlier and in a more organized way it should make the rest fall into place. So we’ve each taken a topic and week to showcase what we’re using and how we’re using it. I was up last week and I was talking about Inserts.

I decided to make myself a felt notebook cover in a standard size and of course I made my own inserts to go with it using a Simple Stories collection called Cozy Christmas which you can find at Paper Pen and Plan on Etsy.

To go with my theme I made a little video tutorial which you can find below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhkXI8gS1Vc

If you want to join us then head over to Facebook and join the Paperpenandplan group where we’ll be more than happy to help inspire you. I’ll be showing inside my planner and memory book as I add to it and I’d love to hear if you make one of your own or have your own ideas for December planning.

Have a good weekend

Jaine xx

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New Projects – Friday In The Studio

Hello there and welcome to the first Friday in the studio of 2018.

Outside its stormy, wet and fairly miserable so I’m happy to be here in the basement with paints and glue.

This has to be my motto for the year  “you can do it”.  I just need reminding from time to time so here it is on the first monthly spread in my planner.

I think this year I really want to take up more mixed media and journaling again. I didn’t do so much last year instead focussing most of my attentions to making books and planners. I need to add more mixed media into my planners to bring the two worlds together and my sketchbook has been neglected a bit since the beginning of the year when I was adding to it almost daily. I’m really happy that Paper Pen and Plan are running a challenge this month to doodle every day so I’m taking this as an excuse to go a bit further and challenge myself to a small sketch each day. If you want to join in they’re running the challenge via their facebook group. You can find them here https://www.facebook.com/groups/paperpenandplan/ to join the group and join in the challenge.

It’s funny though but since participating in the open atelier just before Christmas and hearing what other people had to say about my work made me think about what it was I was doing and where I was going. I think I’d stopped believing in myself and had given up trying to produce anything in my art journal. For the atelier I’d made lots of mini books for scrapbookers and right at the very end – literally a couple of days before, I decided to make a few blank sketchbook/journal type albums with mixed media covers just to see how they went. Blow me if they weren’t the first books to sell and the response I got was amazing. So just from those few little books I’m now all fired up again to get out the paints and mediums.

Tomorrow is my first blog post for WOW and here’s a little sneaky peek at what’s coming up. I loved playing with texture and adding layers to this project. I’ll show you the full project tomorrow.

Happy Friday everyone, have a good one.

Jaine xx

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