Wednesday 30 May 2018

Art as self care

Art journaling for me is an act of self care.  I've been crazy busy in May with work (as a lecturer in a university, May is exam month so lots of marking and student support) plus I've had some complicated family stuff going on.  All that has taken it's toll and art has taken a back seat and I feel it.  I've spent a morning working on a couple of art projects and immediately felt lighter.  Look after yourself, make time for you.

Here's what I've been working on:


This is a page I made with some of Anna's collage sheets- I love how vibrant they are.  This is a page in a collaboration journal - I'm working with a couple of friends and we've each chosen an artist who we can be inspired by.  This one is inspired by Laura Horn, the collage sheets were perfect for this because the paper I've printed them on is light so great for posting through the mail.

Next up I have created a journal for myself using an old book.


I've gutted it's pages and added my own mixed media paper.  Becaise this journal is called 'The Mermaid' s Purse I thought one of Anna's collage sheets was perfect to line my book.  It totally made me think of magical seas and mermaids.


I'm looking forward to working in it over the next few weeks and am confident that I'll be inspired by this beautiful work each time I open it.

Don't forget to check out Anna's Patreon which includes all of Anna's beautiful collage sheets including these gorgeous pages as well as art tutorials. You can find more of my art here, on my blog, or on Instagram.

Tuesday 29 May 2018

June Brimbles Box


So here is a look at the June Brimbles Box!


Saturday 26 May 2018

Watercolour Journal Spots and Journal Cards





This month as part of the Mrs Brimbles Creative Team I have been playing with watercolours and drawing gum again, but in a completely different way to last time. In Anna's latest Patreon tutorials, she has been showing us how to create something called 'Journal Spots', journaling cards that use drawing gum to create a resist area that we can then use to write or journal on. I love them!


I have created 4 different cards, each with a different purpose in mind. The one above is for my Happiness and Bloom Journals (both of which are junk journals). I have used the cards as prompts for further journaling. The one below is one of my long term goals: To move to Spain, it is something that I WILL be doing, even if takes until retirement to get there.


The Growth and Happy journaling cards are my Words of the Year, so something I have been holding dear and trying to live up to. Happy seems to be working for me at the minute. I have been much happier in my work and this has had a knock on effect in all areas of my life. I have used the card to document my weekend at Cambs Planner Con last week and you can see this in my journal below. It was such a lovely event and great to finally get to meet some of the lovely people I have spoken to online and to see friends that I have already met through the planner and journaling community. The page also uses stickers from Anna from both the ones that were sent with our ticket and ones from the latest Brimbles Box (Planner Nerds Bright's).


I've loved creating and using the Journal Spots and it is something I will be creating and making again. Do check out Anna's Patreon Page, she has updated it to include lots of new goodies and rewards including a tier where you can get the Brimbles Box included.

Take Care and I will see you soon,
Kerry xx

Catch me on my blog - kerrymaymakes.com

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Friday 25 May 2018

Setting up my new B6 Travelers Notebook

Today I am sharing with you my new B6 Travelers Notebook and also how I am setting this up (process video). I will do another video talking you through my set up and why!


Tuesday 22 May 2018

'Battle' of the Shimmery Watercolours

Today I am sharing and showing the three types of shimmery watercolours that I own so that you can see what you like the most. I have had comments from people asking what each of them are like so I thought I would show you how they compare to each other.

Browse the selection of watercolours in stock in my shop here: https://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product-category/art-supplies/paints-sprays-inks/watercolour-paint/


Sunday 20 May 2018

It's like greeting an old friend: Getting back into Creative Journalling

Hey guys!

I've been on a bit of a creative spurt since coming back from Cambs Planner Con. I'm not sure whether it is being in a room full of creative people or having spent time with amazing friends surrounded by like minded individuals on a mini holiday from normality. Once the post planner con blues have passed I'm left feeling rejuvenated and inspired!


For some time I've been in a creative lull, my journals both my art ones and my documenting ones have been left pretty much untouched since mid December (I've still not finished my Dec Daily!!). I've been creating, in the sense of dying leather and creating beautiful (if I do say so myself) planners for other people, but I've not created anything just for me.

Now the rush of stock making and creating for Cambs has finished I've had time to sit down and just create, and create, and create! Not only have I been involving myself in new areas of creativity (Mermay & Kerry's Monthly Challenges) I've also had a breakthrough. I've started working my way through alllll the pretty ephemera and papers I've hoarded for years. It is a turning point for sure!

I've two creative journal spreads to share with you today. The first documenting my trip with J to the cake baker for our wedding.....a rather tasty trip!! I thought this spread would perfectly suit Anna's 'We go together' Collection. The second documenting my time away for Cambs Planner Con 2018.

We go together like...

Often when the vellums (this one is from Filofabulousss) I use in my actual planning planner become too tatty or torn from use I'll include them in my creative journals. This insert is one I made especially for this entry as I thought the gorgeous teacups suited the theme perfectly, although I didn't have tea at the tasting, boo! Tea and cake, mmmm!

I began with a gentle water colour wash, I tried to pick out colours which complimented the teacups. I didn't want anything too bold or strong that it would overshadow the rest of the page. I then tentatively used my heatgun to quickly dry the wash....the thing still scares me!



Whilst I deliberated which pieces from the 'We go together' Collection I wanted to include, I used my  Canon Slephy to print off the photos. I will often print more than I use, so a) I have more choices available and b) I'll print other photos from other days so as not to waste the paper.


Space can be a bit of a premium for me at times, I like to leave a lot of white space, for my writing, which often navigates around the photographs and any bits of ephemera I've included. So using a journal card washi'd (is that even a word?) down as a flip out window really helps free up some of this real estate. I've also recently adopted Anna's style of adding a tab, which I came across in one of her DecDaily Youtube Videos. The tabs really do add that little bit extra to the window, gives it a bit more purpose, I think. 


Next played around with some 12x12 paper scraps I had left over from making this insert. I had a bit of mishap with the double sided tape and ended up ripping up some of the paper underneath. I need to  be a little more brave about just going with where I've stuck something down. In the end though I managed to cover it up with another sticker. When we travelled that morning the air was incredibly misty or foggy? Either way, it was pearly white and it always made me feel so nostalgic. Like I'm a kid again embarking on a new adventure.



I'm quite pleased with how the pages turned out. I decided to put the date on the vellum, I wasn't sure at first but I felt it needed to be tied in to the spread a little more as initially it felt like it was kinda just plonked there. A bit of layering and more washi and I'm a happy bunny. I'm really drawn to layering at the minute which you'll see in the next few pages I did documenting my trip to Cambridge for Cambs Planner Con 2018.

Cambridge Planner Con 2018

Whilst I was creating the above spread I decided to watch Anna's latest Patreon videos where Anna explores and demonstrates how to create your own ephemera. It got me thinking about how I would document Cambscon. The colour scheme Anna chose for this year was spot on! So bright and colourful, it sparked so many creative ideas for me. 

It has been an awful long time since I've made my own ephemera and journal cards, I tend to stick to scrapbook collections, and honestly I'd forgotten just how fun it was to make them myself. I didn't have to search through all the little bags of ephemera looking for the right colour or theme. I could just make them to fit exactly what I was after. 


I wanted to follow the bold and bright colours Anna chose for the event. So I grabbed out some of my acrylic paints and set to work. I tried to mix the colour palette in a way I wouldn't usually, for instance I tend to shy away from putting pink and green hues together. But here I decided to just have fun and try something different. Pushing away my usual creative lines. 


I really love how this page turned out. At first I wasn't sure how I was going to tie all the aspects together as  I just wasn't feeling it. Once I had added a few more layers and some phrases to the photos it began to feel more cohesive. I love the contrast of the black washi against the bright green and yellow acrylics!


Here I totally stole this idea from Anna's patreon video! Shameless but it is such an effective way of adding lettering to your page as well as creating interesting visuals. I had some left over bits from the ephemera pages I made, so I used a paper punch to punch the circles and then used a Sharpie Fineliner to add the letters. I'm definitely going to use this more often in my pages!


I'm not too keen on the black border on the yellow piece of ephemera I made, so I decided to hide it as much of it as I could...haha. A couple of stickers added and it softened the harsh edge a little more. I've also left quite a of white space as I have one or two more photographs to add, but, unfortunately I ran out of paper, so I'll stick them in when my new batch arrives. I have just clipped in the photo at the top for now until I can work out how I want to place them. 

I got a little carried away with the alpha stickers and realised I'd left very little space for me to add my writing, however, I love how this page turned out. To me it represents perfectly the excitement and buzz I felt just before everyone came through the doors. I did catch the 'Awesome' sticker as I was peeling it off the backing and the white layer underneath was showing. So I covered the worst parts with the gold stars and actually I think it looks even better for it. A happy little accident! 


Another flip out window tab thing (I'm still not sure what I want or should call it!). Initially I was going to add this to the acetate but I didn't like the way the sticky tape showed on the reverse so I opted for the good ol' washi trick. I've left it a fairly blank so I have some space to write! I get so carried away I often forget this part, haha. 


Here I've included some of the journal spots/ephemera pieces I created with my Dylusions acrylics, layering it behind the group photo. I then went with some contrasting alpha stickers, I love the way the word stands out. I even love how the word 'family' looks, as after I'd stuck down the F and A I realised I'd run out of M's and I's, so had to revert back to the silver alphas. I also really love, love, love all the bright colours and layers I have going on in this part of the spread! I'm all about the layers!!

Lastly here is a picture of my desk, just because, and also Anna has several desk avalanches in her video! A common occurrence for me too, haha. This, for me, is tidy! 



So that is all from me this time. After a rather brief time of short and sweet posts from me we are back to the long essays!....Sorry!

I would love to see everyone's desks mid creating, and to know if there is anyone who doesn't create mess as they create beauty?

In a bit x

You can also find me on Instagram, Pinterest, or Facebook


Friday 18 May 2018

Do you realise your potential?

This talk was recorded from Cambs Planner Con 2018 and was delivered to the delegates by Charlotte Ashley-Roberts.

To find out more about Charlie please visit: https://www.yourtimetogrow.com/ You can also find her all over social media.

To find out more about Cambs Planner Con please visit: https://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/cambsplannercon/


Thursday 17 May 2018

Raindrops & Rainbows

Hello!

 I’m a little late posting this but I’ve been working with Anna Brim’s Patreon artwork from April. I loved this selection of work because it’s so colourful! I decided to order the April Brimbles box and have included a few bits from there with my pages. In the first spread I’ve experimented with colour. Anna has taken raindrops and instead of having only blue, she has used a full spectrum of colours. I have created tip-ins on this page with journal cards as I love added decoration and layers. When I looked for writing to have on the page, I found a poem named ‘The Rainbow Witch’ by Amy Ludwig Vanderwater. It’s a short poem that doesn’t take itself seriously, a playful prose for the page.

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The second spread in contrast to the bright rainbow page is much darker. I’ve used purples and greens on this page. Purple a very spiritual, powerful colour so it felt right for the page. I decided to work with a journal prompt on this page with a bit of self exploration. Using a the book ‘The Year of You’ by Hannah Braime, I chose the prompt, “What is one quality you embody today that you hope to keep for the rest of your life?”. I then did a bit of soul searching and answered this prompt across the page.
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The third spread wasn’t actually planned and came by playing with the artwork. I knew I wanted to use these elements but wasn’t sure how. So in true style for me I arranged them on the pages and allowed my creative nature to run free. These pages had already had some blue paint spillages on the edge so I decided to work with it and I quite like how it’s turned out.

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That’s all from me for now,
 Kelly xxx

 Where else you can find me: The Scrapbook Girl Instagram Pinterest Youtube


Tuesday 15 May 2018

What's in my Kipling 100 pens case?

My parents brought me the Kipling 100 pens case for Christmas. When I showed it in my 'what I got for Christmas' video a coupld of you asked to see how I would set it up and what was in it. I wanted to wait until I was using it and using it properly before sharing so that it is 100% authentic - the things I actually use.


Friday 11 May 2018

Cambs Planner Con 2018 - Memory Keeping Journal Page Process

Today I am sharing with you a process video of my journal / memory keeping page from the 3rd annual Cambs Planner Con.

For more information about this event please visit: www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/cambsplannercon


Tuesday 8 May 2018

May 2018 Brimbles Box Unboxing

Here is my unboxing of the Brimbles Boxes (yes two!) for May 2018. The Brimbles Box is my monthly planner / journal box. It is used and loved by creative planners as well as memory keepers and creative journallers.

The two boxes shown are in stock and available to purchase NOW! Monthly subscriptions are also back! If you would like to sign up for the next Brimbles Box you can do so here: https://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product-category/brands/mrsbrimbles/brimblesbox/

Boxes on subscription are £18 including postage wherever you are in the World. One off boxes are £15.00 plus postage so if you are international it would work out cheaper to subscribe wink wink!

You can also subscribe via my Patreon which also gives you access to my online content in addition to the box: https://www.patreon.com/mrsbrimbles


Friday 4 May 2018

Cambs Planner Con 2018

On 21st April 120 planner and journal enthusiasts came together for the 3rd Annual Cambs Planner Con. We had two inspiring and motivational speakers and two creative workshops to kick start our creativity in our journals and planners. We made new friends and met up with old friends, we chatted, crafted, shopped and had fun!

Here is my little round up vlog: 



And here is a playlist of the vlogs other people have made about the event:



for more information about Cambs Planner Con and to see photos please go to: https://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/cambsplannercon/