new year, 2 new journals (a post from my blog)

new year, two new journals, a photo by vickylw on Flickr.

My latest hand-bound journal is filled with Niddigan print paper, which works better with gouache or ink work than watercolor. The paper is very light-weight, with an interesting texture -- I'm not sure if I can paint on both sides of a sheet or not yet. I bought two full sheets, the normal amount used per sketchbook, but the paper is so much thinner than the watercolor paper I normally use I added some pages of toned Fabriano Tiziano paper.

I also started a watercolor Moleskine, bought very cheaply at Border's ending-business sale, for those times when I want to use watercolor. It fits in my purse easier. The paper makes watercolors look a bit dull, but it's just to play in.



The above is the first page of the Niddigan journal -- I always include a palette sketch on the first page of each new journal. It seems to make the journal less "new" and easier to pick up for simple sketches. This shows my updated gouache palette, with some recently purchased colors. I especially love the cool red (quinacridone rose) from M. Graham, but it seems to stay sticky instead of drying in the pan. My other color choices were largely inspired by those of Roz Stendahl -- she does amazing gouache works in her artist journals!

 Using gouache is so different from watercolor, but I am determined to learn more about using it this year. I bought two teaching DVDs from talented artist Sandy Williams. I'm looking forward to learning from Sandy . . . just as soon as I shake this horrible head cold with it's blocked ears and headaches.

UPDATE: Taking the advice of others, I went ahead and painted on the back of this page . . . works great! And watercolor seems to work fine also; the toned paper just adds an "antique" feel. Fun paper!

Gwen Diehn's new blog

Hi all--if you don't know it already, Gwen Diehn, one of the best journal keepers and authors out there, has a brand new blog!  I've added the link to our Links We Like in the sidebar, but I wanted to call it to your attention, too!  It's called Real Life Journals, like her newest book, and it looks like a winner!

I also love her other two books, The Decorated Journal: Creating Beautifully Expressive Journal Pages and The Decorated Page: Journals, Scrapbooks & Albums Made Simply Beautiful, both of which have a permanent place in my library.  I've re-sold or given away a lot of books, but these two stay close at hand--I refer back to them frequently. 

Oh, yes, and don't miss Live & Learn: Real Life Journals: Designing & Using Handmade Books, which I also have and highly recommend.  You can find it in our Bookshelf section in the sidebar!