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art journal challenge - week 2

i have really been looking forward to my little sunday afternoon aj sesh all week! feeling so inspired by all of your cards...i have seen every one that has been linked, and i hope you get the chance to browse through and peek at some of them!

i had the treat of hanging out with 2 of my cousins from australia - along with their wives,  2 kids and 2 friends this weekend as they are on a month long trip around canada and the us. we used to do alot together as kids, but you know how things get -  we got older and busier and in the last several years have hardly seen each other apart from weddings :) so it got me thinking about the bonds a family has, our similarities and quirks that are so apparent despite years apart. how my cousin mark has the exact same hands as my dad. how we are all cheap and will park our cars miles away to save paying a few bucks! how we are all so tall with long legs and need our bikes adjusted if anyone else rides them - "better make it HILL HEIGHT!". we had the best fun riding bikes from venice to santa monica and i managed to get this one shot of us all on the pier...

i also love when i look short in a photo! {my cousins are mark - really tall one on right, and his wife leanne in the white jumper, their friends paul and jade next to them, then my other cuz jeremy in the red jumper with his wife lisa in the blue and their 2 cute kids}.

i loved that we were a big loud group of aussies!

so this led me to my prompt for the week: what is powerful to you?

sticker is by making memories :) other stuff is just random! i journalled my feelings on how i find families to be so powerful on the back. i think some weeks i will want to journal on the back, others not...do whatever works for you at the time!

don't forget to post links so we can all enjoy. and if you are new to this - join in anytime, you don't have to catch up - just keep going for 52 weeks! can't wait to see the creativity flow!

join me on an art journal journey!

i miss creating for creating's sake. i used to do this all the time...and between getting busier and having less space to work in...and no sunny verandah overlooking the trees to inspire me, i have allowed myself to get to a place where i no longer do it for the pure joy and love. and i don't like that!

a class i taught several times last year called 'a deck of you', was creating an art journal on a deck of cards - one card to be used for every week of the year. i promised myself and those in the classes that i would do this every week on my blog for a year, and i would love for you to join in! all you need is a deck of cards (i found funky pink and purple ones in target for around $4), and a desire to give yourself this gift - you can join in anytime.

having a little base to work on means you don't need to spend a lot of time on it. pick a day each week as your art journal day, and be sure to create something on your card that day...my day is going to be sunday - i will post a new card every week!

in my class we spent most of the time creating bases or backgrounds to then add journalling and other fun things to each week. if you have time and energy one day - bust out the paint or patterned paper and start layering some fun stuff onto the blank cards. you don't need to do them all at once, but maybe have a few 'ready' for when you want to create on top.

here is my little stash of cards waiting for the fun stuff to be added each week!

we also made little pouches from felt and fabric to hold the art journal cards in, carry it around in your bag and pull it out when inspiration strikes or is needed!

so each week i will post my little card from that day, and a prompt for you to use if you need it. but anything goes! won't it be fun in a year to have this fat wad of colour and personality, this little snapshot of you right now? please post if you have any questions, and if you feel comfortable link to an image of your card that week, so we can all get inspired and enjoy from one another! art journal journeys are the best when taken together :)

this weeks prompt is: something you are proud of...

(and no, those are not MY legs, incase you were wondering!!!)