A disappointing number of three (yes, 3!) people registered for the
‘workshop by the sea’.

As the date approached – and no new registrations were added – I had to
make a decision: cancel the workshop weekend or – despite the small group –
go for it and transform the weekend into something even more creative…
I choose the latter.

I informed the women about it and one lady withdrew, but the other two
got all enthusiastic when they heard it would be a more intimate weekend.
After all, with such a small ‘group’ they would have the opportunity to learn
more complicated techniques.

The workshop weekend finally came.
I met Elvy and Margot – two friends that were my ‘students’ last weekend
– and we had a blast!

We made a small book with a ‘secret folded spine’ (similar to the one I show
in the video in this post), we carved stamps, the poet Johanna Kruit taught
a haiku workshop, we did some more bookbinding, we transferred magazine
images, we worked on different art journal pages and ofcourse we went for
a long walk on the dunes and beach.

This photo impression tells it all
(photos taken by me, Johanna, Elvy and Margot)

Here’s a book I made to show Elvy and Margot how to bind the pages.

(Size: 13 x 17 cm - 5.12 x 6.7 inch)

The pages in this book are alternately made out of blank paper and
scrapbook paper. Margot had brought some acrylic paint in marvelous
colours with her, and I tried all the colours in different combinations
on the blank pages.

It turned out to be one happy, colourful book!
It will be so much fun working in it!

I didn’t manage to work on my ‘chronicles page’ in the weekend…
so I made this spread today! (that’s why I’m blogging late)

The Chronicles of Marit – Week 45

(23 x 31 cm - 9.1 x 12.2 inch)

After a long, creative weekend the daily routine still has to settle in…
but I’m sure tomorrow everything will be ‘back to normal’.

I wish you all a lovely week!
(Turn disappointments into opportunities!)

With August on the calendar, and light getting shorter in the evenings, it sure
feels like fall now! I decided to turn the ‘bad’ into ‘good’ and made plans for the
upcoming season then!

For me, some great things are in the pipeline – including teaching a long,
luxurious live workshop-weekend  in November – and then there’s also
something fantastic bubbling and growing, which I can’t say anything about
yet…  but it’s starting to come together and getting real!
Eeeckk… I hope to reveal it soon!

All in all, I had no time to also create a new online workshop for this Fall,
so I decided to offer two existing (and popular) online workshops again.

The online workshops that will start in September are:

Let it Loose (September 12 – October 20; 2011)

This workshop will loosen you up and take you
a step further in creating your own, unique art
journal pages. You’ll learn some basic writing
techniques to improve your journaling and you
will get tips and techniques to use your own
handwriting (You dislike your own handwriting?
You might be surprised what you can do with it!)
Furthermore, you will learn art techniques like
working with collages, paint, colours, gesso and
gel medium.

A Creative Art Journey (September 13 – October 21; 2011)

If you love art journaling and are eager to learn some
art history along the way, this is the workshop for you!
In 12 lessons you will be introduced to 12 different art
periods in time. Each lesson concentrates on a specific
art period, handling the characteristics and showing
the artists and highlights. Every lesson comes with
multiple prompts – inspired by the specific period/art –
from which you can choose which one suites you best.
You will learn about Ancient art, Renaissance,
Impressionism, Cubism and others.

And then there are still some places available for live Workshop by the sea

November 4 to 7, 2011 (National / Dutch)
November 11 to 14, 2011 (International / Bilingual:
Dutch-English)

This weekend will take place on the inspiring peninsula
of Walcheren (Province of Zeeland) in the Netherlands.

Besides binding your own book/art journal, working
with different techniques to create backgrounds and
a haiku workshop (provided by the writer/poet
Johanna Kruit), I will also teach you how to create
an ingeniously folded booklet.

Last weekend, I made such a folded booklet to use as an example in the
workshop. Here’s a sneak peek.

All  information about the workshops on the website: Marit’s Paper World

Registration for the online workshops is possible in the  shop.

If you are interested in the live workshop, then let me know
and I will e-mail you with further information about registration.

I’m sure you can guess what more I created last weekend!
Yep, right

The Chronicles of Marit 2011 – Week 31

(30 x 21 cm - 11.8 x 8.3 inch)

The background is gessoed. After that, I added acrylic paint and spray ink.
The ‘bubbles’ are made with paint and a sequin waste (template). The photo
is a cut-out from a magazine. Tiny alphabet stickers (October Afternoon)
used for ‘week’ and ‘month’ and journaling/doodling with sharpies.

I’ll be back on Friday with another art journal page.
Maybe even two 😉

You all know what to expect on Friday don’t you?

Haiku my heart!

But there’s more in this post,
I also have an art journal page to show.

Enjoy!

I based my first haiku (yes, I have two haiku’s to share) on a ‘weird’ photo.
I’ll tell you how I came to that…

Months ago, I bought old magazines on a flee market, to use the images
for collage. I flipped through them several times now, and every time
I came across this photo, I stopped and wondered. I keep on asking myself:
what is it that makes me stop and look at it over and over again?
Do I like this photo?

It is both repellent (to me, it evokes images of fear and pain) and magnificent
(it is a beautiful,  aesthetic photo made by a professional photographer.)

When I saw the photo again last week, and wondered what it was what made
me stop and look at it for the umpteenth time, I decided to finally cut out
this ‘weird’  photo and use it!

Here’s the index card I made with the image ánd a haiku.

(Index card: 13,2 x 8 cm - 5.2 x 3.1 inch *Photo: Nicolas Sinclair)

..

I’d just finished the ‘weird card’ when I heard about Amy Winehouse’s
death. I wasn’t a big fan or anything, but ofcourse I knew her hit-songs
– ‘Valerie’ and ‘Rehab’ – and I liked her voice. We all know how she was
pictured in the news and in magazines, and since I don’t live in a cave,
I heard those stories too. The news about her death made me write
a haiku and I created a similar index card to go with the ‘weird one’…

(Index card: 13,2 x 8 cm - 5.2 x 3.1 inch *Photo: unknown)

..

Can’t get enough of haiku?
Find all the Haiku My Heart participants on Rebecca’s blog:
Recuerda mi Corazon

Now that the Tour de France has come to an end, I can use my spare time
on art journaling again! Watching the Tour was big fun, but after spending
three weeks in front of the TV screen, I enjoyed dipping my hands into
paint and ink again last week and work on a bigger ‘miscellaneous’ page.
I really missed it! Here is the first result!

(Miscellaneous big art journal: 25 x 35 cm - 9.8 x 13.8 inch)

The background is gessoed first. I put a blue layer over it with acrylic paint.
Spray ink (Adirondack – butterscotch) over a ‘dotted template’ (it’s more a
piece of plastic ‘ribbon’ with holes in it. I don’t know what it was made for
but I use it as a template) Cut-out images from a magazine. The border is
also made with cut out pieces. I coloured the ‘astonished boy stamp’ (head)
with Copic markers. Black and yellow sharpies for doodling, brown ‘Painter
marker’ (thanks again Julie!) for the lines around the Sumo wrestler and last
but not least, some journaling.

For the noisy ones among you (Hi Terri 😉  ) here’s the translation:

‘Sumo wrestlers, pigeon breast, as thin as a rail or as fat as a pig…
where do I stand in line somewhere? Pretty much in the middle
I think. 132 lb is not too bad. I’m satisfied.’

This weekend, I will be working on some more art journal pages and
a sneak peek for the ‘Live by the Sea‘ workshop. Also, I have some
announcements coming in the near future.
Small plans will be executed and it seems my ideas are turning into
big things that are starting to come together… curious now?
Patience, my lovelies, patience…

For now, I wish you all a wonderful weekend!
Never mind the weather, keep on creating!