My First Inktober

Yay! I managed to fulfill a drawing challenge. Okay, I did not do the challenge as prescribed by the originator, Mr. Jake Parker. Was not able to even do the prompts. Why? Well, I am a very busy person. My job as a teacher of twenty-six wonderful energetic second graders keeps me very busy. I also have other wonderful people who desire my attention. Anyway, it all does not leave me much time to draw. So I made the challenge fit my life.
I decided to create a two-page layout in my teacher bullet journal to draw 31 tiny ink pictures (32 because day 13 I did twice;-) By having in my teacher bullet journal I knew that it would be easier for me to create a drawing quickly. My goal was to take 5 minutes or less to draw something. As you can tell from some of the drawings my time to draw was less. It was more like 2 minutes. I only used a black Tombow marker because it was able to be in my teacher pen/pencil case. The header is some washi tape that has a pattern of art supplies on it. I used a Crink pen to write Inktober and the border. That is it. Pretty simple design and layout.
I really did enjoy taking those little bits of moments to draw/doodle something. The page is fun to look at, and because it is in my teacher bullet journal I can look at it as often as I like. I might even create another two-page layout in the same journal for the month of November: Noinkber, Inkember, the last one would work for December as well. I think that Noinkber is cool. Perhaps I can challenge myself to draw/doodle using some other medium, like crayon or colored pencil. Whatever the challenge is I better get going because it is already the 4 day of November. I will for sure share whatever creation I do for November. For now, I must go create. Be well, my friends.
Happy Creating!

The Little French Bistro

If you are looking for an intense on the edge of your seat read, this is not the book. However, if you wish to visualize a bit of a French seaside lifestyle then read it. I enjoyed the story for this very

reason. It was a good story to read just before bed. It made for some great images to dream by. I did have a difficult time getting into the story because of how slow it is. The slowness did add to the feeling of being in a little seaside town and getting to know the many characters. At times keeping the characters straight was a challenge, but doable. Anyway, if you want a relaxing read then go for this story.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Road to Paradise- A Book Review

A quaint love story between a man, a woman, and the mountain. Finally, a love story that does not involve sex. This is very much a Christian love story. I enjoyed that about it. Another bit that I loved was the scene of the story. Oh, how I would have liked to walk in the shoes of the main character and be a naturalist in a national park. The story transformed me into that character while reading. There was just enough excitement to keep my attention. Ms. Barnett story has all the elements of a good story without the need for foul language and/or blatant sex scenes. The reader can still feel the angst, anger, and love between the characters without all of the garbage of gross language. Yes, it is a book I would recommend to my church friends. I am looking forward to the next installment in this series. (Sorry that my review does not tell you what went on in the story. I want you to go and check it out for yourself. Read it and discover your own voice about this book.) Enjoy!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Getting Ready for Vacation

I realize that many go shopping for clothes to wear on vacation. Well, not me! As soon as my husband and I decided to go to Oregon on vacation this summer I started thinking about what journal and art supplies should I take. Okay, I did think about clothes and if it was necessary for me to buy new ones. Maybe a new t-shirt or two and perhaps flip-flops to wear on the beach. Other than that I think that what I will wear is pretty much taken care of. Now back to what journal and art supplies should I take.
After searching Amazon.com and checking out the Michael's Arts and Craft store near me for journals I finally found one. I ordered the TreeLine List book from Amazon.com and it arrived a couple of days ago.

The company, Action Publishing has several styles to pick from. It took me a few days to decide on this one. These journals are very different from others that I was considering. The paper is cream colored with both lines and a grid layout. The left side page has the grid and the lines are on the right side. The covers are chipboard made from recycled material. There is much more about them and I will let you go and check it out.

The journal that I got measures 4.25 x 11 inches and has a tree theme. To help gauge the size of the journal I took a picture of it next to a piece of 8.5 x 11 inch cardstock. Why would I get such a strange size for a travel journal? Well, because it is different and will make me change the way I create in it. The size of postcards will be a challenge for me as will other bits of ephemera. I will manage somehow to get them in.
I also ordered film for my instant camera. Yes, instant as in the old fashion Polaroid type film, only these are small.
 The pictures are about 2 x 3 inches and just barely fit on the page of this journal. That is okay, because barely is better than not at all. If I turn the camera sideways then the photos will be printed in the portrait layout. In this layout they will fit on the page. I will take pictures both ways and all will be fine. I do not plan on taking my DSLR on this trip. I want to focus on little photos and most importantly drawing and writing about what I see. If I take my big camera then it is likely that it will be the main focus of my art. Another bit is that I want to have my photos in the journal within minutes of taking them, not when I get home and get around to having prints made. I do not have a lot of spare time at this point in my life to focus on making prints and putting them in my journal later. Most likely I will not get around to doing that. This is why I wish to use my instant camera and getting those photos glued down in my journal quickly. Honestly, the photos do come out quite nice. I am looking forward to adding more drawings in this journal and not as many photos.
Now to pair down or use a better way of transporting my drawing/painting materials. This has always been an issue for me. What should I take and if this pen or paint is left home what will I do if it is needed? I have a difficult time leaving a lot home, because I never know what my mood will be as far as which medium to use. So I take a lot. I do limit it to a small backpack, but still the way it is stored in the pack is annoying to me. I had been using various pencil cases, and although these are good at keeping the stuff safe it is not good for on the quick creations. I have to rummage around in the pack trying to find the bag that holds the medium that I am looking for. It just takes up too much time to do that. Doing a bit of research on Amazon.com I came across a solution. I found these roll-up pencil/pen cases. There are a lot of different styles and sizes to choose from, and yes it took me some time to choose a couple.

        I ended up buying these two. One holds 36 pencils/pens and the other 48. I got them with the intention of putting my Tombow markers in the 48 slotted one and my drawing pencils and pens in the 36 slotted purple one. The problem with this plan was that the Tombows did not fit very well in either one. They caused them to be very difficult to roll up. The Tombows also caused the purple case to come un-stitched, which I had to fix. So for now I have my Tombows in a pencil bag and I am still rearranging my drawing pencils and pens in the roll up cases. Not sure if I will be using both or just the one that holds 48. I have time to figure it out.
Before I wrap up this post I wanted to show the title page of the book. The page is not complete, but it is a least started. I will add more and perhaps take another photo of it when it is done. For now I think that this post is long enough. When we return from our trip I will post some photos and chat about how I did or did not like the journal.
Be well and be happy my friends. Ciao!

The Chamberlain Key- A Book Review

Read the first third of the book and could not go any further. It was just too tedious to read. Perhaps I will come back to it, but I doubt it. I was really hoping that the book would have drawn me in and held my attention. Wanted to understand his argument, but the flow was lost on me.

Blogging for Books link to The Chamberlain Key

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”