Permission

Thinking that I am in need of a change, I came across a blog about gratitude called newly creative. I can't even remember how I got there.  I need some more gratitude in my life so I decide I will commit to arting about gratitude. 

About a week or two ahead of the start date I began to think about the kind of journal I want to use...do I want to buy one or make one, etc. I decide I will make one and I ask some questions of the people I know who have made journals and then start to get my supplies ready so I will have what I need when the date comes. I get some of the pages ready by washing them with watercolors. I'm not sure how much time the journaling and techniques are going to take so I want to get ahead of the curve. I have decided that I don't want be perfectionistic and that I will try new things and make an effort to get out of my comfort zone.

The day comes. I wake up at 4:00 in the morning thinking about what I am going to do to my paper. (This is a good sign because lately I have been having trouble being excited about anything.) I have some ideas because the day before I was in my daughter's art classroom helping her get ready for maternity leave. I saw some ideas I liked and want to try. 

The first day is on Friday. I don't start out right away on my project because I have some 'work' that needs to be done. (I'm still trying to outgrow "business before pleasure.") I get home from shopping for some other supplies and it's 4:15. I decide that I will take an hour to play on my page and then I will go walk before it gets dark.  I get my supplies out. Set up my work area and I get started. The next thing I know when I look at the clock it is 6:15 and I'm not really finished. I got so caught up in what I was doing that I didn't even look at the time. Oh my...I really enjoyed doing this. Normally when I am quilting I have to get up and do something else. I love quilting but the hand stitching is rather uneventful.

I do love fibers and I have heard that Distressed Paint works on fabric and once it is dry it stays put. The quote is on a piece of muslin on which I put the same colors as the background and then used a Sakura IdentiPen to write the quote.

I wasn't really happy with the way the word 'Permission' turned out. I tried several different things. In the end, I decided to leave it and let it be the less than perfect on the page. 

Wow! I can tell that if I continue to put in the time for creating and thinking about what I am grateful for, this will be a life changing month for me.