The Chance Journal

Sharing pages from the journal that I've dubbed, "The Chance Journal."  I realize that I never blogged about this journal, so here we go...

There's mystery to handmade paper, even machine-made paper that you've never used before. It takes time to get to know paper, don't you think? So I didn't know what would happen. I thought it best to start by doing pen & paint tests, with the results serving as a reference for the rest of the journal. A segue. An appetizer. The left is the very first page and the right is the other side. No bleed-through.

Pen & pencil & ink & gouache & watercolor tests on the first few pages.

This is a handmade leather bound journal made by Iona that my husband and kids got for me in 2014 at the arts festival in Fort Worth. I selected a journal with handmade watercolor paper. The paper feels like cotton! I like the journal so much that I got a smaller one at the arts festival in 2015 although I haven't started that one yet. All it good time! This one opens like this - the front cover wraps around. This is a heck of a yummy journal.

The paper is kind of nubby and textured watercolor paper. Part of the fun in working in a handmade journal is not knowing what on earth the paint will do, and enjoying the ride. I really like the way that all of my pens & ink & w/c & gouache work on this paper. It just makes me want to explore & experiment.

If you would like to learn more about painting with watercolor or gouache in an abstract style, check out the Tiny Museum workshop.