This is a board book. I went to a store nearby that sells children's books for $1.49 This was the only board book with tabs and I loved the size of the book.
So, after I watched Willowing's classes, I began. I used french antique papers, some currogated cardboard, gesso and modge podge "Sparkle". I figured seeing that this was a healing art journal, and the pages will have pictures of me and drawings of little petit girls, I would add the sparkle.
I gessoed one page spread already, and began sketching to get ready for the journal. I may go about things a bit different than Tam from Willowing. Wait and see!
Working on my second assignmnt, which Tam from Willowing gave us an extra week. I found my board book to work out of. I sanded down the pages. Applied french papers and some currogated card board to the cover of the board book to alter it. I used sparkle Modge Podge on top. The book is revealing a bit of my when I was a child. I sanded and gessoed the next set of pages. I love this board book. It has about eight tabs, is a bit larger than a journal, and the pages are wonderfully sturdy. Now I have to find a couple pictures of me to make transfers on the new gessoed surfaces. I may sand again just to be abit smoother.
Tamara from Willowing.com is giving a free course. This was the first week and she gave two classes each an hour long. I have watched them twice this week and love watching that paintbrush with water, change the blending of colors in Tam's faces. Along with painting, you get to get healed of emotions that are wearing you down. Write them down in your journal then gesso over them. BUT before you gesso, think of the positive responses to the aweful things that your mind tells you. As a christian, I believe that we go through many trials, and our own thoughts can pull us down greatly. We have to remember who we are in Christ. So, after I wrote down all the things that bother me about myself, negative thoughts I think about my personality and character, I then focused on the Lord. Be Strong in the Lord.
So. I gessoed over my graphite pencil letters, and am now sketching my face. Will it look like me, not worried about that, just working on the structure of the face.
For years, I have been learning about the measurements of the face; 1/2 down is the eyes, 1/2 down from the eyes and chin is the nose etc. Those measurements have to be practiced and almost memorized for a person like me. The edges of the nose meets the corner part of the inner eye...and so on. Then there is the practice of the eyes separate, the nose, the lips especially because they are all shadows and pigment colors of the skin. When I watch Willowing, Suzi Blue, Milliande, or Monica from Hands and Heart, I love watching them place all of the face parts down in their drawings, and then their build up of shadows and color with pencil and paint. "I want to draw like them or paint like them" I think. Well the word is "practice, practice, practice". And then, the new way I have been doing, make a copy of masters faces, and take that pencil, charcoal or marker and trace and copy on top of their eyes and noses, and lips and ears, hair and shape of face. Believe me, this is so helpful. You are not pliagerizing. I find this tracy affect is so helpful, it seems to make an imprint inn the brain on how the line qualities, shadows and shapes really make up the face. Another way is to lay tracing paper on top of the photo copy and trace and retrace. I am sure that if you practice this different way of drawing-tracing-it will help you with the placement of these things in your own drawing whether you enjoy realism, folk art style faces, cartoon, pen and ink, painting, or whatever, the whole face will be solidified in your mind. Remember, this is just drawing exercise like when you are working out on the weight bench, and you do and redo curls, this becomes a repetitive pattern, you may go up with the weight, but you are doing the repeat over and over to build up muscle and tonality. This is what you are doing in drawing. Appreciation of art is a wonderful thing, and if you do this type of exercise, you will come to enjoy the masters and begin to see their differences in techniques. The Mona Lisa that I have in a previous post is a good one to practice on first. I even wanted to check to see if the measurements were right and if the eyes were in the middle of the head. They are! Have fun and if you want, just throw the tissue paper or copies away later, it is just exercise to make you a master!
