"All the Bells and Whistles" 

published in Art Journaling Magazine!

My Journal and article are in the Spring/Summer issue of Art Journaling Magazine!  What an honor!  If you are interested, you can see photos of the entire journal "All the Bells and Whistles" on my website.  IngridDijkers.com

Drawing in Journals

I love drawings in journals and I think all of us journalers should do it more often. Unfortunately, I am not as good at  keeping up with my drawing skills as I should.   It really is a skill that needs to be practiced regularly. 

This journal is somewhat newish.  It's a larger journal than what I usually work in, being 10" X 12" X 2 1/2" thick" and is constructed with 1/4" plywood covers. A very stout journal indeed ... just the way I like them. More photos to follow as this journal progresses. Hopefully, with lots of drawings!

"Art and Soul" Virginia Beach 2015

"Art and Soul" in Virginia Beach, Virginia will be September 28th thru October 4th, 2015.  I'll be teaching 3 of my favorite workshops. Classes are filling up fast!  Hope you'll join us!

"Over the Edge"  the new fun size version!  Wednesday, September 30th, 2015.  More photos of "Over the Edge" can be seen here.

"The Mandala Journal"  Tuesday, September 29th, 2015.  Lately I have been loving this format for journaling with loose pages that fit nicely inside a box! More photos of the Mandala Journal can be seen here.

"The Journal Obscura" Monday, September 28th, 2015. Again, loose pages that are neatly contained within a box.  This journal is inspired by the Camera Obscura. More photos of the "Journal Obscura" can be seen here.

Image Transfers

I have been fighting with image transfers these past few weeks.  I know there are a million different methods, but I determined to make it work with packing tape or contact paper.

I am finding that packing tape transfers make for very transparent crisp images and the paper is very easy to remove from the back.  However, it's near impossible to use any mediums on top of these transfers.  If you sand the images to roughen them up a bit you can, but it still can easily be removed with the slightest pressure of a finger nail.

I'm working with magazine images from different magazines,  laser prints and various book images ... color and black and white.

Contact paper transfers are proofing to be rather unpredictable and it's difficult to remove the paper from the back without actually lifting the image.  The plus side of the contact paper transfers is that you can use other mediums on top ... with a slight sanding, everything seems to stick quite well.

Just yesterday I discovered a new type of contact paper and so far am having wonderful results.  Grant it, I have only made 1 transfer, but so far so good! Extremely transparent, all the paper comes off the back easily AND other mediums stick to the surface.  In the picture below I used a print  (the text) from my laser printer and it sure seems to work. I am now off to try it with other images from magazines and books!

New Journal Cover

I have been working, on and off, on this journal for over a year now.  When I first made it I covered the front and back covers with some Gelli prints I made quite awhile ago, but have not been very happy with it.

I ended up just leaving it and kept hoping something would come to me, which it hasn't until now.  I really enjoyed the last several journal pages I made in this journal (see previous blog post) and figured that style would work well, but I wanted a focal point. Last week my new friend, Brenda Ball-Wood, shared a fabulous paper punch with an octopus. It was too small for the cover and the proportions weren't right, so I scanned it and edited it until it was exactly what I needed. Then I made a stencil (and mask) of it.  I'm pretty happy with the results ... just goes to show "Good things come to those who wait".

A Few New Journal Pages

This past week I have been working feverishly in this journal of mine. It's a procrastination technique I am mastering quite well.  

As always, these pages contain nothing more than my usual random ramblings.  Often, I consider blurring out the text when I put my journal pages on my blog, FaceBook or my website. But, as I mentioned these are mere ramblings of what's on my mind at the time.  I'm not trying to make a statement or convey any messages.  There are no secret agendas involved.  I am merely sharing journal spreads I have made. Here are shown a few of the journal spreads that I made in that time.

The pages are all quite similar in technique and style, pretty much just different colors. Often times when I work with a new technique I like to make several spreads using it.

The idea for this was sparked from an old plastic letter/number stencil I found while I was trying to organize my supplies.  This kind of thing always leads to distractions ... it's a wonder I ever get anything done.

Many more pages from this journal can be seen on my website here if you are interested in seeing them.

"Over the Edge" Workshop

This workshop is being offered at "THRIVE" in Waterford, Michigan ... coming up VERY quickly! April 11th. 2015. Register soon to avoid missing this opportunity!

Also being offered at "Charmed I'm Sure" in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania on April 18th, 2015. Register here for this workshop.

Below is a class description and here are several additional photos of this technique packed journal.

After numerous requests, the classic “Over the Edge” 

journal of page shapes and edges is making a come 

back, only this time it’s “Fun Size”!  This luscious little 

journal (4 1/2" X 6 1/4") is a power packed version of 

the original.  We’ll work on getting those pages to "pop" 

(no one likes dull flat pages) and make the edges of 

those pages sizzle (gilding on steroids). This class will 

help us break away from the traditional rectangular 

shaped page. We’ll explore ways of developing and 

making other shapes for pages giving our books more 

dimension and interest. The importance of the often 

neglected edges of pages will be emphasized. Ingrid’s 

original book "An Instructional Guide for Going Over the 

Edge" will also be available for viewing many examples 

which displays a plethora of possibilities.  You need 

only bring a few sheets of paper and a few simple 

supplies that you probably already have on hand and 

the rest will be supplied!

A few journal pages

These spreads are done in the journal that is tentatively titled "Bohemian Rhapsody". I have been busy taking photos and uploading them to my (still in construction) website.  There are still so many photos to take, but I thought I'd share a few for now. More, of course, can be seen on my website.

Another journal page ...

I really love this graffiti style alien image and have been looking for an excuse to use it on an appropriate journal page.  Hard to believe, but there are those that don't share my enthusiasm for this image.... you know who you are.

Ransom Style Lettering

I have been working in File Folder Journal #3 for awhile now ... a couple of years (on and off) to be more exact.  It has a certain feel to it that is so different from all my other journals ... even other File Folder Journals.  I can't quite pin point why, but it's by far my most favorite journal of all time. Perhaps it is because I have been working on it for so long ... it has so many layers and "history".

I added some ransom style lettering awhile back and left it feeling that it was somewhat incomplete and lacking.  Having gotten back to it recently, I realized it needed a bit of simple doodling around some of the letters.  I'm much happier with it now.  I might even add more "stuff" later.

My schedule for this year has filled up quite nicely for the year.  I hope to also start having workshops locally at a brand new venue not too far from home ... in fact it's about a 35 minute drive for me.  More on that soon as it all starts to come together at THRIVE.  In the mean time, please check out the top of the right hand side bar on my blog for my 2014 schedule as it stands right now.

A few journal pages ...

I'm still playing catch up from a very busy year of workshops.  It was great, but so many things ended up on the back burner.  I am desperately trying to take care of that all now, plus finalize some plans for 2014 workshops.  Non-the-less, I still manage to squeeze in some journaling time.

 Sometimes I enjoy just revamping old pages that just aren't to my liking.

Other times I sit down and work on pages I started and never quite got around to finishing ages ago.

And then sometimes I just want to prep pages for future journal entries.  It also gives me the opportunity to work with and refine a technique, such as the "beading" you see below.

Not all pages are to my liking, but they are included anyways.

These pages were all done in my File Folder Journals (#4 and #5) .... my favorite journals to work in lately and as a result, the journals are rapidly filling up. Playing around and doing a bit of experimenting always leads to new ideas and soon I shall start constructing a new journal (and perhaps a new workshop as well!) to work in.  I love the hunting and gathering process for the construction of a new journal and hope to have photos to share soon.

File Folder Journal Page

This spread in File Folder Journal #4 was just finished up today.  I have been wanting to share how a typical page develops in this style of journal construction. I always think of this AFTER I have finished a spread. Fortunately, I remembered to take photos along the way this time.

The page above is a typical beginning of a page from a File Folder Journal. The file Folder Journal is made up of various papers that are glued and sewn together in a random fashion making for rather unpredictable pages.  It's a lot different working on this type of page verses a journal with white blank pages. 

I usually start by adding a few bits and pieces of paper and then start adding a slight amount of color.  The page continues to be slowly built up from there. There is an awful lot of problem solving involved.  In a way these pages are more difficult to work on than blank pages, but you  are forced to work on them in a completely different way than most journals.  As a result you end up with very interesting journal pages that you would normally never come up with.

On the areas that I want to write on, the background might have a very busy look to it.  In that case, the background has to be obscured a bit so that writing will show up.  Often times I get to a point that I feel a bit stuck.  To remedy this I just set it aside for awhile and come back to it later.  This usually works.  This is my 4th File Folder Journal and has become one of my favorite styles of journals to work in.

New Journal Pages

It seems like forever ago that I have worked in my journals.  I have to admit I have really missed it.  Now I am making up for lost time and have been journaling like crazy. These are a few I have been working on and are all done in File Folder Journal Number 4.

I find that this style of journal to be a real challenge to work in as they involve a lot of problem solving.  As with my other File Folder Journals, they are made up of random papers, junk mail, old books and assorted vintage papers. With the way they are constructed all the papers end up in rather unpredictable locations on the pages and throughout the journal.

I also have chosen to post pages with lots of complaining, which I usually don't post. If you chose to enlarge these images and read what I have written, don't say you weren't warned!

I'm really starting to develop a love for handmade tabs on pages.  I have included a few in this journal, but have plans to make many more.  Those will be in my next post .... now off to journal and make tabs ...