When binding an Art Journal I use a lot of different papers. Like I said, I love to mix and match! For example I sometimes use pages from my altered books! You tear out pages to make room for collage and paint, but those pages can be recycled too!
This spread in my Kawaii Journal consists of papers folded in half from two different previous journals.
This is the spread before I started working on it. I really like working on top of text pages, and those vintage illustrations… Mmm!
I opened the book and started working. The left page I totally covered in collage, writing and stickers. But the elk (or is it moose?) on the right I left as it is. I didn’t touch him, because I like this illustration a lot. The poor bison though, is gone. Here’s a peek into some collage details of this spread.
Some details from this spread, after some cut and paste:
The whole spread again, after:
Because the left side is so busy I will not even journal next to the illustration. I kind of like it like this, and I’m proud of myself for actually leaving a little bit of white on a page. That rarely happens around here! Now the only thing that is still recognizable on this spread is the King of the Forest, the elk:
What do you think? Do you like the left or right page better?
It’s always such a delight to peek into your journals. And I have to say I vacillate in my own journals between covering every square inch and leaving white space – both feel perfect. So you won’t get my vote as to which of your pages I like more. But I will say that’s a very handsome elk. ;-)
I love both pages so much! Love the elk but also really love the other page as well as that is kind of my style of gluebooking [the patchwork method with the papers – I love it!] : )
Thank you so much for sharing with us and for all of the tutorials that you put up, I know you bless me and I’m sure that you bless many others with them as well [along with giving us an incredible amount of inspiration!!]
Debi
Thank you so much Debi,
for your lovely comment! It means a lot to me to know that my blog inspires you and that the tutorials are helpful. Thanks for letting me know!
Wishing you all the best!
I love the whole spread. It balances itself across the gutter and it works. The moose, gazing out of the book, also makes me want to turn the page to the next spread. Moose have those fat antlers, and elk never have that wattle under their jaw. Your work is so interesting to watch develop!
Hear, hear! The moose makes you want to see what wait on the next spread.
I had to go and check that moose-elk -thing, cause that animal often gets called/translated elk on Finnish travel sites etc. So, according to my Oxford dictionary they call that animal in the picture ‘elk’ in UK but moose in North America where elk is a wapiti (not related to moose but to European red deer). So a moose is an elk and an elk is a deer in UK. Confusing? I agree. :D
Yes, you’re so right it’s both an elk and a moose, depending on where you’re from.
I’m going with British English here, since we call them älg in Swedish and that is probably coming from the word elk. Thanks for adding to the confusion Kaisa! ;-)
Love the pages. But as an FYI, the animal is a moose, not an elk. And the one over it is a bison (often called, incorrectly, a buffalo). I’m from moose/elk/bison country.
Thanks Judy, I’m pretty sure I called the bison a bison, and that the moose is an elk depending on where you live (see comments above this one)! We’ve got a lot of the later here in Sweden too.
This is very lovely! I like the left page, because it has the little cat on it! I was wondering where you get all of your supplies that you art journal with. From the store, Etsy, thrift shops?
Thanks Shaynie, I’m with you on the cat adoration, I love those cat stickers!
I have collected ephemera, papers and supplies for several years and most of them are cheap or free, like magazine images, painted papers, and so on. I also save gift wrapping paper from birthdays, and such, and get stickers on sale in the book/paper store. And vintage finds in thrift shops is a favorite, but those finds are not as usual here in Sweden as they are elsewhere (not sure why the paper shelf is almost always empty here).
Good luck with your collages!