New to art journaling? Curious about this fun papercraft? Then join me for a series on Art Journaling Prompts, where I share a few of my art journaling ideas and tricks.
Art Journaling Prompt: Coloring with Pan Pastels
I mentioned before that I’m practicing drawing a lot lately—it’s one of the things on my “Do More Of” list and one that’s perfect for an art journal practice. It’s also one of those activities that can put me into a zen mindset right away. (And this week I needed some zen, big time.)
It’s November, which—here in Poland—is cold and grey. Thank goodness the beginning of winter is also the beginning of mandarin season. When I spotted them at the grocery store yesterday, it was like, Mandarins! Thank goodness! I mean, we eat these like crazy every winter and it’s a really bright spot among the cold and grey. So what better object to draw than a lovely round mini mandarynka? Or a whole bowl of them?
Art Journaling Background
My backgrounds are made up of layers of paint and paper. First, I glued some book paper randomly on the pages with Mod Podge. There’s not much, and most of it has been covered up. But it’s there, and helps to add some substance and texture to my not-super-thick journal pages. I also added a couple of strips of washi tape—you can see these at the top left.
On top of that, I applied green, then teal, then white acrylic paint, letting each layer dry in between. Basically, I squeeze the paint onto the page, then I use an old hotel key card to scrape it around. Here’s one page:
And the other:
I drew the mandarins and the bowl—and did my writing—with my trusty fine-tip black Sharpie.
Guess what’s underneath the paint on each of these pages? Different drawings of mandarins that didn’t quite make the cut. Ha! I love that you can just paint over mistakes.
Art Journaling with Pan Pastels
I’ve made a resolution to use more of the coloring supplies I have squirreled away. I used to be a Pan Pastel fanatic, but somehow after we moved here, they got put into a drawer I forgot about them! I used to teach classes with them, so I have a pretty nice stash of colors. But do I have orange? Nope! So I blended yellow and red right on my page.
First, about Pan Pastels: These are artist’s pastel colors that come in a little plastic pans instead of sticks. They look a lot like eyeshadow—they’re dry, but not crumbly or powdery. You can use them dry, or mix with water or other medium. And you can easily blend and mix them on your surface. I love how densely they’re pigmented, so you get rich, full color. I mean, that mandarynka glows. That is not me, dear reader. That is the Pan Pastel.
Even better? They are wonderfully forgiving. Because I applied them over a slick surface, I could brush off or even wipe off any mistakes with a baby wipe. You can use the Pan Pastel applicators to apply your color—I used them for some parts of this, but also used my hands. I think other crafters out there know just how good it feels to get your hands dirty with color.
You can use an artists’ fixative to set Pan Pastels—or hairspray. Just apply either one with several light coats, allowing each coat to dry before applying the next. Flooding your picture isn’t necessary!
Here I think you can see how transparent the Pan Pastels can be. I’ve used a dark blue to color my bowl—you can see the contrast between the bowl and the background, but it doesn’t obliterate the background itself. It does catch in the areas where the paper is collaged onto the background, though, which I love.
This exercise really reminded me of how forgiving it can be to practice in an art journal. My images aren’t perfect (especially not the ones I covered up!) and as I look at the photos, I see areas that I’d change or do differently—but an art journal is such a safe, easy place to practice and play. I’m sure the drawing and coloring I do 10 pages, 20 pages, and 30 pages down the road will be much better, and I’m excited to see the progress.
Hope you enjoyed today’s Art Journaling Prompt!
Happy Monday!
Intrigued by art journaling? You might check out my Kick Start Art Journaling online workshop. It’s six weeks of art journaling assignments, with video and PDF downloads. Just $15.00, it’s a super way to try art journaling—I’ll show you how! Hope to see you there!
