Celebrate Today!

Hi everyone! I'm so happy to be here on the Scrapbooking from the Inside Out blog! I can't tell you how much I've learned about journaling, and being purposeful in thinking about symbolism, meaning behind your scrapbooking.

Let me tell you a little about one of my latest art journal spreads, using the April Fortune kit. First off, it's so full of wonderfully patterned papers. I'm on a real chevron kick lately, and this kit gave me that in spades this month. So let me get to our Behind the Scenes questions and then I'll tell you more about my process, and what really drove me to create this spread.

What prompted you to pick this take on Fortune ?

It seems to me that what is typically thought of as fortune, that is, riches, is very fleeting these days. Countries like the United States and Canada have come through some very tough financial times lately, and my husband and I have felt the pinch, to be sure. But I didn't want to journal about money. To me fortune is about what you do have in your possession that you are grateful for, today. And so I created this art journal spread around that idea: Celebrating today and all that you have now.

Why did you choose this photo?
When I art journal I rarely use photographs at all. To me, the spread is not so much about the photo documentation, but rather the process. 

How do you feel about the message of your layout?

To me, the title of this layout says it all. But it's the journaling that gives you an insight as to what I was feeling at the time that I made the spread. I've been enduring a difficult time lately at work, and felt as if I was falling into a depression, or really down mental state. But something changed this past week... I took positive steps to change my situation by changing my outlook. And the sky was blue again. Nothing physically changed for me. I didn't get richer. I didn't get healthier. But I appreciated what I had more. I felt grateful for the help I received even if they were just words of encouragement. It made my life feel more rich.

What symbolism did you pull into your design?

In terms of symbolism, I found that it just felt more natural to have the chevrons facing up, like life was looking up. The hearts symbolized my gratitude and the running horse represented the freedom I felt. Freedom from feeling down, and overly concerned, worried, and fatigued. I felt exhilarated as I created this art journal spread. I felt positive and uplifted.

Tell us a little bit about how you feel now that you have "let it all out" on this page.

This page holds a very special place in my heart now, because there is so much meaning behind it, and such a positive force in it. If I ever lose sight of how "rich" I am again, I will open my journal to this page, and read the journaling card that I wrote, and remember how much I have, and how to celebrate every day!

You can read the positive message that I tucked into the envelope here:

You will notice that I took quite a few strips of the papers and laid them down in a grid pattern. Sometimes I cover them up with gesso, and sometimes I leave them completely exposed. This combination provides lots of texture to the page. I also used one of the die cut word art pieces as a stencil. I painted through the stencil with the distress paint in pink and let that dry. Then once that is done, I layer down the paper.

I loved the words that were printed at the bottom of some of the patterned papers. Instead of just the name of the paper, it had cute sayings. They spoke to me, so I used them too. I cut out the strip of washi paper that had the word "today" repeated and used it in a few places. And then for a grungier look that I love, I stamped some texture onto the page (life isn't always nice and clean is it?), and sprayed some pink drips and light blue glitter paint (I always love to have a mixture of shine and grunge).

When I find that something is too bright or just doesn't "go" with the feel of the page, distress paint or gesso does a wonderful job of toning down the colour so that the focus of the spread stays where you want it.

I hope you enjoy the spread and take encouragement from it somehow. If you think you need more in your life to consider yourself fortunate, take another look. I'm betting that if you look around, you'll see just how rich you are.

You can find more of my design team work at my blog: http://kiki-halbert.blogspot.com