Inside Out Visual Journaling: 2013

Showing posts with label 2013. Show all posts

12.16.2013

Behind the Art with Lori

Hi again!
Are you enjoying your December?
As you know, this month we are exploring
TRUST.

Here's some insight into this layout:

I wanted to showcase these very different, but so beautiful pictures of God's creation:
a snowy mountain cabin, a Florida sunset, the fall in Tennessee,
and a random rainbow right outside my office.
This quote really spoke to me.
Ralph Waldo Emerson said,
"All that I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen."
Isn't that just the essence of faith?
This is a great reminder to look around and notice the
beauty that is everywhere.
I hope you get a chance to experience some beautiful surroundings this month!

A kit or subscription would be a fantastic gift for yourself or someone you love this holiday season!

Get the TRUST kit here.

Our inspiration page is fantastic!

Join us on the forums for challenges and chatter.

Make sure to check out the gallery!

And like us on facebook to keep up with all the latest!

Lori

12.10.2013

December Guest Designer: Andrea Ratcliff

We are so excited to have one of our Teen designers, Andrea Ratcliff, designing with the December kit TRUST. Here is more about Andrea and a couple of her layouts.

Visit Andrea's blog HERE.

Here are a couple of layouts that Andrea created:

We love that Andrea shared these fun photos of herself. They go so perfectly with her journaling. And wouldn't you agree... trusting ourselves seems to leave us feeling unstoppable!

I bet if we all thought about it, we have observed a wonderful expression of trust by someone in our life. Whether it was bestowed upon us or upon someone else. We love how Andrea is showing us how to include others in our lives and reflecting on how it makes us feel.

We will share a couple more layouts by Andrea before the month is over. In the meantime, come join us on our Facebook page to stay up to date on all the happenings. We'll also be sharing more design team layouts over there soon.

11.25.2013

Behind the Art with Lori

Happy Thanksgiving week!
I am so grateful and so blessed. As you know,

we're showcasing our WISDOM kit this month.

I'm wrapping up my posts this month with my final layout about wisdom:

This quote by Khalil Gibran really grabbed me:
"Wisdom ceases to be wisdom when it becomes too proud to weep,
too grave to laugh, and too selfish to seek other than itself."
OH! The truth! We don't want to be wise just for wisdom's sake...
it's important to temper that wisdom with the beauty of being human.

I used a patchwork of the patterned paper to show the mishmash of life and the arrows pointing in
on "itself" as a symbol of that selfishness in which we all can get caught up.
I used last month's stencil of arrows again to symbolize
this as a reminder of which direction to take.

I like how this one turned out and, again, is another reminder to me to seek wisdom, but

also to be humble and reach out within that wisdom.

Remember, you can get your kit here.

Our inspiration page is jam packed.

Join us on the forums for challenges and chatter.

Make sure to check out the gallery!

And like us on facebook to keep up with all the latest!

Lori

10.31.2013

Behind the Scenes with Lori : BELONGING

Hi there!! Lori here to give you a little "behind the scenes" info about my little mini book:

What prompted you to pick this take on BELONGING?

I discovered Brene' Brown in the last year and find her TED talks and her quotes to be sooo inspiring. She speaks so powerfully about vulnerability, authenticity, and the courage to be yourself and live wholeheartedly.

 How do you feel about the message of your layout?

I tried to focus on the concept of belonging and how much self-acceptance leads to the feeling of belonging. I need to remind myself of these things daily! Imperfection is NOT weakness....sharing that authenticity is BRAVE!

What symbolism did you pull into your design?

I loved the little cassette tapes on the stencil this month. I think of this whole mini book as a "mix tape"--all the best and favorites in one place! I also used the Polaroid images to help signify the idea of imperfection...there's no photoshopping or cropping polaroids! :)

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

I just loved these quotes...I need to remember this. I need to accept and love who I am, own my own story, and be authentic....this lets others do the same! I also like the reminder that self acceptance is courageous...I want to be brave!

Be sure to check out this month's GALLERY including our 

teen GUEST DESIGNER, Heather Adams!

Come visit and chat with us on the FORUM!

Like our FACEBOOK page for updates!

I hope you're feeling a real sense of BELONGING this month!

6.05.2013

Behind the Scenes with Lori

Hi everybody! Lori here to share with you some info about this page:

What prompted you to pick this take on Transformation?

My process for deciding what I'm going to do each month always begins with Pinterest. :) I love finding quotes and/or images that speak to me in some way and that portray a specific interpretation of the month's theme. I love this quote because that is just how I feel about prayer. It is a need, and it changes ME instead of my circumstances, more often than not. 

Why did you choose this photo?

I actually "staged" this photo (I know! GASP!) and wanted it to be an extreme close-up with just my face. I think prayer is where we meet God at our most vulnerable state, stripped bare, no hiding. I wanted that feel with my photo.

How do you feel about the message of your layout?

I liked the serenity of using watercolors behind the stencils and hope that peacefulness comes through.

What symbolism did you pull into your design?

I love this stencil and thought it looked a bit like church windows. I wanted both a hard and soft feel, as sometimes prayers are not sweet and pretty, sometimes we are desperate and angry and hurting. I used modeling paste and mixed it with the Dylusions spray in the kit, then used a palette knife to spread it through the stencil. I also sprayed the ink spray directly onto the page through the stencil, then dripped a bit of water on them, to create that melty look. I used the Glitz Uncharted Waters Waves paper with only the blues showing, again to create a feeling of serenity and peacefulness. I used the scrap of paper with the days of the week and the calendar as a reminder of the need for prayer all the time. I love the little photo overlays and thought they could symbolize "windows to the soul."

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

This is a very personal page, as my faith is very important to me. I like that it reminds me of my need to stay connected to God, and that often when things are tough, it's my attitude and my perception that needs to change. 

Head over to our gallery to see all the design team's amazing creations!

4.11.2013

What Do You Treasure Most?

Guess who's here to challenge you to play? Yep, it's time to dig deep. Let's look at Fortune from the "treasure" perspective. Please create a scrapbook page, art journal page, mixed media piece OR... just write some responses down to the challenge below. Share your heart with us in our community, or below in our comments... or link us up to your blog featuring your creation.

Ready? Set? Go!

Treasure: What do you treasure most in life? Has what you treasure changed through the years? Is what you love most now what you thought you would love or are you surprised? What is the thing you worry most about losing?

For the design twist, please use an image or icon that related to value or currency - maybe the sparkly green coins in the kit or a treasure chest, dollar (or pound, or local currency symbol for you) sign...

My take?

After pondering the questions above, I had quite an epiphany. I realize that what I treasure most, right now, is myself. It has taken a long time to think of myself as valuable... and I certainly am. I think I'd love to do a layout with pictures of a few other items I value, with an actual dollar sign and amount next to them, but then... a picture of me with the huge title of PRICELESS! Yep, yep. I think that's my direction...

Can't wait to see/hear what you come up with!

1.16.2013

CHA Goodness

Whew! What a fantastic weekend! We attended the Winter 2013 Craft & Hobby Association tradeshow and conference and came home with our heads spinning with all the fantastic new products coming out. We are having so much fun planning the next kits!! Take a look at these peeks below and weigh in on your favorites in the comments... we REALLY want to know!!