Computer/Camera Headache!

I have so many blog posts and items I wish I could share with you. I've been so inspired by fellow artists in the last few weeks that I have been drawing & painting more than I have in such a long time. The communities I have joined are so encouraging and friendly. I love how non-judgmental everyone is. You see, it doesn't matter if your creations are not perfect, or that you are not that great at drawing or painting, just as long as you open up your heart and try. That's something special to me. I highly recommend anyone who loves to be creative, draw/ doodle, paint, journal etc to visit Wild Precious Studios. I promise you, you will be welcomed with open arms and encouraged beyond belief.

Which leaves me to my headache/frustration.... Because I have been so inspired & encouraged I have many sketches and journal entries that I want to share. Along with a few crochet projects that I have been working on as well. Unfortunately my computer and camera have decided to disagree, apparently they no longer see eye to eye. Every time I plug in my digital camera, or web camera into my usb's of my computer, the computer pops up a message saying that the usb drive can not be recognized. I have restored the computer, googled for troubleshooting, and re-install the software but still no changes. I am losing patience and seriously have no idea what to do to get them to work again :( Crazy as it sounds the only real answer I have been able to find with googling is unplugging my laptop and shutting it down for a few hours, then plugging it back in.. apparently this is a solution. For me however, no such luck. If anyone happens to have a real solution to this problem, please please please let me know. I would really love to share my creations, and create a few videos. I also need my camera to cooperate with my computer so I can list new items in my shop.

I also want to say that today I am saying a prayer and holding my breath for those in the direct path of Hurricane Irene. Luckily she is losing gusto but she is still a massive storm hell bent on making her presence known and leaving her mark of destruction behind. Not that it's much but as a person who has been in these types of storms before I can say that after she leaves, the skies will clear, and it will be one of the most beautiful days you can experience. There may be damage and things to clean up, but for some reason the calm after the storm is so peaceful & beautiful in its own way... not really helpful but hopefully something to lift the spirits of those riding out the winds and rain.

Daily Junk: Love Birds

My computer and webcam have decided not to get along so I couldn't record making this page like I had initially planned... I spent almost 2 hours trying to figure out what the problem was but unfortunately I had no luck. :( I did want to share the entries I have done however. This entry is for our anniversary which  was August 2nd. I'll tell a little about what I did to the page but I won't bore you with all of the details. Both pages are painted using acrylics. The birds were traced onto newspaper from a chipboard diecut and then painted with acrylics. After they were attached I just outlined them with white. The Forever heart is a stamp, stamped in stazon and then outlined in white. I added the white lines for something extra with white paint and then a black sharpie pen. The "Just My Type" phrase came from a magazine.. I just tore it out and inked the edges. On the right side I completely altered the envelope my anniversary card came in that my hubby gave me. The envelope was purple, not anymore! It was painted with acrylics as well and I did a little sponging with white acrylic and sequin waste along one side. The quote is from a vellum quote stack and I drew out the brackets with a black sharpee. I then stamped LOVE above and below the quote with StazOn ink and I used bubble wrap and black paint for the designs in corners as well. I painted the flap white, and used a border punch on the edge. Then I drew a little checkered design with my sharpee, journaled and then attached the envy to the page. I placed my card in the envy along with a few other love related items and will add stuff as I come across it. I really love how this page turned out though. It was fun!!

Another angle of the first page

Close up of the 'Love Birds'

The envelope & card inside

Close up of the envy 

 Thanks for taking a peek! 

Daily Junk: Stress!

On this day I was seriously stressing out about things going on in my life. I wanted to keep this page more for journaling because I had a good bit to say and I had decorated the previous page a good bit. I want to make sure to break up the book a little and not have a ton of the same types of pages together. I inked the edges of this page with teals and blues. I used dark blue ink and stamped the word stress. I took my handy crayola markers and drew the brackets and colored in the letters. I did an enormous amount of complaining, then made several labels with my dymo of some of the words in my journaling, just to break it up a little.

Luckily things are starting to calm down in the area's that I had talked about, and are slowly getting back to normal (whatever normal is ha!) It was good to be able to vent and be a little creative as well. I am really liking this whole art journal, junk journal experience! :)

Thanks for taking a peek! 

Daily Junk: See ya Later

Just sharing another entry into my journal. I made this page because we found awesome homes for 3 of the dogs we rescued and on this particular day we said goodbye to them. It was a bittersweet moment and I am seriously missing them! I have always considered animals as part of my family, and no matter what you tell yourself about getting close to an animal, no matter how much you try to hold back, it will never happen. These guys are awesome dogs and will make wonderful pets to the families they went too but I do miss them so much!

For this page I used an 8x8 sheet of decorative paper and because the page was larger than 8x8 I edged the outside with black duct tape. On the top and bottom I used some polka dot trim and on the sides I used matching buttons to embellish and break up the harsh black. I later found a cute little saying from a magazine and I cut it out and paper clipped it to the page. In the center of the page I created a small flip book, and embellished it with a bone that I drew & cut out and some alphabet stickers. On the inside flap of the flip book I wrote a little about saying goodbye and I intend on putting a photo of each of the dogs on their own page (when I get ink for my printer, or print them at the store! LOL) Until then they remain blank. On the last page of the book I just stamped the date and a little message that I wrote out. That's pretty much the gist of it :)

Showing the first page of flip book & my journaling.

The last page of the flip book, and my journaling. 

Thanks for taking a peek! 

Daily Junk: LEAST favorite song!

Thanks for taking a peak!

Daily Junk: Fav's A-Z

Today I pulled 'List your favorite things from A-Z' from my bag of journaling prompts and here is what I came up with...

This is the spread, the 1st page is just a card...

And this is showing my full list

Thanks for taking a peek!

Daily Junk (Journal) so far...

I created my junk journal/smash book from an ordinary composition notebook from walmart. I used tips and idea's from TangieBaxter (on Youtube) who did a few tutorials on this. :) I thought I would share how my journal is looking so far.

This is the front of my journal.

Just showing the thickness so far...

Just another view...

A close up of the charms on the band closure.

This is the inside cover, and first page.

Entries 2 and 3

Entries 4 & 5

Entry 6

Entry 7

Remember the nifty prompts I shared yesterday? Well I put them all down on paper today, folded them up all teeny tiny, and placed them in this ziplock baggy that is now attached to the inside back cover of my book.

Journaling prompts

I used a grommet in the ziploc baggy, and ball chain through one of the grommets already holding the elastic band closure in.

Then I added these keychains that I have had since high school. :)

And that pretty much does it for now. I actually did a page tonight HOWEVER I'm not happy with it, so I'm going to sleep on it and start again tomorrow to hopefully improve it :) Its really annoying me tonight! Like usual thanks for taking a peek :)

Journaling Prompts

I am really addicted to junk/art journaling or some may call them smash books.. What ever you call it. I'm officially hooked! LOL. So sometimes I really get into a rut on how to be creative with my journaling and I feel like I've ran out of things to write about... sort of a creators block/writers block. So I thought I would keep this running list of prompts here on my blog, and my friends (you guys) can help me add idea's to it, and I will add ideas when ever they come to me or I am inspired by someone else. I also got a great idea from bcdoula (on youtube) to write the prompts on paper and put them in a bowl or box and when I'm in a rut, just shake up the box and pull a few out! Excellent idea!!! She shared the art prompts below and I came up with a few more, plus a ton of journaling prompt idea's... sooo I think I'll put them all in a box or baggy and somehow attach it in my journal :) I'll share a vid with what I've done as soon as I have this accomplished heehee! I still need to make a vid of my journal so far... eesh. So behind! I hope this will be helpful to someone :) Feel free to share idea's you may have!

Art Prompts

• Use bubble wrap
• Use water color paints
• draw oil pastel lines and paint in between them with acrylics
• choose your paint with your eyes closed.
• paint with crumpled tissue paper
• Drag paint across the page w/ a credit card or cardboard, dry then sand
• apply tape randomly to the page
• Use stencils
• Use brayer with paint
• Put string or elastic bands on a brayer or toilet paper roll and paint
• Journal in a circle
• apply gesso and then remove some of the gesso
• random paint splatters
• Uuse dimensionals on page
• Apply charcoal
• Apply cardboard
• Collage letters
• Use any of your ephemera
• Use a mask
• Use rubberstamps
• Draw black wavy lines for journalling
• Use a pallet knife
• Scratch surface with stylus
• Dip end of toilet paper roll in paint and paint circles on the page
• Line Walk- Draw a line down the center of the paper and doodle, all lines and shapes must be connected. Then create images with paint out of your doodles..
• Use magazine images and alter them
• Paint the page in your favorite color(s) then list all the things you can think of that are that color(s)
• Use Crackle 
• emboss your page
• use metal
• use alcohol inks
• use an envelope

Journaling Prompts

• Things from or seen in your yard/neighborhood
• Things you currently are listening to , drinking, eating, wearing, feeling, weather, wanting, needing, thinking, enjoying
• Guilty pleasures
• Favorite candy
• Favorite song lyrics
• Put each day of the week on the page and write 'today I laughed at' for each day
• Write about a recent dream.
• What seemed unusual to you today?
• Write about memories of an old friend you lost touch with
• What actor/actress would you hire to play you in a movie and what would your theme song be? & why?
• What did you eat as a child that you will not eat now, or what do you eat now that you wouldn't as a child?
• Who is the one relative you miss the most?
• Talk about your first kiss
• Where would you travel if you could go anywhere?
• Write a letter to your younger self or to your future self.
• Would you be a different person today if your childhood was different? How would you be different and why?
• If you could change one thing about your spouse/lover what would it be?
• What was your first pet?
• List all of the cars you've owned.
• List all of the places you've worked.
• List all of the places you've lived.
• What did you want to be when you grew up?
• If you had to sacrifice one of your senses which would it be?
• Have you ever encountered a ghost?
• Where is the first place you went when you got your drivers license?
• Describe your favorite memory of an amusement park, or fair.
• Describe your favorite sound.
• What is your favorite memory of high school?
• What is your worst memory of high school?
• Talk about your graduation.
• Which friend has the greatest impact in your life and why?
• What is your favorite season?
• Tell a secret.
• Talk about something you struggle with.
• What would you do if you won the lottery?
• Whats the best and worst thing that happened to you this week?
• What is your favorite book at the moment, and what is it that you like about it most?
• List your favorite tv shows.
• What do you wish to accomplish by years end?
• List your fears
• What is your least favorite chore, and why?
• List your pet peeves
• Talk about your first job
• Have you ever swallowed anything strange?
• Least favorite foods
• Favorite odd foods
• Tell a joke
• List your favorite things w/ each letter of the alphabet
• List your celebrity guy and gal crushes
• Share a poem
• What bugs you?
• What is your favorite trait of yourself?
• Nobody knows that you...
• Do you have reoccuring dreams? What are they about?
• Where were you on 9/11? Where were you when you heard about Bin Laden?
• 10 foods you have never eaten but would like to try. 
• 10 foods that you would NEVER eat
• Write a letter to someone you need to forgive. 
• List your top favorite songs right now. 
• Share the lyrics to a current song that you can not stand. 
• Make a list of the 5 changes you think you have made in the last five years. 
• what things do you expect in a good friend
• What did you do BEFORE we had the internet?
• What superpower would you choose to have?
• A continuous bucket list
• 10 unforgettable moments in your life
• 10 things you really like about yourself
• what book are you reading right now? what is it about?
• List of most commonly used words
• Name 5 things in your refrigerator
• 5 adjectives to describe yourself
• List some of your favorite smells
• What monopoly figure do you use?
• words you hate, words you love
• celebrities you are sick of or dislike
• What do you like on your pizza?
• What do you love to buy, what do you hate to buy?
• Whats the worst thing you have ever done to your hair?
• Talk about an embarrassing moment. 
• What gives you the creeps?
• Can you play an instrument?
• What are your nicknames? (How did you get them, & from who?)
• List your bad habits...
• Talk about growing up with your siblings, share a favorite memory. 
• Tell about your favorite childhood christmas
• List your halloween costumes as a child, tell about them...
• Take the last line of your favorite poem, and make it the first line of your own poem. 
• List the names of 5-10 relatives/friends and write a small profile about each of them. 
• Mad Libs :) 
• Share a recipe & how it turned out when you made it :) 
• That was then, this is now (pics growing up, and pics now)