My 2013 Journal Intentions

It's been a while since I've posted anything about my journals. To be honest, it's been a weird year for journaling. I had a loooong Skype date with Betsy a few days ago, and she provided not only the kick in the pants I needed to start something new, but also the inspiration, and the wisdom behind the 'why'. December 31st seems to be a pretty cliche time to be posting about my intentions for the New Year, but I believe my family and I are about to round the corner into a new season that will coincide with the turning of the calendar, so I guess you're just stuck with a New Years-ish post about journaling!

This last year I've keept a journal full of painted pages:

This is a format I picked up from Betsy, during a season of my life where I had graduated with a degree in music, but was about to walk away from all things creative, go get "just a desk job" somewhere and abandon my true gifts and calling out of utter frustration and burned-out-ness. In that season I met Betsy and was immediately drawn into the world of  art journaling. It became my sole creative outlet; I spent a good year of my life with nothing to do with music. My journal became a part of me in that season.

I love the painted page, and actually think some of what I have created in my little sketchbooks is quite compelling; I've even turned a few pages into artwork for my new home. But the painted page has kept me from getting to the actual work of documenting my life and my heart. In order to get a page done, I need a desk, and paint, and time for paint to dry, and a whole host of other things. I end up waiting to have time to spread out, while collecting ephemera and odds and ends. It's a beautiful book that offers nothing in the area of portability, or real-time documenting. [And here's a truth; when you spend more time organizing your piles than doing anything with the stuff IN the piles, something is broken in your process and workflow.]

So, thanks to Betsy's encouragement and gentle ass-kicking, I spent the morning creating a quick little journal. Made out of things I already had around [paper bags, scrap paper, binder rings], I'm hoping it will be the container I need in this season; portable, easy to staple/tape/glue odds and ends into, not too fussy, but still kind of lovely and graphic. [Ironically, the day before I spent a few hours organizing all my ephemera by color ... and then putting it back in a drawer.]

The cover is made from a file folder that I covered with old book pages and a magazine graphic I don't even remember where I picked up. Edges bound with cheap washi tape and packing tape from Home Depot. Quick and dirty were the key phrases in making this guy.

Paper bag pocket-pages

A Chipotle bag I had saved from who knows how long ago. Maybe 2013 will bring my dream job!

Hud wanted to make a page - that's a drawing of our family [and The Hulk] on a rocket ship.

The three-ring style makes it easy for me to add pages if I need it, but I intend on creating quick new journals when I need them, and then binding the whole lot of them at the end of the year. I'm already excited to jump into it, but can I make a confession? My perfectionist heart is already intimidated by it. What if every page isn't shareable or beautiful or lovely? I think the fact that this is my first reaction to it means it will be a good new thing for me. You can ask my husband ... my perfectionism needs a good shaking up this year.