A quick peek into my recently finished Sketchbook. Full video on YouTube.
View in Instagram ⇒
journal
Fill a 60-Page Moleskine Notebook in Two Hours? Impossible!
Mia at Two Hands Paperie in Boulder asked me if I could provide a sample journal for my Journal Juju class there. I didn’t want to release one of my own notebooks, so I made a counter-offer.
I’d pick up a Moleskine Japanese Album and see how much of it I could fill in two hours. Using the methods and exercises I teach in my Journal Juju class, I’d see how far I could go.
Now, my class is NOT about speed or competition or doing anything quickly. It’s about slowing down, enjoying what’s around us, and using all of our senses to record that in a little notebook. It’s fun. It’s easy. It’s play and it doesn’t require art skills.
I just thought it would be fun to see how far I could go in two hours, and I filmed myself playing in the notebook at The Kitchen Next Door in Boulder. Here’s the video, speeded up for the sake of time.
The next Journal Juju classes at Two Hands Paperie are on March 16th and April 7th, 2013. These classes fill quickly, so call Two Hands Paperie to register today: (303) 444-0124
Don’t worry; we won’t be rushing or trying to fill the notebook during the class. We’ll be slowing down, tuning in, and having a great time together.
Confessing My Notebook Obsession
I’m here to confess: I’m a notebook geek. In this video I dish on my obsession, letting you into the pages of the various notebooks I use. I also share some great resources for journal lovers and at the end of this long-ish video, something unexpected and funny happens.
If you’d like to be this geekish with notebooks, join me in filling your pages on a daily basis. In my popular Free Write Fling class, we write every day for at least 15 minutes. This is guaranteed to get you past the fear of the blank page and help you overcome that tendency to fill only the first few pages of a notebook.
Join us now to write every day in March.
Back to Class: Designing My Art School Curriculum
I always loved school, but I didn’t love getting an F in high school art. Now that I’m gearing myself toward making art, I am eager to learn and improve. I’m also eager to be financially prudent.
So it’s back to school for me, with my own art school curriculum.
I adore this concept of earning my A from Rosamund and Benajmin Zander’s wonderful book The Art of Possibility.
Current favorite podcast: Design Matters by Debbie Millman.
Books resource: Denver Public Library, for which I am eternally grateful, otherwise I’d be penniless from buying so many books. Check out more books in my art school reading list.
Other specifics:
- Daily sketching
- Weekly urban sketching excursions
- Weekly illustrated column at Original Impulse blog
- Weekly Friday art show and share
- Continued learning about processing for digital sharing
- Monthly meetings with art buddy
- Continued absorption of the wonders of the world and openness to juju, guided by intuition and enthusiasm.
How do you focus your ‘side project’ work? Do you use the frame of a curriculum or something else? Share in a comment below, and if this article inspired you, share it with your friends with one of the buttons below.
Creativity Book Review: An Illustrated Journey by Danny Gregory
I’ve been waiting for this book, the second in a series by Danny Gregory, for a long time.
Here’s my enthusiastic video book review of An Illustrated Journey by Danny Gregory.
Juju Infusion 2: Dealing with Difficult
Creativity in unexpected places…join me for this week’s infusion of creativity – Juju Infusion!
Quick links for things mentioned in the show:
AWP Association of Writers and Writing Programs
Curious Amsterdam: June 13th – 19th – last chance to register this week.
Hello!
Welcome to episode two of Juju Infusion.Take a break to inject an infusion of Juju –
good, zesty creative energy – into your life.
In this episode:
- Falling in love at the AWP conference.
- Yoga Juju: Utkatasana! (Say it with me.)
- Journal Juju: Join me on my jaunt to Northern California
- Journal Juju – Last week’s winner of the journal juju giveaway was Janet Keen. Who is it this week? Watch to find out!
Plus more surprising juju in action.
Thanks for watching and please do let me know what you’d like to see in future episodes!
If you watch my show, please let me know by rating it or by leaving
a comment below. (You’ll want to leave a comment anyway, to be entered
in the Journal Juju giveaway next week!)
To your juju infusion,
Cynthia
Your Journal Can Help You Stay Sane at Work
If you’re like me, you use notebooks as a way to order your to-do list, process your inner world, and develop your creative projects.
You may be missing an opportunity to use your journal to help you deal with challenges at work. An illustrated journal can be just the ally you need to help cope with workplace issues.
I asked a friend to share the things that bother her at work. For each of her challenges, I’ve offered ways that both travel and journal keeping can help you respond more powerfully.
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