Full of Pockets!

I am very excited to have been selected as this month’s guest designer for the June on the Art Impressions Blog.  I started my AI journey at an expo show, many years ago back when they had wound mount stamps.  I have always been drawn to the cute little ladies and ll the girlfriend’s stamps. I would watch with amazement the watercolor demonstrations but never quite mastered them. Work and life caused me to put my crafting obsession to the side for a bit until I moved and now I am closer to AI central!  I have been able to attend some of the amazing in-person warehouse sales, which I do hope they come back. I was also able to attend a crop where the lovely Kendra taught a couple of watercoloring classes, nope still haven’t mastered it but I’m trying 🤣

I do mostly mostly cards and have started doing journals and mixed media type projects as well.  With June’s theme of Pockets, I knew that I must do a journal and because I tend to do things a bit extra, I was afraid of where this project was going to take me. 

When I work on journal, I first create a “sample” journal.  By that I mean a layout of what I have tentatively envisioned, so I don’t waste paper or need to color additional images because I have cut them in the wrong configuration. In a box, I have cut out all of the collection of journal die cutouts on heavy-weight white cardstock. This allows me to create a quick sample using repositionable tape.  I always have the die cuts ready and use them over and over when creating my samples. In this sample, I was going to use the elephant on the front but as I got into the project, I realized the hippo would look better.  All my coloring was done using Copic markers  

I have been so drawn to the Baby Critter Set that I did my journal around it.  The base of the journal is Slim Journal Template.  I used Decorative Journal Page 2 for the second layer on each page.  On the cover, I created a little pocket on the side using Rounded Rectangle A2 Double Stitched Dies and the tab from the Mini Journal Template Die Set.  I originally had just the star from the Baby Critter Set hanging from it but thought it needed a little something more so I added bakers twin in pink/white with the star from the Mini Journal Template Die Set and the heart from the Journal Template Die Set.  

The inside cover has a pocket to hold a little note card.  I used Journal Template Die Set to make the first layer and the pocket. The pocket cut from patterned paper and pink. The pink was cut down so it would just peek out of the pocket as an accent. Two little presents from the Birthday Buggy Set in the mini envelope can be taken out. 

When you open to the center panel there is a cute elephant tag and when you pull him out it shows packages and balloons.  The pocket was created using Journal Cover & Bookmark Dies and cupcake from Mini Journal Birthday Set. 

The pages on either side used Decorative Journal Page Set 1 for layers and Birthday Journal Set to cut out the balloons then colored them with Copics.  For the word Celebrate, I cut one in pink and one in purple then offset the. To make it look a little thicker. 

The sweet little bird pocket has a banner from the Birthday Journal Set and pocket from the Journal Pocket Die Set with a bow from the Journal Template Die Set. The sentiment is from Birthday Sentiments Set.  Nuvo Dream Drops in Fairy Wings accents the side.

The little giraffe pocket holds a gift card and was made using the Journal Cover & Bookmark Dies and Journal Oval Frames.  The last page is the birthday cake from the Birthday Journal Set framed using the Journal Template Die Set.  

Thank you for stopping by, I appreciate it!