Dew Dropped Times

Altered Art Journals....Make Great Christmas Presents!




The clock is ticking and Christmas is almost here! This year I have decided to make many of my Christmas presents. Not only is it from the heart, but it is fun too. I have a list of things to do. I will be making altered journals for the next few days. You can follow along and join me too if you would like. What you need to get started is

-Old magazines, books, fabric or artistic paper
-Brand New Composition Book
-Paper Glue (I prefer YES glue that can be found at Michaels very inexpensively if you go online and use a 40% off coupon)
-Imagination
-Scissors
-Razor Blade

1. First you make sure you have a nice area to spread your work out in. Gather your magazines and consider who the altered book will be for. Flip through the magazines and gently rip out images that will fit on the front cover and sleeves of the journal you will be making. You can choose random images or themed images. Your imagination will be working hard at this time.

2. Now that you have gathered your images, start to arrange them in a pleasing way to decorate the cover. In my case I found the head of a bull and some watches. The journal I am making is for my father who at this point in his life is concerned with time. I want him to worry less about time and enjoy life in the moment. So I picked these images. Remember Ferdinand the Bull? It was a children s story about a bull that preferred lounging under trees smelling flowers than fighting.

3. Cut out images using a razor blade or scissors. Make sure your surface is protected before you start cutting!

4. Glue images onto a thick piece of paper. You can use an old paper bag for this if you need thick paper in a pinch. Glue onto cover. Repeat for back cover.

5. Do the same with the inside and back cover, except in this case an old magazine page of a map, computer manual or recycled sheet music will do the trick. No need for collaging here unless you want to.

5. Find a nice piece of thick cardstock or fabric and use as the finishing binder for the outside jacket.

I will post pictures as I go. :)