January Journalling

 The start of a new year and time off from regular life usually finds me madly art journalling, processing what has been and contemplating what is to come, lucky for me my feathered friends were on hand to 'help'.

This year started off with lots happening here. I have been going through some pretty major personal challenges and a dear friend Kat Lakie put my name up for some lovely supportive art mail, and the very nurturing  and talented Beth Pastore send me an envelope full of love so I used them in my journal.

I also had loads going on in January as I was taking my kids on a road trip and to a folk festival so I did a whole heap of backgrounds and collages into my new journal then I could just take it and a box of basic supplies and play while we ere away.

You might see something you have sent me over the years here as I did a big tidy up of my art space looking for all sorts of things I could add as pockets of things to fold out and open

Beth had sent me some great words she had cut from magazines and as I was decluttering and recycling magazines I did a quick flick through and grabbed any words of images that called to me.

I had so much fun building this journal.

Using up all sorts of saved snippets.

There is also plenty of heart felt journalling 

 This page I love the colours but it was a bit private hence the blur.

I love playing with colour and scraps and have actually gone on and done a much darker version dealing with deeper issues using just black and white and grey and a bit of brown.

Washpool National Park

When it is hot, humid and horrible down here in the valley 

I love to pack a picnic and load the boys into the car

 and head up to the very beautiful 

and very refreshing Washpool National Park 

It is so lovely yo escape up into the mountains to this slice of wilderness

and stillness

With lots of different walks and crystal clear running water 

and cool pools to ponder

 There is a huge variety of plants and habitats 

Loads of birds, make sure you visit lyrebird picnic area

 to meet the cheeky local bower birds and lyrebirds

Or just take a seat and breath in that beautiful fresh air

and be surrounded by majesty. 

Finding My Mojo

                                                       

Sometimes life gets crazy

 and days and days pass 

and I have not done anything artistic for ages,

 in these times I especially appreciate the arrival of a travelling art journal,

 because it puts me back in touch with my art supplies

 and comes with a theme and I can do anything I want

-it is a great way to pick up the brush and start playing.

I hadn't painted a canvas for a long time but it was coming up to gifting season and I also had an exhibition looming so I posted a challenge for colour blocking on our Australian Art Swap Group on Facebook and I shared this video.

and this one too

and I jumped right in with this underlayer.

Next came the colour blocking part I really wanted to try.

This how it turned out in the end 

and it also turned out to want

to go and live with a very special girl who loves it :)

Thankfully for me 

because I seem to have lost confidence in my hiatus

 so that will be what I am looking for next.

Capturing Beauty

It has been so long since I downloaded all the photos off my phone 

This was a stunning ferocious storm

and so very beautiful even though it looked like the end of the world approaching.

The wildflowers up at Ebor have been stunning, and I passed through them 4 times this year,

This gorgeous little fellow is made by my incredibly talented friend Monica Schmidt
Stories of Pearls and Plunder 

This is an adorable needle felted camel I met at the Gulgong Folk Festival
he is made from real camel fur
I dont know the talented artist who made him but I think h\she comes from Nimbin.

And this beautiful painting came all the way from England for me from my lovely friend Maisy.
Jeanette House - One Little House 

I just wanted to share some of the beauty from my life recently

Print Making in Wooli tomorrow

Free Printmaking Workshop at Wooli

3- 5 pm Friday 9th Jan.

In the Art Box at the skate park

Its a beautiful place to be on a hot summer afternoon.

Wooli Summer Exhibition

Some of my works on exhibition at the Wooli Gallery this summer,

Wooli as a great little town to visit, 

with the beautiful Wooli River on one side

 and the stunning Pacific Ocean on the other

 and surrounded by national park.

So if you are on the north coast NSW pop in and say hello to Helen.

Pick some lovely little something out

And take home your very own piece of

River Girl Art

I will also be out in Wooli over the summer along with a whole host of other talented artists offering free workshops in the ART box

ART BOX WOOLI

28/12/2014 - Aim to Please - Laser Skirmish

02/01/2015 - Shari Reiman - Kids Yoga & Art

03/01/2015 - Pamela Denise - Art Cards

04/01/2015 - Abbey Mitchell - T-Shirt printing

08/01/2015 - Pamela Denise - Illustration and Design

09/01/2015 - Louise Kirby - Funky Felt Designs

10/01/2015 - Jake Dominey - Drum Workshops

11/01/2015 - Abbey Mitchell - T-Shirt printing

16/01/2015 - Pamela Denise - Illustration and Design

17/01/2015 - Jake Dominey - Drum Workshops

18/01/2015 - Pamela Denise - Illustration and Design

23/01/2015 - Aim to Please - Laser Skirmish

Momento Mori - travelling Art Journal

Happy New Year and Solstice Blessings to you all.

With the long hot summer holidays here we have been doing a bit of travelling

 so I have found it hard to get to the waiting art journals I have.

Both of the journals I have waiting for me for the Australian Art Journal Swap
at the moment are altered books and
I chose to work in Mary's amazing "Momento Mori" first.

 Mary has created the most incredible sculptured cover, the detail and colour are amazing for something I was initially thinking quite macabre.

Mary is one of the artists from The Art Shed in Townsville Queensland and her journal shows her sense of fun and colour from the start.

 I really appreciate the challenge of this journal,

I love things that make me think and reconsider and feel.

Come with me for a wander through this gorgeous journal.

This is a lovely page Deb Parkes ,

I find this page so beautiful and moving.

One of the really lovely things about doing a journal swap like this, is getting to know your fellow artists and their work. These pages are by Sharon Williams from WA and I have fallen in love with her beautiful style and use of colours.

I also love Sharons use of printmaking.

Over to Victora and these pages are from our gorgeous Nicole Dixon and her quirky style has won all of our hearts I am sure.

Nicoles pages are always fun and make me smile.

Still in Victoria, Jan Mullane did these hauntingly beautiful pages.

I love Jans use of the skull in these pages, so subtle and ethereal.

Jan also shared some personal experience of a loved one in ICU and the significance of the 1000 cranes- the book we are altering is about the cranes as well. 

Now we head up to NSW for Roz Willoughby's  beautiful pages

her colourful skull looks rather friendly I think.

And I really like this page by Roz, 

all the pages in this journal are beautiful, 

I feel so lucky to receive an art exhibition in my mail box once a month.

Into NSW Janene McAnally did this delicate and beautiful page,

Janene's grungy style is also distinctive and she loves to play with texture and detail.

This is my page and after lots of thinking

 about just how mortal we are and how little time we get

 this is what I came up with.

My flying clock because "Tempus Fugit"opens up to reveal an hour glass and a quote

 We really do need to make the most of this wild and precious life.

And I close with Mary's back cover that is all about infinity and rebirth.

We have a new group on Facebook

 if you want to join in with art swapping within Australia

 in an effort to save on postage - 

we would love to see you at Australian Art Swap Group 

and we also have another blog for this journal swap

 and I have shared some of my process in making my Momento Mori page today.