The Many Layers of Happiness

Happiness is having your name drawn as the winner in a blog giveaway!

Extreme happiness is when the giver is the super talented Lori Vliegen from elvie studio! Lori recently celebrated her 500th blog post (yikes!) and she generously offered up an excruciatingly scrumptious, beautifully hand made, doodle journal to one lucky blog reader. As if receiving this magnificent prize wasn't enough, it arrived wrapped in multiple layers of happiness with no detail overlooked. Grab a cookie or glass or wine and come along for the unveiling!


The outermost layer was pretty standard. But there's nothing like the sight of a package waiting patiently on your doorstep after a long day at work to kick start the joy of anticipation. Let the unwrapping begin...


First up is a protective layer of bubble wrap. It's both practical and pretty when a hint of lime green and other goodies is peeking through.


A lovely layer of gorgeous green tissue paper is next with this humorous little tag delicately tied with colorful string. Who is this mysterious inspector #12? If his or her job is to inspect and ensure the quality of craftsmanship on this journal then inspector #12 has the easiest job in the world. The covers are perfectly wrapped. The stitching is superb. With construction this meticulous, inspector #12 might as well eat bon bons all day. Wait! That's it! Knowing Lori's legendary love of chocolate, inspector #12's top priority is probably making sure journals don't leave elvie studio with any chocolate fingerprints!


Another little surprise was waiting beneath the tissue paper. A clear plastic envelope added another layer of protection and was sealed with an adorable elvie studio sticker and another carefully tied string held this sweet paper heart. The heart was attached to a mini glassine envelope that housed a personal note from Lori and an elvie studio business card.


Finally, the star of the show revealed! And isn't she a beauty?


I love the way Lori embellished this doodle print paper with doodles of her own in white.


Look how colorful and beautiful the spine is with all these yummy papers! A black elastic band holds everything together perfectly. I'm going to leave the "Pat" tag on because I think it's gorgeous and because I want everyone to know this journal is MINE.


The pages are a combination of graph paper, ledger paper, notebook paper and envelopes to stash all sorts of secret stuff. Each signature is wrapped in eye-popping paper that adds a nice burst of color throughout.


Last, but not least, the proof that this journal is a true work of art is the signature stamp on the inside back cover. It's obvious that Lori puts a lot of care and thought into her journals and into their presentation and wrapping as well. Can you tell I'm thrilled with my prize? Check out Lori's Etsy shop and treat yourself to one of her journals. You'll be glad you did!

PS The wrapping was even nicer than what you see in these photos. After opening everything up, I re-wrapped it (not quite as nicely) to take pictures. Then I got to enjoy the process of opening it all over again!

IF - Artificial plus Good Advice

Avoid an artificial life. Be original. Dance to your own drum. Pursue your passion. Do what makes you happy. Ignore the disapproving looks and the comments from naysayers. You're the only one who knows what your authentic life should look like. Why be an artificial version of yourself when the real you has so much to offer? Forget about fitting in or following the crowd. Steer clear of fakes, posers, and wannabes. Be yourself. Be original. The real deal is always better than something artificial.

Good Advice - Round 9

I hope you're having a lovely summer--or winter--depending on where you live. My time for making art has been limited lately as I'm trying to focus my time and energy on some long overdue house projects. There's a whole lot of cleaning, purging, and painting going on. But, as usual, I have a little bit of good advice to throw out there until I get back in the studio. Enjoy!

IF - Breakfast and Good Advice

I always enjoy the challenge of combining the Illustration Friday prompt with a post card for the Good Advice series. With a word like breakfast the advice seemed pretty obvious. I'm sure children all over the world have heard these words at one time or another. I guess what constitutes a good breakfast is different for everyone--personally, I think chocolate cake is the best breakfast around!

IF - Diary AKA Every Moley Tells a Story

"Painting is just another way of keeping a diary"

-- Pablo Picasso

I chose to illustrate this quote by Pablo Picasso for this week's Illustration Friday theme of diary. And I did it on the very last blank page of the very first moleskine I ever bought. Aside from two small moleskines that I've completed for specific projects, it's also the first moleskine that I've completely filled. And it only took me three and a half years to do it.


This is the large watercolor moleskine and in many ways it has become my diary. It records places I've been and things I've seen and done. But it also records things that are probably obvious only to me. It records my artistic journey. When I flip through the pages I see the progression in tools and techniques. I see the growth that occurs when you try things you didn't think you could do. I see what happens when you make a focused effort to work on your art even when you're not sure it's working at all.


I started this visual diary on new years day 2007. I didn't even own a waterproof pen and I used an old set of pan watercolors most likely left over from my kids' kindergarten days.


The early pages were inspired by Danny Gregory and his book Everyday Matters. I hadn't even tried to draw for years and was pleasantly surprised that my attempts weren't as hideous as I feared they would be.


I moved on to watercolor pencils and eventually discovered Micron and Pitt pens. I love the memories captured by these simple little drawings.


Next came the challenge of joining a local sketchcrawl group on their monthly outings to local attractions. Sketching in public, standing up, outdoors, or in cramped quarters was all new to me. I didn't always love it or the sketches I created, but I continued on in an effort to grow and improve. I started using artist watercolors in tubes and combining those with watercolor pencils.


Today's post represents my 41st attempt at Illustration Friday. After a good number done on random scraps of paper, it occurred to me to draw them in my moleskine. I have to admit, I do like seeing them all together in one place. This weekly challenge motivates me to complete a project in one sitting and then put it out there before I over think it or change my mind.


My first filled moleskine may be a random collection of images and experiments, but it definitely tells a story. I'm a little sad that it's complete. It feels like getting to the last page of a really good book and not wanting the story to end. Then again, the thought of a fresh moleskine just waiting for ink and color is pretty tempting too!

IF - Giant

This quote by Ralph Ransom perfectly sums up my thoughts of late. Life is a series of steps. On a day-to-day basis, those "small, seemingly insignificant steps" don't appear to lead anywhere. I have to continuously remind myself that I'm making progress even when it feels like I'm not. I wouldn't mind taking a few giant steps to get where I want to go a little faster, but those only happen once in a while. Things are done gradually. Patience is good. Perspective is better.

Good Advice - Round 8

It's been a little while since I last posted a trio of Good Advice post cards. Here's something to think about as you begin a new week. I hope it's a good one!

I'm Feeling a Little Scrap Happy

Lately, I find myself skipping happily down the scrap trail. It all started a few months ago when attempting to control the chaos in my studio. I came to the conclusion that I need to "use up" a lot of my supplies. (Notice I didn't say "get rid of" or "give away.") It was also about this time that a number of blog artists were taking this online class and posting amazing photos of the results. This looked like the perfect way to pare down some of the stash.

I didn't sign up for the online class though because my poor, aging computer has a problem with videos. Still, I was eager to give it a go and decided I would just dive right in. I dusted off my sewing machine, pulled out a drawer full of scraps, and got to work. After a fair amount of trial and error, I found a method that works for me. I currently have a couple of unfinished journals because I haven't quite figured out how to bind them. I guess that's where the class would have been really helpful.

It occurred to me one day that the journal pages I was making would also make interesting post cards. So, when I made the travel fund savings bank that I posted about here I also made a bunch of post cards to go with it.


I got a little scrap happy and made about a dozen cards.


The central image on each one was cut out of a travel brochure and sewn together with miscellaneous paper scraps from my stash.


Some of my favorite papers to use are maps and recycled wrapping paper.


I kept the cards a bit simpler than the journal pages because I knew the recipient would be more interested in the travel image than the rest of the collage.


The back side of each card is collaged as well, including some plain paper for addressing.



Isn't he cute?



I hope you enjoyed this little jaunt to far-off lands. Happy trails and happy scrapping!

IF - Paisley

I made a little paisley doodle for Illustration Friday this week.


And then, just for fun, I posterized it. Now it's turbo-charged paisley. I think I like this version better.

IF - Ripple [Plus Good Advice]

Based on the following quote from The Tao of Leadership by John Heider, these two little words seem tremendously appropriate for the Illustration Friday theme of RIPPLE.

"The Ripple Effect"

Do you want to be a positive influence in the world?

First, get your own life in order. Ground yourself in the single principle so that your behavior is wholesome and effective. If you do that, you will earn respect and be a powerful influence.

Your behavior influences others through a ripple effect. A ripple effect works because everyone influences everyone else. Powerful people are powerful influences.

If your life works, you influence your family. If your family works, your family influences the community. If your community works, your community influences the nation. If your nation works, your nation influences the world. If your world works, the ripple effect spreads throughout the cosmos.

Remember that your influence begins with you and ripples outward. So be sure that your influence is both potent and wholesome. How do I know that this works? All growth spreads outward from a fertile and potent nucleus. You are a nucleus.


Now go out there and be the most positive nucleus you can be!

There's a ripple effect,
In all that we do.
What you do touches me,
What I do touches you.

--- Author Unknown