Art Journal: All Children Matter

I discovered this cute work of art on Pinterest a while ago and saved it to my PC, not knowing if I would ever use it. Today, I was contemplating the important role that we as adults play in children's lives, especially me, as a teacher. It reminded me of this picture and I went in search of it. I decided to use this in the my art journal for the day. I show you how I went about it in this blog.

I start my journal on black paper and use a plain white colouring pencil to draw with. As an experiment, I used the cheapest pencil in my collection, which is one I bought at a cheap store one day, out of sheer desperation. I loathe the set, which is called 'Precious Memories' as it is very difficult to get any colour out of it, despite the appearance that it would deliver lovely brilliant colours. Still, I found the white worked very effectively for the purpose of drawing on black paper.

I quickly copied the drawing from my computer screen.

Then I went in search of my Inktense sets. In the end, I used only the pencils in this project.

I started by colouring the central pole around which the whole story developed.

Then I coloured the basket and backboard.

I coloured the skin and hair on the little figure.

This was followed by the ball and dress.

The pants and sneakers followed next.

Now it came time to fill in the background. I did this in shades of blue with sparkles of white.

Lastly, followed the foreground wire mesh.

I was now ready to add the journalling.

I used a white paint marker to write the journalling on the opposite page: "With the right support, and a little guidance, any child can reach great heights in life. Age, race, gender, background - none of these matter, if a child can be made to believe that they matter. - Miekie."

I then went back to the white pencil from earlier on and drew a very simple hot air balloon soaring above the clouds. I also filled the space in the top left corner with the suggestion of birds in flight.

The completed journal entry.

You can also watch the short compilation video put together from the photos above. Find it here:
https://youtu.be/_S9TlifJYc8

Marietjie Uys (Miekie) is a published author. You can buy my books here:
You can purchase Designs By Miekie 1 here.
Jy kan Kom Ons Teken en Verf Tuinstories hier koop.
Jy kan Kom Ons Kleur Tuinstories In hier koop.
Jy kan Tuinstories hier koop.
You can follow Miekie's daily Bible Study blog, Bybel Legkaart, here in English & Afrikaans.
You may prefer to follow the traveling blog, A Pretty Tourist.
For more crafty ideas and great product reviews, visit A Pretty Talent on Facebook.
If you are in a literary mood, follow Miekie's musings, stories and poetry on A Pretty Author - Miekie.
Remember to keep nurturing your TALENT for making life PRETTY.
You can subscribe to any of these blogs and receive regular updates by email. Simply register your email address at the top of the applicable blog.

Art Journal: Life's Exciting Moments

Have you ever blown a huge bubble when chewing gum. I'm not talking about the kind we blew as kids, when we trying to outdo each other. I'm talking about now, in your adult life, when you were absentmindedly sitting and chewing and without even planning it, you blew this bubble that caught you completely by surprise and left you in awe. And perhaps slightly embarrassed. I was thinking about how often we forget to enjoy these little moments of excitement in life, being too focused on what others might think of us. I decided to journal these thoughts of mine and share the steps with you in today's blog.

I start the blog on black paper and use a white chalk pencil to draw the picture with.

Draw the picture. Tip: Start with the large bubble focal point and fill in the simple lines surrounding it.

Colour the scarf on her head.

Move down to the hair.

Start the face and eyes. Pay attention to getting the shadows in place which gives the face its shape.

Continue working on the face and eyes. Add earrings. The white paint marker is used to add the light reflections on the eyes and earrings.

Add the last touches to the face.

Develop the bubble.

Colour the neck area.

Colour the shirt.

Spray with fixative to prevent smudging.

Now it is time to focus on the journalling.

I use a white Posca marker to write: "Sometimes life surprises you with unexpectedly exciting moments. Enjoy these! - Miekie."

I then use the chalk pencil to draw three simple balloons. I paint them in pastels and spray it with fixative.

The completed page.

You can also watch a compilation video of the steps shared above. Go here to find the video:
 https://youtu.be/PnqE_anTRv8

Marietjie Uys (Miekie) is a published author. You can buy my books here:
You can purchase Designs By Miekie 1 here.
Jy kan Kom Ons Teken en Verf Tuinstories hier koop.
Jy kan Kom Ons Kleur Tuinstories In hier koop.
Jy kan Tuinstories hier koop.
You can follow Miekie's daily Bible Study blog, Bybel Legkaart, here in English & Afrikaans.
You may prefer to follow the traveling blog, A Pretty Tourist.
For more crafty ideas and great product reviews, visit A Pretty Talent on Facebook.
If you are in a literary mood, follow Miekie's musings, stories and poetry on A Pretty Author - Miekie.
Remember to keep nurturing your TALENT for making life PRETTY.
You can subscribe to any of these blogs and receive regular updates by email. Simply register your email address at the top of the applicable blog.

Art Journal: Life's Simple Outlines

I found two pictures on Pinterest where the original artists have made use of the absolute minimum lines to create very effective pictures. These always fascinate me endlessly, as I can not help but to marvel at how easy the brain finds it to associate these few lines with their actual real life counterparts. Today, I was contemplating how often in life we do not have a clear idea of what is expected of us. Instead, we get only a bare outline and it is left to us to fill in the detail. I decided to use the two pictures I found on Pinterest to create an entry for my art journal in which I explored this idea.

I start today's project on black paper with a plain white colouring pencil. In this case it is a Faber Castell Aquarell pencil.

I draw the outline of the turtle, following the lines of the picture I found on the internet.

The owl follows next on the opposite page.

It makes sense to interrupt my drawing at this stage to journal my thoughts. On the first page I write: "Sometimes life gives only a bare outline which to work with..."

I continue this sentence on the next page: "... and then we have to add the detail. - Miekie." The journalling is done with a white paint marker.

I then use only a handful of colours to paint the owl in pastels. As this was Spring Day (1 September), I opted to use pink for Spring. I added red for love, as I was spoiled with a brunch earlier in the day, and was feeling particularly loved and appreciated. I also added yellow in celebration of friendship.

I coloured the turtle in the same colours as the owl. I deliberately kept the lines and strokes very simple in both these pictures when I added the detail. I did not wish to detract from the simplicity of the original pictures, which had drawn me to them in the first place.

The only thing that was left to do, was to spray the drawings with fixative to prevent it from smudging.

The final two page layout.

You can also watch a video compilation of the photos above here: https://youtu.be/JhokDbyGxvQ

Marietjie Uys (Miekie) is a published author. You can buy my books here:
You can purchase Designs By Miekie 1 here.
Jy kan Kom Ons Teken en Verf Tuinstories hier koop.
Jy kan Kom Ons Kleur Tuinstories In hier koop.
Jy kan Tuinstories hier koop.
You can follow Miekie's daily Bible Study blog, Bybel Legkaart, here in English & Afrikaans.
You may prefer to follow the traveling blog, A Pretty Tourist.
For more crafty ideas and great product reviews, visit A Pretty Talent on Facebook.
If you are in a literary mood, follow Miekie's musings, stories and poetry on A Pretty Author - Miekie.
Remember to keep nurturing your TALENT for making life PRETTY.
You can subscribe to any of these blogs and receive regular updates by email. Simply register your email address at the top of the applicable blog.

Sew Your Own Lace Curtains

On my way home from work today, I made an impromptu stop at the fabric store less than a block away from my house. All of a sudden, I knew I'd had enough of my exposed windows. Then and there, I decided to buy netting to make inner curtains for the large windows in my lounge/studio. I bought 18 metres of fabric and managed to hang the curtains that same evening still. In today's blog I show you how easy it is to sew your own lace curtains.

The first step is to measure the window, which I had done before I bought the fabric for the curtains already. Then you need to cut the fabric into lengths that would fit your window. Add 10-15 cm to the length for hems and tubes.

I did not want my curtains to open up in the middle and therefore I sewed all nine lengths to each other with side seams. I also seamed the two side edges of the curtains.

Pin the tube into a rolled hem at the top of the curtain.

Sew the whole width of the curtain.

Sew a hem at the bottom of the curtain.

Screw a hook into the curtain wire.

Push the curtain wire through the tube.

All that remains to do, is to hook the curtains into place!

Marietjie Uys (Miekie) is a published author. You can buy my books here:
You can purchase Designs By Miekie 1 here.
Jy kan Kom Ons Teken en Verf Tuinstories hier koop.
Jy kan Kom Ons Kleur Tuinstories In hier koop.
Jy kan Tuinstories hier koop.
You can follow Miekie's daily Bible Study blog, Bybel Legkaart, here in English & Afrikaans.
You may prefer to follow the traveling blog, A Pretty Tourist.
For more crafty ideas and great product reviews, visit A Pretty Talent on Facebook.
If you are in a literary mood, follow Miekie's musings, stories and poetry on A Pretty Author - Miekie.
Remember to keep nurturing your TALENT for making life PRETTY.
You can subscribe to any of these blogs and receive regular updates by email. Simply register your email address at the top of the applicable blog.