Starting a Colored Pencil Journal
This week, I started a project that I have been thinking about for quite a while: a colored pencil art journal! I hope this post inspires you to keep a visual journal too.
From Mundane to Fantastic
The idea of this journal is to connect everyday events with the world of fantasy. I want it to be a visual diary that is inspired by the ordinary but still goes beyond it. I
Books and Pencils
I have kept small art journals before too, and they still feel inspiring many years later. The two old art journals below are Moleskine sketchbooks.
The new one is a blank notebook from Archer & Olive. I chose it because I really like Archer & Olive as a company, and I’ve grown to like their bright white paper for bullet journaling. The size of the new notebook is A5 (5,75 x 8,25 inches), so a little bigger than the old sketchbooks but still very manageable.
When ordering the notebook, I got a discount code, so click here to get 10% off if you haven’t purchased from Archer & Olive before.
I have been purchasing new pencils too. Yesterday, I went to Helsinki to visit art supply stores and got some colored pencils – a mixed selection to expand my knowledge of different brands. So far, I have mostly used wax-based pencils like Prismacolor Soft Core and Caran d’Ache Luminance, but now I also got oil-based Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils. I also bought some Caran d’Ache watercolor pencils and more Luminance that has been my favorite so far. I have always mixed all kinds of pencils in my drawings and continue to do so!
Starting a Colored Pencil Journal
I usually fill an art journal by choosing the pages randomly. But because this journal is about my everyday life, I wanted it to be chronological and start from the first spread. It’s exciting to see how it will change and what kind of secondary stories the images will tell.
What to Draw First?
I suggest you let your journal develop intuitively so that you move from one association to another and mix all kinds of ideas together. So often, the fantasy is in the mix, not in the single element.
My first ideas: a horse and moss greens. A horse because I love to draw them and moss because currently, our garden has plenty of it. We like it more than grass, so we are not complaining!
I don’t use water often, but now with the thick 160gsm paper, I smoothened the strokes of the bottom layer with a water brush. After drawing the moss horse, dandelions and all kinds of weeds came to my mind. Namely, while watching the puppy, I have been weeding almost daily and thinking that weeds are quite pretty too.
Let the Ideas and Associations Flow!
Then, of course, there’s this puppy, Saima! She makes me look at the leaves, twigs, stones, everything that she can find on the ground. My favorite moments in creating are those when I focus on the details and forget the surrounding world. I think Saima does the same many times in a day. For her, reality feels like a fantasy. We, adults, need to find the fantasy in our minds.
I tried Derwent’s burnishing pencil for the first time and quite liked it.
I was also inspired by rain, the wet tiles in the backyard, sunny mornings, and how I love old portrait paintings even if I can’t fully understand why. My favorite fruits are lemons, and it will be exciting to see how many times they reappear in the journal.
A spread with pencils is not a big project like a canvas painting, but can still feel satisfying, especially when the journal progresses.
What do you think?
P.S. For more colored pencil inspiration, remember to sign up for Intuitive Coloring!
Intuitive Expression – Mix of Fantasy and Real
This week, I share a couple of pieces that I made in colored pencils and talk about intuitive expression.
I try to keep the everyday events out of my art, but it has been hard recently. We have a little mischief-maker who dominates the family life.
Intuitive Expression in Colored Pencils
I started the piece with the techniques that I had developed for Intuitive Coloring. I really enjoy coloring this way.
The more I worked on the picture, the more clear it became that Saima, our puppy, is there in a form of a bird!
Saima has very expressive eyes that reach my heart and soul. But she definitely has ideas of her own!
Look at that little girl! No wonder that real life inspires my art currently.
Mixing Outer and Inner World
“Hey, Paivi,” I said to myself. You can’t just share puppy pics! Make another drawing that’s not about the puppy.”
So I started this one, deliberately not so freely as the first one. But as soon as I put all kinds of things hanging from the horse, I realized that it’s like Saima carrying all kinds of stuff!
But then, I thought about nomads, bonfires, dark nights, and a wilderness. Despite being a homebody in the outer world, I am a vagabond in the inner world!
I really like this idea of using geometric shapes to add tension and drama.
The expression is very different from the fantasy horse that I made last week.
The Inspiration for Intuitive Expression
Creativity doesn’t make a difference between fantasy and real life. All inspiration is equal. I have been thinking about starting a dedicated journal for these kinds of pieces that begin from one end and reach another.
What do you think?
P.S. Don’t forget to sign up for Intuitive Coloring!
Dreaming with Colored Pencils
This week, I share a fantasy horse illustration from my colored pencil journal and show how the new puppy has started her job as a studio dog.
“Hey Paivi,” I said to myself, “Now when we have a new puppy, it would be cool to have some illustrations of it on the blog.”
“But pencils are my escape!” I heard myself shouting. “I want to use them for dreaming, not for everyday things. I want to draw a horse instead!”
Dreaming with Colored Pencils – and Horses!
For me, the figure of a horse is like a hanger for all the things I love. My horses are not realistic, but play horses that connect me with the world of fantasy and everything pretty. Many like to draw faces for the same reason, but for me, horses work better.
Saima and Stella were in the studio resting while I drew. Saima doesn’t like sleeping alone, and she prefers my lap to Stella’s, so she was not fully happy.
I think the dark feathers were inspired by her. I love soft puppy fur, tassels, pompoms, and feathers, but also metal watches and all kinds of decorative swirls.
I used to have a black ink pen for this kind of detailed illustrations (see the classes Animal Inkdom and Magical Inkdom), but recently, it’s been colored pencils from start to finish. The upcoming class, Intuitive Coloring, has inspired me to draw and color more – or should I say as much as I can, because taking care of Saima has often been a full-time job for my husband and me!
Our house and my little studio have changed to serve Saima’s needs. We count days when she’s older, and we can decorate again, but at the same time, we are aware of how fast time flies and that we must take most of Saima’s curiosity and cuteness.
Dreamy Look with Six Pencils Only
Here’s a closeup of the feathers. Instead of coloring them black only, I used pink, blue, yellow and green, to make the dark color shine.
I only used six pencils for this project – pink, two greens, yellow, blue, and black. However, by layering colors, I was able to get a wide variety of tones.
Here’s a closeup of the horse. The long mane was so much fun to color!
I hope to see you in my next class, Intuitive Coloring. Thank you all who have signed up already! The early-bird sale ends on August 23rd, so sign up now! I am looking forward to dreaming with colored pencils together in September!
For Animal Lovers – News, Art, and a Flash Sale!
This week, I share exciting personal news and celebrate with a flash sale. The animal drawing class Animal Inkdom is 40 % off this weekend! The sale ends on Sunday, July 18, 2021, at midnight PDT. >> Buy here!
This week, my husband and I had a small vacation. We went for a two-day trip to see the Finnish countryside and some towns, but first and foremost: to choose a new family member! We have been waiting for this since our beloved beagle Cosmo passed away, but beagles are very popular, and cold winter seemed to postpone the litter.
But here she is!
She is only 5 weeks in the photo and we will get her after a few weeks. We have named her Saima. It’s a Finnish girl’s name and also very similar to Saimaa, the largest lake, where we went to see her. Saima also has a grey spot on her other leg. Grey is harmaa in Finnish, and a famous Finnish poet was Saima Harmaja. So there really was only one option for the name! We are eagerly waiting for her and hope that our beagle Stella will love her too.
Celebrating Saima – Animal Inkdom 40% OFF
Last spring, when waiting impatiently for her to be born, I decided that after I get to hold a new puppy in my arms, there will also be a sale for Animal Inkdom. So now’s the time!
Animal Inkdom has been my most popular class during the past couple of years. When I recorded it, I had so much fun that I had to edit out some laughs. I think that the love for animals and the easy flow of ideas have made the class inspiring for everyone.
And because choosing a puppy isn’t something that happens often, I wanted the sale to be exceptional too. Animal Inkdom is 40% OFF, but only for this weekend! The sale ends on Sunday night, July 18, 2021, at midnight PDT. >> Buy Here!