My newest online art journal class is starting soon!
I am so excited to introduce my new online Art Journaling class! This is a theme near and dear to my heart, and a journey of exploration and inspiration that I have wanted to take for years.
My classes are open to all levels of experience. We will collage, and make marks…. and utilize image transfer techniques. I want to foster a practice of exploration and expression, or play and process! I have included a video with my approach to the theme – take a look below…
Here are the details!
12 months – 24 lessons. Lessons are emailed on Mondays, twice a month – and include private video tutorials, and PDF’s of information, images, and inspiration. Your access to these videos does not expire!
There will be 2 Facebook live demos per month – for a chance to connect, have a Q& A session, see new techniques in progress.
1 ZOOM call/month. Optional – but a chance to connect, to chat, to build community. These will be on a floating schedule. Planning a year out is near impossible!
Schedule – START DATE March 6th. First lesson Monday March 7th. SPRING: March – May SUMMER: June – August FALL: Sept – November WINTER: Dec – February.
Pricing: $65 per quarter/season – that is 6 lessons a season! Each quarter is priced individually. You are welcome to customize the year to your schedule, and pay as you go. (Invoices will be emailed via PayPal, and can be paid via credit card. )
If you prefer to sign up for the entire year, you have 2 payment options:
Option A- a single payment of $240 and a free gift
Option B – 2 payments of $120 and a free gift.
Sign ups: Email me at Jen.davies.reazor@gmail.com and I will invoice you. Please select a payment option…. (Or PM me if we are connected on social media)
As to materials and class supplies – stay tuned! More info to come!
Thank you for your interest! Please don’t hesitate to email or message me with any questions! Jenny
Are you new to my Art Journaling classes? Are you interested in “Sparking Creativity” my intro class? No worries! I am preparing it for an online teaching platform – and it should be ready in the Spring. The goddess class is open to all levels – so if it sounds interesting to you, please don’t hesitate! ( If you are receiving this newsletter – you will get notified when SPARK is ready!
It started out as just me and the page in my art journal. It was an escape – a place to go play, express myself, collage, splash paint around… and be both distracted and soothed in the midst of a global pandemic. My art journal became a place where I could vent, but also a place I could go to elevate my mood, or take simple joy in art materials, color, image, text…
And then I decided to share it…
Well, my friend Patti (who became my co-facilitator for class) encouraged me to create an online class. We would meet via Zoom. I could film video tutorials – but we wanted an element of camaraderie too – a social interaction we were missing during “Safer at home” times. And thus “Art journaling with Jenny: sparking creativity” was born.
The first session was a learning process – for me – and also hugely satisfying. It surpassed my wildest dreams. Here are some student testimonials:
Jenny’s Art Journal class was amazing! The presentation of techniques and pace of the class gave me time to absorb, learn, play and ultimately complete gorgeous journal pages – something I wasn’t sure I could do. The safe space created by Jenny, as well as the camaraderie and community with my classmates grew as we journeyed together allowed me to open up, experiment and go places I hadn’t even imagined. And finally, as a frontline healthcare worker, “taking it to the page” gave me a healthy release that kept, and continues to keep, me balanced, focused and feeling hopeful. No kidding. Ten thousand thumbs up! Amy T
Jenny Davies-Reazor took me on an adventure into art play and art journaling in her “Art Journaling: Sparking Creativity” online workshop! It was eye opening for me as I had never done anything like this in my own artistic journey. It was also very cathartic. She is very organized and willing to share everything she knows and truly gives a lot of herself and her time. Not only did I enjoy learning new ways to play with art materials, I would get so engrossed in the process of creating that time would slip away unnoticed. Jenny is fun, knowledgeable, and is also willing to experiment in front of her students. It lead to some happy accidents, which was encouraging for me.I am looking forward to her next class! Patti P.
Are you looking for community, camaraderie, inspiration and fun? Look no further, you’ve found all that and more. Jenny’s class is informative: you learn different techniques, she walks you through her creative process and you’re introduced to new materials to play with and create. You become part of a very supportive group of people: you can choose to share what you’re working on or just soak in the process that your fellow participants are working through. This class was amazing. I can’t say enough about it. I would give it all the “stars”. Nikki T
Here’s a firsthand look at MY pages – and the “Hows” and “Whys” behind the class:
As I mentioned – the lessons are NOT drawing heavy, but instead utilize collage, and image transfer techniques. The materials list is provided after enrollment and includes links for online ordering… Each lesson is themed around a symbol or motif and its relevant meaning/folklore/mythology. My style of teaching encourages you to explore. I teach you the technique and show you possible applications. This isn’t the type of class where everyone ends up with a copy of the teacher’s piece… Its you, in your journal… with your preferences and experiences, and choices!
Interested? Here are the details…
Cost: $70 includes a packet of images ready to use in image transfers. ( send via USPS)
Duration: 6 weeks of class. Access to videos – no expiration.
Access to private class Facebook group: intended for sharing images of pages, discussion of techniques, etc.
Each lesson includes:
Monday – weekly email with inspirational PDF, links to private video tutorials.
Wednesday – FB live demo (recorded for any who miss it live)
And the “Spark” Zoom calls – introduction, mid point check in, finale call. 3 calls spaced over the 6 weeks. (Optional and recorded!)
Sparking Creativity will be available late Spring 2022 as an on demand class! Sign up for my newsletter to stay in touch!
To enroll:
Send an email to me at Jen.davies.reazor@gmail.com with the subject line “Spark sign ups”. Let me know you are interested.
I will invoice you via PayPal. Then you will receive your supply list – via email – and can order anything you might need.
Join the FB group!
You can also email me to ask any questions! Feel free to check out some other art journal videos on my You Tube channel~ Until then, stay safe, and thanks for reading to the end. 😉
I love old dictionaries. The feel of the paper, the old book smell, the different fonts, the pronunciations in italics…. and I use dictionary text in my work from time to time. So when Jen announced the theme for February – I knew what I wanted to do…
I had ideas for book pendants, both leather bound and in brass book lockets. I envisioned scrolls with secret messages of positivity tucked into amulet vials. I saw stamped mandalas made of words of power, incognito as a talisman around one’s neck. And I hope to get to those soon. For now – I wanted to play with the evolution of an idea.
From January 2014 – my offering for the Component of the Month… (polymer, text, resin and gems)
I am very drawn to wearing a word – as a mantra, a hope, a dream, a goal, an intention. Words have power. So I am revisiting these “Word Mojo” amulets this month, and this Spring.
Words in bezels, awaiting… Witchy words selected with care.
This new incarnation takes advantage go commercial bezels, which present a treasure hunt of sorts. What word will fit? How will the definition be cropped – too terse? too verbose? Are the neighboring words an interesting juxtaposition, or unpleasant? Does it create a found type of poetry as things are cropped and altered? The papers are sealed back and front, then glazed.
Another change is the absence of resin. While I still love the look – I don’t like the margin of error, the expense, the short shelf life…. so streamlining and simplifying the process! I am really loving sculpting the bezels themselves, so I am focusing on the process I enjoy!
Barely room to work… watching Time Team!
Each one is completely unique, hand sculpted, detailed and modified. I have limited my polymer palette to metallics, which I find frees me up to add small color embellishments, and created a more versatile pendant…
The finished prototypes, first of their kind.
Sadly I did not finish this batch, but its the first of many…
Please tell me – what would YOUR word of power be?
Paint and patina are next… The next batch…
I look forward to hearing your words!
And my team mates and our guests look forward to your visit to their blogs as well!
I left for Wales as the month began… on a trip with family that was part heritage tour and part vacation. ( In depth Wales posts are coming shortly.) I kept flowers in my mind as I was touring castles, exploring old seaside villages, hiking in the national parks…. It was an amazing transformative trip, and I will be feeling and seeing the creative effects of it for a long time coming.
At Ysied cooking class
from St. David’s
At Brecon Beacons
But after returning home, and catching up on sleep, laundry, household chores… there was very little of July left for me. I offer you some works in progress for this month – inspired by the theme.
The first showcases these vintage glass pieces. I do not know anything about their original purpose – but when I saw them – I saw frames. ( Sadly there was a blue one too. The set of 4 made me think – 4 elements. I was only able to procure these three.) They have no holes or fasteners/bails of any kind. What do you think they were?
After sorting through many folders of vintage and antique papers ( did you see my post on my paper class with Keith LoBue?) I found some images in the right scale. Two were antique cigarette cards, the other an image from children’s illustrated encyclopedia. ( Yes – mine form my early childhood) I added gesso to the images outside the window area to cloud the colors – I didn’t want them showing through the glass.
antique images
copper structure with tabs.
Above you can see the copper piece engineered to fit the glass. I had not picked up the jewelry saw in months? a year? and it was so wonderful to be back at the bench pin! Below you can see the piece assembled – well, how it will be.
Currently – the images are drying – a coat of Diamond glaze to protect them. And the copper is in the tumbler – left bright, no patina. I plan to add 3 jump rings from the top arch/bail to add the connection point, and a little movement.
These pieces – when done – will be available for purchase at Bead Fest!
I have missed seed beading in all my travels this month – so I prepared a bead piece, wanting to sit and chill and bead. Well, you can see how far I got:
Labradorite and Lisa Peters cab. Waiting patiently on the bead table.
I hope you have had a wonderful July – whether you traveled or not…
For now – please enjoy a bit of armchair travel as you visit the blogs of my team mates and our guests. Thank you Marsha for a fertile theme, where I am sure many ideas have taken root !
This month I dove into a subject I adore for the theme challenge at Art Elements blog: selkies. While this month was full of travel, shows, and just life! I have two creations to share. And I am beyond excited to see what my friends ant team mates have created! But first? A guest artist:
In my original post I shared an artist’s doll by Ellen Paquette. Ellen has joined us here to talk of her fabric sculptures and her inspirations!
Selkie in traditional Scottish costume.
I can’t remember exactly when my fascination with selkies and their related folklore set in. It’s certainly an obsession deeply tied to my love of seals and Celtic folklore. By my early 20s I was painting selkies, gathering as much written matter about them as I could, and watching for seals anytime I was near coastline where they could be found, especially on some serendipitous trips to Scotland, which is truly my heart home.
I’ve sewn since a very young age, and experimented with constructing dolls, puppets and fabric creatures and their clothing and accessories throughout childhood. In addition, a love of historic clothing and much time spent doing theatrical costuming made the fact that I would eventually decide to design a selkie who would fit inside her sealskin inevitable. Creating selkie dolls is a miniature manifestation of some of my favorite aspects of creative sewing.
The sealskin is constructed from upholstery weight plush fabric which I line with a satiny cloth. The pattern for the seal is something I designed through a process of much trial and error. The doll body is a design which I arrived at after much tweaking of a tiny doll pattern I found in a vintage doll making book in the local library. I scaled the design to result in a doll that is about 13″ tall. A simple method for constructing a yarn wig for the doll was a helpful technique I also gleaned from this book.
The dolls are customizable, from hair and eye color to sealskin color to style and color scheme of clothing. I offer a traditional Scottish costume, as well as a “from the sea” costume, which I like to style as if the selkie has come ashore and had to create something wearable out of whatever bits of fabric and net she could find. Tiny details which I love to add are beading, jewelry, shells, and seaweedy yarn embellishments. The faces are hand drawn and painted, using a combination of fine point ink pen, colored pencil and acrylic paint.
From the sea costume.
Each selkie asserts her own personality as she evolves, and the process involves a considerable amount of intricate hand sewing. I’ve made male and youth selkies as well. The fact that so much is customizable to the customer’s wishes makes each selkie utterly unique when she is slipped into her sealskin and launched to her new home.
For me? My inspiration came this month in the form of “fish leather”. My friend Lisa Peters Russ ( Lisa Peters Art) has begun importing – and each skin is more beautiful than the last. Seeing them – and dreaming up ideas happened at Bead and Button recently. (Learn more at Art Elements blog on July 1 as I interview Lisa! )
That silver spotted wolffish said SELKIE all over it.
This scrap of wolffish made itself. With its organic shape and irregular edge it was the perfect size for an amulet pouch. I was thinking of a pouch a selkie might wear… in the deep or on land… but that has a watery element to it.
I stitched a soft leather to the back, leaving a flap to hang over. I debated a closure, but did not wan to detract from the skin pattern. The sides are embellished with beaded dangles – I even used the (dreaded!) C-lon thread for more drape. Shells, labradorite and sea urchin spikes – treasures from the deep. The cord is a simple loose braid of sari silk.
Handheld for scale.
shells, spines, labradorite…
What treasures lie inside?
With a larger piece of the same type skin, I was envisioning the actual drape of a selkie’s skin. I wanted to try wetting and molding the fish leather. ( Note from Lisa – this works best with the scale free texture of the wolffish. ) Here is the finished selkie sculpture:
My polymer figure was a challenge. I strove to truly sculpt the face, building up the planes and facial features. But the scale was challenging. She has inset onyx eyes – a visual link to her seal self. Her skin is soft ivory, sage, grey… definitely adding to her otherworldly appearance. I am not completely happy with her face – and find her a bit to aged and severe. I do like the contrast and the flow of the composition – from beads to leather to larger shell.
The fish leather looked SO different wet – and dried to its same finish. Here is the WIP shot where. pinned the wet leather in place to dry in the folds and undulations.
The entire piece will be displayed in an old wooden drawer – that may get a darker stain – or may get sanded back a little for a more weather ed wood look. What do you think?
I am so excited to see the ideas and creations of my Art Element team mates and our blog guests! Thank you all for joining me on this mythic journey this month! Please take a look around via the links below!
Welcome to our last official COM here at Art Elements! Starting next month we are moving to monthly themed challenges. We felt this was expanding the option, invigorating out creativity and opening the door to so many mediums!
This final COM is stunning metal clay runes made by Niky Sayers. I had the good fortune of meeting Niky in London and receiving mine personally!
Niky’s runes are cast from her own hand made personal set, and based on the Elder Futhark. These symbols were originally carved in wood and stone, and their straight lines reflect that context. Elder Futhark was a runic alphabet used by Norse and Germanic peoples from approximately the 2nd – 8th centuries. ( styles changed, runes evolved, and continued to be used….) Runes are recorded in sources such as the Poetic Edda as being used for inscriptions and talismans.
In the 1980’s Ralph Blum published and popularized the runes as a system of divination. I have long been a fan of Tarot cards, as an inspirational and oracular device. But runes were never my go to, and I enjoyed this chance to start working with them.
The dark moon was done in watercolor pencils and crayons. I wanted to leave a hint of a triple spiral there in purples and black. The Phoenix was drawn in pencil and inked with fine marker. The color was very satisfying to do- many layers and colors blended using Derwent watercolor pencils.
I was a bit disappointed with the background. I used a student grade liquid watercolor and it feels a little flat, a little blah to me. Such is the nature of an art journal: experimentation, risks, and play.
The second rune I selected was EHWAZ, meaning horse. It’s traditional meaning is: movement/ progress, steady progress, transit and transition. When thinking “horse” I immediately think of the Uffington chalk figure, and I was seeing landscapes in my mind’s eye from my recent trip to visit Lesley in Dorset. This idea evolved quite naturally, involving polymer and felt…
I wet felted two abstracted landscapes in a palette of greens:
The rune will be affixed to the frame at center top. The felted tapestry inside, and an image of the Uffington horse to float above, suspended on fine gauge copper chain.
This is the work in progress so far – I am seeing a few changes I want to make. I want to create another felt tapestry and play up the copper color from the rune itself. I think I will add a thin layer of white acrylic paint on the frame, a white wash of a sort, to lighten the piece. And yes – that is a rogue hair from my paintbrush. Oops. I am happy with my overall design plan – but need to tweak the palette a little. What do you think? I would love to hear your thoughts…
And I look forward to seeing the creations from my team mates and our guests this month:
I am an Anglophile. To those that know me that comes as no surprise. I lived in London for a semester in college and it was the most formative impactful period in my life. My husband and I went to the UK on holiday for our honeymoon and my 40th birthday. (That was a surprise, too. I have never happy cried so hard!)
My work is deeply, fundamentally inspired by my Celtic heritage, by folklore and fairy tale, by myth and magic. And every so often I try to “cross the pond”. You may know I also write for a fabulous blog called Art Elements. My team mate and friend Lesley has invited me to visit and have an art retreat of sorts. ( We have done the same here at my house the last few years). So in an effort to raise the necessary funds – I have created these pieces. This year is the Queen’s Sapphire Jubilee – what better way to raise funds and nod in respect to Queen Liz than there?! The stamps come from my childhood stamp collection – and may go even further back to my Dad’s collection.
The pendants are double sided – the back included UK map sections. Maps taken from the Encyclopedia Britannica atlas from my childhood! They are going to be listed on Etsy as soon as I finish here… and while sold as pendants with my fellow creators and designers in mind…. can easily be made into a pendant with a gemstone angel for a small additional fee. If you are interested in supporting me and my travel fund – please check them out! I am designating 100% of the sea of these pieces to my travel fund!
Convo me if you want a necklace with gemstone dangle!
This month over at Art Jewelry Elements I was very excited to share my new polymer amulet beads. They are vessels – hollow and completely functional. I wanted to see how people addressed this, and what they inspired in our team and guests. See that one in the picture below with a labyrinth? That one is mine!
I knew right away I wanted a way to have a scroll inside – that would be removeable and hold a secret ( or shared) message. I fabricated the copper V shape to act as a bail of sorts, allowing the vessel to hang. But then what? The labyrinth is a very evocative symbol to me – of journeys, of life, of the twists and turns of fate. So after pondering a while I decided to stamp words…
“I’ll walk where my own nature would be leading: It vexes me to choose another guide.” Emily Bronte
That seemed perfect for a piece about journeys, and amulet, to be worn near the heart, a personal talisman. Labradorite, apaptite, green garnet – all pulling out the cool tones in teh polymer amulet bead. Its long – hangs down to my stomach; I knew it would be whan I selected that quote! The scrill is a piece of resin paper, very organic and fiber-y. No message as of yet – we will see what note I want to leave for myself!
Thanks for stopping in – and please take a look at the other offerings this month!
I have three work tables in my “clean” studio. This year one of them is designated the journal space. I have tried unsuccessfully many years running to put a consistent daily/weekly art journal practice in place. I have tried loose papers, even vintage Filofax cards. This year I signed up for a FREE challenge – called “Journal 52“. Run by the dynamic duo of Effy WIld and Sarah Trump – I recieve a themed prompt once a week. Two actually – so you have options. There’s a FB group for sharing and building community. I love it. And I am happy to say I am consistent, and consistently loving it.
The whole art journal thing for me is play and practice. A chance to doobde, to recontitute my dried up, forlorn drawing skills, to try new media and techniques, to get messy and push paint around… all with the caveat that NO ONE HAS TO SEE IT. Or I can share if I desire. The freedom to play and produce work for me, for my soul, from my soul… with no show deadline. Its refreshing and joyous.
I am a little behind as I was away last week – but the weekly prompts are so good I look forward to catching up…
One last timehop, one last stop on the Beading Back in Time travel schedule. This final installment encourages artist to select their favorite time period. Mine will inevitably be Celtic, time and time again. For fresh inspiration, I grabbed a few books and a cup of coffee… started sketching. No pre-conceived idea, just browsing at first.
The crescent “lunula” shape has been on my mind for a while. Its a recurring motif in Celtic, Slavic, Russion cultures. As a lunar symbol it is associated with women. The moon rules ocean tides, and a woman’s tides. The moon, seen as female, embodies the stages of one’s life in the lunar stages – from Maiden to Mother, to wise Crone.
Diagram of lunula pendants - I'm trying to translate the text from Russion, with Google's asistance...
1. Gold lunula from Blessington, Ireland, Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age, c. 2400BC – 2000BC, Classical group ( from Wiki)
2. Lunula pendant in bronze from the Crafty Celts."Lunula amulets date back to the end of the Bronze Age, and continued to be worn into modern times. They were common in Egypt as well as among many farming peoples of Europe and Asia and reflected the worship of the moon, which was associated with fertility. Earrings, pendants, metal details of headdresses, and other ornaments had the form of lunulae. Lunulae were especially widespread in Rus. in the tenth to 12th centuries."
I was contemplating doing a lunula pendant for myself in sterling, but time was not cooperating. The polymer was out… I was creating ornaments for my local gallery. These pieces – 2 styles – are polymer crescents with a hammered metal frame. The frame curls around, allowing a space to attach chain. I have stitched the small gems on with 26 gauge wire. I love using the tiny gems here – holes so small its hard to string them otherwise, but perfect in this application.
The top pendant in cream and brown features the word “self” in the Celtic Ogham alphabet. This linear font was used for carving, and had many layers of meaning, among them trees and months of the year. I wanted an amulet – trust yourself. Take care of yourself. Center yourself. Have faith in yourself… it all comes back to “self”. The gems are green garnet. The blue lunula below incorporated sterling and aquamarine. This is more lunar to me, evocative of the Moon goddess – the three stars for her three aspects.
I plan something simple to finish these, maybe just chain, or one wrapped gem each. I may make more, but these each feel personal to me, and I plan to keep them and wear them.
Thanks for stopping by. I have thoroughly enjoyed the creative challenges of these historical “Back in time” hops. Thanks to Sheri and Lindsay for organizing! Please stop by the other blogs! A full list can be found at: Phantasm Creations.
Jenny Davies-Reazor 