Love, Joleen Photography Blog

Happy Halloween

Have fun + Bee safe! ;)

Tidying Up

I don't know about you but I am SO messy. I don't know what it is but little explosions are being set off at all times resulting in a BIG mess. My art space is no exception- if anything it's worse! I get so into whatever I'm creating that I end up pulling everything out and piling it up around me. Most of the time I work myself down to 6 inches of space.

This afternoon I decided to tackle some chores around the house- studio space included. I  moved a couple items from the counter to the cabinet to give me more table space. Before, the cupcake tray was overlapping my work mat and none of my paint supplies were out. Since I've mainly been working in a

few art journals lately, I need my paint supplies more accessible. I still have a lot more to put away. I think I need to go to IKEA soon for more boxes for the cabinet. I've been separating supplies in those little pink boxes (the ones I used in my old studio) but without the lids- this way I can see directly into them since I'm really not a labeling kind of gal. ;) 

It's a tight space so I really need to think about what I want and need up here. In the garage I have an entire section of art supplies (1/3 of what we store, can you believe it!) set up in plastic bins and boxes. Most of that actually is labeled and organized thanks to our move so I've just got to keep it that way!

I'm starting to get into Holiday mode. I've been brainstorming ideas and imagine a transition will be happening in a week or so- time to bring out the fabric and sewing machine! I have a few custom orders for special Tweets that I am excited about. These ones will be slightly different than the ones in the shop. I've also been noting some fabulous finds to share with you in the form of gift guides, which I plan to post next week. If you're making your gifts this year, what types of projects are you planning?

'Roid Week 2008

Happy Monday! I hope you had a great weekend and a lovely day. The weekend went by way too fast for my liking but today ended up being a good day afterall. :) I found out that this week is 'Roid Week 2008- so fun! I've really been needing a reason to get out there with my camera. I fear I've been hoarding my film since I won't be able to find it after the end of the year. As you can imagine this has driven the price up quite a bit until stocks are out.. I purchased my last 10 pack of 600 film for $20 but it's totally worth it! I'm asking everyone for film for Christmas and have made a special request that Santa put some in my stocking. Save Polaroid!

So, there's this little spot near my home that always draws my attention as I'm driving by. The way the sun shines through the patch of trees is really magical and it screams of Fall (unlike this weather of high 80s and 90s). I've been meaning to check it out for some time and that was exactly what I thought to do for today's polaroid shoot.

Alex introduced me to a band called The Airporne Toxic Event. This band and this song rock my socks off. Have a listen...

Moving Forward

Lately, I've been trying to come up with a way to display my very favorite polaroids. I was so inspired when I came across this last month. I loved the idea, although a heart shape didn't exactly scream "Alex and Joleen". ;) I am quite pleased with the result of this installation.

Below, are a couple more spreads from my fertility art journal. I am really enjoying the process of working in this book. It's so personal and freeing. It has really been unlike any other "project" I've done before. Because it deals with such a personal topic and I'm using personal imagery and ideas, I feel so much more connected to it. It feels like an extension of me; of my thoughts and feelings. 

I hope you're having a great weekend! Anything exciting going on? We're being homebodies this weekend. :) Here are a few linky links I've enjoyed this week:

♥ Awesome Frickin' Picture Books for So-Called Grown Ups
♥ Things I'd Wish I'd Known
♥ Just A Few Flickr Favorites
♥ Sneak Peaks by Design*Sponge ; Oh! And Before & After - so inspirational!

Goings On

Hello! This week has been so eventful but I haven't much felt like writing. Little things like  attending the Domino Bazaar and walking the CHOC walk 5k to big things like finding out my parents + sisters are moving across country. I'm just feeling a bit like snuggling up in bed and watching episode after episode of Stargate. Oh, wait. I've been doing that too. ;) I can't tell you how much I appreciate all your kind comments and emails regarding my new journal + journey. My life feels so rich and blessed and I am full of hope.

I wanted to post this reminder that we are currently accepting your artwork and article submissions for our 6th issue of Portals Zine: Art Journals. Visit our website for submission guidelines. 

kitschy digitals : skylar

i am super tired so i'm just gonna make this post a quick 'howdy'. i just wanted to share some design team work i did for kitschy digitals. you can purchase this kit (skylar) over at 2peas now so go take a look! below is a mini album i made using the kit.. i've been holding on to this brag book "wallet" for just the right project and this was it! the slots were for 4" x 6" photographs so i new i wanted to make mini scrapbook pages this size. i resized my photos to be various sizes and put them together on two 8 x 10's to be printed professionally. i printed the digital elements with my own printer. this project took a little over two hours and now i have a great album to share with people!

following are two digital layouts i made with the kit. the alpha in the top layout can be found in my  shop.

lastly, here is a paper layout i made. as you can see this is a super cute kit - fun and easy to use both digitally and traditionally. i had a blast working with it! (click on the images to see larger)

The New Journal

I went to an antique store this afternoon and bought an old children's book for $8. The binding was in pretty good condition and was made more sturdy with book binding tape. I hadn't intended it when I purchased it but decided to make it into my fertility art journal. It's smaller than I thought I would make it, so it won't fit my two previous journal pages- a bummer but that's ok. I'm thinking I may just put them in my other journal and print smaller copies for this book. I don't know yet. The cover is a work in progress. I want to find the perfect text to use so we'll see when I find that. :) I covered the red book binding tape with masking tape for a more cohesive look. The second image is my first entry in the journal. Thank you for your kind words and support regarding this project. I look forward to sharing this experience with you. Happy weekend, friends! xo

Illustration Inspiration

One of the gazillion jobs I would have if I could, would be an illustrator. I am so inspired by illustrations + hand written type. I play around a bit (here are a few of my own illustrations) but I'd love to get formal training. Someday. Maybe. :) Here are a few illustrators I'm inspired by:

♥ Lauren Child
♥ Anke Weckmann
♥ Penelope Dullaghan
♥ Karen Katz
♥ Tania Howells
♥ Kim Kutner
♥ Laura Cornell

Baby on the Brain

You may have noticed in the last art journal page I shared along with the one above, that I've got baby on the brain. I've decided to start a new "fertility" art journal and am thinking of using the altered book format and putting these pages in it to start. I'm very excited about this project- it won't be easy but being creative always helps me to address and deal with things in my life. I've suspected for some time that conceiving might be difficult and I need to seek medical care to make a plan of action. That being said I've decided to share this with you, friends (and family), because you are my support. You may notice some new icons/symbols in this art journal, as Heather has encouraged me to use. I think it's all so very interesting and this may seem weird but it makes me feel closer to people - fertility / life cycle being pretty dang universal. ;)

I found this frame (above) today at the thrift store for $4 and loved it! It's 15" x 15" and the (mass produced) country painting inside measured 9.5" x 9.5". I decided just to paint over it and have started this piece. You can click on the image to see it bigger. It's just a work in progress. I got stuck and decided to leave it for now. Heather gave me some good ideas and I think I have a good jumping off point for the next time I work on it!

You know I have an affinity for old (vintage/antique) things, especially if they've belonged to children. This includes dolls, books, wee typewriters, sewing machines, flashcards, etc. One of my most favorite(!!) collections is the paper doll sets my mom has given me for gifts.   These sweet paper dolls from the 1920's are my absolute favorite. They're big at approximately 12" x 4". Aren't they just the cutest? They kind of remind me of Blythe dolls a bit. Someday I hope to frame these in a little one's room a la Flea Market Baby. Alex has made me promise not to put anything too creepy in there. Creepy? Nah. ;)

Inspiration

     I am constantly being inspired. Constantly. And by everything you could imagine. My family always points out my "special" ability to see something beautiful in everyday occurrences. I can't imagine not being this way! I am most inspired by lovely images, especially photographs of people and nature. I love this photo of these twin girls with a shared passion- it illustrates such a beautiful relationship, don't you think? I have been "collecting" so many inspiring images lately. (What else is new?) ;) You can see all my favorites here.
     I recently came across a beautiful blog I wanted to share with you called unruly things. I love everything about it, especially her photographer spotlights.
     Last week I was sitting in a waiting room and came across a past issue of Country Living. It was so incredibly inspiring and I just couldn't bear to leave it. It's from May and has probably been read a gazillion times so I only feel marginally bad. ;) Below are two pages that I just love, love, love! They're from the home + shop of Annette Tatum. She keeps a lovely blog here. Talk about inspirational! She posts the most fabulous "inspiration boards" to illustrate her ideas.. check it out.

     I was especially inspired by the colors and patterns in these clippings, which influenced the aesthetic of this very personal art journal page I created today. Feel free to click the image to see it larger. xo