This is the second spread I made in my journal. I’m not committing to an everyday art practice, even though I generally try to come downstairs to my art desk every day at least once for a few minutes to do something creative. With a busy home life, that quiet time can be a sanctuary for me.

I love how this spread looks so unexpectedly different from the first one. I was envisioning this entire journal being varying hues of pinks and reds and corals because of the colour palette, but soon realized that it doesn’t have to be. After laying out the elements for this spread, I was drawn to the blue of the butterfly and thought I would mix an aqua colour to go with. I mixed too much and wondered what to do with the rest. That led to wondering if I could somehow make blue with aqua and magenta. It turned into a periwinkle purpley blue, which I was quite happy with. When looking for words to go on the page, I found a sheet that had 1 Peter 5:10 on it and felt like it went with the journal so far. The first spread has “my defender” and “He arms me with strength for battle.” All of these themes felt appropriate to the time we are living in. We are in a battle now more than ever, and need to rely on God, our defender. I love that the Peter verse talks about how after we have suffered a little while (and haven’t we.. I feel like the whole world has a bit of trauma at this point), that God will HIMSELF restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.. oh what a promise!

I just discovered the song ‘It’s Always Been You’ by Phil Wickham.. I know I’m probably pretty late to the party on that one, but if you haven’t listened to it, you absolutely should. It’s so beautiful. I have been learning about how our creative expression is actually releasing an aspect of the Father’s nature to the world, and this song makes me feel God in such a tangible way. It helps me to more fully understand what that means to release God into the world. We all have something in us that is special and unique that is needed by the world. We are all a part of the body of Christ. Not one is less valuable. We are all needed. And as they say.. We were born for such a time as this!

^{14 For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14}

He sent us to the earth for this crazy [and glorious] time! So believe He has good plans for you!

But back to art journaling, I happened to remember suddenly about the yumminess of charcoal pencils. I love a good, soft charcoal pencil. They are dark and dramatic and I like that they aren’t messy like charcoal sticks, but you can still get those really nice sketchy effects.

I guess I’m kind of cheating on the colour palette by using royal blue oil pastel to add details, but I figure you can cheat when you are the one making the rules. And I really love that blue as a shadow for the butterflies. It also draws out the deep blue stitching.

Which spread do you prefer?