Studio Check-In #6: working on a little bit of everything

First of all, if anyone’s keeping track, I apologize for my erratic posting schedule these last few weeks. My actual work schedule is still transitioning, but after this week things should be relatively normal again.

This month, I finished my lilac painting (just added to the gallery!) but didn’t touch my green tractor painting (see last month’s studio check-in if you’re wondering what the heck I’m talking about). I did a small commissioned piece and then traced out some of my crystal drawings to paint myself, since they really are fun to do. Here they are:

I also dedicated some time to my newer hobby, junk journaling. I bought this beautiful junk journal from a shop on Etsy and have continued to add some “junk” to the journal I’m working on:

I also decided that I want to make my own junk journals, cover to cover, and bought some fabric for this purpose (thank goodness for JoAnn Fabrics being open again):

Annnnd I coffee dyed my own paper for the first time on Sunday, with pretty decent results. I did some experimenting with already-brewed grounds (trying to be economical) but the pages were still pretty light. So I followed the instructions in a Youtube video which said to use a cup of fresh coffee grounds and three cups of water, and got closer to what I wanted.

I put some of the sheets out in the sun to dry, only to discover that the sides exposed to the sun dried much darker than the sides that were face down. Not exactly what I was going for, but I’ll find a use for them.

So yeah, I haven’t been doing a lot of painting these last few weeks, but I’ve managed to keep busy. I’ll likely be sharing some more journal-making progress soon, as I figure out what I’m doing!