writing inspiration

Telling Your Story through Art Journaling

July 13, 2017 by VintageMama 5 Comments

Even the best of intentions often times get tossed out the window when REAL LIFE happens. I finished my “fun” art journal in early spring (they are all “fun” but that one was just for fun with no particular theme or message), and started my new one right away. I finished the covers and decided on a color scheme and theme / message and then OOPS! Everything had to be picked up and stashed in a storage box because we finally had the time to paint the sewing room / art studio. All of which I am so grateful to have almost finished, BUT while we were in the midst of all that mess, the art journal was hiding in a cupboard, away from the paint and sawdust.

So this week, after getting everything out in the sewing room cleaned up again, I now have a place to organize and store all of my sewing and art supplies, and I even have room to work on different projects without having to pick everything up when I’m right in the middle of something. We still need to figure out what to do with that yucky old concrete floor, and we want to paint the ceiling and do a bit of trim work around the furnace and AC units, but HOORAY! I can work out there now.

One of the first projects I wanted to do now that I have room to work was to finish painting the rug that I started a week or so ago. It took several coats of paint to cover completely (of course I would start with a rug that had a dark design on it . . . but it is small and old and really UGLY so I decided to experiment on that one before I move on to the bigger rugs – if this one turns out OK!). While I was waiting for the last coat of paint to dry on the rug, before I paint some kind of a wild and crazy design on it, I decided to get back to my art journal project that has been on hold now for a couple of months.

One of the things that God has put on my heart the past several years is the importance of story telling. We all have stories, and we all need to share our stories with others, but sometimes that is quite intimidating. Instead of sharing our stories, we often hide the true message of our lives and unfortunately, lots of important stories are lost forever if we don’t tell them – somewhere, somehow, to someone. For me, the safest place to start telling my story is in the silence. Because I don’t want to hear anyone’s opinion of my story, or have someone tell me that my story is “wrong,” or that it’s not an important story . . . . so I have written bits and pieces of my story in poem and short essays that are completely and totally private. Maybe someday –

For now, I’ve decided to create an art journal in which I can have fun decorating and creating artistic designs on each of the pages, but THIS art journal will be a silent place of safe-keeping for my stories. So this art journal has lots of pockets and envelopes (which are always fun no matter what you put in them!) where I can write out some of the stories and poems in my heart and hide them in the little pockets of my journal. Then, maybe someday, if anyone is interested in my story, they will be able to discover my words. I’m telling my story, sometimes in the silence, and I am really having fun with this little project.

Art journaling is a great way to tell your story – join me on my creative journey!

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After I designed the covers (I just used plain old cardboard from the backs of scrap book paper packs), I decided to use scrap book card stock for each of the pages so that some of the pages already have images on them. The backs of each of those pages are plain white so I can add all kinds of fun stuff to them, and I included several altered envelopes and pockets in between the pages. One way to create an art journal is to use a blank book that is already bound, but for some reason I really like to start from “nothing” and make my own books. So in case you would like to make your own art journal with just a bit of scrap cardboard, paper, envelopes, paint, glue, ribbons, and buttons, here’s just one approach to telling your story – sometimes in the silence – in the event that you are like me and you’re not quite ready to tell the whole world what is in your heart. This is a great way to express your heart in a creative and fun project.

If you would like to follow along on my creative journey of storytelling through art journaling, I am documenting the process through a step-by-step tutorial so you can give it a try, too. My ongoing journey of discovery can be found HERE. Would love to have you join me. In the meantime, please join us for this week’s Favorite Things Blog Hop and Linky Party. Hope to catch up with you and see what you are up to this summer!

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RUBY magazine June 2017

June 6, 2017 by VintageMama Leave a Comment

The June issue of RUBY magazine is not only beautiful, it is filled with inspirational articles, short stories, book reviews, crafts, and recipes that celebrate the joys of summer time. In this issue you will discover a fun recipe collection for Father’s Day, “Dad’s Day Delights,” from Marilyn’s Treats, and read about the history behind the hymn, “Tell Me the Stories of Jesus” from RUBY writer Lucy Neely Adams.

You will be encouraged by inspirational articles including “The Power of Praise” by Shara Bueler-Repka. “Intentional Kindness” by Mary Dolan Flaherty, and “Magnificent Maggie” by Patti Iverson. Beautiful poetry in this month’s issue include “Wild Geese Ride the Tides” by Rejetta Morse, “June is the Month of Strawberries” by Cynthia Knisley, “The Secret of Beauty” by Connie Arnold, and “He Called My Name” by Nells Wasilewski.

In this issue of RUBY magazine we have also included book reviews for “Like a Watered Garden” by Patti Hill, reviewed by Carol Peterson and “7 Secrets to an Awesome Marriage” by Kim Kimberling, PhD., reviewed by Michele Morin. Other poetry includes “Abide” by Vallerie Sharmain Smit and “Father’s Day” by Joan Leotta. “Help! I Need More Time” by Paula McVay and “Our Father’s Love” by Norma C. Mezoe reflect on daily life challenges, and “What Did You Just Call Me?!” by Kristi Bridges reminds us to focus on the important things in life.

Kathryn Ross shares her experience of “Stopping Along the Way in Fragrant Fields” and encourages us to take time to rest in God’s goodness and beauty all around us, Emmanuel O. Afolabi offers words of encouragement for “The Complete Father,” and you will find a DIY tutorial for making your own Father’s Day Banner for your dad or grandpa.

Be sure to take a peek at the June 2017 issue of RUBY magazine, and if you would like to purchase a print copy, RUBY magazine is now available from Amazon: https://www.createspace.com/7221873

Check out the June issue of RUBY magazine! We would love to have you join our team of writers!

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And if you are a writer, you are invited to submit an inspirational article, short story, book review, poem, craft project, or recipe for the July 2017 issue of RUBY magazine. Visit the RUBY blog submissions page for all the details!

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Find your voice, tell your story

May 3, 2017 by VintageMama 3 Comments

I have a secret . . . very few people know this about me, and it is something that I’ve struggled with my whole life. It is still scary to me, even this very minute, to talk about it.

You see, I’m pretty good at a few things. Just like you. We are all good at something, even when we think we aren’t. I had no idea that I was good at anything for a very long time. For many years I lived in a world where girls were only allowed to smile and nod, be silent and agreeable, never have an opinion of their own, and (Heaven forbid!) if a girl did actually have a thought of her own, the absolute last thing she would want to do is speak that opinion out loud. Where I came from, “good girls” just don’t do certain things. They don’t say certain things, and they never, under any circumstances, speak a disagreeable word. I learned my lesson well, and it kept me silent for many, many years: “Good girls don’t get angry.”

And so I didn’t. Well, on the outside I didn’t. But the sad part about that kind of world is that there are lots of “good girls” out there who are really and truly sad, lonely, discouraged, defeated, and depressed. All that along with a monumental load of grief and anger because it appears from everything they are being told, that their contribution to the universe is at best irrelevant, and should they step outside that little “Good Girl” box, they are to be pitied and avoided because they surely will lead someone else astray. Usually an unsuspecting young man who hasn’t a clue about all the stuff that “Good Boys” should know about.

But I digress . . . . here’s my secret. I can’t find my voice. Literally. It has been fascinating to me over the past couple of years to discover that my physical voice has been so disguised, distorted, hidden, and frightened, that now when I am no longer in that world where “Good Girls” come in a one-size-fits-all box, that I simply cannot find my voice. There now you know. I have struggled through vocal therapy for many years, and it has been such a gift to me to find a voice teacher who seems to understand why, when I open my mouth, often times nothing comes out. No sound. At. All. NOTHING. Silence.

Well, actually I’m not sure she truly “understands” because she has never seen anything like this before . . . but she is a loving, compassionate, and patient teacher and friend. Just the other day we were talking (I can usually find my voice for talking, but even that sometimes is scary!) and she tried to get me to make a sound as if I was trying to have a conversation and the other person kept interrupting me. She would say, “Try this . . . say, ‘Wait! Wait! Wait! I’ve got something to say!” I guess it was about just jumping into the stream and hoping I learn how to swim before I drown.

And that’s when it dawned on me . . . I would NEVER, NEVER, and I mean NEVER do that. I am so well trained that if someone else has something to say, it surely must be way more important than what I might have to say (especially if it is a man; since I am a woman my words are never as important as a man’s words – but that was in my other life). I have learned that silence is so much safer than speaking and putting my words, thoughts, ideas, and opinions out there in the world where they will, again, either be ignored or ridiculed. Fortunately, I no longer live in that world, but the scars remain.

So my friend, I am beginning a journey (or actually continuing a journey, just with different tools to help me) to discover and hopefully FIND my voice. And I’m pretty sure that I’m not alone in this quest. No, your story might not be exactly the same as mine. But God has impressed upon my heart that I must share this journey, and so I begin. The task of finding my voice has been about saying what is really in my heart, and the safest way to begin is with baby steps. That is how this project of my art journals began – small steps of expression that felt “safe.” If anyone else happened upon my “words” they still would not know for sure what they were seeing. Or hearing. Or reading. I’m getting a bit bolder, and with age comes a certain amount of “I’ve lost my give-a-darn” bravado.

As I embark on this new project of finding my voice and telling my story, I invite you to join me as we work on learning new ways to express our creativity through journaling. With words or not, journaling is truly therapeutic and healing for anxiety, stress, fear, sadness, grief, and so many other emotions that hold us back from experiencing the life that God has for us. So, off I go on my adventure, seeking that which has been lost for many years. I hope you will come with me!

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Telling Your Story through Art Journaling

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Please join us this week for the Favorite Things Blog Hop!

RUBY magazine June 2017

Be sure to take a peek at the June 2017 issue of RUBY magazine, and if you would like to purchase a print copy, RUBY magazine is now available from Amazon: https://www.createspace.com/7221873

And if you are a writer, you are invited to submit an inspirational article, short story, book review, poem, craft project, or recipe for the July 2017 issue of RUBY magazine. Visit the RUBY blog submissions page for all the details!

Find your voice, tell your story

I have a secret . . . very few people know this about me, and it is something that I’ve struggled with my whole life. It is still scary to me, even this very minute, to talk about it.

Read RUBY magazine

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