Making backgrounds or prepping journal pages is just really playing with art materials without any real purpose. I mostly worked in my everyday journal. The pages are all prepped with gesso already, because of the flimsy paper, but a lot of them still needed color.
What is new about this journal is that instead of acrylics I am doing most of the backgrounds in gouache and watercolor. I never really thought about things like stamping or stenciling in watercolor paints, but it works wonderfully. You get a less 'neat' look, but I kind of like that. It gives a 'dreamy' atmosphere.
I also like that you can 'mess' with the paint because the gesso is not absorbing it so much, so it stays on the page before it dries and you can manipulate it. You can just put different colors of wet paint on one page for instance, close the journal and so print on the opposite page. The effect is wonderful.
I am having the most fun with my foam stamps. They seem to be going out of style these days with all the clear stamps and ordinary stamps, but I love using them, they are ideal to use with paint. Especially the ones that just have simple shapes on them like diamonds, circles and squares.
The above pictures are just a sample of a truck load of spreads I did last week, but it seems a little too much to show you all of them. You get the idea.
By doing these spreads and starting of with something easy I have finally gotten back into the mood for art making and art journaling and I have been in my studio just about every day. It's good to be back in the rythm of making things.