Pages from Flora (the journal) and announcing a blog break

In my last posts I've been showing you some new endeavours in some new sketchbooks. Or maybe they were old endeavours in some new sketchbooks. Field notes, sketching and doodling, it all took place in the journal this year. But slowly my journal is returning to its roots of...well...just journaling.

For me my journal is the account of my days, a diary, the story of my life written by me, or maybe the story of my inner life written by me. Something like that. A sketchbook is something different to me, a place to practice my art, and I feel the need again to seperate them. That my journal is artsy does not undo the fact that it's still 'just' a diary, an illustrated diary.

For me the art practice and the journal are still very different things. One is not more important than the other, but I do distinguish between them in my head and heart and often also in my books. I need both to stay sane, that's for sure. ;-)

So over the past week Flora is becoming just a journal again, whatever that means. I know what it means to me, but I find it impossible to clearly explain. I'm doing layouts for writing again and alternating them from time to time with what mostly reminds me of what in this day and age are called smashbook pages. Pages where I just put ephemera from everyday life and my own photographs together.

Here are some of my latest spreads:

I love that I'm doing my layouts again. It seems my journal style always comes and goes in waves. Sometimes I do it this way and sometimes I do it that way. Maybe that's just my way of keeping it interesting or maybe it just reflects my flaky nature, haha.

Now for something completely different.
Today I am starting my fall vacation. Next week I'll be staying in Amsterdam for five days! I have rented a quirky apartment and I intend to visit several museums, walk the streets and take many photographs. I have already planned this trip since my short visit to Amsterdam with two friends in June (read about that in this post). I really wanted to stay a week, but I just can't afford it. Five days in Amsterdam, even last minute, is costing me as much as two weeks on one of the islands! Still: five days isn't bad and if the pictures can be believed my apartment really is cool!

Anyway, this means I won't be blogging until somewhere after 13 October. I'm sure I'll be back with a slideshow though so you can all vicariously travel with me. And if you want to travel with me real time you can always befriend me on Facebook as I will probably do a quick daily report there.

Wishing you all a wonderful and artsy week!