Journal Jam : You got this

From March-May I created journal spreads with Effy Wild in her live online Journal Jam sessions. We were in lockdown and our time zones were compatible for a while. Journal Jam is where Effy draws a prompt from a special deck of cards, and you follow along in your journal. I take process photos of how I respond to the prompts and it's really interesting to see how pages develop. A few weeks ago, I just wanted to do some art without any idea of where I wanted to end up so played along with the recording for Journal Jam 15. Didn't realise then it would take me so long to finish. This is what Effy created using the prompts and following some impulses : first is the actual page, and the other is the facing page developed from using it as a paint palette.

I decided I will do the same and use my right hand page as my paint palette.

Overlapping circles. Roll the dice for colour (1. Red, 2. Blue, 3. Yellow, 4. Green, 5. Purple, 6. Orange) Ended up with too much paint on my right hand page so smooshed together - at least I have a layer of colour!

Gesso Priming the rest of my page. Put some on areas with a popsicle stick and then dragged with credit card. Not pretty but early days. 

Add a word Affirmation in silver letters on scrapbook paper torn and glued without too much thought to placement - just what feels good right now. This was the week that I'd started my last treatments - Radiotherapy for 15 days.

Add some tape Found an old piece of gelli-printed micropore tape which I've used up down the middle and some lovely watercolour look washi tape cos it looks painterly and nothing else appealed.

White pen Some Asemic writing - it includes the words "I can do hard things" so seemed appropriate to outline the found words "Don't be afraid" which I saw after I'd done the other writing! (outlined in white upper right page)

Cover something up I love stencils - will cover over some of the gesso. I want to add more purple to the page. Used the right page to put my paint on again, and then used baby wipe to clean stencil off on that side. Effy then added drips so I decided I'd like to do that too :Quinacradone Red transparent. Now I'm starting to love where this is going. Photo taken next day when all dry and in daylight. Then sat for a few days before I got back to the next prompt.

Metallics Yay! I think I'll use gold with another stencil. Then dabbed the excess around with my cosmetic sponge.

Use a colour you love I think I'm going to add some glazing like Effy did ie. a transparent layer so can see beneath. But this spread sat again for more than a week before I was able to act on that thought! And then it was a simple matter of more of that Quinacradone red blended with a baby wipe

Spirals Decided to add a stamp with micaceous iron oxide, so a bit grungy. Then I uploaded my photos and saw the face in the right hand page...this really inspired me and I completed the spread quite quickly.

Finishing this spread coincided with the last of my radiotherapy sessions yesterday. I'm finished with all the aggressive parts of my treatment and am now breast cancer free ♥ I need to look after myself and get plenty of rest while the radiation is still active in my body for the next 2 weeks. Then it's school holidays and I'm looking forward to some fun art play and sharing again with you more regularly. 

There's a list of all of the Journal Jam replays in Effy's Wilderhood FB group HERE. Check out my other Journal Jam spreads HERE.