Tuesday, August 26, 2014

A Few Things

Today's post is going to serve as a few things all rolled up into one blog post. How's that for multitasking!

First, I finally decided to participate in the September 30 Days of Lists. I've hesitated because I have a tendency to involve myself in too many things. But I was looking through my previous 30 Days of Lists journals the other day, looking for a particular page, and that stirred up a desire to join in again. And let's face it, I just love making lists! So today they are doing a blog hop to get the challenge going.

We were challenged to go back to the March 2011 list and select a prompt, make a list, share it on our blog and then link up with other bloggers doing the same thing. I chose prompt #1 "A few things about yourself"...although I have a "few" more than a "few" things! (Ironically I labeled this post without even thinking about the title of the prompt!)


I actually just finished this page last night and loved how it fit with the list prompt. It is actually a page I made for a prompt I did with my art group. As I mentioned in my post last week (Read it here), In August a few ladies from my church got together with me and we formed an art group. One of the ideas I had with this group was to use ancient art forms and re-purpose them using paper and mixed media. Our prompt was to make a list of things about yourself starting with "I am" and/or "I am a/an". Then we made mosaics out of paper and put our lists on them. So the above page is the result of that prompt for me. All of my mosaic pieces were cut from magazine pages. Here are some details before and after I added the words:






I love it when I can kill two birds with one stone without even realizing it! If you are interested in participating in the September 2014 30 Days of Lists challenge you can learn more about it here. It's a fun challenge, especially if you love making lists! Even if you don't it helps you be present to things in your everyday life. There is also a Facebook page for today's blog post where you can view other bloggers lists  #30listsbloghop.

If you feel inspired you can make your own magazine mosaic and include a list of things about you. Don't forget to share it with me!









47 comments:

  1. This is stunning! What an awesome idea. Looking forward to seeing your other lists next month!

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  2. Mary, this is brilliant! I love what you did here..what a wonderful idea! I may have to do my own page as a declaration! Thank you for this wonderful inspiration, it's beautiful!

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    1. Felicia, I had such a good time tearing out colored magazine pages and then placing them in my mosaic patterns. And then it seemed to be a perfect backdrop for the things about me. Hope you enjoy doing so also!

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  3. Visiting from the blog hop. :)
    I love the mosaic background for this page. Its beautiful.

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    1. Thank you Cindy! And thanks for stopping by my blog. :)

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  4. Love this! May just have to draw some inspiration from you for my art journal. Looking forward to your lists next month! :)

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  5. Gorgeous!! I love your creative take on the project!

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  6. I like the simplicity of this page. When I saw how you did it I thought, "why didn't I think of that?" I want so much to join but like you, I tend to involve myself in too many things. September is difficult as school starts and this year I am teaching Biology which I haven't taught in years. I really need to focus on that. I will stop by to see your entries.

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  7. I just love this page, what a unique way to present a list!!

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  8. Fabulous. I loved how these turned out. They really speak volumes.

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  9. I love this. What a great idea!! I think it would be fun to do with a bunch of the teen girls that I help with at church.

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    1. Thanks Patricia! This would be a fun exercise with teen girls.

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  10. This is great! This would make a great Values Education activity for my third graders. I'll tie it up with my self-esteem lesson. :)

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  11. I teach 4th grade and planned on doing an esteem page for each student as an end of year gift. Each student will write a positive quality of their classmates. This will be a great way to connect an art activity with something that I can frame and give them that they will hopefully keep as a reminder of their unique and wonderful qualities. Thank you for the wonderful idea!

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  12. I teach art to K-8th grade. I plan on using this activity with my middle schoolers or my 5th graders. Thank you for a wonderful project.

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    1. Great idea, Linda! I hope the kids enjoy it. :)

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  13. What a wonderful idea! I am starting this project with 7th graders in a catholic school. How would you suggest starting this once their lists are made--Would you draw the lines on the paper first and then cut the pictures to fit the "rays"? I'm trying to find the easiest process for middle school kids--Thanks so much for the idea!

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    1. You could do it that way with the lines drawn on paper and then filling them in with the magazines clippings. Another way might be to make a collage page full of magazine clippings and then cut it into the rays. I hope they have fun!

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  14. Oh, I like your second idea of making the collage page and then cutting it into the rays! That sounds so much easier!
    Thank you!

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  15. I love this. I would love to do this on a grander scale with my sixth grade class , maybe have them each pick one characteristic that best describes them ?. Any tip you can share ?

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    1. Brandee, did you read some of the suggestions in the comments above? Feel free to email me f you have any questions. Marybrack@gmail.com

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    2. Brandee, did you read some of the suggestions in the comments above? Feel free to email me f you have any questions. Marybrack@gmail.com

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  16. i so love this. Thank you for sharing this awe inspiring idea.

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  17. How did you attach everything? Glue? Any particular type of glue? Is this a cover for a journal or the inside of a page? We are going on a missions trip to Peru in a week and are doing a "create your own journal" craft. We already have the magazine clippings, but not sure if they were on the cover, how we would finish it? Just a wash of glue and water and let it dry? Any suggestions would be great. Your design is beautiful! -- Kari

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    1. Kari,I like to use Liquitex matte gel medium as my adhesive. This piece was just a page in my journal. I don't put any type of wash or finish on top of my art or journal pages just make sure the backs of the papers are completely cover with adhesive. Any missed spots will appear as bubbles or ripples. Use a brayer to fully flatten and adhere the pieces to the background paper. I also recommend covering the finished piece with a piece of wax paper and putting it under a stack of heavy books for a few hours to help both flatten the page and work out any wrinkles or bubbles. Have fun with your art and may God richly bless your mission trip!

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  18. This is beautiful! I immediately connected with the colors and layout. The first words that caught my eye were "an INFJ", I'm an INFJ too. Thank you for sharing this!

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  19. Thank you so much for this. I am inspired and it's helped me understand myself better and take one step closer to beating anxiety

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  20. I LOVE this! Glad I stumbled upon it on Pinterest...

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  21. What a cool idea. I'm going to make my niece & nephews on, helping to keep them on the right path of life. Thanks for sharing.

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  22. Our Junior troop is going to work on this tonight! Awesome! Thanks for sharing!

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  23. This is a great idea for children to tach ten to appreciate themselves.

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  24. I love this. I would like to do it with my grade 8s this year. What type of paper did you use for the base? Thanks

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    1. I started with watercolor paper as my base and then built the sunburst from magazine clippings.

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  25. Were the watercolor page and the magazine clippings page both the same size when you started....like 8.5” x 11”?

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    1. The watercolor paper base can be whatever size you like. The magazine pages are cut in wedges of various widths to make the beams of the sunburst pattern. then glued to the background page.

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  26. I making this for a friend who struggles with depression. Thanks for the wonderful idea!

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  27. Plan on doing this for our teens for summerread activities. Thanks for the idea.

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