Ever wondered what to do with all the grocery bags left over from an Amazon Fresh delivery? I accumulated quite a pile thinking that I was going to use them for some project. Pretty soon, I was drowning in brown paper bags.
However, it was the texture and color of the paper that inspired me to make this art journal. I plan to combine the pages with pastels, colored pencils, and oil pastels. Dry mediums seem like the smartest choice with this paper.
Here’s how I did it…
Supplies List for Mixed-Media Art Journal:
- Contains Affiliate Links
- Amazon Fresh paper bags, or any paper grocery bag
- Americana paint – Cotton Candy
- Americana paint – Buttermilk
- Americana paint – Light Lime
- Assorted stencils – dots and flowers
- Jane Davenport Power Pastels Crayons
- Decorative Ribbon
- Scissors
- Sharp needle or awl
- Thread
- Crochet ribbon in coordinating color
Directions for Mixed-Media Art Journal:
First, you’ll need to cut the paper bags down to usable sheets. I found that I got the most material out of the bags when I cut the front and back out of each bag, removing the bottom and sides of each bag.
I folded each sheet in half with a bone folder. Note that the bone folder helps get a really sharp crease in the bag. When I folded it with just my fingers, it wasn’t quite a strong enough fold to keep it’s shape while manipulating the sheets for the binding.
I grouped folded sheets in group of 5, then punched holes through the whole stack along the middle seam.
With a needle, pull two loops of white thread through the holes and tie them somewhat loosely (see video above for a better view of this).
Pull the decorative crochet ribbon through the loops at the seam of each booklet.
Measure and trim your cardboard cover to fit your booklets, including a healthy-sized binding. Punch holes to line up with the decorative crochet ribbon and pull the ends of the ribbon through. Tie with a bow.
To decorate the cover, I began with random sized, organic shapes in buttermilk, then added clusters of polka dots in light lime color.
Next, stencil a few flower blooms. Pat with paper towels if you want to add more texture or if you just want to make it dry faster.
Outline the stencil shapes with Power Pastels and add doodles until it feels done.
Ta da! Your Mixed-Media Art Journal is finished. Pair with Power Pastels, colored pencils, oil pastels, and more to create colorful sketches inside!