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You is talking loco and I like it.

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Can you guess the movie?

I was looking for some journal pages to share tonight and it hit me…..I’m kinda random. All over the place. Maybe it has to do with my ADHD. Oh, and Zoolander is the movie the quote was from. I’m wondering if a person can be so random that they become non-random? How does my OCD fit into that?
Anyways, below are a few pages I picked out and some quotes that were intermingled…..I wanted to share because so many people get hung up on journaling because they don’t want to “mess up” or they want to be consistent. Just decide that “anything goes”….and you won’t be paralyzed. Just say “I meant to do that.”

Ok, I’ll stop rambling….here are the pages:
I have a thing for Sylvia Plath…. maybe because my great-grandmother took her life the same way Plath did. I read and reread her unabridged journals when I can’t sleep. I created the page below around a random journal entry Plath wrote about being tall….I’m 5’11” and I thought she described the “hip slouch” perfectly….I used to do that when I was younger…..before I appreciated my height.
You is talking loco and I like it via lilblueboo.com

“He was the type of fellow I can’t stand. I’m five foot ten in my stocking feet, and when I am with little men I stoop over a bit and slouch my hips, one up and one down, so that I’ll look shorter, and I feel gawky and morbid as somebody in a side show.” – Sylvia Plath in Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath

The page below was just a paint palette I was trying to figure out. Why not put it in your journal, right?

You is talking loco and I like it 2 via lilblueboo.com

“For years I struggled with who I wasn’t. But seeing and believing in who I truly am has given me an unstoppable faith and conviction in what I can do with my life.”
– Sabrina Ward Harrison
“If you are going to send your thoughts in an email again, please attach an Advil with it.”
-a managing director at my old investment banking job

For a while I was experimenting with mailing labels. I printed out a picture of Marilyn Monroe and stuck the labels onto some image transfers I botched (or as I have called them since Kindergarten art class: a “happy mistakes”). Any-hoo, I love how the labels break up the picture.

You is talking loco and I like it 3 via lilblueboo.com

Memories from a Dolly Parton concert my sister and I went to. We had to drive through an ice storm to get there. I love Dolly. Ever use a bleach “stain” pen to write on a photo? Try it. That is how I drew the flowers and dots onto the photo pasted on the page…..

You is talking loco and I like it 4 via lilblueboo.com

“How very.” -from the movie Heathers
“I’m fine. I just threw up in my mouth a bit.”
-from the movie Dodgeball (I have a thing for Ben Stiller movies)

I worked on this page on a flight back in my investment banking days. Great quote. I always use it when a friend is down on themselves for doing something stupid. Medium: crayons and Sharpie markers.

You is talking loco and I like it 5 via lilblueboo.com

Lyrics from the song Burn it Blue, sung by Lila Downs in the movie Frida. The words are stamped onto a collage I made from rice paper and a skeleton photo. Don’t worry Mom, I’m in a good place!

You is talking loco and I like it 6 via lilblueboo.com

I used to get my car serviced at this great auto shop in NC. The guys were so honest and could fix anything. They had these great big white birds. The photos were taken with my izone Polaroid camera and I borrowed the receptionist’s stapler to attach them to the page.

You is talking loco and I like it 7 via lilblueboo.com

A flu diary (did you expect me to actually write more than this when I had the flu??)
You is talking loco and I like it 8 via lilblueboo.com
The page below is an excerpt from two pages I did after our friends’ wedding & rehearsal dinner. I didn’t want to post their personal information so I cropped most of it. I photocopied the two full pages and gave it to them a few years ago and now it hangs framed on their wall……so now it is a permanent plaque for everyone to see just how much I drank that night (no lectures please, I am aware that it was too much) 😉
You is talking loco and I like it 9 via lilblueboo.com
So my journals are totally random, you never know what you’ll get from page to page. But it keeps it interesting right? And I feel no pressure to stick to a script…..have I scared anyone off yet?

Embellished Placemat Clutch (A Tutorial)

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How to make a clutch from a placemat via lilblueboo.com
I’ve had the same handbag/diaper bag for 2.5 years now, so this is huge. My sister is getting married in November and I was experimenting for some bridesmaid ideas (BTW, she is coming out here next week for the LPGA qualifying….and she has promised to do some guest craft posts!)
Back to the purse: Jessica at Happy Together came up with this Placemat Clutch Tutorial. Here is the one I made today….and it took 30 minutes. That might be a record craft time.
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) via lilblueboo.com
I picked up the placemat at the 99 Cent Store.
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) step 1 via lilblueboo.com
I folded it and sewed up both sides. I didn’t have to cut anything. I even followed the existing stitch line.
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) step 2 via lilblueboo.com
I made a frayed flower out of some brown scrap fabric (R.I.P. frump shirt)……..
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) step 3 via lilblueboo.com
……..and went through my jars of buttons for the perfect “center.”
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) step 4 via lilblueboo.com
I attached a magnetic clasp (I used a heavy duty one that goes on with metal prongs)……
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) step 5 via lilblueboo.com
…….and tested the “volume” potential with my mini notebook and phone. It holds a lot!
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) step 6 via lilblueboo.com
My husband loves it so much he thinks I should sell them. So funny…step right up ladies…folded placemats for sale! And I’ve filed it under OPT: Other People’s Tutes.
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) finished via lilblueboo.com
Update: A tutorial to create the fabric flower attached to the clutch!
By request I put together a quick tutorial showing how I made the fabric flower on the placemat clutch:
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) flower via lilblueboo.com
Step 1: Cut three long strips of fabric varying in width. Mine were 25 inches long and 3.5 inches, 3.25 inches and 2 inches wide, respectively.
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) flower step 1 via lilblueboo.com
Step 2: Starting with the widest piece I han
d stitched along one edge (I secured the thread starting point to the fabric itself). Tip: Use polyester thread…..it won’t break as easily as cotton.


How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) flower step 2 via lilblueboo.com
Step 3: I pulled the thread to gather the strip of fabric…..
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) flower step 3 via lilblueboo.com
……and carefully formed it into a spiral, overlapping the gathers carefully. I stitched up and down through the center to secure the fabric.
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) flower step 4 via lilblueboo.com
Step 4: I repeated this process with the next “narrower” strip of fabric and then placed it on top of my other gathered piece and secured it by stitching up and down through the center.
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) flower step 5 via lilblueboo.com
Step 5: Repeat the entire process with the last strip of fabric. Stitch around the center to secure the gathering evenly.
How to make a clutch from a placemat (tutorial) flower finished via lilblueboo.com
The last thing I did was fray the edges the flower and added a button to the center. Feel free to email me if you have any questions!

Distressed Folk Art Painting (A Tutorial)

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How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial via lilblueboo.com

This tutorial was featured on U-Create last week. I had the hardest time narrowing down what type of tutorial I wanted to put together for my “guest appearance” but I had recently gauged interest on my blog by posting a painting I had done using the same process as I outline below and thought this would be the perfect opportunity!

So here it is:

How To Make a Distressed Folk Art Painting*

How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial 2 via lilblueboo.com

*If you’ve ever been scared to paint before, here is your chance….anyone can do this. Acrylic paint is VERY forgiving. If you mess up, just paint over it!
I love Mexican Folk Art and I was inspired by this Frida-themed fabric for my painting:

How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial 3 via lilblueboo.com

I’m a little obsessed with Frida Kahlo. (I was lucky enough to see most of her works in person at the Tate in London a few years ago. They had to kick me out at closing! Did you know Madonna owns Frida’s famous “My Birth” painting? I wonder where she hangs that?) Frida and her intellectual circle brought Mexican folk art to the forefront in the early 1900’s. Frida surrounded herself with paper-mache figures, traditional weavings, brightly colored embroidery, ribbons etc.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial 4 via lilblueboo.com
I’ve worked bright colors and paper mache into my own painting process to reflect the Mexican folk art theme. You can use the following steps to make your own.
Materials needed:
Canvas
Newsprint or phone book pages
Matte medium or glue
White gesso or white acrylic paint
Acrylic paint in several colors
Crackle finish kit (any brand)
Acrylic gloss varnish
Sandpaper or an electric sander

Step 1: I took a small 5 x 7 canvas and covered it with matte medium (I prefer Liquitex Matte Medium …I save my 40% off art store coupons JUST for this stuff!). You could also substitute watered down glue for this step. Once the canvas was covered with a generous amount of medium I took small sections of old phone book pages and adhered them using the excess medium. You may have to add more medium as you go. It is similar to making a paper-mache layer (you can use newsprint as well, I just prefer the way the small font looks from the phone book pages).
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 1 via lilblueboo.com*I use matte medium to make my art journal pages as well. It leaves a matte stiff texture when dry.
Step 2: Once the paper layer was completely dry, I used white gesso to cover the canvas and make it an opaque white. This prepares the surfaces for paint.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 2 via lilblueboo.com
I let this layer dry completely.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 2 dry via lilblueboo.com
Step 3: I don’t use any fancy kind of paint. I actually prefer the small bottles of acrylic craft paints like the one shown below because they run about $1 a bottle and you can get so many colors (I am lazy when it comes to mixing custom colors).
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 3 via lilblueboo.com
I painted my entire canvas a base color of “Patina.”
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial painted canvas via lilblueboo.com
Step 4: I sketched my Frida image on to the canvas. If you aren’t comfortable drawing your image you can always print one out and trace it using graphite paper.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 4 via lilblueboo.com
Step 5: I blocked my colors in using the craft paints. I use a generous amount of paint in this step and did several coats (you will be sanding the layers down later in the process so you want to make sure to get enough paint on the canvas).
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 5 via lilblueboo.com
Step 6: I took a regular wall stencil and used it to draw some “flourishes” around the canvas. I even drew them onto the sides by wrapping the stencil around. Then I blocked these shapes in with paint.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 6 via lilblueboo.com
Step 7: I took a small paint brush and painted little dots around all the shapes to add some more detail (again using a generous amount of paint).
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 7 via lilblueboo.com
Let your painting dry for a while to ensure your layers are completely dry. This may take several hours.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial let dry via lilblueboo.com
Step 8: I took my small mouse sander (you can do this by hand with a sanding block as well) and carefully sanded off portions of the painting. Places where your paper layer has wrinkles will sand off easily and give a very random “wear” to your painting.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 8 via lilblueboo.com
I sanded the edges as well paying attention to where an old painting would get the most wear.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial sand edges via lilblueboo.com
Here is what my painting looked like at this stage:
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial at this stage via lilblueboo.com
Step 9: Take some dark brown paint and water it down a little to make a thin glaze (I use Golden Fluid Acrylics because they thin well and are a nice glaze layer, but any paint will work).
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 9 via lilblueboo.com
Spread the brown glaze layer making sure to get it into the places where the paper is showing through. The paper layer will soak this glaze up and turn a brownish color. Take a cloth or paper towel and wipe off the excess paint. If it dries too fast just wet your canvas a little and try to wipe it off again. Let this layer dry.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial spread glaze via lilblueboo.com
Step 10: You can get a small “fragile” cracklekit like the one below at your art or craft supply. It is two step process and you can follow the directions on the bottle…..
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 10 via lilblueboo.com
…..but basically you are going to cover your canvas with a thin layer of the “step 1” bottle, let it dry until it is clear and then repeat with the “step 2” bottle. As it dries, tiny hairline “crackle” will begin to form.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial thin layer of step 1 via lilblueboo.com
Step 11: Once the crackle layer is dry, I sanded the painting again to give it some extra distressing. Wipe any dust off with a damp cloth or paper towel.
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 11 via lilblueboo.com

Step 12: I spread another layer of brown glaze making sure to work it into the cracks and then wiped off the excess. You may want to do this several times until you achieve the “aging” effect you like.

How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 12 via lilblueboo.com

Step 13: The last thing I did was brush a thin gloss layer over the top for a slight sheen. I like the Liquitex Gloss Medium and Varnish shown below because it dries almost instantly and isn’t too shiny.
Here is the finished painting: old and decrepit-looking. Now it looks like it has an interesting past life!
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial step 13 via lilblueboo.com
Here is another painting I did of Our Lady of Guadalupe:

How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial another pic via lilblueboo.com

How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial another pic 2 via lilblueboo.com
How to make a distressed folk art-style painting. DIY tutorial another pic 3 via lilblueboo.com

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