For The Love of Art-Creative Journals For All Ages

I have always loved drawing, coloring, painting, and making things....ever since I can remember. I come by it naturally. I just recently learned that my grandpa was a very talented artist. He loved it and was very good at it but most people would not have known that about him. Obviously, he didn't blog about it or sell his pieces on Etsy! He did it for himself.
My mom is one of the most creative and talented people that I know, aside from my brother. So, you see, I come by it naturally....my love for creating, that is.
It is a very precious thing to me to be able to use any talent given to me by the Creator himself. And it is clearly how He made me because I really almost need to do it. It is incredibly therapeutic. I enjoy it immensly.
While I know that all four of my children may not always have this same love and passion for art, I certainly want to share it with them. I want to have art supplies readily available to them so that they can use their imaginations and create something themselves. I want to cultivate a love for art in them. I want them to have a deep appreciation for the mind that God has given them.
Although this world is full of so much bad, there is still so much beauty to be seen. I want them to learn to see the beauty that is around them.
ALL of it points to the Creator himself.

I used to keep a journal that I would write in, draw in, jot down ideas, etc. It has been a long time and I have wanted to keep one again for a while now.
I was checking out one of  my favorite blogs one day and was inspired.

Not long after, I headed to Hobby Lobby with the kids in search for art journals, for them and for me.

We got some colored pencils in some really great, vibrant colors, some watercolor pencils, and some super fine point pens (for me).

We already have quite a lot of markers, crayons, acrylic and watercolor paints to play with as well.

I sit down with the kids at the table and we work on our art journals together. I have really enjoyed journaling and drawing again and I love creating with the kids.
They really love this time because mommy sits down and creates with them and because these are not just their norm coloring books. These are their art journals. They are special. They take time working on these and learn to add detail and think outside the box.
This entry is mine. We broke out magazine clippings this particular day and added them to our journal entry, They LOVED this!

 I had fun with this one too.
Now, onto the kid's entries for this day...

This is the work of the Vox. I absolutely adore this one! He wanted those tomatoes so badly which I thought was strange at first. But then he quickly got to work and I realized that he saw those tomatoes and had a vision for his drawing! LOVE!

 This one belongs to the Zane man. Love the text he added himself. I also love the color and the simplicity of it.

And this piece belongs to the Princess. I love that this girl cannot even read yet and she chose the word "style: from the magazine. It fits my little fashionista so well!

You can find journals and sketchbooks like these at any art of craft store. The great thing about the Visual Journal pictured in the beginning of this post is that it is a mixed media journal, meaning the weight and quality of the paper is good for many different ways of expressing yourself.
I plan to add some textiles and a bit of stitching to some future entries....so many possibilities!

Grab an art journal and let your imagination go wild!
-Jenny