Be sure to visit CRESCENDOh today where I'm sharing links to
a couple fantabulous art journaling resources!

xo & belief in you,

Carmen

I love dreamers!  Seeing people follow their dreams rocks my world.  It's empowering and inspiring and makes me want to leap fearlessly towards mine.  

Last week marked the launch of CRESCENDOh, Jenny Doh's new creative endeavor.  Have you checked it out yet?  I'm super excited to be one of the guest curators this week!  Pop over there each day for new links to tutorials and creative projects.  You're sure to find something inspiring on every visit. 

What dreams are you ready to dive into? 

Let's hear it!

Believing in you,
Carmen 

watercolor Moleskine, watercolored page, random image added via gel medium transfer

Have a fantabulous weekend!
Look for me next week over at CRESCENDOh.

Mucho love,

Carmen

In the beginning,
I created a visual journal from
a watercolor Moleskine,
watercolored pages
& a few bits of collage.

For those of you that asked how I created the journal pages from Monday's post, this is how they started.

Then I've been adding images via collage and image transfers and randomly distressing, painting, stamping, scraping, sanding, scratching and anything else that feels right.  Total labor of love. 

Mucho love,

Carmen 

I love the idea of "sharing what inspires us" and connecting with other bloggers, so when I read the following on sfgirlbybay's blog about Blog it Forward, I was instantly intrigued and inspired:

we’re going to share a connected stream of blogger posts on ‘what inspires us the most’ on our individual blogs, but link back & forward to the other blogs participating, a bit like a chain letter (but, hopefully a lot less annoying!).

And so were 300 (!) other bloggers!  Talk about inspiration!!! 

I've been tagged by Carla Kay White, who blogs about her journey of jumpstarting her happiness through giving thanks and giving back.  ♥  And I get to tag Cartoules Letterpress whose antique Golding & Co. Pearl Letterpress, Margaritari, just celebrated her 123rd birthday.  How cool is that?! 

Here are a few places I'm finding inspiration lately!

• Elke Mae
• Karen Michels
• Oiseaux (especially her Collage A Day Gallery)
• Daily Poetics collages on Flickr
• Maine Momma's Little Big Things Flickr Set
• CRESCENDOh
• Swirly's 100 Books Project
• and the ladies of Spring Inspiration

Where are you finding Inspiration lately?
Feel free to use the comments as a place for inspiration sharing and conversation starting!

Mucho love and Happy Tuesday,

Carmen

Journal pages in progress. 

Major break though over here.  I've struggled with art journaling for a while.  I tried and tried, but couldn't find my groove.  While working on artwork for my book and spending a great deal of time thinking about signature style and the importance of working instinctively, I began to realize that I was trying to create a style instead of letting my style evolve and happen on it's own. 

I purchased a new Moleskine a week or so ago and decided to use it as a visual journal... a place to paint, play, plop images down with a glue stick, rip out fascinating pictures from old magazines to practice image transfers and other techniques with.  

I'm working on multiple pages at once, randomly painting pages and randomly matching colors with images and I'm feeling drawn into my studio to add bits and pieces here and there.  

I'm in Visual Journaling Heaven right now!  

Mucho love,

Carmen

I'm honored to be a small part of Swirly's 100 Books Project.  She, along with the help of book fairies world wide, is randomly leaving copies of her book, Ordinary Sparkling Moments, literally all over the world as a gift to a stranger, a random act of kindness if you will. 

I had planned to leave the book in an artsy area in Jensen Beach, but when we drove there on our way to the beach on Sunday, the street was packed with people and the timing just wasn't right.  So I decided to wait for a better day or time.  

When we got to Jensen Beach Park and walked down the little boardwalk through the sea-grapes, I spotted a lonely bench and thought it might be a good spot to leave the book.  I decided that if it still seemed like the perfect spot as we were leaving, I'd go for it.

And it was, so I did. 

I've been making good use of my commute the past two weeks by listening to audiobooks.  I started Gretchen Rubin's, The Happiness Project, this week and I'm mentally taking note of small things I can incorporate into my days until I'm ready to start my own Happiness Project.  

As I was listening on the way to work this morning I found Gretchen's section on hugs worthy of adding to my little mental list of action items.  She talks about research that shows that holding hugs for at least 6 seconds promotes the body's release of oxytocin, a natural mood-booster.  

"Now this is a train I could jump on!", I thought. Hugs rock my socks off as it is and there is absolutely no reason I can't hug a little longer, a little more often.  

So after we got settled in at home tonight, I walked over to Dan and specifically asked for a 6 second hug.  He obliged, but asked why. I stated, quite matter of factly, that "hugs that last 6 seconds or longer promote the release of oxycontin." We both busted out laughing.  It was a classic Carmen moment.  I'm known for mixing up words... I get it from my mom.  (Sorry mom.  It's true... and I love you for it.)  

I love that in addition to getting my oxytocin on and some laughter, I also got an inside joke out of the deal. It will now be perfectly acceptable for me to walk up to my husband and tell him that I need my fix... and he'll give me a 6 second hug.  

Go get your fix. Hugs, not drugs!

Get your happy on! 

xo,
Carmen