Once upon a time, people followed this website closely. They were eager for new articles, because art journaling, ATCs, and mixed-media art were brand new and I was one of the few artists talking about them.
Today, most people land on this website from a search engine like Google.
I’m revising and updating the site so Google recognizes what’s here (and what isn’t). This site has hundreds of articles… yes, that’s a lot of content. And much of it is still useful.
The site has a new name, “Art and… Something.” See the About page if that seems baffling. The URLs will still include Aisling.net as the domain, but you can also get here by typing in ArtAndSomething.com. (You can use all lower-case letters, if you like.)
My ArtistsJournals.com content will be moving here, in the next few days. Old, still-helpful blog articles will appear here, as well.
And, as I launch my new book series later in 2020, you’ll see that info – and some related freebies – as well.
2020 is going to be a very cool start to a brand new decade. I hope you’re excited. I am!
To celebrate moving this website to better, more powerful hosting (in July 2019), I’ve created three free posters you can download and print.
They’re PDFs. Each is designed to print on an 8.5″ x 11″ sheet of paper, with a small margin around them for matting. (The photos show what they’ll look like, framed.)
Click on any image to download it from Google Drive. And yes, they’re free. It’s okay to share these with friends… just don’t use them commercially, okay?
As we trek through 2019, I’m continuing to redesign this website. I’d thought about making this a blog again – since that’s how this site started – but then I realized it’d shift the emphasis away from my main goal for this site: To put creative ideas, tips, and resources in the hands of more people, whether or not they consider themselves artists.
So, in the coming weeks, I’m hoping to restructure this site so it’s easier to find the kinds of information and resources you’re looking for.
Expect more freebies here, as well.
Today, I’m sharing five different coloring pages. They’re 8.5″ x 11″ PDFs you can download and print.
All five are kind of hippie-style, as that’s what I enjoy drawing.
If you’d like to share this blog post with friends, use this URL: http://bit.ly/enthusiasm4u (On a PC, right-click on the link and choose “Copy link address.”)
More info…
*Starting at Earth Day 2018, I decided to spread some everyday happiness with my neighbors, the UPS guy, people dropping off Amazon stuff, etc. So, I began putting a daily, decorated motivational message on my front door.
(Changing the sign, daily, is super-easy. The frame is open on three sides, so swapping signs takes less than 30 seconds.)
Then I hung it from a 3M Command Outdoor Hook (which doesn’t damage the door). The illustration shows today’s door sign.
So, that’s one thing you can do with signs like this.
I also have them on my laundry room door, in my kitchen, in the bathroom, and in the bedroom. Because I can. And these bring smiles to everyone who sees them.
This project started as my personal notepaper. Then… it sort of grew.
At first, I wrote my messages in the white rectangle in the middle. Then, I hand-colored the border design.
Last week, I realized I could print these for the children in my family, so they had an area to color, but also an area to draw in. (They’re at the age where they love coloring, but they also love to draw.)
And then, I decided to make these available to everyone, free.
Click on each image below, and the related PDF will open for you to download. (These are 8 1/2″ x 11″ pages, and each graphic is linked to a different PDF.)
And then… I realized my other neighbors might enjoy this writing paper, too. So, I got an easy-to-remember Bit.ly URL, Free2Color.
After that, I created the following sign, colored it (by hand, of course), and taped it to our front door.
This goes along with another recent, hippie-style project for my neighbors:
Every morning during the week of Earth Day, I put a new message in one of my front windows. I printed the signs large enough so passers-by could read them when they’re on their way to work, or walking their dogs.
Most of the messages came from late 1960s’ and early 70s’ songs… things from Woodstock and the hippie era, in general. Others reflected similar attitudes.
Here were a few of them, stacked on my floor.
If you like this window-sign idea, the font is Elsie Swash Caps Black font, and the size should be at least 120 pts to be read by people passing by your home. (For other signs, I’ve used Placard GF at about 150 pts, and a few similar fonts.)
Generally, I printed them on two sheets of 8.5″ x 11″ paper, horizontal, and then I taped them together to make the window sign.
But then, I decided to create actual door signs, and color them. (They’re smaller and more fun to create. Generally, I design, print, and color them in one-week batches, in front of the TV.) You can download some of my door signs – already colored, or b&w copies you can color, yourself – at my Enthusiasm is Contagious post.
These projects come from my “still a hippie” soul, with the idea that doing nice things for other people – and putting more happiness into the world – is the right thing to do.
As a coloring book artist, I think it’s important to color your own drawings, so you understand the experience.
It’s why I create lots of different kinds of coloring books. Some people want big, bold areas to color. They want to complete them in one sitting.
Others want tiny, detailed areas, and pages that take a long time to complete.
And some want a mix of both in every coloring book.
My “Good Vibes” coloring book is a mix. This video shows one of my more detailed designs, and how I colored it. (It was a stressful, not-enough-sleep week, and coloring this was a way for me to get the tension out.)
I’ll post more videos like this, as I color my own pages. They may give you some ideas for how you’d color them… or, hey, maybe how you wouldn’t! LOL
Also, I was using three brands of coloring pencils: Pluqis, Prismacolor, and Staedtler.
I was impressed with Pluqis. For the low price, I expected very hard leads that wouldn’t blend well.
Instead, I love them. They’re not as brilliant as Prismacolor colors, but I often use Pluqis first. Then, I add dazzle with Prismacolor coloring (lightly) over the Pluqis areas, or using Prismacolor for highlights & shadows.
Tip: Prismacolor leads can be just slippery/oily enough that it’s difficult to color over them… unless you’re using another Prismacolor pencil, that is.
So, I usually sketch in my color ideas with Pluqis, first. If I don’t bear down too heavily on the paper, I can usually color over Pluqis with Prismacolor… but not always vice versa.
Prismacolor pencils are pretty much the top of the line for most coloring book enthusiasts. They’re soft, they blend well, and… yes, the price can be daunting. I bought their Manga set, which is priced fairly low at Amazon.com, and it includes some good, juicy brights and subtle darks.
However, I know people who consider Staedtler the absolute best among colored pencils. So, it’s probably a matter of taste. And, sometimes Staedtler is the only line with the exact color that I need.
I hope those tips help. I’ll share more creative ideas – and coloring videos – soon.
Meanwhile, I hope you’ll try my Good Vibes coloring book, and let me know what you’d like more of, in the future.
This Christmas – like last year – we started kitchen gardens for friends & family.
They’ve been a great success. (My own green onions have been thriving for over a year now. I just keep cutting them back – to use in recipes – and the plants regrow bigger & more flavorful every time.)
Today, we delivered four green onion plants (already started) as Boxing Day gifts to the four managers of the apartments where we live.
If this sounds interesting to you, here are links to the instruction sheets (PDFs) I created. They explain how to start your own kitchen garden, using items from the produce department at your grocery store.
Christmas is no exception. So far, I’ve created two Christmas coloring books. They’re filled with ornaments you can color, cut out, embellish, and display. Each is designed to hang on your tree, your Christmas wreath, or as part of a holiday mobile or something.
(Of course, if you celebrate holidays other than Christmas, these ornaments still work. The designs are entirely abstract.)
These Christmas coloring books start taking my coloring-ish books in a slightly new direction. I’m including more craftsy ideas in them.
These books include four pages of how-to ideas to do more with the ornaments… like fasten them to paper garlands. Or scan them, print them on fabric, and make quilted ornaments with them. (Or even use them as centerpieces for each square in a quilt.)
A preview of 2017…? Maybe.
For 2017, I’m starting to focus on different, creative projects. Things that take me back to my artsy-craftsy roots.
See… a few decades ago (it sounds SO weird to say that), I used to create monthly, full-page crafts pages for Lady’s Circle magazine. Each of my pages would include a simple pattern for a creative project. And then… I’d go wild with lots of ideas to use that pattern in a variety of ways.
It all started when I created a simple teddy bear design, and turned him into a “no-sew” crafts project. It involved natural herbs that repelled moths, and teddy would become an ornament-sachet to hang in your closet.
He was a huge success. Lady’s Circle readers responded with enthusiasm.
And… I kept creating designs (and myriad ideas for using them), month after month, until the magazine changed editorial direction, a couple of years later.
I loved creating those projects, and I think I want to get back to that for 2017. I’m still thinking about it.
In fact, I’m re-reading Amanda Palmer’s book, “The Art of Asking,” and Cory Doctorow’s book “Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free,” to reconsider my business models.
My hippie impulses are kicking in again, hard. And, I’m looking at ways to make lots more treats available, free… while still being able to earn a living.
So, my websites may start looking very different in 2017.
Meanwhile, back at ye olde Christmas drawing board…
I’m working on these Christmas ornament coloring books. The first two are in Amazon right now. (At least one more may follow, in the next week or so.)
Each book includes:
Over 180 unique, round ornaments in different sizes and styles. (I haven’t counted, but I know the number is over 180, and I’m pretty sure it’s over 200.)
All designs are printed on one side of the page. So, there’s no bleed-through of ink… unless you’re using really juicy markers, I suppose.
Every ornament is designed to color, cut out, and hang on your Christmas tree or wreath. (Or tape to your window. Or iron onto a tee shirt with the appropriate — or inappropriate — holiday greeting. Go ahead. Have fun with this.)
Also: Four pages of decorating and crafts ideas, to get the most from these ornaments. (That’s what I referred to, earlier in this article. It’s a “sneak preview” of what I’m considering for 2017.)
Bonus: Two Christmas wreaths to color and decorate. Cut ’em out. Tape them to your dorm or apartment door. Or to your cubicle. Instant Christmas spirit!
Plus: Additional pages of Christmas ornament coloring pages. Most started as experiments, as I designed my holiday books. (Some worked out better than others, but I figured all of them were good enough to share, anyway.)
And sample pages from a few of my other coloring books.
Both books are suited to family activities. I tested them with children as young as three years old, and with adults. Everyone enjoyed them.
So, you can color your ornaments now, and display them at your home or office.
OR, you can plan this as a family activity, during holiday get-togethers. (They’re also ideal for classrooms and Scout meetings, “girls’ night out” activities, etc.)
So far, Volumes 1 & 2
The coloring designs in Volume 1 (black background cover) are more ornate and detailed, but still in my usual “hippie style.” If you liked 1960s art by Peter Max, and the designs in the Beatles’ film, “Yellow Submarine,” this is the book you’ll want.
(Not sure? See the freebie sampler page, linked below.)
Volume 2 (white background cover) is more relaxed, and all the ornaments feature loops, swirls, and circle artwork. They’re probably faster to color.
And, remember: My coloring books are priced super-low, and each books’ copyrights include my formal okay to copy for personal use. So, go ahead and share these ornament pages with your students. Or your friends.
Yes, this seems like a good day for a free coloring page.
I’m working on a couple of new coloring book series. So, I’m happy to share one of the pages.
I draw these by hand, and then clean up the lines (just a little) in Photoshop.
So, they’re kind of irregular. They’re kind of organic. And, yes, they’re a style I’ve been drawing in, since my early teens.
(As a teen, at the local public library, I created each summer’s reading program artwork for the Children’s Reading Room. It was almost always in this style… wavy, wobbly, and fantastical.)
As artists, bloggers, authors, publishers, and generally creative people, we often turn to stock images — at sites like Shutterstock, DepositPhotos.com, FreeImages.com, MorgueFile.com (not what it sounds like), and a bazillion others — for art, photos, and inspiration.
But, do you know what’s okay to use in your artwork…? And what’s legal to use in artwork you sell…?
I’ve talked about copyright in the past. I’ve also debunked the “three stroke rule.” Those are old articles, but most of the information still applies. (Remember: I’ve been online, talking about art, for 20 years now. Really.)
Now, a friend has created a great article and infographic on the topic of stock images and how/when to use them:
Click to download red heart poster
Click to download poster with greenery heart.
Click to download poster with wood background
This has been a transformative week… in a year of “ah-HA!” transitions and cool discoveries.
More info…
Do I color my own coloring pages? Yes, I do.
Prismacolor pencils
As artists, bloggers, authors, publishers, and generally creative people, we often turn to stock images — at sites like Shutterstock,