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Canvas Preparation for the Art Curious
If you’ve been art journaling for a while, you may be interested in trying a project on canvas. For many of us it can be intimidating to know where to start with canvas preparation. When I first started painting and using canvases for mixed media, choosing a canvas, and learning how to prepare them for painting was confusing. This tutorial will show you how easy it is to prepare a canvas for painting including tips and techniques to give you great results. Materials for Canvas Preparation A Stretched Canvas or Canvas Board Choose a stretched canvas or canvas board that you would like to use in a project. Most stretched…
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5 Creative Techniques with Watercolor Markers
Watercolor markers are a fun and easy way to add beautiful blends of color to your creative projects. Watercolor markers and pens are easy to use and work well on a variety of surfaces. Today I am sharing 5 easy techniques for using watercolor markers in your creative projects. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you. Learn more. Watercolor Markers Watercolor markers come in many brands and styles. These range from fine tip pens to dual brush markers in a variety of thicknesses and nib styles. If you are new to watercolor and watercolor…
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Intimidated by Watercolor Mixing? An Easy Watercolor Tutorial
If you are new to watercolor painting, watercolor mixing may seem intimidating. Watercolor mixing is a great way of learning the palette, but where to start? What colors do you use? How do you mix colors without creating mud? When I was first learning how to use watercolor and acrylic paints, color mixing seemed impossible to learn. But I was determined to move past only using the color from the tube. I experimented, learned from others and I continue to grow in my skills. The effort to learn color mixing is worth it. Not only does it improve your paintings, but it also provides so much freedom in your creative…
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Creative Stamping with Watercolor Markers
Stamping with watercolor markers is a great way of customizing your stamping designs in your art journal or creative projects. I love watercolor markers because they can be used in so many different ways. Not just as writing or drawing pens, but also used with stamps and other mark making tools. Stamping with watercolor markers is a less conventional way of using these markers in your creative projects. Today I will be sharing some of my favorite techniques and how I use watercolor markers to customize my stamped images. Watercolor Markers There are a variety of watercolor markers available, but I prefer watercolor markers that have both a writing…
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Wild and Wonderful Art Journal Papers: An Exploration into Japanese Paper
There are so many unique art journal papers that I like to use in my creative projects and Japanese paper is one of my favorites. As much as I love my paints and mediums, I get just as excited about good quality paper. Using Japanese paper in collage and creative projects can add unique designs and textures to your pages. Today I’d like to share with you why I love Japanese paper and why you might want to try these unique art journal papers on your next project. Why Use Japanese Paper? If you want to create a unique look on your next art journaling project, try Japanese paper. This…
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Creating Mixed Media Tissue Paper
If you are looking to personalize your art journal projects, creating mixed media tissue paper is a fun way to get unique colors and textures. Creating mixed media tissue paper is easy and only requires a few materials. In this tutorial I will share with you three different techniques for getting a variety of different textures with mixed media tissue paper. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you. Learn more. What Type of Tissue Paper to Use? There are a variety of tissue papers that you can use for this technique. From tissue paper used…
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Art Journaling with Tissue Paper Collage
Tissue paper collage is a fun way to add layers and textures to your art journal pages. You can get a variety of printed tissue papers or purchase plain tissue paper to alter with inks, stamps and paints. The possibilities for tissue paper collage are endless and it’s a great way of personalizing your journal. For today’s project and tutorial I am using Dina Wakley collage tissue paper. The papers are printed in both black and white which provides versatility on how you can apply them in your projects. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost…
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Art Journaling with Napkins
Have you ever tried adding napkins to your art journal? Art journaling with napkins is such a fun and easy technique to add pattern and design to your page. Especially if you are new to art journaling, this is an easy technique to get you creating full pages in no time! Today we will be discussing what napkins to use and how to prepare them for use in your art journal. I will also demonstrate how to attach the napkins and different techniques for creating napkin art in your journal. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at…
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Loosen Up with Contour Drawing and Painterly Effects
Do you ever struggle with drawing and getting overwhelmed by the details? Contour drawing is a great way to loosen up your drawing practice. Today I will share with you how to create a contour drawing and how to create painterly effects using watercolor paints. What is Contour Drawing? Contour drawing is the practice of drawing an outline of the subject using one continuous line. When contour drawing you do not take your pen off the page as you draw. The benefit of contour drawing is that it defines the basic shape by creating a line drawing. If you tend to get stuck in the details when drawing, this technique…
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(SM)ART Goals: Starting and Developing Your Creative Goals
As today is the last day of 2021, many of us are thinking about our goals for the coming year. When choosing goals, many of us don’t include our creative goals. We may see it as something fun and frivolous to be slotted in between the practical demands of our lives. Today I wanted to share with you how I set my creative goals for the year and how we can use SMART goals for starting and developing our creative practice. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you. Learn more. What are SMART Goals? If…
The Art of Self-Care
