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The Art of Self-Care

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  • SHOP
  • ABOUT
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  • CLASSES
  • COMMUNITY
  • SHOP
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT

Recent Posts

  • 3 Ways to Make Your Mixed Media Pages POP!3 Techniques to Make Your Mixed Media Pages POP!
    In Art Journal, Techniques
  • How to Make Collage Papers for FreeMake Gorgeous Collage Papers for Free
    In Techniques
  • How to Choose an Art Journal You’ll Love
    In Art Journal
  • Festive and Fabulous Gel Print Holiday Cards
    Art Classes,  Techniques

    The Best DIY Gel Print Holiday Cards

    December 5, 2025 /

    Are you looking for inspiring ideas for using your gel plate to make fabulous gel print holiday cards? The gel plate is so versatile. You can use any color combination and imagery to create one-of-a-kind papers and cards. If you’ve never used a gel plate, it’s so fun and completely addicting! If you’re anything like me, you’ll sit down to do a few gel prints and will end up with dozens of them! The Gel Plate Problem When I am teaching, I usually get these two questions about gel plate printing. How Do I Get Consistent Prints? Gel plate printing can feel impossible at the beginning if you’re creating on…

    Read More
    Nadine Milton

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    Snowflake Christmas Card

    Snowflake Christmas Card

    November 20, 2020
    How to Use Distress Embossing Glazes

    How to Use Distress Embossing Glazes

    April 1, 2020

    How to Paint a Tree in 3 Easy Steps!

    June 12, 2024
  • gel plate printing with leaves and grasses
    Techniques

    Unique & Easy Gel Printing with Leaves and Grasses

    September 19, 2025 /

    Did you know some of the best tools for gel printing are growing right outside? Grab some leaves, your gel plate, and let’s jump in! Today I’ll show you how to use real plants to create beautiful, organic textures. You might just be surprised by the stunning details that show up. Gel plate printing with leaves and grasses is easy, beginner-friendly, and a little bit magical! 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. Where do You Find Leaves? In my garden I am surrounded by a LOT of textures and leaves to choose…

    Read More
    Nadine Milton

    You May Also Like

    Canvas Preparation for the Art Curious

    Canvas Preparation for the Art Curious

    March 4, 2022
    Coping with Anxiety during the Holidays

    Coping with Anxiety during the Holidays

    December 17, 2019
    3 Ways to use Tombow Markers

    3 Ways To Use Tombow Markers

    February 28, 2020
  • Gel print art journal page featuring hummingbirds and flowers
    Projects,  Techniques

    Gel Print Collage Techniques You’ll Love

    July 18, 2025 /

    Gel printing is fun… until you realize you’ve made more gel prints than you know what to do with! Don’t worry—we’ve all been there. The good news? There’s no wrong way to start using these gel prints in your next collage. Today we’ll walk through simple and creative ways to use your gel prints in a collage project. I’ll be sharing my favorite tips and techniques to design and create an effective collage page. 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. The Overwhelm of Gel Prints It happens to all of us. We…

    Read More
    Nadine Milton

    You May Also Like

    Mixed Media Tag Nature Does Not Hurry

    Mixed Media Tag “Nature Does Not Hurry”

    June 4, 2021
    Beginner Friendly Acrylic Painting Techniques

    5 Beginner Friendly Acrylic Painting Techniques

    May 13, 2022
    Art Journal Backgrounds with Spray Paints and Inks

    Easy Art Journal Backgrounds with Spray Paints and Inks

    April 21, 2023
  • Layered gel plates created by Nadine Milton
    Techniques

    How to Master Gel Print Layers in Monoprinting

    June 13, 2025 /

    Are you struggling with creating beautiful layers with your gel prints? If so, you’re not alone. You may have seen so many articles and videos that may look simple but you’re still struggling to get great results. Join me as I show you two different ways I create layered prints with my gel plate to get the best results every time! 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. Embrace Imperfection The hard thing about gel plate printing with layers is that you might have a great idea. But you try it and it…

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    Nadine Milton

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    Detail of Card Live Life in Full Bloom Stamped Card Colored with Distress Crayons

    Quick Coloring Technique Using Distress Crayons

    September 24, 2021
    Create Unique Art Journal Backgrounds with Plastic Wrap

    How to Create Unique Art Journal Backgrounds with Plastic Wrap

    August 19, 2023
    How to use watercolor powders with stencils

    The Best Way to Use Watercolor Powders with Stencils

    April 26, 2025
  • gel plate printing for beginners
    Techniques

    How to Start Gel Printing with Zero Experience

    May 3, 2025 /

    Do you have a brand-new gel plate with no idea how to use it? Gel plate printing fun and beautiful art form is so relaxing and creative, but there’s tricks for getting the best results with your plate. Let’s pull out our gel plates as I share with you everything you need to know to get started with gel printing. 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. Learning to Gel Print for the First Time When I started gel printing many years ago, I started by watching videos. But I found learning how…

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    Nadine Milton

    You May Also Like

    Easy Brusho Christmas Card

    Easy Brusho Christmas Card

    December 22, 2020
    How to get the best results with napkin decoupage

    New to Napkin Decoupage? Start HERE!

    June 28, 2024
    wet-on-wet watercolor techniques mixing colors

    Easy Wet-on-Wet Watercolor Techniques for Beginners

    October 28, 2022
  • Struggling with Contrast when Gelli Printing? Here’s How to Fix It
    Techniques

    Struggling with Contrast when Gelli Printing? Here’s How to Fix It

    December 8, 2023 /

    Are you struggling with contrast when gelli printing? This is a common challenge when monoprinting with a gel plate. There is always experimentation when playing with monoprinting. You won’t always be able to control the result. But here are a few tips and ideas to help you get great results when creating contrasting gelli prints. 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. Leaving Objects on the Gelli Plate when Printing You may be struggling with contrast with your gelli prints because you don’t have enough contrast between the elements. Start by adding a…

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    Nadine Milton

    You May Also Like

    Lessons in the creative process Adventures in Book binding and learning new creative skills

    Lessons in the Creative Process: My Adventure with Book Binding

    November 26, 2021
    How to Get Comfortable with Your Watercolors an Easy Art Journal Project

    How to Get Comfortable with Your Watercolors

    February 10, 2023
    The Intuitive Collage Process | How to Get Past a Creative Block

    The Intuitive Collage Process | How to Get Past a Creative Block

    June 12, 2023
  • Working in a Series with Gelli Prints Calendar Project
    Projects,  Techniques

    Working in a Series with Gelli Prints

    December 30, 2022 /

    Have you ever used your gelli prints to work in a series? Using gelli prints to create a series of work can be a fun and creative way to use your prints in project. Today we’ll be creating a calendar project using a series of gelli prints and stamps to bring cohesion to our series.  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 is Working in a Series Working in a series is a term often used by artists when they use one subject, set of colors or techniques to make multiple works…

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    Nadine Milton

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    Creating an Art Journal Page Using Paper Glossy Accents and Distress Crayons

    Easy Art Journal Page Using Paper

    September 16, 2022
    Valentines Art Journal Page

    Valentines Art Journal Page

    February 5, 2021
    Mental Illness Awareness Week

    Mental Illness Awareness Week

    October 2, 2020
  • v
    Techniques

    How to Create Gelli Prints with 5 Types of Ink

    August 19, 2022 /

    When learning how to create gelli prints with inks, it can be hard to know which ink to choose. There are so many to choose from. What ink is the most vibrant? What inks will stain your gel plate? Today we will cover 5 popular inks and how they work with the gelli plate on both gloss paper and cardstock. 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. How to Gelli Print with Inks The basic technique to create gelli prints with inks is the same as paint. To create a beautiful print, apply…

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    Nadine Milton

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    Japanese Art Journal Papers

    Wild and Wonderful Art Journal Papers: An Exploration into Japanese Paper

    February 4, 2022
    Contour Drawing with Watercolor and Wax Resist

    Loosen Up with Contour Drawing and Painterly Effects

    January 7, 2022
    An Easy Watercolor Tutorial on Watercolor Mixing

    Intimidated by Watercolor Mixing? An Easy Watercolor Tutorial

    February 18, 2022
  • How to Use Gel Prints in Your Art Journal
    Art Journal,  Techniques

    Feeling Stuck? How to Use Gel Prints in Your Art Journal Projects

    July 29, 2022 /

    Do you ever stare at your stack of gel prints wondering how to use those gel prints in your projects? You’re not alone. It can be overwhelming to take the beautiful prints you’ve made and figure out how to incorporate them into your journal. Today I’ll share with you one way that I like using gel prints in my art journal and how easy it is to add gel prints into 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 to you. Learn more. Adding Gel Prints to the Art Journal There are so many ways of…

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    Nadine Milton

    You May Also Like

    Art Journaling Project with Tissue Paper Collage

    Art Journaling with Tissue Paper Collage

    January 21, 2022
    Basic art journal techniques using acrylic paint and napkins

    New to Art Journaling? Basic Techniques using Paints and Napkins

    January 27, 2023
    Nadine Milton Value Drawing of Moraine Lake

    My Journey in Learning How to Draw

    April 1, 2022
  • How to Gelli Print on Canvas
    Art Journal,  Techniques

    How to Gelli Print on Canvas

    July 8, 2022 /

    Have you ever tried gelli printing on surfaces other than paper? This summer I’ve been playing around with different surfaces with my gel plate to see what interesting results I’ll get. My newest experiment was how to Gelli print on canvas and I’ve been surprised by the results. 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. Types of Canvas for Gelli Printing There is a variety of canvas that can be used for Gelli printing. My favorite canvas is artist canvas pads in black and white. These pads are easy to use as the…

    Read More
    Nadine Milton

    You May Also Like

    Goal Setting During the Summer

    Goal Setting During the Summer

    July 10, 2020
    Dealing with Loss During the Holiday Season

    Dealing with Loss During the Holiday Season

    December 5, 2019
    Nadine Milton Sketching in Kelowna Japanese Garden

    Why You Should Try an Art Retreat

    August 13, 2022
123

Nadine Milton

Visual Storyteller & Mixed Media Artist

Welcome to Hop-A-Long Studio! I would love for you to join me in the journey of self-care through artistic expression.

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Acceptance (10) acrylic paint (16) Acrylic Painting (17) Applying Art Mediums (14) Applying Brusho Powders (10) Art Ideas (22) art journal (20) Art Journaling (62) Art Tutorials (156) Art Videos (163) Awareness (19) Blending Color (22) Card Making (16) Card Tutorials (11) Christmas (9) collage (20) Creative Foundations (24) Creativity (29) Drawing (12) Embossing (11) Gelli Plate (10) Gelli Printing (21) Goal Setting (9) Ink Blending (13) Inking (42) Inks (11) Making Good Choices (12) Mental Health (32) Mindfulness (24) Mixed Media (15) Mixed Media Art (16) napkins (9) Pan Pastels (9) Self-Care (47) Self-Care Activities (16) Self-Care Videos (33) Self-Discovery (14) Stamping (62) Stencilling (48) Tim Holtz Distress (23) Values (9) Watercolor (14) Watercolor Basics (13) Watercolor Painting (19) Wild Whisper Designs (21)

Recent Posts

  • 3 Ways to Make Your Mixed Media Pages POP!3 Techniques to Make Your Mixed Media Pages POP!
    In Art Journal, Techniques
  • How to Make Collage Papers for FreeMake Gorgeous Collage Papers for Free
    In Techniques
  • How to Choose an Art Journal You’ll Love
    In Art Journal
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