What is altered journaling?
From an art therapy perspective, creatively altering a book can be a form of rewriting one’s life story through visual journaling. It is similar to the process of narrative therapy, but taking the approach a step further through redefining the story through not only words, but also images.
How do you make an altered book?
Simply put, an altered book is an art object that has been created from an existing, printed book. The book is altered through whatever means and media the artist chooses. This generally means using the book’s pages as a canvas on which to apply paint, collage or rubber stamping.
How do I turn my book into a journal?
How To Turn a Book into a Journal
- Now you have shell of the book.
- Next I cut a 2″ wide strip of paper.
- Put glue all over the back of it and attach to the sewn notebook paper.
- Now the flimsy notebook paper is reinforced.
- Punch all of pages.
- The last page is how the pages will be attached to the cover.
How do you start an art journal for beginners?
Now that you know a bit more about art journaling and the supplies you could use, let’s dive into making some art journal pages.
- Prepare your art supplies.
- Decide where you’ll make the artistic magic happen.
- Think about your background.
- Layering is always fun!
- Create a focal point.
- Make swatches.
- Time for journaling.
How do you turn a book into a journal?
What kind of books can I use for altered book projects?
You can use many different kinds of books for your altered book projects! Here are some ideas for different types of old books you can use: Children’s books As you can see, there all sorts of different types of books to use for you to learn how to alter a book for art journaling!
Can You rip out pages from an art journal?
Of course, you do not actually have to “rip” the pages out – you can always use a craft knife and carefully cut these pages out. That sometimes looks a lot neater and nicer. I usually save my ripped out pages for gluing and collaging later on in the art journal, so these pages don’t even get wasted.
Are Vintage Books good for alteration?
While very old, vintage books like the ones shown here might be beautiful, these types of books are not always the best candidates to use for altering, at least not using the same technique the way I share here.
Why are my art journal pages wrinkled and bumpy?
Gluing your pages together will likely cause some rippling and bumpiness in the page, but no one said art journaling had to be perfect. If the bumpiness and wrinkling bothers you, you can also choose to use more collage elements and avoid the paint and wet media all together if the pages are thin.