Composition Art Journal Part 1: Gluing & Preparing 44 Pages with Base Layer Art

[@daniepatch4943]

Bonjour, j’ai hâte de voir la suite, merci beaucoup 😊

[@TerryJ950]

I love painting in comp books - when dry, the pages almost feel leathery and really hold up to whatever you add.

[@artsyerinlife]

Right?! The page I did with masking tape turned out to feel like suade!

[@visualsweets]

I just finished painting my white sketchbook pages with paint. It took me a few hours to finish a book but it was worth it. I got some great color combinations and I feel inspired to start drawing in it. I can’t wait to see what creative pages I get.

[@artsyerinlife]

Awesome! Have fun!

[@elainetoussaint5757]

Outstanding love it

[@39Bosski]

Ooh! Can't wait to try this. Plus using a composition book is such a neat idea since they're so cheap. You can experiment in them and not feel like you're wasting good paper. Very nice.

[@artsyerinlife]

Exactly. 😁

[@christinafullmer1745]

Love this. I think I'm heading out to get some supplies!! Thanks for the inspiration!

[@anitacoad6731]

What an awesome video. I sat through it twice and have saved it to my favourites file. I like the idea that you have mixed it up with collage as well and have done different techniques. What a score with the acrylic inks from the thrift store and I loved the bright acrylic paint tubes. I absolutely loved the page you did with the plastic card at 7 minutes, 20 secs and the pastels were so pretty. I can't wait to see you work your magic in this composition notebook/art journal. You bring so much joy to art. Thank you Erin.

[@artsyerinlife]

Thank you so much for your kind and thoughtful comment. I am thrilled that you found it inspiring.

[@DanyaleWeems]

I’ve used composition books however not for all the painting so this has been helpful!

[@artsyerinlife]

So glad it was helpful. I am really enjoying the project.

[@visualsweets]

I have to try this with my empty sketch books. I’m hoping that it will inspire me to add some drawings or do mixed media.

[@mycrochetobsession]

I’ve used composition notebooks for art journals for years. I first go through to prep by gluing 3 pages together all the way through, alternating back and front. Otherwise the journal gets too thick and it stresses the cover. next I gesso each page to get ready for acrylic paint. I always use acrylics in my compositions. If I feel watercolor then I use a watercolor sketch book. I go through 4-5 composition notebooks every year.

[@artsyerinlife]

That's awesome! Do you share them anywhere? I'd love to see. 👀 I only glue 2 pages and I just tear out some before I start to thin it out a little.

[@valerieb8006]

What i like about composition books is they are "sewn" and not glued in, so they are sturdier. I Have to do this!...All the craft paint i have needs to be used up. Also i like the texture that the paper gets from gluing it together and with the water based paint. Cool!🙋🍁🧡

[@artsyerinlife]

Yes! You can really pack the pages and the binding holds!

[@mrs.z605]

@valerieb8006 - yes, you absolutely will love doing this!! Since I saw this video the first time, I started my own, and it is now my absolute favorite thing to do. It's so liberating and relaxing. It's also a great way to experiment with color combinations and mark making. It is very very satisfying. I can't tell you how many times I have come back to this exact video just to watch the beautiful layouts that @ArtsyErin comes up with. It is truly amazing and soooo much fun! When I'm stuck and don't know what to paint, I put out paint blobs in my comp journal and smoosh paint around! It's a great way to get the creative juices flowing. 😊❤❤😊 I post mine on Instagram most of the time, if you want to see. (Suthnartz_mrsZ). Thank you, Erin, again for sharing these videos with us!! Much love, ladies! ❤❤❤❤

[@rebeccaday7076]

This is really cool to watch even at higher speed. Loved it!

[@artsyerinlife]

Yes, real time would be a five hour video! 😄

[@SaraPlaysWithPaper]

I love this so much!!! I have a friend coming into town to visit this weekend and I’m totally going to do this with her this weekend, one composition notebook each!!! Then I might use that composition notebook for all company that comes to visit, a creative houseguest type journal. 😂

[@artsyerinlife]

That sounds like such a fun idea! Have fun!

[@Mharthcock79]

I LOVE THIS SO VERY MUCH!!!! ❤❤❤❤

[@vibesmom]

I love that you can go in any order when you go back to complete the page lol. I have no idea why that pleases me.

[@artsyerinlife]

Yes! 😄

[@avedamontedesigns]

Love it

[@sandrabarrientos556]

Neat idea. Can you write over the painted pages? I’m considering starting a quotes journal and thought the painted pages would look good as a background.

[@artsyerinlife]

Yes! You might need to experiment with different pens / markers, but I have had success with regular pens as well as Posca / acrylic markers.

[@carriecorbin1502]

So fun

[@susanorban3059]

Oh how fun!! Do the pages seem to stay in the book pretty well? I could just see 😅them falling out after all that moisture with the paint. Loved watching this! And so you DID glue pages together before you started all the painting?? Thanks so much for sharing. I can see myself doing one of these "crunchy" journals!! ❤️🙏🥰😊

[@artsyerinlife]

Yes, I did glue almost all of them 2 sheets thick. None of them feel like they are going to fall out. The binding feels strong too.

[@Geniega2]

I work in Composition Books too. I gesso the pages after gluing together, do you?

[@artsyerinlife]

I did not use gesso. I think the acrylic paints provide enough base, but I'm kinda new to this, so I`ll keep that in mind if I run into issues. Thanks. 😊

[@AlejandraHidalgoBriceño]

I dont understand why you have to paint all the pages?

[@artsyerinlife]

You certainly don't have to! It was an experiment. Start with pages that are already "started" and use that as a jumping off point. The second composition notebook art journal, I did not pre-"seed" the pages. I am enjoying the clean page start too.

[@leeannsutherland858]

Pepto