Illustrated Journal Flip Through: ITALY 🍕🍕🍕

Today I have a flip through of my latest illustrated journal, a visual travel diary of a recent trip to Italy where I was lucky enough to take in Bologna, Ravenna, Modena, Padua, and more. This journal is a collection of found papers, sketches, post cards, photos, hand lettering, and writing that give voice to memories and experience.
Join me as I go through page by page and talk about the techniques used throughout. I hope they will give you some ideas about ways to make your own pages whether it is for travel or for your everyday life in your own back yard (which is, after all, the most important journey any of us take).
If you want to find my online class about how to make and keep an illustrated journal, the link is here:
kelly-s-school...
And here is the KZbin video where I made the original blank book from mixed papers. Easy, cheap, and fun:
• Easy Handmade Art Jour...
In the video linked here I talk about ways to draw our every day, the (so-called) ordinary objects that we might take for granted but that actually tell stories about how we live:
• How to Make Pages of E...
Here's another!
• Journal the Ordinary: ...
Please let me know if you have any questions or feedback.
And PLEASE subscribe to my KZbin channel and be sure and turn on the notifications by ticking the little bell.

[@BookandPaperArts]

If you want to find my online class about how to make and keep an illustrated journal, the link is here: kelly-s-school-b1d1.thinkific.com/courses/the-book-of-you-making-and-keeping-a-visual-diary

[@stepfordstrife]

Bit late to the party but want to thank you for so generously sharing your travel journal. I'm new to journaling and this has inspired me to give it a go

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hello and welcome, Jilly.. My apologies for the late reply. How wonderful that you are coming on the journal journey. It is one that does not disappoint. (But then again, I am a diary addict.) Have you seen this? It is my Playlist for some journal techniques. Happy making! kzbin.info/aero/PLWir7hWgZLNAB06JvX1PIF2EkvFiY2rdR

[@hanichay1163]

“The Alps make you want to say your prayers.” ❤️Love your journals. I do them too. Thanks for the great ideas.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hello and welcome, Hanichay. Thanks for dropping by with this lovely message. It really does make me happy. I hope you have a creative weekend and make some great pages. Kelly

[@dr.michalhemmo-lotem8546]

"Creativity is in to inteligente having fun" Albert Einstein, and yours sims to have a lit of it... 💜

[@judys9780]

My new mantra, “Get up and make something”! You’ve inspired me to finally start my memory journal of our trip to UK and Scotland! I love that it is a mix of lots of different ideas and materials. I will enjoy it for years to come. I’ll be watching you for more ideas! Thank you……

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Judy. Thank you for this thoughtful message. It truly makes me hear when someone says, Yeah, I'm Going to Do That. Sometimes it means having the nerve to excavate those boxes of images and ticket stubs and bibs and bobs but you got this. A glue stick and you are on your way! Kelly

[@sandraludwig1546]

I love cemeteries. My goal is to visit all of the Magnificent Seven in London. So far I have seen four. Thanks for the video--I always enjoy them!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Sandra. You know, I don't think I have seen ANY cemeteries in London although there are quite a few small churchyards in the Welsh countryside that could tell some stories.

[@sherelynwhite4130]

I really enjoyed this video. Thank you! 2 years ago, I took a trip to Portugal for a few weeks. I brought back every piece of paper that crossed my path and now have a huge basket full of memories that I would love to turn into a journal. I know it's after the fact, but I still am feeling compelled to put my memories in one fun journal for a stroll down memory lane. Thank you for the encouragement!🫶💕🙋‍♀️

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Sherelyn. Would a pep talk help? Go ahead and drag out that box and find a good glue stick and get to work, or play. You will not be sorry AND you will get to revisit those memories. Have fun with it and get messy. Keep me posted!

[@bonnie5972]

This turned out lovely. I was in Rome over 20 years ago and visited many churches. They have so much personality. Thanks for sharing your memory book.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Bonnie. Yes, for me the churches are an obsession but they are not about faith (although some things are) so much as about the stories, the people, the creating, architecture, wonder. Rome must be amazing but I haven't yet got up the nerve to try it. Thanks for stopping by! Kelly

[@leahwolfe8999]

I think watching this has changed how I will document our trip from Budapest to Amsterdam this fall 🥰

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi there, Leah. Go for it! You can warm up by making a journal of your day to day if you have time then you can hit the ground running this fall. Bon voyage. (Amsterdam has a great flea market.)

[@lynwalton761]

Absolutely mind blowing creativity, thank you for the inspiration.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Why thank you, Lyn. This is truly lovely to hear. Thanks for stopping by! 🌻🌼🌷Kelly

[@sandrawheeler2295]

I loved watching you make this journal, and I loved watching the flip through even more. Looks like a trip to Italy is on the agenda next year 😊🇮🇹❤

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Sandra. What can I say, I remain a francophile but Italy is a great joy. And the people are beautiful, the street fashion is a joy, and the food is out of this world.

[@haveaseatmarj]

Magnificent! Wish I had done this when I lived abroad in Italy

[@BookandPaperArts]

HI Marg. Thanks for touching base. Yeah, I put everything in my book whether it is visiting another country or walking to my local library and drawing the trees. Such a good way of getting our thoughts and memories down.

[@DonnaVintageSnippets]

You made me laugh. Who wouldn't want a Botticelli angel for a boyfriend! Love your illustrated journal.

[@centibastelt2023]

Exactly what I thought. But wouldn't someone like that make me feel unbelieveable ugly in comparison? 🤣

[@DonnaVintageSnippets]

@@centibastelt2023Oh no! An angel would never let you feel anything but beautiful. 🙂

[@BookandPaperArts]

Ha! Yes, that is the problem. They have the gorgeous hair and perfect mouth. How to compete with that? @@centibastelt2023

[@BookandPaperArts]

I don't know, Donna. Some of those androgynous angels look as though they are not to be crossed. They are so lovely and not quite kind. 🤔🤔@@DonnaVintageSnippets

[@BookandPaperArts]

Donna, this was mainly in my 20s when I was bolder and had no fear but I did have a killer New Romantics wardrobe that could just about stand up to Botticelli angel-dom. And you?

[@ZsuzsaKarolySmith]

What a wonderful and meaningful journal! I’ve recognised your beautiful leaf print on the cover from last autumn! 🤩

[@BookandPaperArts]

Yes, the same leaf. I make a big batch every fall and use them throughout the year. They don't cost much and make anything look mysterious and pretty.

[@matthewflinchum5452]

I love the finished journal! It was great to see you construct the book, then review the final product on your video tour. I now have ideas to incorporate to my New Mexico journal. Yes the nature colors and adobe led itself to the scrap papers you shared. I have already started collecting papers. 🙂

[@gypsycatharina]

Ik hou van jouw manier van journaling😊, het heeft veel weg van mijn manier van werken , geweldig ! Dank je wel voor de flip. RINI Boer van der Gugten. Uit Nederland

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thank you, Catharina. I would love to see some of your pages! Kelly

[@tavanetaylor98]

I adore watching the flip-thrus of your journals! They remind me of my travels and inspire me. I also purchased your online class and enjoyed it immensely!💙

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hello Tavane. I am so pleased you like the class. And remember, journals are not just for travel - they are great to keep your everyday life and memories in. Happy making! Kelly

[@CatherineSunnysideJournals]

I love how under Theodora you wrote "She was badass". LOL! Very descriptive! I remember as a young girl thinking Theodora was the most beautiful name I had ever heard. I was determined, at the time, to name a future daughter Theodora. Needless to say, I have 3 daughters, none are named Theodora.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Ding ding ding and we have a winner of the best comment of the post. Gab is laughing so hard I'm surprised he can still breathe. I know, why don't you and I create alter egos and name them Theodora? I'm in. xxx

[@CatherineSunnysideJournals]

@@BookandPaperArts Sounds good to me, Theodora!

[@kathy-jeanhegwine5122]

Love your art memory book! Really love the eTag Omi you painted and drew!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thanks bunches, Kathy Jean. It is truly nice to hear this. 🌷🌻🌼

[@sorrelgossert6976]

Maybe in the next lifetime!🤣...Love your videos, I'm learning so much... Thank you ❤

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thank you for this, Sorrel. It truly makes me happy to hear this. And what a lovely name you have! Kelly

[@debbiesavage7107]

A close friend visited Italy. She told me that the Italians are physically a beautiful people. Love the journal!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Debbie, your friend was not mistaken. I mean it is like being surrounded by movie stars and being the only extra on a movie set. Drop dead gorgeous. And really nice, too.

[@heleneebenstein9120]

Another fabulous video. I'm amazed at how much you were able to put into your one signature book. It is chockful of goodies. Using pockets and envelopes added lot of good space and interest. I'll try to incorporate some of your terrific ideas into my journals. Thanks

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Helene. I think the secret here is that the book doesn't have all that many pages, just enough to do ten days right but then I really filled those pages and it chunked up. I sometimes have "proper" sketchbooks that only get filled 1/3 of the way and I prefer this way. What kind of journals are you using?

[@user-yp4ud5kj7g]

Wonderful ideas and lots of travel information too. Thanks for bringing us along.

[@BookandPaperArts]

You are very welcome. A blank book may be the best travelling companion there is. 😺

[@roksannastephens4375]

Oh Kelly, how brilliant your flip thru is!! Thank you. I love collecting post cards too!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Roksanna. Thank you so much. This book did turn out good. I like trying a looser style (I am not really a loose kind of creative person so it is a challenge and a good one). Post cards are terrific and some people are a little snobby about them. But all that beauty and memory and inspiration in a little card that is so inexpensive. Yes, please.

[@rubysixpence]

Really enjoyed this Kelly - especially your depiction of Badass Theodora 👍 you’ve inspired me to try an art journal. Thank you 💖📖

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thank you, Simone. Theodora is quite the presence in Ravenna even now. I would love to have had a drink with her and gossip.

[@megantorri1711]

I was so excited to see this flip through after watching the video on you making this journal, looks like a wonderful trip!❤

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thanks bunches, Megan. It was a sublime trip. We went in January to avoid the crowds and have a better chance of getting close to the beautiful stuff and it worked! Thanks for touching base. Kelly

[@reginaeid1568]

Always a pleasure traveling with you😊

[@denisecope]

What a great book, Kelly! I loved the beautiful rice paper angel and the water color and the stenciling and mark making best of all.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi hi, Denise. Thanks for this. It is funny how we sometimes forget that we can fill up the blank spaces with something that's just fun and pretty because we can and we want to! 😺

[@SaraHarley.studio]

your travel journal is a work of art, just beautiful!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Why thank you, Sara. I am a journal addict - if it doesn't get on the page then it didn't happen. Thanks for touching base!

[@mousepudding]

Awesome, Kelly.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thanks bunches, Peter.

[@barrylytle5118]

Fantastic video! Feel like I have taken a small trip to Italy through yiur book. Thank you for sharing your trip and your creative book. Loved thus! 💙💚💙

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Barry. Thanks for checking in. I really needed to get this book finished so I can start a new one for spring.

[@victoriabergesen6775]

I enjoy your videos. I appreciate many of the same things when I am traveling. I've not been to Padua or Modena, so I'll add that to my list. Thanks.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thank you, Victoria. Out of the trip Modena was surprisingly full of good stuff. Ravenna did NOT disappoint. Padua had very little except the chapel but that chapel was so extraordinary I could kick myself for not making a second reservation and going back the same day.

[@jenniferzacha7461]

All I can say is STUNNING

[@BookandPaperArts]

Why thank you, Jennifer. That is what I like to here. I do like making pages, both of travels and of my everyday. If it isn't on a page, it didn't happen. 😺

[@lesliec9890]

So good!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thanks bunches, Leslie. 🌷🌻🌼

[@lorimorgan7891]

I thought your portico painting was very nice. I like that it was a little messy as you say, you even caught the light coming through on the pathway. Beautiful book. Have made my first one in prep for our family vacation this summer. Thanks for the great tips.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thank you, Lori. And well done making your own. Have fun making pages!

[@hollymaudsley3187]

This video is cool wonderful! I love it. I watched the creation of your journal and I now know what to do with all the paper I have saved. Many thanks for sharing.

[@Geemeel1]

I just LOVE your paper-art work, and you explain it so well and patiently. Thank you for that , Love and Light from Amsterdam Holland ✨

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thank you so much. This is truly lovely to hear. I want to know more about your pages and style, too! Kelly

[@Geemeel1]

@@BookandPaperArts Well I had a great breakthrough in starting again with your magical words: " if it is overwhelming, draw a square... Anyone can fill a square... et voilà! I am of again. Thanks for that! 🤩

[@BookandPaperArts]

@@Geemeel1 I think I should put those words on a t-shirt or coffee cup. 😺

[@Geemeel1]

@@BookandPaperArts😁

[@alexandraalmeida3661]

Wow, Kelly, such an inspiring book both for travelling and for day to day life, as you said. So many ideas and so easy to actually do them. You have there a wonderful memory of your trip. I visited Italy when I was 21 and still remember many details of the beautiful, beautiful country. I’ve always wanted to return there one day, but it never happened. I went there in an organized trip with a group and a guide, so I took really, really brief notes, because we didn’t have time. Anyway, I am really inspired by this, as I usually am with all your videos. Thanks for sharing such great treasure 🧡🩵💚💛🩷🤎🤍💜💙♥️

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thank you, Alexandra. Making pages on a trip is a pleasure but you can also make pages out of your everyday life that are special and fun. You could even add fabric and stitching! Make your own style. I hope you give it a try and let me know how it works.

[@Greenilady13]

Love, love this book. I enjoyed and learned a lot from this and the making of the book. Not too much trouble with the drawing. I am having trouble with what to write in my books and journals. I’m not usually at a loss for words in person - but writing boggles me. Beth B in Sarasota, FL

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Beth. Thank you so much for getting in touch because your message is a sign if there ever was one. I was brainstorming what to post for this week's coming video and was working something along the lines of a one-line-a-day diary. Also, more ideas for easy illustrated journal posts and captions. I think you've convinced me! (I do love feedback. It helps me shape the content a lot.) In the meantime, have a look at the playlist here and you will find more info on ideas for working in your own journal, visual or written. Kelly kzbin.info/aero/PLWir7hWgZLNA0nBJh3p6k5szPtuyvaCMW

[@armandaberlin2156]

i remember the scarf!😁

[@BookandPaperArts]

This made me smile, Amanda. I do love an oversize scarf shawl in royal blue. 😺

[@lynnboyd33]

Good Gravy Kelly, where do I begin?? I just loved this amazing, creative walk thru. A few of the subjects/items that sprang out to me... I really loved the idea of drawing and briefly describing the clothes that you brought with you, your love for walking through very old cemeteries, I'm not sure just why, but it's like you are actually touching time from so very long ago, not to mention, I LOVE the old names on many head stones and the art work. I adored your old, crusty, many layered brick, plastered walls. OOhh la la!! Jeeze that was fascinating to me! Last but certainly NOT least, I swooned over the picture on the brochure of "your old boyfriend" across from the Easter hand written calendar. Holy cow! At very first glance, I thought it was Jim Morrison in his hunky days, of the early Doors! Ok....I guess now I'm the one who needs a vacation! Kelly, thanks so very much for this walk thru. You put all of your heart and soul deeply into this journal. Thank you, thank you.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Jim Morrison, eh? He did have the hair, that's for sure. Did you know he is buried in Paris and people leave weird stuff on his grave all the time? Those peeling walls were a wonder to me and I'm not even kidding. Maybe I was a stonemason in a former life. As for clothes I usually add more pages than this as I do think it is an integral part of the memory that will slip away. Also, socks. I love socks.

[@lynnboyd33]

Ohhh gurl, socks, eh? Your just toooo cute!@@BookandPaperArts

[@creativestudio5006]

Thanks Kelly, lots of inspiration

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thanks Linda. I hope you make great and gorgeous pages. Kelly

[@creativestudio5006]

I always think about Dylan Thomas' home which we toured a couple of years ago when I think of you

[@BookandPaperArts]

@@creativestudio5006 Is that at the boathouse in Laugherne or Cymdomkin Park? I haven't seen the boathouse but yeah, he is quite the local hero and I have been in his local pub a time or two.

[@MissJay4258]

Fabulous travel journal combining art and narrative!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Thanks bunches, Jay. When I first started making these they were just doodles and glued in pages and notes. They have evolved but in a lot of ways that is still the idea. 😺

[@demarieingraham8674]

This was a marvelous video. Such a creative journal. I’m heading to Italy in Oct for the first time. This has given me so many great ideas. Grazie!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hello there, deMarie. Italy is gorgeous and the food! Be sure and take a blank book and a glue stick with you and you can save so many memories as you go and when you get home and find you have a stack of papers. Bon voyage !

[@NormaBennettSYD]

Thanks for the inspiration! I have European travel coming up very soon so I must check out your other video too.

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Norma, grab your journal and your stuff. For me, nothing is real until it is on the page. I hope you make fun and gorgeous pages on your travels! Kelly

[@sandybe11]

When you turned the page to the pilgrimage portico, I said wow, I want to replicate that. It’s a beautiful page and I’m inspired to draw/watercolor more in my travel journals. Do you do most of the finishing touches when back home? Thanks for sharing!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Sandy, this is truly nice to read especially as I said I wasn't even going to try that thing with all of the arches and stuff. Usually I finish books at home after I get back. I do work a lot on the road but it is too tricky to enjoy the experience and be present and otherwise why go so I do what I can and jot down pencil notes, sometimes make colour swatches of a piece then use photos and notes to finish later. This video explains more, if it helps: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qIe2ZHV5l5aDZsk

[@MrsBednar]

Just fabulous. And that pose with the overcoat in the church! Wowzers. I’m gonna do this the next trip to NYC which will be soon. I’m grabbing all the travel brochures and maps and keeping my paper bags! Question - when you draw a location, I assume you’re often standing up? How do you hold your sketchbook? You put it up against the wall? Or find a place to rest it upon? I’m so enjoying all your videos I need to go create

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Margaret. I can draw standing if I have to but I tend to sit and draw holding my book there or in my lap. This works especially well in churches with all of those pews just waiting! So yeah, usually I am sitting somewhere or other while I draw then add the colour (if I do) later over coffee or what-you-will. Enjoy New York. That sounds like a blast. I would love to see the Cloisters museum. (Or is that in NY state and not NYC? 🤔Kelly

[@gabrieljacobs2]

I'm not a Boticelli-angel boyfriend but I am called Gabriel. Is that good enough?

[@BookandPaperArts]

My dear, you are good enough for the likes of me. It's a good thing we are married!

[@shreevas6160]

Sorry how fo ypu print your photos while traveling? Would you recommend buying a polaroid?

[@BookandPaperArts]

Hi Shreeve. Usually I print my photos when I return home. It is, however, often possible to print at a photo machine or copy-making place, using Bluetooth or putting the photos on a thumb drive but I am usually running around too much to do this. A Polaroid camera is going to be a lot to carry BUT you can buy a portable mini printer. Try looking them up online, something like "portable mini printer for journal work". Good luck!

[@BookandPaperArts]

Here is a link to an example: instax.com/mini_link_2/en/

[@MrsBednar]

Just fabulous. And that pose with the overcoat in the church! Wowzers. I’m gonna do this the next trip to NYC which will be soon. I’m grabbing all the travel brochures and maps and keeping my paper bags! Question - when you draw a location, I assume you’re often standing up? How do you hold your sketchbook? You put it up against the wall? Or find a place to rest it upon? I’m so enjoying all your videos I need to go create