i love a good doodle!

about 7 months ago, i was send a book a girlfriend had made me, based on the WRECK THIS JOURNAL by Keri Smith , i love doing it so i just HAD to buy the original book and i just cant stop...

So what the heck is "Wreck this journal" i hear you ask!! well to create is to destroy, and that is exactly what this book encourages you to do! its simple, through a variety of exercises, the book encourages you to break free of rules and assumptions, to think seriously outside the box, and thus free up your creativity. From burning pages, colouring outside the lines, hanging it in a public place and letting complete strangers add to you book. So anyway, i started it just before christmas, and want to share what i have done so far....
so this is what the book looks like when you receive it, all nice and neat and tidy with clean cream pages, a nice shiny black cover with a brown spine.... so as you go through the book there are instructions to follow on every page, the first page is your title page which later on it the book you are told to - Doodle over it... so with some help from my old faithful sharpies, i set to work, well actually Abby "helped me" i just had to colour over it!
then you have to add page numbers, i couldn't just leave the page clean and blankish i had to doodle!!!........and then you start getting into the dirty destructive stuff... yayaya
ripping pages to shreads... which after i had drawn all over it, it was quite hard to tear up.... lucky for me the page after that one said... stick something to this page, so i stuck the page i tore up, back together on it... and the scratch page i used an embroidery needle.
scribbling wildly with borrowed pans, and colouring out side the lines...
i am trying to be destructive and not care, but...... well im getting there!
doodling the edge of the book.
wrecking the cover.... i didnt really know what to do here, as i didnt want to doodle on it, as my doodling tends to be neat and pretty, so i trashed a vintage golden book, and well... glued hap- hazardly!
burn this page.... i used a cigarette lighter, and the element on the stove..... and yes.... a cigarette too!
lots of circles.... can you spot the catterpillar, teddy, owl, grumpy old man face and smiley face... i know, im suppose to be destructive.... but as i said... im trying!!!!!
document time passing.... what better way to document it.... doodling of course! these 2 pages took me about 4 hours over 3 nights... oh, and 3 pilot fineliners!!!!!
Abby and I playing in the dirt!
i know this is looking a little more destructive.... i cant to squat with my left hand.....
the picture below is for the page that says - Journal Golf....
1. tear out page, crumple into a ball
2. place journal into a triangle shape
3. hit/kick the ball through the triangle....
well my journal wouldn't stand very well, hence no goal scored for me!
now this page i found the hardest to do so far....... take the journal in the shower with you... i was going to wait until the journal was all done before i did this, but i was a little scared all the sharpies would run and the pages would stick together...... which obviously is the point of the exercise..... destruction dear destruction!!! but i just couldnt, maybe i will try again to do it later, so with only a handful of the pages done.... yep, it joined me in the shower.... and its still hanging there today drying....
i am quite impressed that with the thickness and the quality of the paper, none of them have stuck together, they are a little wrinkled, and a few have run, and the glue is disolving a little, but all is o.k, so i think it will be a few more days till i can do a few more pages..... just gotta wait for it to dry out!!!
i am enjoying this exercise, and i am learning to "let go" and that not everything has to be perfect,
p.s, sorry for the shower shot.... but that was the best of a bad lot... trust me on that..... i didnt know my boobs hung so low!
thanks for reading..............................Ax
here are a few more links to other peoples"wreck this journals" well worth a lookie....here, here and here

3 comments:

Blu said...

I love this post!!! bravo. 10/10

bw Blu, Brittany France.

ozrob said...

Wow!! I did inspire you didn't I. Yours looks great. You have the same problem as me, trying not to be neat!

Anonymous said...

Catching up with your blog is always so much fun. Can't believe that even while destroying something you can make it look so beautiful as well :) Your journal is AWESOME!! Loving all the embroidery stuff too, specially the mermaid pincushion and the needle holder...and all the owls! I've never made a dotee before but I'm totally inspired after seeing your tree. Parisa xxx