Not Too Shabby Doodles - They Are Good For You !

So did you see the article floating around this weekend (I found it in the Newsweek Health section) about how doodling actually helps you concentrate and retain information better ? I could have told you that ! The margins of the pages of loose leaf in my binders in high school were filled with doodles. And I was a really good student ! The pad of paper I keep beside me when I make business-type phone calls inevitably gets filled with flowers, spirals, points, faces and dots as well. I guess I was aware that doodles help me concentrate but really I just love making them ! I find it soothing, I think. This Queen is a Mistress of Doodles as well !

So when my blogpal Arlene at ArtdeMe gave me a new fabric-covered doodle journal (Gorgeous and custom made just for me ! She calls them Shabby Doodles) as part of our recent Canadian Artist Valentine's Swap, I was of course thrilled ! The paper in the journal is not appropriate for paint but perfect for ink, markers and glued down papers ! Perfect for DOODLES !

I have been kind of taking of an unintentional break from paint in the studio right now. Necessity in a way. I am working on some stuff for the Etsy shop (in bad need of an update!!!) and to sell in Montreal, all in the hopes of raising my tuition for Squam. That stuff involves the sewing machine and my jewelry making stuff which means that there is no room for spreading out the paint on the old cluttered work table !!!

That said, it has been great having a little place to do some journaling with a little less spreading out and clean up than my usual style.

Page 1 - Thanks to Arlene

The pages in my new journal seemed dauntingly blank at first so I decided to prep some pages for myself. This was fun ! I quickly grabbed a magazine and clipped a pile of words, images or whatever else grabbed my interest. I also took some scraps from my pile of painted papers.

Then I randomly glued down the stuff on whatever page felt right, here and there throughout the journal.

I also got out some of my favorite stamps and some black ink (should have used Staz-On though - a lot of black ink smudges going on but oh well ! I used my heat gun to set some of them.) and stamped away anywhere and everywhere I felt like it.

Now I have a lot of places to choose from when I sit down to doodle - blank pages or something with a little inspiration involved !

Here are a couple of recent doodle pages :

Magazine Paper collage - "Buds Bloom"

The background was done with a old worn green ink pad, a sponge and a stencil .

"Dance, Little Sister, Dance"

The dancer is a vintage image printed on acetate. Letters cut "ransom note" style from magazines.

"Om is Where the Heart Is" - two page spread

Color comes from colored pencils, markers and gel pens.

I know I won't be without my paints for very long ! They are definitely my medium of choice for their vibrancy and versatility. I am missing them already in spite of the fun I am having with doodling ! It has been fun scaling things down a bit though, making play time easy and very accessible. And it has the added plus of being good for my brain !!!

Now go doodle somewhere...it's good for ya !

Happy Monday !