What are French Folds, you ask? Look above! They're where the unbound edge is folded. Why is this craze-worthy? Allow me to use a list:

    * Let's say you want to use staples or stitch something to a journal page. Usually, you end up stapling or sewing through both the page you're working on AND the one on the other side. With the french folds, you only go through the page you're working on.

    * Copic markers are fun, but not over gesso. You can slide a "blotter" sheet between the folded pages and color away without getting anything on the opposite page.

    * Want to write words? Slit the fold and you've got regular sheets to conserve pages.

    * How about wanting to take a page from your journal and frame it? Slit the fold, pull it from the wire binding, and you've got it -- and the page on the "other side" doesn't get lost in the background.

You can do all that, and it keeps the side-by-side spreads effect of a bound journal. How cool is that?! See why I'm so excited?

(the journal's sitting on the binder machine -- the part used to close the owires or thread the spirals. the other part that punches the holes is on a box across the room, and has dies for comb, spiral, owire, and GBC binding methods. totally fun!)

I've been SO exhausted from work the last two weeks, I've barely stepped foot in the studio. Finding equilibrium has been a challenge, one that I've been patient in finding...going with the flow, letting things work as they will. Just yesterday, I finally got to working on some journal pages, toting supplies downstairs to color and such while laying on the couch. I've been exploring more....outside, odd imagery in my sketches, putting things together that normally don't. It's stretching my expectations? Sense of normal? Something like that. Allowing me to create more exotic, captivating
images.

That's one of the reason I'm going in a new direct with my journaling. I feel as though I've developed greatly when it comes to backgrounds and painting, but now, I want to draw more, create more. And with my pre-made backgrounds, it's hard to play around with sketches and color, which is why I made my new journal. I still have my big yellow one, which is so large, it usually stays in the house, and plan on using it as I have been. But I need more. I have a whole thing explaining where I'm going and how this blog's changing...that's coming tomorrow.

Gosh, this has gotten wordy! I was trying to get to this painting I'm slooooowly working on that sat woefully under-appreciated on my desk that I finally got to the point on where I can doodle and finesse to finish. I'm loving it, and it's all based on a doodle I did while waiting for trick-or-treating to start while at a friend's house.

I have some more drawings and such I want to turn into paintings. I ALSO want to finish my journal project so I can get it up in time for the holidays -- and now that I've figured out the binding machine, I can put them all together myself! But first, tonight, I'm going to doodle on my cover, try to get something done for NaNo (as I'm now 10k behind!), watch some television, and get to sleep early as I start work tomorrow morning at 4am.

Oh! And the "winner" as the 1,000th commenter is Danielle! She gets a journal like the one I created today. Anyone else interested in the fun french folds journal? I can always make more, and they're pretty cheap to make!