happy sunday friends.
i love sorting through old stamps and finding just the right ones to add to my travel journal.
deciding which watercolors & gouache to take with me. i can take all of these in 2 lightweight, compact containers. also a tiny altoid tin that just has white gouache. i can use it to make some gorgeous pastel tints – should the need arise. and it probably will.
i found this sketchbook of a journey to granada. i like the simplicity of the sketches and small careful printing.
and for those of you who might be curious about nicaragua, a flickr mosaic. haven’t done one of these in years!
photo credits: jacky corbel, zhu, pete schnell, john couture, edwin de jongh
i can study maps for hours. nothing escapes my notice. one day i’m going to pull out all of my old maps and make a book out of them, using the maps for pages.
i made a pocket moleskine style by pleating the bottom of the paper that is glued to the supporting page. if you have a moleskine lying around, just look at how they do their pockets and all will be clear.
more than any other question i get related to travel journals, the most frequent is this one:
how do you know how many pages to make your book so that you don’t either run out or end up with too many.
and my answer is simple. i label with dated post-its ahead of time. if i’m not ready for the allotted pages, i move along anyway so that i don’t wind up with a big section of blank pages at the back of my book. i either fill the blank pages scattered throughout (if i have any) with sketches or photos when i get home.
you probably don’t have this particular question, but i’m posting about it now so i have a post i can refer people to next time the question gets asked.
i think you can see the pleated bottom of my pocket a bit better in this picture below.
here’s a pic of the house i’ve rented. the majority of it is open to the outdoors, but 2 of the rooms have a/c – my bedroom and the living room. given my very small range of temperatures i find comfortable; somewhere in the neighborhood of 55-65, i hope the tropics don’t leave me a sweltering sweaty mess. if they do i’ll be immersing myself in the little pool morning, noon, and night!
i’ll do my level best not to fall out of the hammock and land in the pile of bricks.
if you’re doing something terribly interesting i’ll need to be informed.
Hello–Quick question: Do you decorate your pages with stamps and other ephemera before you bind the book? Or afterward? Do you find there’s an advantage to either method? thanks!
Great ideas. I always fill the blank pages when we go back especially Key West. Something to draw around every corner.
That looks so peaceful and restful, so long as you don’t get bucked off of the hammock. Slow and steady dismounts, lil sister! At least there are no cacti.
I hope you can tolerate the hot, humid climate. Your little casita looks so nice. I’ll be looking forward to the journey in your suitcase where I stow myself for these getaways.
Hi Mary Ann,
It’s so lovely to share your adventures, that looks like a lovely place to stay. Maybe one day I’ll be adventurous like you but until then it is always fun to see what you are up to. I’ll be having a staycation, catching up on some online classes and trying to keep cool if we ever get any hot weather this summer. Merry Christmas to you and Wyatt, I hope he is well.😄
I am looking forward to seeing Nicaragua through your eyes. I don’t do heat well, either. I hope the temps are bearable!
I like to have some local money with me when I travel. I suppose that’s old-fashioned of me, but there it is!
Well that looks like a nice little place!! Have a wonderful trip!
Hi Mary Ann,
It looks like you’re going to have a wonderful time in Nicaragua! I love how you travel with your handmade journals. That’s so inspiring to me!
I don’t know if this is terribly interesting, but I did make my first little video on Instagram yesterday. It’s a page flip of a file folder journal, inspired by Pam Garrison. Inside are some papers that I painted, inspired by your art, too! Here’s the link: https://www.instagram.com/p/BN5FLAWDiOH/?taken-by=brianacreates
All of my best to you! Safe travels!!
-Briana