Mixed Media Art Journaling

Hi everyone!

I'm closing out 2025 by sharing a few of my art journal pages that I have created this year. As some of you might know, I've specialized in mixed media art - an art form I'm passionate about, since it offers endless possibilities and I enjoy the process as much as I enjoy the finished artwork. My preferred substrate for this type of work is the art journal. I have several in various sizes as well as a handmade one. Below are a variety of pages/spreads from bold to vintage-style to abstract.

😊

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all readers and fellow bloggers, old and new, for stopping by my blog and your lovely and kind comments. I appreciate it very much! I've always enjoyed being part of the blogging community and I'm looking forward to continuing our blogging journey together.

 

Special Holiday Gift for You

Hello dear blog readers,

🎁A special surprise for you!

 I'm offering a 40% discount on my Mini Workshop !

Valid from Dec. 25th until Dec. 31st 2025 

Gift to yourself or a crafty friend 💝

Copy the link below and paste in your browser:

https://ko-fi.com/burchardtart/link/GIFT25

Monday Moodboard

Hi everyone!

The four weeks before Christmas, which we celebrate on the 24th December here in Germany, is called "Adventszeit" - a time of peaceful contemplation, in which one reflects on the essentials before Christmas, away from the stress of everyday life. Each Sunday we light another candle on the Advent wreath - or in my case, a modern DIY version - gather family members if you're lucky enough to have them close by, and listen to Christmas songs, while eating homebaked cookies. This season is bittersweet for me, as my dear mother passed shortly before Christmas ten years ago. (I can't believe it's been this long!) So, while I like to keep up the traditions she passed down to me, everything is a lot more subdued ever since. I tried to convey this feeling in my mood board today. I hope you like it!

For more info on each featured shop click on the links below.

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Love, joy and peace to all 💖

Easy Cut & Paste Collage Art in my Junk Journal

Hello everyone!

In one of my recent private workshops we made a fun little collage with leftover scraps of paper and simple tools. My motto is always use what you have, recycle and upcycle. I created the left page as a demo and I thought, why not share my technique with my fellow bloggers :)

Below are the steps to create a similar page. I worked in my handmade junk journal, but any journal or even a loose sheet of paper will do.

In the first step I gathered my supplies, which consisted of my basket with paper scraps as well as a box of crayons, my favorite stamps and a couple of paint pens as well as some basic supplies like scissors and a glue stick. I like tearing my papers, but cutting them works fine, too.

I chose papers with interesting markings, usually gelli prints or painted papers. In the next step I added stamps in random areas and made some marks with a purple crayon to harmonize with the purple already present on the collage. I also swiped some black paint on the page with my finger.

While I left the page to dry, I prepared my focal image. First I stamped a text stamp on a piece of regular white paper. Then I placed a leaf stencil on top and dabbed black paint all around it. Once dry, I carefully cut around the image, leaving a narrow black edge.

Finally, I adhered the cut out leaf image along with a sentiment to my collaged page.

I hope you enjoyed this beginner-friendly tutorial. You can easily change things up by choosing different collage papers, making a variety of marks, adding more stamps and a different focal image (my workshop participant's pages all looked unique!)

Thanks for visiting!

Please share / Pin this page

Painting Portraits

Hi lovelies!

I was de-cluttering my studio when I came across two unused canvas panels. Quite spontaneously I popped them onto my work surface and decided to paint portraits. Now, if you follow me on my socials you'll know that I like to paint, draw, sketch in whatever style I currently fancy! While many others go on a quest to find their signature style (and there's nothing wrong with that), I have made peace with the fact that I paint where my mood takes me. One of my favorite quotes by Edward Hopper describes this perfectly:

" If you could say it in words, there would be no reason to paint. "

40 x 50 cm

In the above painting I leaned into Pop Art, a style originating in the mid 50s that communicates through bright and sometimes cartoon-like imagery. I wanted something fun and unusual. This stylized portrait is done with acrylic paint as well as paint pens. I did not work from a reference, I simply painted what came into my mind. As of yet this portrait remains untitled - suggestions welcome!

"Silvia" 40 x 50 cm

The second example is an expressive acrylic painting touching on realism. Looking at it on my screen I can immediately see where adjustments should have been made, and I will keep this in mind for my next portrait. The above painting took me several days to complete. I have been a creative person my entire life, but please keep in mind that I have no formal training as an artist :) 

The question I naturally get asked the most is who the person is in the portrait. The simple answer is: I don't know! I rarely work from a reference photo and I guess my approach to these types of paintings is unconventional (you should have seen the underpainting!). But once I push back the layers with lots of white I kind of "see" a face emerging in my mind's eye. And while I'm painting, the features also transform. I originally meant to paint long, dark brown hair, but as I was painting the eyes, I realized this lady needed a shorter length hairstyle in a light brown color. It's quite possible, that there is someone somewhere that looks similar to my portrait - if so, it is entirely coincidental. I titled this painting Silvia, as I felt the name suited her. What do you think?

And lastly, I leave you with an abstract expressive portrait that was part of an exercise that I took part in right at the beginning of my art journey five years ago. As I recall, I was supposed to lay down shadow areas with a big brush, then add in highlights and finally details with a black watercolor pencil. All while using a minimal color palette. I enjoyed this experiment!

Thank you for reading along and have a wonderful weekend!

Monday Moodboard

Hello lovely readers!

Christmas is just around the corner and hopefully you've completed most of your card writing and gift shopping! If not, perhaps today's mood board will serve as inspiration. All of my picks are from small businesses from around the world. Having had a small business myself for well over a decade, I choose to support independent makers when I can. The shops are linked below. Have a great week!

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Messy Background with Acrylic Inks

Hello fellow bloggers and art friends!

The other day I decided to simply play in one of my journals with acrylic inks. These inks come in a wide variety of colors, and when dry are permanent. It's fun to let them flow on the page without controlling the outcome.

I suddenly remembered a technique from kindergarten, and although we used watercolors back then I was quite sure it was applicable to inks as well. I sprayed one side of the spread with water and simply dropped some ink onto it, then flipped the other side over and used my hand to firmly press it down, then re-opened the pages. You get a different result each time. 

The main thing to remember is to use such ink colors that when they mix together they harmonize. I used turquoise, blue, magenta and yellow. I let the background dry completely and then played some more with stencils, stamps and collage. 

You can watch the video tutorial below and please don't forget a thumbs up 👍

I find this type of art making very relaxing and enjoyable. Often, this activity sparks new ideas. Perhaps my post has inspired you to try this yourself this weekend 😊 

Please pin / share this for others to enjoy

Minimalist Christmas Cards with Paste & Glitter

Hello everyone!

Every once in a while I create video tutorials specially for my lovely blog readers. With Christmas around the corner, I thought I'd share a fun card making project. These cards are easy to multiply with a few simple steps and can be modified to whatever stencils and embellishments you have on hand. I've cut a sheet of mixed media paper to postcard size pieces, however, a set of blank postcards are fine, too.

I actually placed my cards in a row and worked on each of them simultaneously, e.g. add the stencils to all cards, add the watercolors to all cards, add the paste and so forth. Tip: when working with glitter place a sheet of paper with a crease in the center underneath. You can then gather the excess glitter in the fold and tip it back into the jar. I've chosen a minimalist style for these cards, but if you wish, you can choose a different color palette all together. As with most of my tutorials I share an idea that you are welcome to customize. 

Enjoy watching the 4-min-video tutorial here