Faber-Castell Design Memory Craft

How To Create Ornamental Boxes!

Hi everyone! Faber-Castell USA and I are back with another tutorial! This time, I'm going to walk you through creating simple ornamental boxes for journal!

I’m here to tell you that while some of bullet journaling looks complex, it can actually be pretty simple if you break it down into steps! Starting with a simple rectangle, you can create an interesting space in your bujo for lists, notes, or even quotes!

Tip: Use a pencil first! (Word on the street... Faber-Castell has some pretty sweet supplies if you’re interested... just sayin’) 

Try out each step shown here on these 4 simple boxes! As you can tell, I wasn’t sure what to call them, so forgive the names... I just can't help myself!

Once you’ve completed the three steps, it’s time to push it (...push it real good!) Add flourishes, shadows, florals, and metallic elements to help elevate your boxes, and then use them in your journal! How many other ornamental boxes can you create from a simple rectangle? Experiment and make it your own!

If you'd love to use ornamental boxes in your journal, but aren't ready to take the plunge, check out this free printable here! Download

Thanks, everyone! Keep creating!

Tutorial: How To Create Art Deco Header Boxes!

Hi there, old sport! I’ve shown you a few ways to make header boxes before, that's nothing new - BUT since you are all so kind and supportive of my Art Deco posts, I figured I’d show you some simple ways to make your header boxes with a little 1920s flare! ✨

A lot of Art Deco is built upon symmetry, angles, and line work, which makes them easy to create step by step, and easy to apply to any dot grid journal. The dots create the perfect canvas for this style!

Using the simple steps above, and some fantastic Faber-Castell pens, you are able to bring a little glam to your days! Did you know they make metallic pens as well? In MORE than just silver and gold? You heard me correctly! I'm such a fan!

Want to give these tutorials a try and share it? Be sure to tag @fabercastellusa and @plansthatblossom so we can take a peek! If you’re interested in this style, but can’t master the technique, we've created a fun printable with many different art deco styles to use in your own journal! I've left them blank so you can use them for months, days, lists - whatever you choose! Jazz them up with some fabulous pitt artist pens as well! Download the printable HERE.

Thanks so much! Keep creating!

Christmas Countdown - Draw Your Own Ornaments Challenge!

Hi everyone!

I'm so excited to announce the arrival of our Christmas Countdown Challenge!

To start counting down to Christmas, create 15 ornaments, and each day, decorate them! The ornaments can be simple or ornate... big or small - it's up to you!

Personally, I'm going to challenge myself to use multiple mediums for this one! One day will be pitt artist pens, and the next could be colored pencils! I'm so excited to get started and experiment! The end result will be stunning, and I cannot wait for you to share your fabulous work with Faber-Castell USA & I!

If you decide to post, be sure to tag me at @plansthatblossom and Faber-Castell at @fabercastellusa and use the hashtag: #fcornamentchallenge so we can enjoy your beautiful creations!

Fun tip - looking for an advent calendar for the kids? This challenge is perfect for that! It's a fun family activity that keeps everyone creative and festive!

If you're not into drawing your own ornaments, but would still like to decorate them - you're in luck! I have a printable for you! )You know I love a good printable!) It can be trimmed to A5 size which is a great fit for the typical bullet journal. Check it out printable and enjoy!

Thanks, and Happy Holidays!!

DIY Celebration Card

Is there anything better than celebrating friends and family? Adding a personal touch, and a heartfelt note is always a good idea. 

To make this card you'll need:

• A blank card/envelope
• Faber-Castell gelatos in your choice of colors, here i have metallic mint and metallic blueberry
• Faber-Castell gelato tool kit
• A stencil
• Faber-Castell Pitt Artist pen in blue metallic 292
• Faber-Castell Pitt Artist brush pen in black

 

Start by scribbling a little bit of the gelato onto a palette (any smooth surface would work).

 

 

Pick up some of the color using the larger of the sponges from your tool kit and start coloring over top of the stencil.

 

Once you've colored in the whole picture, take your metallic pitt pen and write your greeting on the front of the card!

 

Use the Pitt Artist brush pen for the envelope. You can write their name or a congratulatory message, whatever you'd like!

 

Finish up with a nice note on the inside, and you've just made a wonderful, personal gift for your friends!

  

Chelsea has a not-so-slight obsession with all things lettering. Watching lettering videos is what got her started, and you can usually find her posting videos using every art supply she can get her hands on! From brush pens to watercolors, and everything in between!

 

 

 

 

 

Bible Journaling

Hi everyone, Mou here with a Bible Journaling tutorial using the Faber-Castell Design Memory Craft Bible Journaling Kit. 

SUPPLIES:

 

Faber-Castell Design Memory Craft Bible Journaling Kit

Faber-Castell Design Memory Craft Textural Accents & Tools - Gel Medium, Glaze, Gesso, Whipped Spackle, Gelatos Tool Kit

Faber-Castell Design Memory Craft Collapsible Water Cup

Silicone Spatula (from Honey Medium Starter kit - you can use a brush instead)

Scissors

Watercolor paper (I used 140 lb cold press by Canson, cut to 9x9 inches)

The Bible I have does not have a wide margin, so I make color copies of the verses, trim around with scissors and attach to a wider piece of watercolor paper with Gel Medium. You may not need to do this step if your Bible is designed for journaling.

Apply Gesso around the verse and even layer on parts of the verse that you don't plan to focus on. Let dry.

Add some color to the page using the highlighter Gelatos from the kit. Blend with water.

Lay the stencil Trust His Path on the page and apply Whipped Spackle with a palette knife.

Doodle a frame around your chosen verse with a PITT pen.

Cut out a phrase from the kit with scissors to attach to the page. Add a diecut or sticker to decorate.

Rub some more Gelatos colors on and blend it with a coat of glaze over the whole page. Let dry completely.

Doodle some feathers around the verse with PITT pen.

Handletter the verse near the framed verse and doodle a frame around it with the Metallic Gold PITT pen. Make marks and add more touches of gold all around the page to finish.

I hope you enjoyed today's tutorial and will find the Bible Journaling Kit very useful in your own art practice!

Gelatos Zhoosh and a Star Garland

Star garlands and winter go together like snow and cocoa! 

Today's project starts with a spin on a technique my students dubbed the Sumi Smoosh. Let's call it Gelatos Zhoosh (Jooosh: make it lively). Check out the video at the end of this post to see more in depth tips. 

Here's what you need for this simple and addictive technique and today's project. Make plenty of Zhooshed paper to have on hand for any paper craft you have up your sleeve. I like the 90# mixed media paper for this. It's easy to fold, trim and die cut.

For the Gelatos Zhoosh

Gelatos (any kind)
A plastic report cover, sleeve or packaging
Water mister
90# Mixed Media type paper, I cut it into 6" squares so it would fit into my die cut machine. 

NOTE: Watercolor paper isn't recommended for this technique.

For the Garland 

Star dies or punches. Hand cut stars are beautiful in my opinion, especially when cut by kids.
Decorative trim
String or twine for garland
Hole punch

Start by defining the area on your plastic where you'll be Zhooshing. I used a black pen to create the area. Now just scribble on the plastic Gelatos.

Open the cover and scribble in the traced square with Gelatos. Spritz gentle with water, place the paper inside and close the cover again, Zhooshing the activated Gelatos over the paper. Open and Voila! 

For a variation, try stenciling with Glaze medium onto your paper and let it dry before Zhooshing. You could use Gesso, Texture Luxe or Texture Gems for extra shine. Glass Bead Glitter Gel would work here too. 

After the paper has dried, cut stars (by hand, punches or die cuts). 

Go wild by stamping with Pitt Pens, adding Glass Beat Glitter Gel and doodling with Pitt Pens (the Metallics are very nice). More is more with Star Garlands. 

I made Glittery Tinsel Tassels because ... well why not? LOL. Here's my Garland cheering up the dreary view from my studio window. 

I use to lay out the supplies for projects like this for my kids to come and go with. 

Make the paper in one session.
Make the stars and decorate at will.
Snowy weekend fun.

Enjoy the video. I added some color theory tips for you too.

 

Holiday Art with Holiday Lettering PITT Pens

Hi everyone, Mou here with a Holiday art tutorial for you! Whether you are looking to make a quick home decor or just de-stress in your art journal, I hope you'll find today's tutorial using the Holiday Lettering Mixed Nib Set of PITT Artist pens inspiring.

Let's look at the supplies before I walk you through the steps.

Supplies:

Faber-Castell Design Memory Craft Holiday Lettering Mixed Nib Set of PITT Artist pens

Faber-Castell Design Memory Craft Gel Medium

Other: Watercolor paper, trimmer, star die-cut, scissors, paint brush

Trim watercolor paper into 1 inch wide strips. Cut the strips into smaller pieces as shown with scissors, with the smallest piece at the top and increasing the length as you go down. Picture the conical shape of a Christmas tree in your mind. Ink the edges of each strip with the Black 199 B nib PITT pen.

Handletter Christmas words, alternating between Permanent Green Olive 167 and Pale Geranium Lake 121 B nib PITT pens, on the above strips. Take your time to hand letter - it doesn't have to be perfect but being patient will certainly improve the quality of writing.

Color the star die-cut with the Gold 250 Bullet Nib pen. Use the same pen to color a stem for your tree.

Arrange the pieces to create your tree and attach them to the page with gel medium.

Make simple marks around the focal point as shown with the Permanent Green Olive 167 and Pale Geranium Lake 121 B nib PITT pens and Gold 250 Bullet Nib pen to finish.

I hope you enjoy this Holiday Lettering Pen set as much as I did!

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Journal Spill with Watercolor Pencils and Pitt Pens

Diana Trout here today with a journal spill. A blank journal page can be hard to confront. That's why I sometimes start my pages with a word spill. It puts me in touch with my head and heart. 

Supplies:

Art GRIP Aquarelle Watercolor Pencils
Pitt Artist Metallic Pens
PITT Artist Pens

For this page, I wrote with a rainbow of Art GRIP Aquarelle Watercolor Pencils. It's helpful to turn your journal upside down. I arranged these pencils in rainbow order and got my pencil moving as quickly as possible so that my brain had no time to edit. Forget about spelling and punctuation and write real sloppy. 

I worked through the rainbow of pencils for these two pages. I only completed one of the pages though. After scribble writing, use a wet paintbrush to blend out the color. Some of the lines may still be visible but that's OK. There is nobody that will work that hard to read upside down, sloppy, watery words. Your writing may have informed you but now it's just background pattern.

Don't forget to turn your book right side up before proceeding! 

I added more color to the page by scribbling with another watercolor pencil. Use analogous colors (colors that are next to each other on the color wheel) when your colors are still wet so that you don't get mud. For instance, don't go over a wet green or blue area with orange!


You can dip your watercolor pencil into water or wet an area on the page to make a juicy line  or area, such as the rectangular box above. I still wasn't sure where I was going with this page. I let one idea lead to another. Working in a flow  that may require practice. I know it's hard, but try not to be afraid of messing up. 


Flowers hold a great deal of meaning for me and these are easy to re-create. They are asterisks with extra lines through them, like Pom-Pom Mums. Since the light blue background was dry, I used a yellow Pitt Pen and yellow Watercolor pencil. The wet of the pen activated the watercolor pencil and blended into an orange. Since the blue background was dry there was no mud puddle.

I added some silver Metallic Pitt pen  for the stamen center of the flower. I added more detail to my rectangle with a Medium size black Pitt pen.

The last detail I added was stamping. I used a Stampers Big Brush Pen to color the stamp and add a bit of pattern to the background.

After you've colored your stamp, be sure to "huff" on it with warm breath to moisten before you stamp. When you've finished stamping, wipe off your stamps with a wet rag just as you would for any ink. Don't worry if your stamps are stained. That means they are well loved. 

I used anWatercolor Pencil to add the stems, then added some of the green Stamper's Big Brush to activate. I like that trick, it can give you cool effects.

I hope you'll pull out your journal and scribble away!

NOTE: I used a 140# watercolor paper journal for this page. 

How to use your Bible Journaling Kit outside the Bible

Hi everyone, Mou here with a video tutorial to show you an idea for using your Bible Journaling Kit elements outside of the Bible! I created this canvas using the Bible Journaling Kit by Faber-Castel®l Design Memory Craf®t as a reminder to remain hopeful and courageous.

Let's start by looking at the supplies:

Faber-Castell Design Memory Craft -

Bible Journaling Kit

Gelatos® Color - Bubble Gum

Textural Accents & Tools

• Gel Medium
• Glaze
• Whipped Spackle
• Palette knife (Gelatos Tool set)

Other - 6x6 Canvas Panel

Here is the video tutorial for you. You can watch by clicking the play button below or by following this link.

I hope you enjoyed today's tutorial!

 

 

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Passion Fruit Mosaic Page by Rachel

I hope you are loving all the pink on the Design Memory Craft blog this month! This is Rachel Kleinman to continue with the happy color, specifically the Gelatos® Color of the Week: Passion Fruit.  Maybe you can tell I used quite a lot of pink Gelatos® on this journal page... couldn't help myself :)

I started with a gesso'd page and drew in squares with Gelatos® Strawberry, Watermelon, Guava, Passion Fruit, and Blood Orange. I used a paintbrush with water to break down the pigments and paint in the squares. I love the smooth matte look of blended Gelatos®, it made for a gorgeous mosaic spread!

Next, I added some small simple doodles throughout the page. I drew thin lines with a Black Paper Crafter Crayon™, thick lines with a Pink Madder Stamper's Big Brush Pen, circles with the Metallic Gold Pitt Pen and then just smeared some Pearl Texture Luxe™ with my finger.

My favorite way to use the Glaze medium is to mix it with Gelatos® and apply it through a stencil. Here I mixed Glaze with chopped up Passion Fruit Gelatos® and the Mixed Media 102 Stencil. Now time to let everything dry completely!

Gelatos® are so versatile... don't forget they work as a great water color, too! You can vary the strength of the color by adding more water to lighten it and less water to keep it more opaque. Here I scribbled some Black Licorice Gelatos® on my craft mat and mixed up the pigment with a wet paintbrush. Then I used the brush to flick splatters of black throughout my journal page.

Finally, the last step! The White Stamper's Big Brush Pen was traced through this little flower stencil from the Scandinavian Stencil Collection. Lastly I added some writing with a Black Pitt Pen. I've been listening to The Beauty and the Beast soundtrack, so of course I had to add some lyrics to this!

Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy the last couple days of your February and get creative!

 

SUPPLIES:

Gelatos®: Passion Fruit, Strawberry, Watermelon, Guava, Blood Orange, Black Licorice

Mixed Media 102 Stencil Collection

Mixed Media Scandinavian Stencil Collection

Pitt Pen: Black, Gold

Stamper's Big Brush Pen: White, Pink Madder

Paper Crafter Crayons™ Neutral Pack

Texture Luxe Paste Pearl

Gesso

Glaze

Glass Bead Glitter Gel