Arabesque Muse Journals.

I love making Muse Journals. It gives me a chance to explore techniques and ideas in my art on a smaller canvas. They take quite a while to make, but I find the experience delightful. There is something magical about marrying books and art.

Both front and back covers are mixed media originals, hand-sewn onto a blank text block with a Coptic stitch. The binding allows the book to lie flat while it is worked in. It also looks beautiful and is very strong.

The inside covers are decorated with lovely papers and each journal is signed. The spines of each signature are wrapped with decorative paper, enhancing the overall look while adding handy dividers.

These are my latest offerings: Arabesque II and Arabesque III. You can read more about Arabesques and Zentangles in my previous blog posts.

If you would like to buy one of these Muse Journals, please click here to go to my web site order page. Everyone deserves a special journal to capture their creative ideas!

  ARABESQUE II
Muse Journal with original, hand-painted, mixed media covers by Holly Dean.
7" x 5", 192 pages, 75 lb. white, acid free paper suitable for writing, drawing and painting.
$89 CAD plus shipping

ARABESQUE III
Muse Journal with original, hand-painted, mixed media covers by Holly Dean.
7" x 5", 192 pages, 75 lb. white, acid free paper suitable for writing, drawing and painting.
$89 CAD plus shipping

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Arabesques. Muse Journals.

I spent a lovely couple of hours binding two new Muse Journals in the studio this morning. On a rainy day. With a genius mix playing. It's great to be an artist!

Attaching the first signature to the painted cover.

The back cover goes on.

And - voilà! A new Muse Journal.
The covers are hand-painted and collaged with Arabesques.
You can learn about my Arabesques here and here.

And now there are three.

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Doodling & Altering

Oh, yes. I'm still making Zentangles and Arabesques :)

Zentangle - hand drawn original, marker with pencil shading

Arabesque - Zentangle layered with original art (altered), iPhoneography apps

Zentangle - hand drawn original, marker with pencil shading

Arabesque - Zentangle layered with original art (altered), iPhoneography apps

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One thing leads to another.

As you learned in my last post, I have become intrigued (if not obsessed) with Zentangles!

Some of my best ideas come to me at night, when I can't sleep. Since I acquired an iPhone, I have been using this "extra" time to pursue the creative ideas that are constantly whirling around in my head. I have been experimenting with iPhoneography - another passion - and I thought, "What would happen if I combined altered images of my art with my Zentangles?

Zentangle using "Betweed".

An "Arabesque" is born.

Well, this is what happened. I created this image exclusively on the iPhone, using apps I have collected for iPhoneography. I have named it an "Arabesque", which I believe captures its elegant movement and "other-worldly" quality.

Another Zentangle.

Another Arabesque.

I am so excited to have discovered this new realm of creative possibilities. There really are no limits to the imagination!

Have you LIKED my Facebook Fan Page yet? Head on over to see more Arabesques and find out what people are saying about them. I would love to hear what you think too :)

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