I rely heavily on these tools

Keep a notebook. Travel with it, eat with it, sleep with it. Slap into it every stray thought that flutters up into your brain. Cheap paper is less perishable than gray matter. And lead pencil markings endure longer than memory.

Jack London

I use some of my art journals the same way as a notebook. I scribble notes as I’m painting, like if I mix the perfect color, and need to remember later how I did it. It comes in handy if I’m listening to a Youtube video, and I want to further research something later, such as someone’s name. Sometimes to get a creative background or to add layering to my page to make it more interesting, I’ll write my own thoughts down or pick random words out of a video I’m listening to, which I later cover up with layers of paint. Anything goes, really.

When I’m on my computer I use the Notes or Pages app. I sometimes jot down ideas for future blog posts, painting ideas, quotes, and other stuff I collect from my travels online in these apps. I hunt, gather & save things I find online constantly. Otherwise, I forget.

My memory kinda sucks. I mean, I remember the important stuff, usually, but I forget A LOT. The problem is I don’t know how much I forget, until I’m reminded.

My husband recently found an old art journal we made together on a trip we took to my hometown in NH back in 2006. I didn’t even remember taking an art journal with us, let alone the details we wrote down. It was both hilarious & cringey to read. I read it out loud to him, and he laughed his head off. Ha! We were definitely weird back then. Not much has changed.

Painting is just another way of keeping a diary. 

Pablo Picasso

My artwork is available on Daily Paintworks, and eBay, if you’re interested.