I Could Live Outta My Journal Bag

With the exception that there's no food, drink, toothbrush or clean underwear in my journal bag, I probably could live out of it. This is ridiculous! I just cleaned out my journal bag to take this picture. Four bone folders?? Really? Two pairs of scissors (the pink ones from JetPens.com are for the plane, when I travel). At least four (if not more) glue sticks. Enough pens to start my own Kinokuniya store. Stencils (Crafters Workshop and Prima Marketing) and rub-ons buried at the bottom of the bag (the last way you should store rub-ons. They don't like heat. Nor should you feed them after midnight. I do wish they'd multiply when I wasn't looking 'cause they are rather expensive, but how I love them so). Watercolor crayons I've hardly touched (I'm a snob when it comes to watercolor crayons. I prefer the deluxe version, the caran d'ache neo art watersoluble wax pastels). I should probably swap these out for my stabilo woody crayon pencils that I love. (I just have the high school mentality of their name. "What are those?" Insert Beavis and Butthead laugh.) If anyone needs any tape, boy, do I have some. Two bags and five rolls because, really, you never know. Tim's tiny attacher with extra staples (what is it about baby staplers?). I carry my rapidograph black india ink with me just in case. The black Eagle Creek shoe case in the bag holds all of my collage crap, I mean, collage stuff. It's filled with focal images, background paper and transparencies in that order. I took my sticker bag out (because that was a whole bag itself that needs to be seriously downsized, big time. Do I have enough pens? Obviously not because before I cleaned out this bag the other day I had six, SIX, pen bags in it. Now I have 3. (I won't tell you that I took out 3 additional tape bags). Did I mention that there is a journal in there somewhere? I swear.

I really don't take that much with me when I'm on the go (except for long weekends or traveling away from home). I have been known to travel with just my journal, my rapidograph pen, my lattes and sweets pens, glue sticks (with extra in the hotel) and a very small amount of collage ephemera. Really, I have made art with crap, I mean, paper stuffed, um, stored in a small wet ones container (which, by the way, also fits said glue stick and journal). It can be done.

For now, I am traveling with a bag o' said stuff, and boy, am I set for an art emergency!

(The above photo is what happens when someone asks for a picture of the inside of my art journal bag. As a teacher, I like to please. Please remember that one does not need this much crapola, ahem, art supplies, to be able to make art. Time, effort and passion along with a small handful of supplies will more than suffice!)