Art for the Soul - A five week Mixed Media Art Journaling course, 5 Tuesdays from 21st April to 19th May, 2026, s

What is an art journal?

Your art journal is where you are free to creatively experiment, play, express yourself – in whatever creative way you wish. Some journals include a lot of writing, others don't; some are colourful, others are muted; some are full of grungy texture, others are neat. It's all down to your creative personality. The great thing about art journaling is that there are no rules so your art journal can be whatever you want it to be!

Why art journal?

Art journaling is a form of creative self care - being creative is good for us in so many ways. Art journaling is a way of letting go of perfectionism and self judgement, and finding ways of expressing our creative selves without worrying whether what we are making is 'right'. You don't need to be able to draw to art journal!

What do you need to art journal?

At its most basic you can use a pen or a pencil and a piece of paper – most people use a book of some sort, or a large sheet of paper that you make into a book, or individual sheets of paper that you later create into a book. The great thing about art journaling is that there are no rules and you can use whatever you have.

In our five week introduction course, we will provide a wide range of materials and products for you to use – all you need to bring is an apron and your creative curiosity!

Week 1

We will talk about what art journaling is and look at examples of finished journals and also journals in progress.

We will create our journals from a large sheet of paper. A blank sheet of paper can be intimidating so we will be using inks and paints to add colour to our sheets of paper and forming these papers into our art journals.

We will decide if we want to have a theme for our journals (eg nature, travel, music, poetry, a particular colour) or whether we want to just go with the flow and see what magic happens – either is fine, the choice is yours.

Week 2

We will spend time creating layers of texture and pattern on the pages of our journals, using found objects for mark making. We will have a go at making and using our own foam stamps as well as using commercially available stamps and stencils.

Week 3

We will use gel plates to create a variety of collage papers which will be glued onto our pages, adding more layers and texture.

Week 4

We will do some lino carving and create a stamp that we can use in our journals, perhaps as a focal point to our pages or as a way of adding more patterns and marks.

Week 5

We will add doodles, marks, patterns and other finishing touches to our pages, then create covers for our journals. We will discuss how you can continue with your art journaling practice in the future.