Today I’m going to show you how to make your own nature-inspired art journal fairy princess! This is such a fun way to incorporate nature walks into the pages of your journal.
When I walk through our various forest paths in the summer, what with the wildflowers in full bloom and the dappled light on the canopy of leaves . . . it’s difficult to not wonder at the beauty of creation. I also feel at any moment that some magical creature will walk out onto the path in front of me. But usually, it’s just a wild bunny or chipmunk. I suppose that’s magic enough!
This particular fairy princess was inspired by the pine cones strewn across our path in the forest. Of course, a pine cone dress would not exactly be comfortable, but the colors and the pattern could be stitched onto a summery cotton for our princess. And in the world of art journaling, anything goes.
Nature-Inspired Art Journal Fairy Princess
You will need:
An art journal that has mixed media or watercolor pages (I used pages from this one)
Colored pencils
Watercolor pencils
Gesso
Ink in various colors (Tinsel, Hot Cocoa)
Watercolors (I used Peerless with this brush)
Sharpie fine line pen (must be waterproof)
To start, if you struggle with drawing faces but would really like to learn how to, I highly recommend the book, Drawing Beautiful Faces. I’ve used this book for the past couple of years and have enjoyed it so much. Even my little daughter references it when she’s drawing princesses. 🙂
For this spread, I used a light purple colored pencil to sketch the princess as well as to journal my walk in the forest. This particular walk was special because I got to take my parents on our forest path as they were in town for the weekend.
After getting the basic shapes down, I wet the paper and painted ink onto the darker “shadowed” parts of her face and hair. I used the color, Tinsel, for her skin, and Hot Cocoa for her hair. I watered down the chocolate color since it looks almost black if you use it straight on dry paper.
As you can probably see, I let the ink move around the hair area on its own, creating blooms and streaks as it wished. I think this is beautiful.
One of the benefits of working on a full spread like this is while one side dries, I can work on the other side.
On the right, I started drawing a pine branch using watercolor pencils. I used several shades of browns and greens for this. As I continued to draw, it began to morph into more of a feather shape which was alright by me. 🙂
After I finished drawing, I painted gesso lightly over the words I had journaled and painted the feather with short upward strokes. The watercolor pencil becomes activated like paint when it gets wet so the colors blended and made a muted pastel look.
I was going to let this side dry and finish it off with a quote or something, but in the end, I really liked it how it was. Go with your gut when you’re art journaling, and remember there isn’t a wrong or right way to do it.
Finally, I used Peerless watercolors to add color to her face and a fine line Sharpie for all of the detail work. This is where you can have some real fun and write additional words in her hair or create more detail in her gown.
I do think, that if you decide to play up her eyes, for example, that it’s a good idea to have the other pieces (hair, outfit, etc.) be more subtle. That will allow the eyes to pop more.
And finally, here’s a picture of the pine cone I picked up on our walk with her ruffly pine cone-esque dress. After drawing her, I want to draw her again but maybe on a forest path or in a branch this time. 🙂
When you’re incorporating nature into your art journal, consider how you can combine the colors, textures, and items you see with your own story or even fairytales. It’s a fun way to stretch your creativity!
Hope you have a wonderful {and creative} day!
