I am addicted to pinning things on Pinterest. I can't help myself. It's just too much fun. Today I thought I'd share a few of my favorite things that I've pinned recently: source Sabrina Ward Harrison can do no wrong in my eyes. I love everything that she does. Her effortlessly artistic style and wonderfully wonky lettering make me so happy! source I love the colors and aggressive brush strokes in this painting from Matt Sesow. source I am a huge fan of folk art. I love the lettering and the character in that face! source I think that Barbara... Read more →

On Friday my new online class "Getting Started with the Gelli Plate" will be released. What is a Gelli Plate? I'm so glad that you asked! It's a product made by Gelli Arts for monoprinting (creating unique individual - mono or one - prints). Essentially, it's a big squishy rectangle of a gelatin-like substance. As you can see from the packaging, it's advertised as a method of creating monoprints without a press. Watch this video on traditional monoprinting with a press and you'll see why the Gelli Plate is so darn awesome! "Getting Started with the Gelli Plate" is a... Read more →

I was absolutely delighted when Dyan Reaveley asked me to contribute to Ranger's CHA Booth Designer Challenge. We were each sent one color of her Dylusions spray ink, plus black and white, and a canvas board, along with some tags and a few of her stencils. The rules were that the board had to be vertically oriented and that we were not to use other colors than the one we were sent. I love mixing lots and lots of colors, so it was hard to think what to do with only one color (plus black and white). Here's what I... Read more →

This year I have decided to embrace Ali Edwards' "One Little Word." It's a simple idea: you choose a word to be a guiding principle for you all year long. Ali's word for 2013 is "open." I've decided that mine is "yes," and I carved a stamp to memorialize my choice: I plan to use it all year long in my art journal and in my Project Life album. Yes! Have you chosen a guiding word for 2013? Read more →

Today is my birthday and birthdays are always a time for looking back at the year that was. So, I thought I'd share five photos of myself, on five favorite moments, from my thirty-fifth year. January 2012: At CHA-Winter. About to give my very first presentation ever to a room of 200 people. February 2012: With my Brother, my Mother, and my Cousin at a surprise birthday party my Husband threw for me. April 2012: On the set of Scrapbook Soup! August 2012: My last outing with my friend, Riv, right before she moved across the country. :( December 2012:... Read more →

If you're new to Art Journal Every Day, there is a short introduction here. All of the previous posts can be found archived here. There is a flickr group for sharing right here. Remember, it's just ten minutes of nourishing your creative self every day! No need to finish anything or even like it. If you've done some art journaling this week and you've blogged about it, or put it on flickr, please leave a link in the linky list at the end of this post. Thanks! Today I'm sharing some daily pages from October 2012. Some more faces, but... Read more →

I'm delighted to bring you another episode of the Adventures in Arting Podcast! If you do not see the player above, please follow the instructions in this post. You can listen to a podcast anywhere and at any time. It is a recording that is available to you whenever you'd like to listen. If you'd like to download it to your iTunes library, click here. You can also pause and rewind or fast forward as you desire. I like to listen to podcasts while I'm making art. It's a little like hanging out with friends while you art. Today's guest... Read more →

After several requests, I've set up a monthly newsletter. If you'd like to receive an e-mail from me once a month with information about upcoming classes, products, and other goings-on, you can subscribe below (if you don't see the form, please click through this link): To receive monthly updates from Balzer Designs, enter your e-mail address and hit "subscribe." Thanks for stopping by! ETA: If you already subscribe to my blog via e-mail (i.e. you get almost daily blog updates in your inbox), nothing will change for you and you don't need to do anything. This monthly newsletter is something... Read more →

I had a wonderful time teaching at Studio Crescendoh in Santa Ana, CA! It's a wonderful light-filled classroom space... ...run by the indomitable Jenny Doh. (The two photos above were stolen from her instagram feed.) Six amazing (and slightly blurry) women... ...spent two days with me. There were two Julies (and I make three)! Julie #1: I first spotted Julie standing on the curb outside the studio. I recognized her from the last class I taught at Studio Crescendoh (and the fact that she was surrounded by art supplies didn't hurt either). She is as talented as she is sweet... Read more →

I'm back in town after almost two weeks away! Traveling without a computer (just an iPhone) means that I have also come home to 406 unread e-mails in one account and 812 in the other. So, if you're waiting for an e-mail for me, be patient. I'm working my way through them. The first five days of my trip were dedicated to the Craft & Hobby Association's (CHA) annual winter show. I believe that this is my seventh or eighth CHA? It hardly seems possible, but I believe this is the fourth Winter show I've attended. If you're unfamiliar with... Read more →