I am obsessed with the instagram account @2sisters_angie otherwise known as "Fashion by Mayhem." My Mom sent me a link to this article from The Huffington Post and I fell in love right away! Mayhem and her Mom make fabulous dresses out of paper of all kinds! They also have a website that's fun to visit and has more in-depth information about the dresses. I love the fact that all of this creativity is driven by a four-year-old's imagination! My obesession with Mayhem's dresses led me to go looking for wearable paper dresses of all kinds. Here are few grown-up... 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! The linky list at the end of each Art Journal Every Day post... Read more →

I'm back from Florida! HSN was a fascinating experience. You're not really allowed to take photos, so I don't have a lot of those to share. But I still wanted to tell you all about it! On Friday I attended new guest training. It was really interesting to learn about HSN and who their customer is. And, of course, I appreciated all the tips on being a successful guest. Before heading to Florida I made five projects using the ScanNCut. I used the drawing function to create custom fabric that I stitched into a little zippered pouch. I also made... Read more →

I'm teaching SIX (yes, 6!) classes at the CREATE Mixed Media Retreat in New Jersey July 9-13, 2014. EXPLORE FACES (6 HOURS) • JULIE FEI-FAN BALZER Date & Time Price Materials Fee Saturday, July 12• 9am-4pm $152 N/A Skill Level: All Levels Technique: Printmaking & Surface Design You will leave with... a collection of drawn and painted faces in your own unique style! Description: If you’ve ever been intimidated by drawing faces, come and play during this face workshop! We’ll create pleasing faces, quirky faces, funny faces, collage faces, and sketchy faces. Julie Fei-Fan Balzer will break everything down into... Read more →

You guys, you know that I loooooove a challenge, right? Well, last week I got to work on a totally awesome and exciting challenge! Jenn Mason and I are getting ready to film the first season of our weekly online video series, "The Mixed Media Workshop." I headed to Boston to work with Jenn for three intense days of prep. It was a crafty sweatshop! There was planning... ...and snacking... ...and art supplies... ...and silliness... ...and lots and lots of art making... We are filming in Colorado in two weeks and I've got heaps more art to make before then!... Read more →

I recently had a little play session with my brand new round Gelli Plate! Looking at all of the circle prints I decided to see if I could create one right in the middle of an art journal spread. And you know what? I could! And it was so awesome that I did it twice! Have you tried out the round Gelli Plate yet? Stripes Explosion 12x12 Web Doily Stencil 12x12 Onion Skin Stencil 12x12 Petals Stencil 12x12 Balzer Bits: Butterfly 12x12 Cityscape stencil Celtic Circle Stencil 12x12 Catalyst Tools Golden Fluid Acrylics Liquitex Basics Acrylic Paint Speedball Soft Rubber... Read more →

I'm a color girl! I like to use every single color (and usually all at the same time), but there is something about black and white art that is also so very compelling. Here are some of my recent black & white faves from my "Love the Whole Thing" pinterest board. pin pin pin pin pin Black and white communicates so much, doesn't it? Thanks for stopping by! 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! I've got some daily pages to share with you today. I'm about three-quarters... Read more →

I am going to be in Florida on Monday. Why? Well, check your TV Guide.... I am appearing on HSN (Home Shopping Network) at 6am and 11pm EST as part of their 24-hour craft marathon for National Crafting Month (March). I'm going to be showing off a bunch of projects... ...that I made using the Brother ScanNCut! I'll be talking all about the machine and sharing some of my tips on how best to use it. And HSN will be offering a great ScanNCut bundle for you to purchase! I'm super excited (and super nervous) about the whole HSN experience.... Read more →

My sweet friend Nathalie and I had a great time teaching together at The Ink Pad here in NYC. We had a wonderful (and hardy) group of women. Hardy because the heat wasn't working and it was *freezing* -- by the end of the day my fingers were numb. However, we did learn that heat guns work as space heaters in a pinch! ;) It was super fun to teach with Nathalie. We have different ways of approaching making art, but we both have the same approach to teaching -- no rules, creative freedom, plenty of information, and lots of... Read more →