You guys! I have a brand new obsession: making art on my iPad. It's actually creating a little bit of a problem for me. I've mostly been doing it on the subway and I totally lose track of time, which is great, but not so great. An hour-long ride goes by super duper fast, but I've also almost missed my stop a few different times. Seriously. So, I might have a heart attack, but I'm having fun on my iPad in the meantime. ;) As you know (because I shared my handy dandy iPad Oilcloth Pouch), I recently bought myself... Read more →

I was cruising through Amy Butler's instagram account and I came across this awesome pincushion: I literally jumped up and walked straight into my studio and began pulling through my jewelry stash for the parts to make one of my own! Here's the how-to: STEP ONE: Gather your supplies: Ring Blank -- These come in tons of different styles. The one in the photo is a super cheap adjustable one from Plaid. Small Bezel -- To ensure that the pins don't poke your fingers, you need a hard metal bezel to hold the felt ball. The one in the photo... 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! Helloooooooooooooo! I hope you've had a great week! Today I'm sharing some daily... Read more →

There are a couple of seats left in my class at The Ink Pad here in NYC on Sunday! Check out this 15-second video about the class: Watch this 15-second video and then join me on Sunday (March 29) for my #JunqueJournal class @theinkpadnyc -- If you like the idea, but you can't come to class, check out the online version in my website (www.balzerdesigns.com). The in-person and online versions are different. (I don't like to duplicate content.). Most notably, they use two totally different binding methods. 👍 #artjournal A video posted by Julie Fei-Fan Balzer (@balzerdesigns) on Mar 25,... Read more →

Last week I got a fancy new iPad. This created the perfect excuse to get crafty! I got my stitch on and whipped up a zippered and padded iPad pouch with a pocket for styluses. I used some awesome shiny Amy Butler oilcloth that I've been hoarding for years. Technically, it's not oilcloth (made with linseed oil) but rather laminated fabric. But laminated fabric doesn't sound as cool, does it? If you'd like to learn more about oilcloth/laminated fabric, this is a great article. Originally, I had grand plans to learn how to sew a raincoat and then figured I'd... Read more →

Today I want to share an art tip with you! I'm usually super good about washing out my paintbrushes. They may sit in a jar of water for a week, but I try very hard to never let paint or glue harden in them. After all, that's how a perfectly nice brush becomes a stick. That said, I recently discovered that one of my favorite brushes had not been thoroughly washed after I taught a class. I had assumed it was okay and stuck it in my brush bucket when I got home. When I took it out to use... Read more →

Hey! I'm going to be on HSN (Home Shopping Network) tomorrow (Tuesday, March 24, 2015) demoing the ScanNCut. You can watch either on your TV or online! I will be on between 2am and 3am and then again between 6pm and 7pm EST. I hope you'll tune in! When I posted my Project Life process video two weeks ago, I got a bunch of requests for information on how I do the digital portion of my Project Life. So, I put together a video of the process for you! To be clear: this video isn't instructive. If you don't know... 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! Happy Friday everyone! Today I'm sharing some pages from my every day art... Read more →

When I posted the large dimensional flowers from CHA... ...I got lots of questions about how we made them. At long last, I've put together a video for you: Here's the flower from the video: And the box, where the flower was made with hand painted paper: I hope you'll try out making your own super cool dimensional flower -- big or small! Thanks for stopping by! --- I am a paid spokesperson for the Brother ScanNCut and was compensated for this post. However, the ScanNCut is a machine that I love and use. I hope my genuine enthusiasm for... Read more →

Hellooooooo! Today I've got a fun and fresh new idea for you, prompted by a question a student asked me in class this past weekend. As you can see from the diagram, you push colorant through a stencil. A mask covers (or masks) an area and the colorant goes around it. All of the Balzer Bits are masks. However, a student asked me if there were a way to treat them as stencils. I put on my thinking cap and came up with an idea. Watch the video for the how-to: Washi Tape Patterned Duct Tape 6x6 Tribal Triangles 6x6... Read more →