Upcycle Junk Artwork into a Collage Journal
Make an Eco Art Journal!
If you are anything like me and have been making art for years, chances are you have some works that did not turn out the way you wanted. Scour through your boxes of old art and pull out everything you dislike. Then turn it all into this fabulous art journal and give it a whole new lease on life!
This journal is created with 100% upcycled materials or items I already had around the house. If you know anything about me you know I don’t like to spend a ton on art unless it is absolutely necessary. I made this journal with things I already had, so it was nearly FREE to make!
The materials list for this project might seem extensive, however I want to encourage you to think outside the box! Use the materials you already have. Sometimes the best projects come together with a more scrappy, creative use of resources.
Especially when it comes to Eco Art, it is fun to use what you already have or use materials in fresh ways. Make the journal your own and have fun using what you have on hand!
The finished dimensions of my Eco Art Journal were approximately 13 inches wide by 11 inches tall, with about 30 pages in the book.
Materials:
Old artwork in varying sizes
Hole punch
Marker
Hemp thread or needle and thick floss to thread the binding
2 pieces of thin cardboard that are the same size
(you could use a cereal box or look around your house and find a larger box that is made from a light weight cardboard)
Optional paper cutter or scissors and ruler
Materials to decorate the covers
(old magazines, craft paints, glue stick, stencils, other material you have on hand)
Optional Manilla Envelope for back cover
This is a great rainy day project! Turn up the music and plan on spending some time during the weekend getting the art journal together.
For Step One, start by preparing the cardboard pieces that will be the cover. Break the box down so that you have two large pieces of equal size.
The binding of the book is created by a line of holes along the left edge. You can use a ruler and mark every inch along the left edge to align the placement of the holes. Or do what I did and just wing it! Put the bottom hole approximately ½ inch from the bottom edge and then work your way up. If your cardboard is thin you should be able to use the hole punch; otherwise use a crop-o-dile tool or book making awl.
Once you have the holes punched along the left edge of both pieces of cardboard, choose one piece to be the front cover. Fold the cardboard about an inch in along the left side in a straight line and crease. This will make it easier to open the book.
Set the cover aside and it is time for Step Two! This is kind of the arduous tedious part of the process so be prepared for some elbow grease.
This is the perfect time to crack open a cold one, put on some upbeat music and get INTO the process!
Take one piece of paper from your stack of old artwork and lay it under the front cover. Align the bottom edge of the cover with the bottom edge of the paper and, using your marker, draw dots to mark where the holes are supposed to go. Punch out the holes and then use that sheet as a guide to punch holes in the rest of the sheets of paper.
If you want the right edge of the book to be neat and tidy, you may need to trim down some of the pages. My journal has pages that are similar in size and I’m letting the right edge be uneven. I did trim down some of the papers to make them similar in size. If you are a perfectionist and like to have all your ducks in a row, just make the pages approximately the same size.
If there are other papers or cardstock that you want to add to the journal, prep them in the same fashion as you did with the old art. You could add map pages, grid paper, book pages, etc. It just depends on the style of journal you are trying to make. My journal is going to be for collage so I’m using junk watercolor papers and mixed media paper.
So now that you have the pages prepared it is time for Step Three! This is the fun part, the part that you have been waiting for! Decorate the covers of your journal in any way you see fit.
To begin, start with the back cover. I happened to have a manilla envelope lying around, so I glued one to the inside of the back cover. This will be handy for storing magazine clippings and bits of paper that I want to later work into the journal.
Next comes the front cover! Mine is a basic collage scene with a cardstock background. Use what you have on hand and decorate to your heart’s content!
I started my cover with a piece of cardstock to create a background. Then I built up layers of collage until I was happy with the work. Feel free to go to town and glue images down intuitively. If you don’t like something you can always layer an image over the top.
Seal the collage with a top layer of matte medium, mod pauge sealant or spray varnish. I prefer Collage Pauge because it doesn’t put off fumes…there are lots of options out there today. Some sealants even have sparkles in them, or you can use a sparkle glue pen to add to the overall design.
Step Four has finally arrived! Try to relax while you put the book together. The end result will be an incredible collage book, where you can finally turn junk artwork into something you love.
Place the bottom cover of the journal in front of you and begin stacking the pages to line them up. Every once in a while, push a thin paintbrush through the holes to make sure everything is aligned the right way. Continue stacking the pages until they are all aligned and then stack the front cover on top.
(I wanted to use leather cord to bind the book however I quickly discovered that threading the binding is much easier with a thin sturdy thread like hemp thread. Alternatively, use a needle and heavy thread or floss.)
Thread the hemp through the top left hole and then down and up through the second hole. Leave a bunch of extra thread at the top to make sure you have enough to do the entire binding. Basically thread the book like you would lace up a shoe. Once you get to the bottom, pull on the thread to make sure you have enough slack and then work your way back up going the other way.
When the entire binding is threaded, tighten the lacing and then tie a few knots at the top. Trim the thread and the book is finished!
Now that your book is complete, the sky is the limit! Prep the pages with gesso so that you have a clean slate to art journal on, or leave some pages as is to collage over with paper and fabric. The book could be used to gather ideas or inspiration, or even use as a glue book to save bits of fodder from your daily life.
I hope you had fun creating your Eco Art Journal! Life just feels amazing when you are doing what you love and using your materials in new and fun ways.
