Bible Journaling with Imagine Crafts Products

Today the Imagine Crafts blog is featuring my experimentation with IC products and Bible journaling.  I am honored to be able to share something near and dear to my heart with the Imagine Crafts blog readers.  Here are excerpts from the blog post.

I was recently introduced to a newer trend in paper crafting, Bible journaling. I was excited to get started so I bought a new journaling Bible with 2-inch margins to allow for artwork and journaling.  My excitement was tempered because I was just a little hesitant to try out different inks and products on my brand new pages because I didn’t want to ruin them.  Plus, I wasn’t keen on buying more paper crafting supplies because I already owned a plethora of fun Imagine Crafts products that just needed to be tested.  Product formulations cause them to react with the very thin Bible paper in ways that are different from the normal card stock.  Inks can easily bleed through to the back side, and in a few cases of really juicy pads onto the next page!  Some products are too opaque for use over the printed portions on the page, but others are suitable depending on the type of application. 

To do a few experiments I found a small New Testament at an estate sale, and it turned out to be a good one-dollar investment.  I was somewhat surprised with a few of my results.  For each initial ink test I choose a dark blue ink (brown for Delicata as it doesn’t come in blue yet) and a bold script stamp and stamped directly on the page over the printed section.  The pigment-based inks work wonderfully for most stamping and application with Sponge Daubers or Ink Blushers.  The lighter hues have less show through when used for stamping.  In the second round of testing I used Creative Medium Original and Shimmer as a gesso layer and had some amazing results with many of the Imagine Crafts products.

I continue to experiment in my new NIV Journaling Bible by Zondervan Publishers.  Shown above is my entry for Romans 15:13. I practiced on scrap paper twice to get the spacing and color combinations just right.  The edge was painted with Creative Medium Shimmer and allowed to dry.  The images were stamped and heat set as the Creative Medium makes the surface less absorbent.  The hand written portion can be added during the process or after the ink is heat set.  I choose the sparkly shimmery Delicata and related products because this passage spoke to me about power and hope.

Imagine Crafts Products used:  Creative Medium Shimmer, Delicata in Golden Glitz, Celestial Copper, Silvery Shimmer, and Bronze Burst, Brilliance Pearlescent Sky Blue, Memento Dual Marker in Sweet Plum and Danube Blue.

Other products:  Paper Smooches “Have Faith”, Unity Stamp Company “ . . . key to truth”, Dream Ink “Greetings”, Technique Tuesday “Whirly Gigs”, Scrappy Cat “Playful Serie” and “Twist of Lime”, Adorn It Stephanie Ackerman Documented Faith “Banner of Faith”, Illustrated Faith “Date Stamp”.    

The paper in my full sized journaling Bible is slightly less forgiving and thinner than the small New Testament.  My results are similar to my original experiments, but some of the darker inks I have tried are visible from the reverse side of the page.  Not all of my journaling entries to date are “blog worthy” (still practicing), but are still valuable because they have personal meaning.  It is delightful to combine artistic expression with Bible study and quiet reflection.  There is a certain freedom to meditate on the passage as I create, and when complete it seems much easier to visual the verse during memorization.

The Imagine Crafts blog features photographs of my experiments, stop by for more information!

The following products are recommended for Bible journaling:

·      Versa Magic

·      Radiant Neon

·      Memento Luxe: slight bleed through.

·      Memento Dual Markers: a light hand with the fine tip will result slight bleed through and this is similar to results using other recommended brands of fine tip pens.  This gives you a larger selection of colors to choose from as well!

·      Fabrico Markers:  very little bleed through, one of the surprises!  The bullet tip is very broad compared to the Memento Dual Markers. 

·      Versa Color: dark colors seem to exhibit slight bleed through.

·      Versa Mark: for use with chalks, pigment powders and light colored embossing powders, take care in stamping when lifting stamp from page.  First test caused a slight tear in page.

·      Essential Glue Pad: for fine glitter or foiling with a light heat set to remove excess glitter.

The following products are recommended with the cautions indicated.  The darker colors will have minimal bleed through, but will not obscure the printing on the back of the page.  Drying time or heat setting the product is recommended to avoid transfer to the opposite page in most cases.

·      Brillance

·      Opaque Creative Medium:  very thin application and allow for ample air dry time to avoid transfer.

·      StazOn Studio Glaze: best used spread out as a glaze, allow amply air dry time.  Larger areas may have slight page wrinkling.

·      Shimmer Mist: Frost and Sparkle are the most transparent, mask all area around intended artwork area and heat or air dry.  Seems to cause slight page wrinkling.

·      Embossing Powder: only white will not show through.

·      All Purpose Ink:  create very light hues with Ink Potion No. 9 for custom color sprays.  Mask all areas around intended artwork area.

The following are not recommended without Creative Medium due to bleed through or high opacity.

·      Encore Ultimate Metallics

·      Memento Ink Pads

·      Kaleidacolor

·      Delicata

·      Versa Fine

·      StazOn: bleed through but ideal for water color applications.

·      Fireworks

·      Walnut Ink

·      irRESISTable Spray and Pico Embellisher

·      Embossing Powder: all colors but white will show through.

Recommend for use with Creative Medium:

·      Memento Dual Marker

·      StazOn

·      StazOn Studio Glaze

·      Delicata

·      Encore

·      Versa Fine

Not recommend for use with Creative Medium:

·      Memento had some pooling of ink.

·      Kaleidacolor did not adhere to surface.

·      Fireworks

·      Walnut Ink

·      irRESISTable Spray and Pico Embellisher

·      Embossing Powder: all colors but white will still show through.

If you have joined the Bible journaling movement, you might want try a few of these Imagine Crafts products to add some fun color to your journaling artwork.  Experiment on printer paper to get a feel for the product and create away!  Please be aware that paper in your Bible may not react in the same way as these trials, so if you are wary of a product, test it first before using it on a favorite passage.  These are suggestions based on my experiences with each of the products tested.  I have enjoyed the journey of discovery and plan on using a number of Imagine Crafts inks and media to continue my journey of exploring the Word of God through Bible Journaling.