At times when I can’t find any more energy within myself and some extra sleep is not an option, I turn to the outside sources. And one of them is books.
Today, I was on my usual run to Michaels to get a storage box for my art supplies, but this is a store in a new area for me and I took my time to look around and mainly look for some inspiration. Earlier that day I woke up extremely exhausted and stressed for I was late on a deadline because I messed up a design the night before from already being sleep deprived and stressed. So now I’m in this circle of being tired and messing up, having to fix things, losing time and messing up even more from getting even more tired. I knew I needed just a little break. So I decided to make this run to the store and go for a ride to simply take my mind off of my failures.
While wondering around the aisles, I stumbled upon a book shelf with art journals and creative art projects. My eye stopped on this book “A Book That Takes Its Time: An Unhurried Adventure in Creative Mindfulness.” Simply after flipping through the first few pages I knew I needed that book. But only after I got home and really examined every page I realized how lucky I got by purchasing that book. I needed that guidance to slow down and enjoy the moments for their simplicity. This book is filled with guidance, advice, inspiration, directions, suggestions, and, most importantly, visual examples and prompts for unwinding, meditating, reanalyzing, and taking time for yourself.
Taking time for yourself is often the most underrated and under-appreciated method of taking care of your mental and physical health. Taking as little as 5 minutes a day to unwind and reflect on your emotions and your experiences could be more healing than you can ever expect.
Stepping away from your daily routines and letting your mind to be quiet for a bit, can be easily achieved by spending a few minutes with your art journal. I have a full blog post on the importance of keeping an art journal here:
However, for someone who doesn’t have much experience at creating art, even something as simple as a collage, a blank page of a journal can look terrifying and intimidating. That’s why this book that has all steps and exercises laid out ( and many projects can be done even on the pages of this book) is extremely helpful.
On top of many pages of interesting and useful information, this book is filled with stickers, pockets with treasures, little notebooks, postcards, inspiring quotes and pictures. Every page is an adventure.
Learning to slow down and unwind can be challenging at first. But it’s the most rewarding thing you can do for your both mental and emotional health.
I hope you found this review useful and informative. Please feel free to share your favorite art books for journaling or your opinion on this book. I would love to hear your thougths!
Check out this book on Amazon
p.s. If you shop at Blick Art Materials, please you my affiliate link.
I use affiliate links and earn a small commission at no additional cost to you, this helps me keep this blog running and share free information with the world!
