Truthfully, if you look around I suspect you can find something quite close by on which you can paint. Many art friends prefer only moleskins. Myself - I have never owned one. I have this TERRIBLE habit of buying and buying and buying more art supplies. I have so many supplies and surfaces to paint on and art toys with which to play ~ at times my mind feels totally boggled. I find times when I limit myself to often be more productive. Sometimes I limit the amount of time to find some things with which to create or the amount of supplies to take along for traveling to the farm or just away for a few days. When we are at the farm and I notice a huge roll of paper (so what if it was wrapped around the new sewer pump) or a paper roll or old phone book, I will ask if I might use it.
The blocks of wood I found, can't remember where, will serve very nicely for painted backgrounds to a collage, photoprint or mixed media piece.
The above photo with painted book covers is another example of surfaces on which I love to paint. Vintage books are good choices providing not a book you treasure for its contents. The inside pages of course will make good pages on which to experiment and journal. I also like to purchase very inexpensive children's board books on which to paint and then journal. If the pages are shiny you may need to roughen them a bit first with sand paper or try applying a coat or two of gesso and then sand with more applications of paint to get more texture. The book pictured above in the back, is actually a composition book with a hard cover. I have gotten some really neat effects with painting and further mixed media techniques on these covers. The pages inside are thin and lined. How do you paint on these? Best is to apply a coat or two of gesso first. Also the recommendation is not to use water with your paint. Less probability of the paper curling up. If you have painted on one side of something, like a piece of card stock, and it wants to curl up - a suggestion I was given quite some time ago was to brush a thin coat of water on the back side. Works for me.
My plan for this evening - I'm hoping my daughter will join me in painting on some pages from one or a few of these books. Kat's Dad got them from his mother after she had done some major cleaning up a few years ago of all her grown children's "things" remaining in her house.
What are you going to find to paint on tonight?
