Ellie Claire Art Journals

Today I get to talk about something a little different that I’m really excited about – Ellie Claire art journals.

Not too long ago, I joined Medium and connected with Janis Cox. Soon after, I joined her Facebook group for Christian artists and creatives. As a result, I began to start really paying attention to what God was trying to say to me through certain Bible passages. I also started trying to draw images that were connected to those messages. This was not an easy thing for me to do. I never considered myself to be an artist in that certain way, but Jan challenged and encouraged me … and God helped me see that I could do it with His help. He’s the Creator. All I have to do is look to Him when I want to create.

About this time, I talked my husband into buying me the beautiful Inspire Bible. It has verse images already printed in it that you can color. And it also has plenty of room for you to draw your own images and write notes as you study.

All this to say, I was no stranger to creative Bible journaling when I was offered the opportunity to review three new art journals from Ellie Claire.

Look at these. Aren’t they gorgeous? And these are just the covers!

Illuminate Your Story

The first one I tried was the Illuminate Your Story journal. This book opened up with one of my favorite quotes from Leo Tolstoy: “Just as one candle lights another and can light thousands of other candles, so one heart illuminates another heart and can illuminate thousands of other hearts.”

Then it goes into a brief discussion of the history of illustrated letters and words that I found fascinating.  I started right at the beginning, with the letter “A,” and this is what I came up with. Not exactly like the example in the book, but not completely different either. I like that there’s an extra block for more practice. I thought my first effort was a bit lacking. I’m excited to see if I can do better the second time.

This book has step-by-step instructions you can follow (which is what I did), and I really appreciated that. This journal would be an excellent guide for anyone (like me) who is just starting out with illustrating letters. It would also be perfect for someone who’s interested in trying our art journaling but who may not have a lot of extra time. I drew that entire picture based on the guide in about 15 minutes, and I’m no expert in drawing. If I can do it, anyone can!

The Illustrated Word

The next journal I tried out was The Illustrated Word.

This is closer to what we think of when we hear the word “journal.” There are lines on some of the pages you can use to write down the verse you’re reading on a particular day or your thoughts about a certain verse. It also sort of reminds me of the Inspire Bible. because it has images (line drawings based on illustrations from ancient manuscripts) you can color, and some of these include verses. So, while you’re coloring, you can meditate on the scripture.

I started out coloring Psalm 46:10: “Be still, and know that I am God” (NIV). That’s a verse that is particularly relevant to my life, because it seems like God always has to remind me of this. I am hardly ever still!

What I discovered with this journal is that you have to have a lot of time available to color some of these pictures. I worked on this for about 30 minutes and only got as far as you see above. I had to stop and go back to it to finish it up. Like I said, this is great for meditating on the scripture, but it’s not for you if you’re looking for something that you can get done quickly.

Faith and Lettering

Last, but by no means least, is the Faith & Lettering Journal. This, out of the three, was the journal I was most interested in and was the one I was most excited about getting. I was not disappointed!

This journal takes the best aspects of both of the above journals and puts them all in one package. It has the blank, lined pages you can write on. It has verses you can color. It has tutorials for lettering and drawing embellishments. And it gives you plenty of space to practice! Plus, it has illustrations that are already done for you. You can use these for meditation or inspiration.

This was my first attempt at drawing something with this journal.

I love that verse. It’s one I have currently hanging up on the wall in my bedroom. And I love this image. I may just have to recreate it and put it up on my wall in place of the other one (which is just a typed print-out that’s not nearly as pretty).

All of the journals are just fabulous, but this one is definitely my favorite. It would be great for beginners and even for people with more experience with this sort of thing than I have. It just has so much to offer. You absolutely cannot go wrong with the Faith & Lettering Journal.

If your quiet times have gotten stale and you’re looking for a tool that will liven things up, you need one of these journals. You’ll be inspired, you’ll be challenged, and you will grow closer to the Creative Source.