To journal...

What could be a better use for out-of-date law books than covering them with layers of lovely colour?  That's what I've been doing for the past few years since a retired lawyer brought some books into the gallery for altered book use.

I often use an open book instead of palette paper so the legal jargon becomes covered or part of a new start...

I add some photos or I cover the pages with hand-painted papers and/or poetry,

and then add embellishments ...

These pages serve me in several ways - they're a fine testing ground for techniques I've read or heard about and want to try, they're a way to test designs in a small scale to see whether they 'read' properly, and they fulfil my passion for colour in more ways than I can count.

The book the above photos are from is filled with mouth-watering, colourful and playful pages, in a variety of styles and artistic meanderings.  I'd be hard-pressed to think of a better way to spend some creative time.