Collage Your Life: Techniques, Prompts, and Inspiration for Creative Self-Expression and Visual Storytelling
- Downloads：2219
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-06-25 05:21:36
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Melanie Mowinski
- ISBN：1635863562
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Carolyn Bragg
，
This guide is as much "Why collage？" as it is "How to Collage？" The author invites readers to make art a daily practice （and collage specifically） as she guides us through challenges that exercise and investigate feelings as well as explore techniques， styles， and media （supplies）。A wide range of artists are profiled， with styles and motivations as different as they are。 Where one paints her own colorful and harmonic paper to create cut-out paintings， another combines bright and dynamic magazine This guide is as much "Why collage？" as it is "How to Collage？" The author invites readers to make art a daily practice （and collage specifically） as she guides us through challenges that exercise and investigate feelings as well as explore techniques， styles， and media （supplies）。A wide range of artists are profiled， with styles and motivations as different as they are。 Where one paints her own colorful and harmonic paper to create cut-out paintings， another combines bright and dynamic magazine cut-outs for a playful visual。Using printed words is also encouraged， to express the artist's beliefs， a message， or a poem of some sort。The opening subject surprised and impressed me the most; learn to be okay with creating bad art。 Nobody makes masterpieces every time。 Sometimes moving on， starting again， or using one piece as parts for another work is necessary。 Don't stake your ego on perfection！This was an interesting and fun journey through an art I knew little about， and I feel confident that I can combine my experience with this new information， and start collage myself！4/5 StarsThanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the free preview of this ebook; the review is voluntary。#CollageYourLife #NetGalley#StoreyPublishing #StoreyPublishingLLC#MelanieMowinski #MelanieMowinskiAuth#ScrapbookingBooks #MixedMediaCraft#PaperCraft #HowToCollage #CraftsandHobbies #MixedMediaArt#NonFictionVisualStorytelling 。。。more
Cathy Geha
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Collage Your Life by Melanie MowinskiTechniques， Prompts， and InspirationCreative self-expression and visual story tellingBeautiful， succinct， complete， and filled with wonderful creative ideas – This is a book I would love to own！ What I liked: * The introduction spoke to me， made me think about what *I* like and would love to create with what I have collected or might collect in the future* The illustrations of completed projects as well as photos of steps in creating finished projects* The li Collage Your Life by Melanie MowinskiTechniques， Prompts， and InspirationCreative self-expression and visual story tellingBeautiful， succinct， complete， and filled with wonderful creative ideas – This is a book I would love to own！ What I liked: * The introduction spoke to me， made me think about what *I* like and would love to create with what I have collected or might collect in the future* The illustrations of completed projects as well as photos of steps in creating finished projects* The lists and descriptions of tools and materials* The artistic information related to the building blocks of design – complete and informative – elements， color， principles， composition， etc* Techniques: some I had seen before and some new and intriguing * How to add text* How to make your own stencils and stamps* A variety of ways to create your own books* The prompts…a teacher’s or artist’s treasure trove of ideasWhat I didn’t like: * I can’t think of one thing I didn’t likeThank you to NetGalley and Storey Publishing for the ARC – This is my honest review。5 Stars 。。。more
Melki
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"If it inspires you somehow， use it。"The author/artist demonstrates how using collected materials， and simple around-the-house materials， you can create beautiful and fascinating works of art using collage。 Some of her featured projects also use rubber stamps， and stencils。 There are plenty of prompts that will help jump-start your creativity， including profiles of other artists， along with examples of their work。There's even a section on creating books that will showcase your projects。This is a "If it inspires you somehow， use it。"The author/artist demonstrates how using collected materials， and simple around-the-house materials， you can create beautiful and fascinating works of art using collage。 Some of her featured projects also use rubber stamps， and stencils。 There are plenty of prompts that will help jump-start your creativity， including profiles of other artists， along with examples of their work。There's even a section on creating books that will showcase your projects。This is an invaluable resource for inspiring both beginner and experienced collage artists。Thanks to NetGalley， and Storey Publishing for the chance to view this lovely book。 。。。more
Tawney
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The book begins with an overview of the tools and materials used in collage as well as the basics of design and composition。 Mowinski explains techniques including adhesives， gesso， stamps and stencils。 She then goes on to a large section of prompts and profiles。 Some of them may not work for you， or you might tweak a prompt， or skip the introduction to it and get straight to the parameters。 In any case there plenty of ways to explore and the profiles showcase the hows and whys of the work of va The book begins with an overview of the tools and materials used in collage as well as the basics of design and composition。 Mowinski explains techniques including adhesives， gesso， stamps and stencils。 She then goes on to a large section of prompts and profiles。 Some of them may not work for you， or you might tweak a prompt， or skip the introduction to it and get straight to the parameters。 In any case there plenty of ways to explore and the profiles showcase the hows and whys of the work of various people。 There are also reading and resource lists， the latter is especially useful for finding images to use。My thanks to Storey Publishing and NetGalley for a digital advanced copy of the is book。 。。。more
Simone
，
Thank you， Netgalley and the author/publisher， for the opportunity to read and review an advanced reader's copy of this book。 This in no way affects my review， all opinions are my own。This book does not provide much new information in terms of techniques and materials for those who are more experienced with mixed media/collage projects。 However， I looooove the prompts the author includes for inspiration。 Super interesting approaches to starting a project。 I love that the prompts also include exa Thank you， Netgalley and the author/publisher， for the opportunity to read and review an advanced reader's copy of this book。 This in no way affects my review， all opinions are my own。This book does not provide much new information in terms of techniques and materials for those who are more experienced with mixed media/collage projects。 However， I looooove the prompts the author includes for inspiration。 Super interesting approaches to starting a project。 I love that the prompts also include examples of pages created based on the prompt。 The artists who created those pages are very talented。The book is definitely a great resource for beginners。 The author includes tools， mediums， the "canvas" for the collage， tips and tricks， etc。 With that being said， this book is great both for beginners and experienced crafters。 。。。more
Jessica
，
Don't let the name fool you！ While this book IS loaded with tips and tricks for collaging， it is also wonderful for scrapbooking， bullet journaling and any multimedia art project you are interested in doing。 Don't let the name fool you！ While this book IS loaded with tips and tricks for collaging， it is also wonderful for scrapbooking， bullet journaling and any multimedia art project you are interested in doing。 。。。more
Margarida （mbooksbycandlelight）
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I’m not sure what to feel about this book。 It has plenty of instructions and explanations， so it’s great for beginners， but at the same time， I think， because of the title， I was expecting something more scrapbook style and instead the examples were very artistic， which is not an aesthetic I enjoy much。 As someone who studied design in college， if you have one of those illustration techniques or different mediums in art classes， this would be great for that。
Sarah
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This book can be used for absolute beginners， more advanced or professional collagers， artists or dabblers alike。 It has a sound background on how to choose the right materials and equipment， plenty of examples when explaining colour theory and composition and takes you right from choosing initial materials， layering processes and providing you with muses as well。 One of the headings states that 'one size does not fit all' but the beauty of this book is that all will find parts of this book very This book can be used for absolute beginners， more advanced or professional collagers， artists or dabblers alike。 It has a sound background on how to choose the right materials and equipment， plenty of examples when explaining colour theory and composition and takes you right from choosing initial materials， layering processes and providing you with muses as well。 One of the headings states that 'one size does not fit all' but the beauty of this book is that all will find parts of this book very useful even if some parts aren't for you。 A very interesting book that will be used for reference again and again。 Thank you to the author and Netgalley for giving me a copy in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Josephine
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I'm big into collaging and have a lot of supplies， so this book was perfect for me。 Lots of ideas and super cool collages。 I love the themes like There's Never a Perfect Time and Get Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable。 The themes really spoke to me。 Then there were some collages in there not associated with themes I loved。 Like a bird with a tiger head。 Excited to try out a lot of these ideas soon！ Thank you to NetGalley， the publisher， and the author for a free eARC in exchange for an honest I'm big into collaging and have a lot of supplies， so this book was perfect for me。 Lots of ideas and super cool collages。 I love the themes like There's Never a Perfect Time and Get Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable。 The themes really spoke to me。 Then there were some collages in there not associated with themes I loved。 Like a bird with a tiger head。 Excited to try out a lot of these ideas soon！ Thank you to NetGalley， the publisher， and the author for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Katie Murphy
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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC！ This book was so unexpected。 I figured there wasn’t much to collating but I was wrong。 There are so many techniques and ways to approach this art/hobby/craft。 Consider me inspired， I now want to go glue and cut up all my magazines。 What a fun read that goes fairly in depth on collaging as an art form
Kathy
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If you've never done collage before， start with this book！ As opposed to most craft books that give the basic techniques a quick refresher that leave you wanting， Collage Your Life goes through the techniques very thoroughly and in great detail。 （If you've done any art before， it may be too thorough。） However， the descriptions are enhanced by a coffee table book's worth of collage art to inspire you and an entire section full of prompts to get you started collaging。 Beginners， come for the instr If you've never done collage before， start with this book！ As opposed to most craft books that give the basic techniques a quick refresher that leave you wanting， Collage Your Life goes through the techniques very thoroughly and in great detail。 （If you've done any art before， it may be too thorough。） However， the descriptions are enhanced by a coffee table book's worth of collage art to inspire you and an entire section full of prompts to get you started collaging。 Beginners， come for the instruction; more practiced， stay for the art。 。。。more
Ruhm
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Received an ARC for an advanced review。Enjoyable book。 Good for beginners， discusses what art materials to use and basics of art techniques。I didn't really need that part but it was a good review。 The prompts were a nice touch， but only a few spoke to me。 Others might find them more inspirational。 The real highlight was all the collages featured in the book。 Plenty of ideas for a jumping off point。 Received an ARC for an advanced review。Enjoyable book。 Good for beginners， discusses what art materials to use and basics of art techniques。I didn't really need that part but it was a good review。 The prompts were a nice touch， but only a few spoke to me。 Others might find them more inspirational。 The real highlight was all the collages featured in the book。 Plenty of ideas for a jumping off point。 。。。more
Teri Kratz
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Interesting and inspiring。 I may have new art to explore。
Soelo
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There are so many good examples in this book！ I liked the packing tape method and the good discussion on adhesives。 Stencils always seem like a good idea but I can never get them work as well， so the tips in here are very appreciated， too。 There is a whole chapter with prompts in it to help you with ideas and to get started。 Book binding is also part of the instructions and works well when you don't use a bound book to start。 There are so many good examples in this book！ I liked the packing tape method and the good discussion on adhesives。 Stencils always seem like a good idea but I can never get them work as well， so the tips in here are very appreciated， too。 There is a whole chapter with prompts in it to help you with ideas and to get started。 Book binding is also part of the instructions and works well when you don't use a bound book to start。 。。。more
Amy
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This was a really lovely book。 As child I loved to make collages， so this was right up my alley， but I also enjoyed how the author really delved into the materials you could use， as well as artistic techniques to elevate your collages。 If you love mixed media， collages， or want to improve your artistry， definitely check out this book！Thank you #netgalley for the ARC！
Michelle
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This book is packed with information on how to make collages， the different skills and know-how needed， examples， color theory， and prompts。 It's a great intro to the art of collage making， with lots of examples and information on different collage artists。 I made collages as a kid but not as an adult。 This book was so inspiring， and really makes you want to jump right in and make something。 Which is always the hard part—the starting。 Thanks so much to NetGalley and the author。 This book made me This book is packed with information on how to make collages， the different skills and know-how needed， examples， color theory， and prompts。 It's a great intro to the art of collage making， with lots of examples and information on different collage artists。 I made collages as a kid but not as an adult。 This book was so inspiring， and really makes you want to jump right in and make something。 Which is always the hard part—the starting。 Thanks so much to NetGalley and the author。 This book made me want to start gathering materials and dive right in。！ 。。。more
Judy Beetem
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Collage Your Life is a fun how-to book instructing readers on using minimal tools to create a representation of life。 Melanie Mowinski teaches readers to use paper， glue， stamping， journaling， etc to make a representation of themselves， their lives and the world around them。 Directions and guides are clear and well-written and the photographs are gorgeous。 Anyone who wants to try a new craft， or hone a favorite one will enjoy collage。 Check it out and learn new techniques even if your a seasoned Collage Your Life is a fun how-to book instructing readers on using minimal tools to create a representation of life。 Melanie Mowinski teaches readers to use paper， glue， stamping， journaling， etc to make a representation of themselves， their lives and the world around them。 Directions and guides are clear and well-written and the photographs are gorgeous。 Anyone who wants to try a new craft， or hone a favorite one will enjoy collage。 Check it out and learn new techniques even if your a seasoned crafter。 。。。more
Amy Moreno
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Admittedly， I only picked this up because I was attending a class about teaching art to children， and I thought this might give a little insight on our lesson about collage。 This has made me a complete convert and I am now obsessed with paper craft！ I had NO idea there was so many different ways to express yourself with recycled paper。 This is amazing！ The illustrations are beautiful， it breaks it down into easy steps and you are left with things like handmade notecards that you would normally s Admittedly， I only picked this up because I was attending a class about teaching art to children， and I thought this might give a little insight on our lesson about collage。 This has made me a complete convert and I am now obsessed with paper craft！ I had NO idea there was so many different ways to express yourself with recycled paper。 This is amazing！ The illustrations are beautiful， it breaks it down into easy steps and you are left with things like handmade notecards that you would normally spend an arm and a leg on at a stationary store， or at least stared wistfully at because you couldn’t justify spending that kind of money on a card to send someone else。 The creativity on some of these projects is ridiculous and I am thinking “why didn’t I ever think to do this myself？！？！” The results are stunning。 。。。more
Oxana Tomova
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Collage Your Life is a good begginner's guide to scrapbooking。It starts off addressing materials and tools and goes nicely in-depth， while keeping the information accessible。 And it lets you choose the types of materials you're interested in， instead of saying "you need *everything*"， and that's great！ Especially if this is your fisrt dab into collages， scrapbooks， and other crafts， you can't just buy all the materials - it's costly and wasteful。After this great intro， the book explores composit Collage Your Life is a good begginner's guide to scrapbooking。It starts off addressing materials and tools and goes nicely in-depth， while keeping the information accessible。 And it lets you choose the types of materials you're interested in， instead of saying "you need *everything*"， and that's great！ Especially if this is your fisrt dab into collages， scrapbooks， and other crafts， you can't just buy all the materials - it's costly and wasteful。After this great intro， the book explores composition rules and examples。 They are quite good， althought I'm not a fan of the demonstrated styles。 They aren't for everyone but you can definitely learn from them either way。Overall， good book if you're looking to get into scrapbooks。*Thanks to NetGalley and Storey Publishing， LLC for providing me with an free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review。* 。。。more
Autumn
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Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC。 Sturdy and classy combo of simple instruction and prompts for collage。 A great library purchase to update the DIY section and to please your junk journalers。 The prompts and artist profiles/samples seemed most useful to me -- the first 80 or so pages， anybody can learn on Instagram and Youtube。 But then Mowinski gets into instructing the uninstructable， which is way more interesting。 She references Writing Down the Bones in her bibliography， and this definitely g Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC。 Sturdy and classy combo of simple instruction and prompts for collage。 A great library purchase to update the DIY section and to please your junk journalers。 The prompts and artist profiles/samples seemed most useful to me -- the first 80 or so pages， anybody can learn on Instagram and Youtube。 But then Mowinski gets into instructing the uninstructable， which is way more interesting。 She references Writing Down the Bones in her bibliography， and this definitely gave me that "I can't tell you how to do it， just do it" feel as well。 Would go well with Lynda Barry's art instruction books for folks who want something a tiny bit more practical。 。。。more
Alexandra
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This couple months I revisiting my childhood hobby， collage paper and mix media。 Although I saw many online tutorial， this book still offer me so much information and guidance。 The author generous enough to offer basic supplies， and information。 The arts example pages kinda missmatch with my personal style。 Thank Netgalley for providing me this book。 I am learning something new today。
Laura Slabach
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I liked most of this book。 I loved the color help and the explanations of tools needed， adhesives， etc。 I also love that it tells you how to make books to keep your collages in。 The one thing I had trouble with was that most of the collages pictured didn't really move me。 They weren't my color schemes or things that I would have created。 They all looked very similar as well。 It would have been nice to have more variety。 There are a lot of people on Instagram and tic tock that do journaling and c I liked most of this book。 I loved the color help and the explanations of tools needed， adhesives， etc。 I also love that it tells you how to make books to keep your collages in。 The one thing I had trouble with was that most of the collages pictured didn't really move me。 They weren't my color schemes or things that I would have created。 They all looked very similar as well。 It would have been nice to have more variety。 There are a lot of people on Instagram and tic tock that do journaling and collages that seem more everyday than high end/artist/museum collages。 。。。more
CraftyKE
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This is the book on collaging that I have been waiting for！ I was very lucky to receive a digital ARC of this （thanks to the publisher， author， and NetGalley）。 I will be purchasing a hardcopy as well， however。 Collage is a mindful art。 We do it as children and sometimes as adults， but I was never taught the techniques of collage。 My mother always said you had an eye for it or you don't。 This book proves that collage is something anyone can learn。 It includes lessons on:-Color-Comoposition-Materi This is the book on collaging that I have been waiting for！ I was very lucky to receive a digital ARC of this （thanks to the publisher， author， and NetGalley）。 I will be purchasing a hardcopy as well， however。 Collage is a mindful art。 We do it as children and sometimes as adults， but I was never taught the techniques of collage。 My mother always said you had an eye for it or you don't。 This book proves that collage is something anyone can learn。 It includes lessons on:-Color-Comoposition-Materials-LayeringBasically， if you have any interest in collage， I HIGHLY recommend that you pick up this fantastic guide。 My husband and I are planning a collage date night soon！ 。。。more
Shona Tiger
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Thank you very much to NetGalley and to Storey Publishing for this eARC。A wonderful workbook with lots of great tips， and includes the work of artists who will inspire you。 Goes into a lot of depth about the principles behind successful collages， which will help all of your art as well。 Prompts you can dip into to jumpstart your practice， which I'm keen to try。Rated: 10/10; a great reference book to keep。 Thank you very much to NetGalley and to Storey Publishing for this eARC。A wonderful workbook with lots of great tips， and includes the work of artists who will inspire you。 Goes into a lot of depth about the principles behind successful collages， which will help all of your art as well。 Prompts you can dip into to jumpstart your practice， which I'm keen to try。Rated: 10/10; a great reference book to keep。 。。。more
Kellie Burke
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A thorough examination of collaging that explains techniques as well as giving plenty of practical advice and examples。 Mowinski details all of the steps of collaging including what materials to have on hand， how to layout your collage， color theory， adhesive techniques， and more。 The second half of the book offers 55 creative prompts， like "Patience" and "One Size Does Not Fit All"。 There's some explanation surrounding the prompt and directions on how to get started， offering a nice balance of A thorough examination of collaging that explains techniques as well as giving plenty of practical advice and examples。 Mowinski details all of the steps of collaging including what materials to have on hand， how to layout your collage， color theory， adhesive techniques， and more。 The second half of the book offers 55 creative prompts， like "Patience" and "One Size Does Not Fit All"。 There's some explanation surrounding the prompt and directions on how to get started， offering a nice balance of some structure with plenty of creative freedom。 Interspered in this section are profiles of collage artists。 I had anticipated that this book would be more for amateur crafters but was pleasantly surprised at the information on the art of collaging。 While beginners or hobby crafters have plenty of support to get started， more experienced artists who are looking for ideas or to review different techniques would also benefit from this book。 。。。more
Andee
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Thank you， NetGalley， for the ARC in exchange for reviewCollage your life is a great escape from the world。 A medium of art even if you're a "bad artist"， there are instructions and tool advice given so even the most novice of artists can participate。 I love Mowinskis work。 Its so colorful and whimsical。 I can totally see buying this book as a gift for my daughter who has kept every piece of paper ever given to her。 A wonderful how-to book。 Recommend for high school and up。 Thank you， NetGalley， for the ARC in exchange for reviewCollage your life is a great escape from the world。 A medium of art even if you're a "bad artist"， there are instructions and tool advice given so even the most novice of artists can participate。 I love Mowinskis work。 Its so colorful and whimsical。 I can totally see buying this book as a gift for my daughter who has kept every piece of paper ever given to her。 A wonderful how-to book。 Recommend for high school and up。 。。。more
Alison Chorney-Dubien
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This book is a treasure！ As a beginner art journalist， I found this book invaluable with its collected knowledge and teaching。 Main themes included:t•tAll tools and equipment needed to createt•tColour wheel， coordinating colours perspectivet•tTechniques and planning your creationst•tStamp and stencil makingt•tLettering and stencillingt•tMixed media artt•tPractice and work with what inspires you t•tArtist showcase and creativityReviewing this makes me feel anxious to get back to my practice of cr This book is a treasure！ As a beginner art journalist， I found this book invaluable with its collected knowledge and teaching。 Main themes included:t•tAll tools and equipment needed to createt•tColour wheel， coordinating colours perspectivet•tTechniques and planning your creationst•tStamp and stencil makingt•tLettering and stencillingt•tMixed media artt•tPractice and work with what inspires you t•tArtist showcase and creativityReviewing this makes me feel anxious to get back to my practice of creating， collecting and mindfully being。 Thank you to the publisher for my eARC copy in exchange for my honest opinion。 。。。more
Erika
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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to view this book early for an honest review。 I requested this book because I can’t draw， but I want to be artsy， and I always loved the look of collages， so I thought this might inspire me。 Oh boy， did it。 It’s filled with different style collages （some that look very professionally done） by very talented artists。 It made me see paper in a different way and I’m excited to start my creative journey。
J。E。 Rowney
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I’m not very artistic but I keep a bullet journal and this book gave me some great ideas of collage styles that I can try out。 I feel confident to trial some of the techniques。 They were well explained and it’s a good book for beginners。
Nic
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