Made to Shine In His Image

Greetings Illustrated Faith Family!

A few weekends ago I was humbled and blessed to assist Shanna Noel during an Illustrated Faith Workshop series at Whimsodoodle in St. Petersburg, Florida.

I loved watching women beam as they unpacked their brand new Bibles ready for the first entry.  They were so excited and filled with anticipation of what God was going to do.  I loved listening to beloved sisters in Christ speak of how God is moving through their hearts as they Illustrate their faith.  I treasured having the honor of looking at the well loved, fat, color-filled journaling Bibles with tags and ribbons streaming from the tops.  I cheered as I listened to stories of Him confronting perfectionism and healing broken places in the souls of these beloved women of God.  I adored guiding and encouraging women as they picked up a watercolor brush and stroked vibrant color on their pages and discovered new ways to illustrate in their Bibles.

And at the end of each workshop, I had tears as these beautiful women stood up with their finished entries, eyes shining, rainbows spilling out from their pages, and hearts telling how God spoke to them as they illustrated.

I saw God everywhere and I soaked in all that He was doing in these women’s lives.  Oh, how He loves us and oh how He delights when we reach out to Him and spend time with Him creatively worshiping and growing in Him.  He is doing such a beautiful and amazing work through Illustrated Faith and Shanna Noel.

At the end of the last workshop, Shanna gave me a wonderful stamp.  A stamp designed by fellow Creative Team Member, Jess Robyn.  I knew I would use it to document the weekend.  I want to remember how all of the women I met were created in His image with special gifts and how they shine for God.

Here’s a peek into how I designed the page.

I started with the In His Image stamp and found inspiration from a Color Box pad I had sitting on my art table.  I decided to make the rainbow of colors I saw in all the women around the camera.  I see and process everything in colors so this was perfect.

Next, I used my watercolors to paint the rainbow into the areas I blocked out with my pencil.  If you want to try watercolors, my best advice is to work slowly.   Achieve saturation by building up layers of color and letting them dry in between.  The picture below shows only the first layer of color.

I worked on the camera next.  I wanted it to be more dense and opaque so I grabbed a handful of colored pencils and watercolor pencils from my stash and colored in the camera.

I laid out my Illustrated Faith Bella Blvd letter stickers on clear packaging to make sure I liked the design I had in my mind.

The finishing touches included In His Image, adding a sticker from the Whatever is Lovely collection, and a butterfly punched out of watercolor scrap paper.  I used Faber Castell Pitt Pens to underline the scripture.   

I love this page and will treasure my memories from the workshop forever.  If Shanna comes to a town near you, be sure to sign up!  You will leave with pages of beauty and hearts full of God.

Hugs, amy

ESV Leather Journaling Bible | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Whatever is Lovely Stickers |Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Big and Bold Blacked Eyed Pea Letter Stickers | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Typed One in a Melon Letter Stickers | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Pen | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Genesis Kit | Martha Stewart Butterfly Punch | Sennelier Watercolors | Angora Watercolors 36 pan set | Princeton Select Brushes | Derwent Ink Tense Outliner | Faber-Castell Colored Pencils in Earth Green Yellowish, Ultramarine Blue, Deep Red, Dark Chrome Yellow, Deep Cobalt Green, Mangnanese Violet, Fuschia | Faber-Castell Watercolor Pencils in Warm Grey and Cool Grey | Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt Pens in Permanent Carmine 126, Light Phthalo Green 162, Phthalo Blue 110 | In His Image Illustrated Faith Workshop Stamp by Jess Robyn