inspiration sticks

I found this idea on Facebook.  I have always struggled with a blank journal page and I really like the idea of having at least some parameters or some items not left up to chance.  The inspiration sticks posted on Facebook were really stunning with a framed circular top and fantastic designs along the sticks.  As a perfectionist with enormous fear that I would mess up terribly and have to redo a bunch of sticks (which, by the way, took a much longer time than I originally thought) I created something that is very much my style but with limited room for error.

I painted each stick with acrylic paint, added some washi tape (the glasses are very me), added the inspiration and sealed it with gel medium.  I left the tops with their original wood finish, added tissue paper and sealed it with gel medium as well.   Sounds simple, right?  Well all of those layers multiplied by 35 inspirations took more than a few days to finish.  The process was amazing fun and I'm super pleased with how it all turned out.

I'm right in the middle of the Valentine's Day swap with the stamp club: 45 cards in progress but if I start to run out of steam I might just take some time to give these little ones a good test run.

What inspires you when journaling?  I would love to hear how you overcome the blank journal page.