Art journal ideas: 40 prompts and pages for beginners

Art journal supplies for beginners

Start small. You can add more once you know what you enjoy.

• A mixed media sketchbook. Thick paper that can take paint and glue without falling apart.
• Paint. A cheap set of watercolors or a few bottles of acrylic craft paint.
• A brush or two and an old gift card or library card for scraping paint.
• Black pen. A waterproof fine liner for writing on top of paint.
• Crayons, oil pastels or colored pencils.
• Glue stick and scissors.
• Collage scraps. Magazines, old books, tissue paper, napkins.
• Baby wipes. For wiping off paint and making soft textures.

Simple techniques to try

Art journal prompts about feelings

These turn emotions into color and shape. You do not need to draw anything that looks real.

• 1. Paint your mood. Pick three colors that match how you feel right now and fill the whole page.
• 2. Weather report. Draw your feelings as weather: sun, fog, storm, rainbow.
• 3. Scribble it out. Scribble hard with a crayon until you feel calmer, then paint over the page and find a shape in it.
• 4. Hidden words. Write something you are worried about, then cover it with paint so only you know it is there.
• 5. Inside and outside. Draw a simple head outline. Outside, write how people see you. Inside, how you really feel.
• 6. Color of today. One color per day for a week in a grid, and one word under each. See our mood journal for trackers.
• 7. Letting go. Paint a balloon and write inside it something you want to let go of.
• 8. Calm place. Paint a place where you feel safe, real or imagined.
• 9. Heavy and light. Split the page. On one side, what weighs you down. On the other, what lifts you up.
• 10. Self portrait in objects. Draw five things that say who you are instead of your face.

Art journal ideas for drawing and painting

• 11. Trace your hand. Fill the outline with patterns, or write five things you are good at, one in each finger.
• 12. Your mug. Draw the cup you drink from every day and write what you drink and when.
• 13. Window view. Paint what you see out of your window today. Do it again in another season.
• 14. Patterns only. Fill a page with lines, dots, waves and zigzags in one color.
• 15. Leaf study. Pick up a leaf, trace it, and paint it in colors it could never be.
• 16. Bag spill. Empty your bag and draw what is inside.
• 17. Night sky. Paint the page dark blue, then dot stars with white paint or a gel pen.
• 18. Doodle a word. Write one word large in bubble letters and fill each letter with a different pattern.
• 19. Ten minute sketch. Set a timer and draw anything in front of you until it rings.
• 20. Copy a cover. Paint your own version of your favorite book or album cover.

Collage and mixed media page ideas

• 21. Magazine words. Cut out words that catch your eye and glue them into a short poem.
• 22. Dream board. A collage of pictures for things you want this year.
• 23. Torn paper landscape. Tear strips of blue, green and brown paper into hills and sky.
• 24. Ticket page. Glue a ticket or receipt and paint around it to tell the story. For more scrap ideas see junk journal ideas.
• 25. Napkin layer. Peel the top printed layer off a paper napkin and glue it flat for a pretty background.
• 26. Map art. Glue a map piece and paint a path across it to a place you want to go.
• 27. Photo and paint. Glue a photo in, then paint the background around it in bright colors.
• 28. Tape texture. Cover a page in strips of masking tape, then paint over it and rub some paint off.
• 29. Tea stain page. Press a wet tea bag on the page in a few spots and let it dry for a soft brown look.
• 30. Envelope art. Paint an old envelope, glue it in, and put a secret note inside.

Art journal prompts for words and memory

• 31. Favorite line. Paint a background and write a line from a song or book on top in big letters.
• 32. Map of my day. Draw the places you went today as a little map with dotted lines.
• 33. Childhood memory. Draw your favorite toy or a room from your childhood and write about it.
• 34. Letter in art. Paint a page for someone you miss and write them a short letter on it.
• 35. Ten things I love. Paint ten small circles and write one thing in each.
• 36. Word of the year. Paint one word that you want to guide your year and decorate it.
• 37. Gratitude jar. Draw a big jar and fill it with small notes of thanks.
• 38. Before and after. A page split in two showing you before and after a big change.
• 39. Tiny moments. Six small boxes, each with a quick sketch of a moment from your week.
• 40. Answer a prompt. Pick a question from our journal prompts and answer it with pictures instead of words.

Art journal examples step by step

Example 1: Paint your mood

1. Choose colorsPick two or three paint colors for how you feel. Do not think too hard.
2. Scrape a backgroundPut dots of paint on the page and drag an old card across them. Let it dry.
3. Add a shapeDraw a circle, a heart or a cloud in black pen in the middle.
4. Write insideWrite two or three lines about your day inside the shape.
5. Date itWrite the date small in a corner.

Example 2: Hand of strengths

1. Trace your handUse a pencil, then go over it with a black pen.
2. Fill the palmPaint or color the palm in a bright color.
3. Write in the fingersWrite one thing you are good at in each finger.
4. Decorate around itAdd dots, lines or stickers around the hand.

Looking for prettier layouts? Try aesthetic journal ideas. For written pages to pair with your art, see our main journal ideas list.

Tips for art journaling

• There is no wrong page. If you hate it, paint over it. Layers make pages better.
• Work on two or three pages at once so one can dry while you work on another.
• Keep the supplies out in a box so starting takes seconds.
• Write the date and a word or two on each page. It helps you remember what was going on.
• Art journaling can help some people relax and process feelings, but it is not a replacement for professional care if you are struggling.

Questions people ask