Bible Journaling with Gelatos: Easy Beginner Tutorial
Have you wanted to try Bible Journaling but are too intimidated to jump in? Gelatos might be the medium you are looking for!
Smooth, easy to work with, and dare I say, impossible to really mess up. Because with art, there is always a way to alter error into just right.
Faber-Castell has a product called Gelatos, and they are essentially a creamy crayon. The colors are super vibrant and they are just plain ol’ fun to use.
Why Gelatos Are Great for Bible Journaling
Part of the fun with Bible Journaling is expressing our faith through shape and color.
A friend and I coined the term “Wabi-Sabi Worship” for a workshop we put together, teaching Bible Journaling based on imperfection.
Our faith, as with our life, is marred by smudges and missed effort. That margin for living is represented in our attempts at creating art that satisfies.
Beauty emerges from our enjoyment of the imperfect product. The delight from creating, and the satisfaction of that occasionally smudged and smeared handiwork on our pages.
Freedom to enjoy the process is what makes Wabi-Sabi Worship so much fun.
Step-by-Step Gelatos Bible Journaling Tutorial
This tutorial is super easy, perfect for the beginner.
An optional step is to prep your pages with a medium to keep the colors from bleeding through to the other side of the paper. I chose to use clear gesso to help prevent the ink from showing too much on the opposite page.
If you would like to mimic this page, it is based on Proverbs 16:24.
Using PITT Artist Pens, I drew random honeycomb shapes. I purposely chose to enjoy the process and not dwell on perfection. The lines are loose, making it relaxing.
Perfection is not our friend in worship. Showing up is all that is required. Same thing goes in our art worship.
For ideas with lettering, I found a thorough hand lettering tutorial in this post by Rockthis.org.
Next, color in the center of the desired area. I used Lemon and Butterscotch to create a rich honey colored palette (it is much darker in person, with plenty of sublte shading. Sorry it doesn’t show in the pictures!)
Add a few of the color strokes and then blend with a cotton swab. This method is referred to as “dry blending”.
To create a softer look, try going outside the lines. The crayons are NOT fined tipped, so this method is great for pictures that don’t have fine detail. Save those for another tutorial…
Washi tape or other embellishments make great add-ons at this point.
I chose to keep this one uber simple, with smeared penmanship and uneven lines. This, to me, really represents hows I see life through the Wabi Sabi Worship lens.
Bible Journaling and Wabi-Sabi Worship
This tutorial is in honor of my sweet friend Sharra who passed away and into the arms of Jesus today.
It was she that so encouraged me in my pursuit of Bible Journaling, and who created the workshop with me.
This verse is perfect for her. Sweetness hugged onto the words she sent from her mouth to my spirit.
Proverbs 16:20- Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.
She would have loved this extremely simple tutorial.
She was a teacher and wanted everyone to be able to enjoy this form of worship.
The world is a better place because her hands helped others.
Want more beginner-friendly Bible journaling tutorials? Check out my watercolor + salt resist tutorial
If you’re looking for a creative twist, take a peek at Bible Journaling with Transparencies. Using overlays is an easy, playful way to make your pages pop while spending quiet time with God.
Bible Journaling Supplies I Recommend
- Wide margin Bible (or use any notebook). I also LOVE the Interleaved version that gives a full blank page opposite scriptures
- Prismacolor Verithin colored pencils are my favorite
- Staedtler pigment liners are nice. I’ve looked into many brands, and almost all have a small amount of bleed through no matter how advertised. If that happens I simply paint, use washi tape, or stamp on the other side
- PITT Artist Pens are by far my favorite of all, I use them all the time and write well on paint
- Hi-polymer eraser by Pentel. Might find in school supply sections
- I really like the Prismacolor sharpener better than others. For the price of the pencils, I don’t want the lead to break. This has been my best option for that
- Prismacolor Blender Pencil is how I smudged the colors
- Zig Journal and Title pen is for the gray outlines
- Any washi tape works well. If you are unfamiliar with this product, it is thin paper tape. I LOVE them.
- Invest in some Clear Gesso if nothing else, having it on the page as a primer makes a TON of difference to prevent bleed through. Simply smear on with a used-up gift card/credit card. Make sure to put a piece of waxed paper under it to avoid sticking to other pages
- (I’ve added a list of products with Affiliate links to Amazon to make it easy for you to find these things. If I receive a tiny commission, it does NOT affect your cost at all and will go toward the costs of blog maintenance. I only recommend things I truly love and use. But remember, use what is right for YOU!)
