Wildflower Lesson #11: Gesso Backgrounds

There’s something quietly hopeful about a fresh page.

Not because everything that came before needs to be covered up or forgotten, but because sometimes we simply need a little space. A softer surface. Somewhere to begin without already knowing what the finished page will become.

That’s what I love about gesso.

At first glance, it’s simply a creative medium — something we brush onto paper before adding paint, collage, ink or other layers. But the more I use it, the more I notice there’s something lovely in the process itself.

You take the page in front of you, brush on a thin layer, and suddenly it feels different.

Quieter.

More open.

Full of possibility.

And perhaps there’s a little reminder for us in that.

We don’t always need a completely new page to begin again. Sometimes we can simply create a new layer on the one we already have.

Welcome to Wildflower Lesson #11 — Gesso Backgrounds.

A Fresh Page Doesn’t Have to Be Blank

We often think a fresh start means beginning from nothing.

A new journal. A new season. A perfectly clean piece of paper.

But life rarely works like that.

We carry our experiences, memories, marks, mistakes and stories with us. And just as gesso can soften the words, colours and patterns already on a page without completely erasing them, perhaps a new beginning doesn’t require us to erase what came before either.

We can simply make room for another layer.

That’s one of the beautiful things about working with gesso in a journal. It can quieten a busy book page, soften a pattern, prepare paper for paint or give an ordinary page a completely different feeling.

And it doesn’t have to be perfectly smooth.

In fact, I rather like it when it isn’t.

Brush marks, ridges and uneven patches become part of the page. They give whatever comes next somewhere interesting to land.

A fresh beginning doesn’t have to be perfect. It just needs somewhere to begin.

What Is Gesso?

Gesso is a primer that creates a surface ready for other creative materials.

In our Wildflower journals, we can use it to prepare a page before adding watercolour, acrylic paint, collage, stamping, handwriting or other mixed-media layers.

You can brush it on smoothly, scrape it across the page, leave visible brush marks or use a stencil, sponge or old card to create texture.

There really isn’t one “right” way to use it.

For this lesson, we’re keeping things beautifully simple and learning how gesso can become the foundation for whatever you feel like creating next.

What You’ll Need

Keep your materials simple. You might already have everything you need nearby:

• Gesso — white or clear

• Your journal or mixed-media paper

• A paintbrush or old brush

• A palette or small dish

• Water for thinning, if desired

• An old cloth or paper towel

• Optional: stencil, sponge or old card for creating texture

You certainly don’t need every optional tool.

Your brush, your page and a little gesso are enough.

How to Create a Gesso Background

1. Prepare Your Page

Choose a page in your journal and gather your materials.

You might begin with plain paper, an old book page, patterned paper or even a page you started previously but never quite knew what to do with.

Protect your work surface if necessary and place your page somewhere comfortable to work.

2. Apply the Gesso

Add a small amount of gesso to your palette or directly onto the page.

Using your brush, spread a thin, even layer across the surface.

Try not to fuss over it.

Let some of your brush marks remain. Allow areas to be a little thicker or thinner.

This isn’t about creating a flawless white surface. You’re simply preparing somewhere for the next layer to land.

3. Let It Dry

Allow the gesso to dry completely.

As it dries, you may notice that the surface becomes more matte and slightly textured.

Use this little pause.

Make yourself a cuppa. Step outside. Notice what’s growing in the garden. Turn to another journal page.

Creativity doesn’t always need to be hurried.

4. Add Texture

If you’d like to explore a little further, add another layer of gesso.

Try dragging an old card through it, dabbing it with a sponge or applying it through a stencil.

You can also deliberately leave your brush strokes visible.

There’s no need to make the whole page the same.

Let yourself experiment.

5. Make It Yours

Once your page is dry, it’s ready for whatever comes next.

Add paint.

Collage over it.

Stamp onto it.

Write across it.

Add a botanical, a photograph or a few scraps of vintage paper.

Or leave it alone for now.

You don’t have to know what the finished page will become before you prepare the ground.

Ways to Use Gesso Backgrounds

Once you begin experimenting, you’ll discover that gesso is useful in all sorts of journal pages.

Try using it to prepare pages before painting or collaging, soften printed text or busy patterns, create texture through a stencil, layer beneath stamps and handwriting, dry-brush across old papers, or mix a tiny amount of colour into it for a soft tinted background.

You can also use gesso when a page feels a little too much.

Too much colour. Too much pattern. Too many layers.

A light brush of gesso can quieten things without completely hiding what is underneath.

And sometimes that little bit of breathing room is exactly what the page needs.

Why It Matters

Gesso creates a neutral, welcoming surface.

It can soften what is already there and give the next layer somewhere to belong.

And I think there’s something worth noticing in that process.

Sometimes we don’t need to throw everything away and start over.

Sometimes we need to soften the noise.

Make a little room.

Take a breath.

Then ask:

What wants to emerge from here?

Your old marks may still show through. Your brush strokes may be uneven. The surface may carry evidence of everything underneath it.

That doesn’t stop it from becoming the beginning of something beautiful.

Perhaps it’s the very thing that makes the page interesting.

Soul Inquiry

When your gesso is drying, open your journal and sit with one or two of these questions. There’s no need to answer them all.

• What would it feel like to begin again?

• Where in my life would a fresh start feel good right now?

• What might emerge if I gave myself a blank page?

• How do I feel when I let go of the old and make space for something new?

• What am I ready to create, explore or invite in?

Write whatever comes.

A sentence is enough.

A word is enough.

Even sitting quietly with the question is enough.

Your Wildflower Journey

LEARN — Explore how gesso changes and prepares the surface of your page.

CREATE — Brush, scrape and experiment without worrying about making it perfect.

COLLECT — Add Gesso Backgrounds to your growing Wildflower Lesson Library.

REFLECT — Use the Soul Inquiry prompts to explore what a fresh beginning means to you.

SHARE — If you’d like to, share your page or your process. Your imperfect experiment might give another woman permission to begin.

BLOOM — Carry what you discovered into your next Wildflower Lesson and see where another layer takes you.

Find Your 15

Set aside 15 pressure-free minutes.

Open your journal.

Choose one page.

Brush on some gesso.

You don’t need to make a finished journal spread. You don’t even need to decide what you’re going to put over it.

Just prepare the page.

Notice the movement of the brush. Notice the texture forming beneath your hand. Notice whether you feel tempted to smooth every mark or make everything even.

Then experiment with leaving some of it alone.

Let the page be imperfect.

Let it be unfinished.

Let it simply be ready.

Because sometimes creativity begins long before we know what we’re creating.

A Fresh Page, A New Possibility

There will be times in our journals — and in our lives — when we want to know exactly what comes next.

We want the plan.

The finished picture.

Some reassurance that the next step will lead somewhere worthwhile.

But creativity asks something different of us.

It asks us to make a little space and begin.

Gesso reminds us that a fresh start doesn’t always mean erasing the old story. Sometimes it means gently creating another layer and allowing what came before to become part of what comes next.

So Find Your 15 this week.

Brush a little gesso onto a page.

Leave a few imperfect marks.

And see what wants to grow there.

Add Wildflower Lesson #11 — Gesso Backgrounds to your Wildflower Lesson Library, and return whenever you need the reminder that you are allowed to begin without knowing what comes next.

Create from your heart. Inquire with your soul. Bloom wildly.