Coming soon: mixed media experiment

So as you see here we have a journal and some new incoming media: charcoal and graphite.

I do love watercolors and I am excited about gouache, but I also want to explore charcoal and graphite. I also have inks that I wanted to integrate into my art. I have all these materials that I love and want to use, what if there was a way to do that.
Gesso is an acrylic material that you can put on surfaces so you can paint on them. It is a primer that people use to stiffen paper or prepare other surfaces for a variety of materials. So in theory, this journal I had for doodling with 75 LB paper can be primed with gesso to make it ready for all these materials. I have been watching some youtube videos of art journaling folk using gesso and it has inspired me to devise an experiment.
So to figure out how all these materials, I will do three (3) two page spreads in this journal.

1. The first two page spread, I will make a border of charcoal and graphite, so when I get the clear gesso I can test how it is as a fixative and if it will allow me to add layers of materials over the charcoal and graphite.

2. Then using a template, I will be creating a series of circles on top of the clear gesso. In these circles, I am going to paint water color ground which is a gesso like substance that has more absorption to take watercolor paint and is supposed to provide more texture or "tooth" to surface for charcoal. I will use black, buff, and white watercolor ground.

3. Using liquid masking, I will mask out a tree so I can test how the masking fluid works with all these surfaces and how it comes off.

4. Once everything dries, I will use watercolors, inks,  and gouache in various areas to test them on various surfaces.

5. Once the wet media dries, I will use charcoal, graphite, and pastels on various surfaces.

6. Once all those materials are set, i will remove the masking to see what I have and use a combination of materials to paint the tree.

7. Then I will repeat this experiment with white and black gesso. I won't do the graphite and charcoal before these gessos, and move directly to step 2.

Being a mixed media artist can open up possibilities I can't even imagine. YET. I am hoping I can take what I learned in these experiments into the art circle.

I will try to get this on video and on YOUTUBE as soon as I am able.

Any questions, comments, or requests?