{creative soul}

Mojo Monday - She Art, jewelry & movies!

Hello! I hope you had a great weekend wherever you are! This week is filled with deadlines and tax preparation, but in the midst of everything I'm trying to find time to relax and enjoy. Sometimes in the hustle and bustle I forget just how blessed I am and so today I am spending time with my sweet daughter, Ellie. We're headed out to lunch & the movies... she is off for Winter Break.

I had a great weekend! I spent most of it sleeping in and painting LOL! This past weekend I spent about 3 days cleaning out my basement and reorganizing my little "studio". It has made such a difference in how I approach my art time. I used to hate going down there because it was so messy and cramped, but now my space feels more open and organized. Even though the cat litter box and spiders still exist alongside me while I create, I do love it! (I'd show you a picture, but you might still be horrified! LOL)

Yesterday I created my very first SheArt Canvas!! Christy Tomlinson teaches this workshop, along with many other great classes at her website, scarletlime.com. I love Christy's teaching style because she just explores as she goes and inspires you to do the same. There is no fear - just PLAYTIME! It's perfect because that is just what I need. I feel like a little girl playing with my paper dolls... so much FUN! If you haven't heard of these, go check them out! The price is nominal compared to the sheer amount of video tutorials and encouragement you get from Christy.

Here she is in all her glory! I just love her... I think she is me! And the message is one I need to remind myself of. She is hanging in my office directly about my computer, to remind me to explore!

Lastly, Friday night I went to a Patera jewelry class at Found, in Ann Arbor. My friend, Gail, went with me! It was amazing. The jewelry and art is already pre-made so you just have to add the resin, which makes it look like glass and put on a few jump rings. SO EASY and the jewelry turns out beautifully. I made earrings (not pictured) and a ring too!

I hope that you are finding time to enjoy and just play too! It can be fun and very healing...
Hugs!
N

 

 

Valentine's Day Freebie

Happy St. Valentine's Day to you!

Hope that love is finding you today! Love comes in so many forms and can be as simple as a smile from a stranger, a hug from a child, or a passionate kiss from your true love!

I've got some sweet Vintage Valentine's  in my shoppe today! Why not grab them to print out and give to your Valentine? Or use them in a layout all about the loves in your life?

To celebrate this special day, I've created some sweet little hearts for you! I used my new NeoColor II Wax Crayons.. they are so much fun to work with! Bright, beautiful colors and they spread easily with water. I've got three hearts, plus a little card, in .png format.

Lots of LOVE!
N.

"Your Art is a Reflection of your Creative Soul Force"....

These are the words I heard this weekend from my energy healing session with Mary Spicer. The session was a gift from my sister Michelle (thank you Mich!), while I was visiting with her this weekend in Alamada, CA.

It was something that I really needed to hear. I love my work and feel so blessed to do what I do! Very fortunate. But, like every artist I feel pressure that my work is never good enough... like I've not yet found myself stylistically. This makes sense I guess — I mean as artists we are always discovering ourselves and finding our own style. But this feeling of never being "enough" is always in the background. Mary explained that I am working from my base chakra where my fear of money or not being good enough comes from. She also told me that I need to allow my child self to come through and to work alongside her in my art and journaling. Children create to please themselves, not others. They create purely, trust in themselves and never worry about being good enough. Wise little people, aren't they!? :)

My meeting with Mary was incredible and very healing. The entire weekend seemed filled with serendipitious moments. On the flight out to San Francsico, I sat next to a very sweet lady and we got talking. Turns out that she is an incredible illustrator! Anne Keenan-Higgins creates whimsical and elegant illustrations that spoke to my soul! We hit it off immediately, got out our IPads, payed for in-flight WiFi and surfed together, sharing the art that we love on Pinterest and talking the whole flight. It was so much fun!

Between meeting Anne and my session with Mary, I was completely re-energized creatively! On my flight back home last night, as soon as we took off, I pulled out my tiny mixed media journal, my inktense pencils and a watercolor brush and doodled and painted for 3 hours! I wasn't even nervous about flying (something I usually hate). When the gentlemen next to me asked, "Are you an artist?",  I hesitated—about to explain to him that no, I am just a graphic designer, and create scrapbooking products, etc etc. Instead, I just laughed and replied, "Yes, Yes! I guess I am"!

xo
N