{blog hop 2011 with julie balzer}
If you've noticed, I love the cloud and raindrops motif. I don't know exactly when this happened, to be honest, but it has! So when I was asked to join Julie's blog hop and saw some of the new stencils she was putting out with The Crafter's Workshop, I jumped at, well, the Rain and Clouds sets!
I wanted to play with my new gel sticks, and found these stencils are perfect for making what looks like monoprints but is, in fact, me rubbing the gel in and over the stencils (anything thicker really wouldn't work for this stumbled-upon technique!).
I then went to town with my new Radiant Rain sprays on a journal page (I'll be writing up a bit in the Supplies section very soon!) and used watercolors to separate the area where I wanted to write from the "background" of the rest of the page.
And today, I found creamy felt at a local shop and just had to trace a couple of the cloud stencils and some raindrops to create cute little embelishments for a page-in-progress. I'm so happy with how everything came out!
Make sure to check out some more ideas from these great ladies:
{sitting down to get to (creative) work}
I've been working on entries and realized I needed to get this burst of advice out, first, before I can go on in my narrative. Oh, I've been feeling so wonderful and happy and creative lately, and hope to pass these feelings along to you!
me, sitting down to sketch for a new painting.
“There’s a secret that real writers know that wannabe writers don’t, and the secret is this: It’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is sitting down to write.
What keeps us from sitting down is Resistance. “
Steven Pressfield, The War of Art
Sitting down to work is, for me, the hardest part.
Once I sit down, things flow. I may hesitate a bit, or feel some resistance, but am working — paint on my fingers, sketches drawn, pieces created.
(For more on resistance, I really do recommend Steven Pressfield’s The War of Art. It is one of my top books on creativity.)
On some days, even getting up can be a challenge. When we’re not feeling well, or are blue, or may be sore, we snuggle down into a comfortable position, perhaps in blankets or on a couch, and don’t want to move an inch. Perhaps work has been extra frustrating, or that drive home has sucked up the last of our energy. And when we’re in these periods of low energy, whether physically or emotionally, the last thing we want to do is get up and make art.
I know, for me, it’s a battle of wills — that is, me, the artist, and me, the woman with FMS. I want to do things. I want to get up and work in my journal. I want to throw paint on that big canvas I haven’t even taken out of the bag after three months. But the idea of getting up is difficult because it means moving and an outpouring of energy I’m afraid I don’t have. And when this happens a few days in a row, we’re apt to get angry at ourselves for not “doing more.”
There’s the urge to rationalize; I can work over the weekend. I was tired and couldn’t get up. I had too many things to do.
Then there’s the urge to blame someone else. Anyone close to us can become the reason we didn’t get to do all those creative things we were planning on doing — others impose on our plans and we jump at the opportunity to get out of working on something, only to regret it later.
Then there’s the urge to simply be angry with ourselves once we take a moment to look back — either prompted by catching sight of our creative space in the corner of our eye or someone we see online.
And suddenly, we wonder why we didn’t get up in the first place.
“So you see the imagination needs moodling — long, inefficient, happy idling, dawdling and puttering.”
Brenda Ueland, If You Want to Write
If You Want to Write is another of my favorite books on creativity, and on those days when I don’t seem to make it to my creative space, this quote calms me. It’s one of quiet reassurance, that maybe, just today, I did all my creative work in my head.
Do you remember daydreaming as a child? Do you still find your mind wandering to color or image or far-away lands? What would our creative dreams be without those dreamed up while awake, prompted by a color or image or beautiful piece of fabric?
When it comes down to it, if we were all action, all the time, we’d soon run out of things to craft and paint. Instead, we’d be moving, moving, but never really saying anything at all.
“It’s vital to establish some rituals — automatic but decisive patterns of behavior — at the beginning of the creative process, when you are most at peril of turning back, chickening out, giving up, or going the wrong way.”
Twyla Tharp, The Creative Habit
I think Twyla Tharp says it best. Without a ritual, without that push against resistance, we’re more apt to let the days pass without paying any attention to our journals and paint brushes, markers and scraps of paper. If each time you make a cup of tea, you sit down to write, then soon, you’ll easily make tea and write. If you get up and walk across the room, you’ll be more apt to sit down and get to work.
Or get to play. Whatever it is that brings you joy, you simply need to get up, walk to your creative space, and take a seat.
{new line of stamps by samantha kira sneak peek!}
Last week, I received an amazing and never-dreamed-of package from my amazing friend Roben-Marie.
I’ve never been a huge stamper, but over the course of the last year, I’ve been using stamps more and more, as well as carving my own to use in my journals. Awhile ago, Roben and I brainstormed the idea of creating stamps from my handwriting and artwork, and last week, the test stamps arrived.
They look amazing! Holding them in my hands still has the sparkles of being in a dream — these are real stamps created from my work, my art, my handwriting.
The first stamps will be available through Paperbag Studios soon. Until then, enjoy this sneak peek!
Also, check out my interview with the lovely Kimberly Wilson over at Tranquility du Jour. I had so much fun chatting with her -- I hope you are inspired after listening to get out there and create!
{win a spot in Life Book!}
When Tam of Willowing asked me to be part of Life Book, I had no idea of the real scope of the project. In the emails, notes, and chats I’ve read since, I can’t help but marvel at all Tam is putting together — and when it came to planning out my lesson, saw the lessons and ideas Tam wanted to teach, I felt that rush of kismet; in other words, Tam and Life Book agree with my ideas and sensibilities when it comes to creativity and art.
What is Life Book about? It is about crafting a visual journey for an entire year, helped along by seasoned, gifted teachers wh
o have, if I may say, put together some kick-ass lessons. I’m excited to take it right along-side all of you, learning each month from Tam herself and another amazing guest teacher.
I really love what she’s put together, and the cost — $10 a month! — is a STEAL!
So, want to join us? Sign-ups start October 1st — tomorrow (or today, depending on your time zone!)!
(Can't pay all at once? There's a payment plan available!)
If you’d like to be entered to win a give-away from me, click through the link above, then come back and leave me a comment. Tell me why you’re excited to join us, or what you’ll be doing that’s creative today. And if you really want to help me out, tell me what you’d like to most see on this blog, as I’m getting ready to really tinker under the hood.
Come back next week, when I’ll be giving you more details on what I’ll be contributing to Life Book, both my lesson and the juicy extras I’ll be contributing during the year-long awesomeness!
ETA: I'm leaving this open until 12pm PST on Sunday, and will reveal the winner via a random draw on Monday morning.
{slow & steady}
My fibromyalgia really amped up the pain of my carpal tunnel attack -- I am now nearly two weeks in and still get pains up my arms when I type. Slow and steady is my current plan of action: despite boredom and that nagging feeling in my head (an artist and writer unable to use her hands is one frustrated girl!) has me wanting to push, push, push, but I know the best thing for me is to ease back into things.
Pushing yourself can be useful, but knowing when to push and when to heal can be the best knowledge of all.
{a photo trip to Sweet Salvage}
My carpel tunnel is acting up like crazy, and typing with a brace on is difficult, so why don't you wander with me through Sweet Salvage on 7th Ave?
{what I've learned about journaling with a friend}
It's taken me a week to post these photos, but better late than never!
There's something magical about journaling with someone else. There are a few things you need to be comfortable with if you're itching to do this. Here's my little list:
1. Be comfortable with creative silence. (What happens when we get into the flow? We don't talk, we focus. You may spend hours sitting at the same person and speak three words. You need to be comfortable with this, with being social without speaking. I love that I can be around my art friends and get into what I'm working on without worrying about making them uncomfortable, and vise versa.)
2. Be excited about trying new things. (Becca pulled out a baggie of feathers, and I now have a pink one taped in my journal. I love seeing what she's up to, and we share supplies, paint, papers, bits we've made, etc. In fact, we usually are excited about something and bring enough to share with each other!)
3. Be comfortable with your own work. (I never feel pressured to make something awesome. I just have fun, and bounce around. Sometimes, I'm painting the entire time, sometimes I'm simply sketching.)
4. Know what you love. (It's easier to go journaling with someone when you know what you love and can condense it into a container easy to carry around. You really learn what you "need" in order to journal and what you can use when you're at home.)
Becca and I journal in public every week, in a popular cafe. We've had people stop and chat with us, ask us about our art, page through our journals. The employees know us because we're the ones that spread out and clutter the table with paint and markers and bits and papers. We're always respectful of the space we're in, and endeavor to leave it as we found it. There's something about being out in public, in watching people come and go, in mugs of tea and the best damn pastries I've ever found. I wouldn't trade it for the world.
(I am so in love with Thickers, particularly painting them a color to match the page I'm working on. Thankfully, the font I like, in white, is only $2 at Big Lots. I really should grab myself a new package before tomorrow morning's journal time...)