…And The Winner Is!

 

If you were here to see the “Giving Back” blog hop,  you know my art group gave away 8 free spots in Kelly Rae Robert’s “Flying Lessons” and those were matched by 8 more spots from Kelly Rae.

…And the winners are:

TeedeJee (Tineke), Mindful Metta Moment, Dawn Anderson, Rose Buchmiller, Suzi Poland, Kerry Estey Keith, Katherine Mitchell, Natalie B., Jenny Baio, Kelli Watcherson, Rachel Carroll, Anna Dakin,  Helena, Chrissy, Laurie, Quilt Maker Cottage.

I’d like to take a moment to congratulate these ladies. They are about to embark on a wonderful journey that will change their lives!

If you are one of the people who entered the drawing and did not win, I’d like to encourage you to take the class anyway. It is a very small investment to make in yourself and your creativity if you are even CONSIDERING the possibility of starting a creative business.

I met my “tribe” through this class, and it’s been life changing for me. I’d love for you to have that same opportunity!

 

Grrrrrrrrrrrr…

Well, so much for my determination to create something every day…

Day 1 was a total bust. Didn’t come any where near the vicinity of creating anything. Usually when I state a determination to do something, I make it through at least the first day before I fall off the wagon!

I am horrifically disappointed that I managed to let my resolve go away without a single day of success.

I suppose I MAY be being a little hard on my self (who me?) It’s not like I’ve got a plan in place yet. But I just thought that since it was right in the forefront of my mind I could create SOMETHING today. That somehow I could find an hour in the whole day to sit down and paint, or draw…SOMETHING.

I DID have a little time to myself. But I let it slip through my fingers. I put other things ahead of my art. No one made me do it. It was my choice. I’m just SOOOO conditioned to putting it behind everything else.

Yesterday I ended my post with Create. Every. Day. But it wasn’t enough to make it happen.

So. Tomorrow is another day. Another chance to wipe the slate clean and start over. And if I don’t do it tomorrow, it’ll be the day after, or the day after that. It may take awhile to make it a habit, but I will start making this a priority.

Checking In On “My Word”

My word for the year in 2012 is “Create.” My main goal for the year, rather than a series of “New Year’s Resolutions,” is to create.

I haven’t checked in for awhile to see how I was doing with it, but I was reminded a few days ago that we need to revisit our word from time to time.

I’ve been a bit up and down, sometimes going days at a time without feeling a bit creative. Had I thought about it a week ago, I would have been much less apt to think I’m doing okay.

But for the last few days, I’ve been back in the studio and having a blast.

Being creative makes my heart sing. It makes me glow, and fills me with a sense of well-being like little else does. I like me better when I’m being creative.

Somehow, in the busy-ness of life, creativity has become an after thought, or sometimes a reward for when I’ve done all the everyday boring stuff.

That has to stop. Creativity needs to be elevated to the same importance that grocery shopping and laundry have. It needs to be a part of every day, just as fixing meals, brushing teeth and washing dishes are.

Last year I did a month long blog hop about being creative every day, and although the habit of blogging every day has stayed with me since then, being creative EVERY day, has not. Okay, I guess, in a pinch, the act of blogging COULD be considered being creative, but I need to be in the “make something” kind of creative mode EVERY day. EVERY day. I may not complete a whole project in a day, but I am going to work very hard at making progress on one every day.

Create Every Day. Create. Every. Day. I can do this.

By the way, I actually did “create” the covers for the Inspiration Deck today. Start to finish.

Yeah. I “created” today, and it was a good day.

Fifty Down, Two To Go

Okay, so I’m doing a teaser post. I hate ’em, and I’m kinda sorry to do it to you, but I can’t help myself.

I REALLY want to show you the whole project, but I can’t, so all I can do is bits at a time.

I spent some time working on the Inspiration Deck today.

I punched and punched…

Then I counted and recounted, and compared who said they would do how many, to make sure I was missing only the two I thought I was missing, checking that I had return addresses…it’s really a bit of a complicated process.

So, 50 decks down, 2 left to come in, and I can start assembling them!

I’m sorta hallucinating that I might make a cover card for the deck…I prepped an extra deck just in case I needed to do a make up one, and it looks like I’m not going to need it. Hmmmmmm. Think I know what I’m doing tomorrow!

Crazy Time!

Okay, it’s time to breathe…

And then get my bootie in gear!

My to do list has gotten so long it’s beginning to get a bit intimidating, even by MY standards! I have family stuff, art stuff, my internship, a new internet class that has already started, and another about to, projects piling up for the girls, and a garden that has gotten out of control (and the weather is FINALLY cooling down enough to actually get out there.) It seems like every time I cross one thing off the list, I add at least three more!

The good news is, my energy level is suddenly soaring, and I think I can do this!

I’ve been spending the last three weeks watching what I’m eating and exercising. My reward has been watching the numbers on the scales going down, and now, I’m being rewarded further with this super increase in my energy level.

So, instead of looking at my to do list with dread, I’m excited.

Today was our belated celebration of Mr. Tattered’s birthday, so I played, but tomorrow, I buckle down! I can hardly wait.

 

Sort, Toss, Organize

If you are here for the blog hop, you can find my “Giving Back, Giving Flight” blog here…but feel free to visit here as well!

I’ve been in sort, toss and organize mode around here today! Still working on my “1000 things.”

This round started with losing the hole punch and dumping a big basket of paperwork looking for it a couple of night ago. I sorted some of it immediately, but piles were still laying around, including a bunch of magazines. Well, you can’t just throw magazines away without going through them first, right? So I had to search page by page to make sure there was nothing I NEEDED to keep.

The Christmas magazine had a few cute display ideas, and a set of boxes I think I need. I did a quick e-mail to see if they are still available. There were about ten scrapbook magazines…surprisingly I only tore a few ideas out of them, and out they went. The gardening magazines? Ummmm…couldn’t part with them, so I made room on the bookshelf for them.

One of the magazines was a collection of storage ideas for studios. I almost just kept the whole thing, but in my new spirit of tossing things I’m not using, I flipped through it, and found a few really good ideas, tore them out and THEN tossed it. One of the ideas seemed like such a good one I went immediately into the workroom and tried it.

Normally I store my paints upright in what used to be CD crates, re-purposed into stacking shelves. They’re kind of a pain because the paints were stored 3 deep, and it was hard to see what I had.

The new idea called for storing them on their sides, so you can see the bottom of the bottles. This allows for seeing immediately what you have, and even better makes room for even MORE paints!

Oh, yeah, I’m supposed to be thinning down, not making room for more!

Anyway, I’m sorta enjoying all this organizing for the moment. Wonder how long it will last!

I have a Confession…

Well, a couple of them actually.

First, if you are here for the blog hop, you can find my “Giving Back, Giving Flight” blog here…but feel free to visit here as well! It’s confession day…

Okay, so my confession. Yesterday I lost something. If you read my post, you may have noticed that I never actually SAID what the something was, and you might have wondered what it was, and why I didn’t give it a name. Well, it was a hole punch. And the reason I didn’t name it was because I was afraid it was with the last Inspiration Deck I punched, and that it was missing, as well, which would have made me feel TERRIBLE, but more than that would have unnecessarily worried the girls who are participating for fear it was their deck that ran away with the hole punch!

As part of my investigation into the missing punch, I recounted the decks, and like TEN were missing! So I knew immediately that the punch was with them in the box of cards I had taken with me to Lake Tahoe to work on, and went right to it! Woohoo! Whew! Crisis averted! And without buying a new punch. I wonder why they are so hard to find all of a sudden???

My other confession? Oh, my. I went a little crazy in the shopping department today. In fact the loot is still in the back of the car because I hated to come in looking like I’d been Christmas shopping!

I actually found a store not too awfully far away (okay, so it’s further than I would consider my normal range, but a girl’s gotta do what a girls gotta do!) that carries Kelly Rae Robert’s Demdaco stuff. I am the proud new owner of a figurine, a darling “take flight” bag, a 2013 calendar, and a sweet little tablet.

But that wasn’t all, they also had a really cute display stand I had to have, AND they also have a really nice art section, and their golden paints and other artist products were on sale, since I have a painting class coming up with a huge supply list attached, I stocked up.

But then I followed that up with a visit to Hobby Lobby, and turns out, I’m not as over it as I thought. I wasn’t as bad as I’ve been before, but I didn’t strike out either. Three of my new treasures were picture frames (I can’t believe I bought more!!!) Then a few more art supplies off my list, and a really cool metal container to store my copic markers in.

Looks like I’ve got room for LOTS more! Bummer!

It’s been quite awhile since I had a big shopping day, and I have to say, it was fun. Now I REALLY need to get back to “creating!”

I Think It Grew Legs and Walked Away

If you are here for the blog hop, you can find my “Giving Back, Giving Flight” blog here…but feel free to visit here as well! I’ve had a crazy day!

Far too much of my time today was spent “looking” for something.

It’s not a terribly important something, but I know I have it, and I need it to finish a project. But I can’t find it.

The worst part is that if it is missing, there’s a good chance it is with something that IS important, and that has me a little nervous.

So, I went on a bit of a tear around the house looking for it. In rational places, first, to no avail. Then in irrational places. Still nothing. There just aren’t that many places in this little house for it to be.

So, I finally gave up and went out to buy a new one. I really don’t like re-buying things I know I already have. What the heck? Now I can’t even FIND one of them! Now this isn’t some weird thing that no one has ever heard of, it’s a normal thing that most everyone, but especially a scrapbooker, would have. Anyway, I exhausted every place I could think of in this town, and gave up for the day.

Tomorrow I’ll have to go out of town if I haven’t come across it by then.

So, I have this basket where I kinda shove stuff to make it look like I have control over my mess in the family room. I decided it was possible I had shoved the lost thing in there. The poor basket is even a testament to my tendency to start projects and not finish them.

Note the browns and reds on the bottom of the basket and the pastels on the top? It started out pastel, but that doesn’t match my new decor, so I started the laborious task of tearing fabric strips and recovering the whole thing. I don’t know what possessed me to think THAT was a good idea, but you can see how far I got before I lost interest…yet another thing to add to my to do list.

Anyway, I decided as long as I was looking through all that junk, I may as well sort and toss (still trying to rid myself of unnecessary stuff!) Good grief! I really am a pack rat. Half of it was trash I didn’t want to take the time to deal with, so I just shoved it in there.

An hour later I have a big mess AND I still haven’t found the darn THING!

I’m pretty sure it grew legs and walked away.

September ATCs

If you are here for the blog hop, you can find my “Giving Back, Giving Flight” blog here…but feel free to visit here as well! I’m showing off my granddaughter!

I don’t think I’ve ever posted a blog about ATCs BEFORE I do them, but this coming up one is special.

Probably most of you know what they are, but just in case we have new visitors today, ATCs are Artist Trading Cards – little 2 1/2″ x 3″ works of art that a group of us trade every month. Each month there is a new theme. And you can do them in whatever medium you want. There are only two rules – the size, and you have to trade them, not sell them.

We’ve been doing it for nearly a year, and it is so much fun.

But what makes this next month special to me is who will be participating.

My granddaughter, Hannah – age 7, blossoming artist – is really into art. She LOVES the ATCs and every month tries to bum them off of me. This time she asked if she could do it with me. So, I went to the group to see if anyone would like to trade a card with her, so she could do it, too.

The response blew me away! Very shortly, 7 of these special ladies had volunteered to trade a card with her! She is over the moon excited, and already thinking about what she could do for the theme “Harvest.”

Normally, I would wait until I had my cards ready to share to post about them, but I was too excited – I had to share the good news with y’all!

But, rest assured, you’ll be seeing them when they’re done. Heeheehee!

A Little Inspiration Deck Love

If you are here for the blog hop, you can find my “Giving Back, Giving Flight” blog here…but feel free to visit here as well!

You might remember I have been working on this Inspiration Deck for what seems like AGES!

Everyone’s schedules got a little crazy, and the decks have been trickling in. Then yesterday several came in at once. I LOVE the mailman.

FINALLY they have all been mailed to me, (just two more outstanding!) and it should be just a few days until I can start putting them together and mailing them back out. I am so excited for you to see them! But I’m kinda thinking about submitting the project to a magazine, which would mean they’d need to stay under wraps for awhile. What do you think? Is this the kind of thing a magazine might be interested in?