Painting with a Gift Card...Art Workshop in the Studio

"I'd like to paint watercolors with you sometime."

A few weeks ago, I was visiting with a few ladies and they asked about getting together to paint watercolors sometime.  To be honest, it happens that way often.  It's a compliment that I appreciate so much.  We do really mean well.  Life is busy, schedules are crazy...we're frantic trying to keep up with it all.  The day-to-day gets out of control and we don't really enjoy very much of it like we should.  So I am used to kind sentiment and wishful thinking on painting together.

Well, this time, these gals meant it.  

Here I am visiting with several ladies, while being so appreciative of all the encouragement for my recent art pursuits.  My family is patiently waiting for me in the car.  We're going to be one of the last to leave... And before I know it we're arranging to have an art workshop get-together on Thursday.  Oh.  Hmm.  Four days away.  Let's do this thing!  My mind is scrambling, I'm trying to picture how we'll set up and work in my studio with five or more of us here.  How much house cleaning needs to be done?!  In my heart, I absolutely love getting together like this and know it will be a terrific day.   It was a little bit of a shocker because plenty of people say, "let's get together" but it never pans out that way.

In the end, you just accept those God appointments and know 

He's going to bless it big time.  Ooh, this is exciting now!

First and foremost, I was making a strategy to clean up my studio (again) and arrange it in a way that works better.  This was already in the works...I have been using about half the space available.  My husband kids me that I no longer use the drafting table now that I have the drop-leaf table.  Then we resurrected the old cabinet which gave me more storage and more flat work surface.

So I sorted, packed up, got rid of and organized stuff.  With the addition of folding tables and chairs, it was all coming together.  I dug out the supplies I keep for teaching classes the night before.  At times it seemed like the mess got worse before it got better.  Whew!  I was a little worn out but I knew that when it was all over, this would be a great day.  I just love time spent with other women, so add art to that and it's a bonus.  

I still felt a little bit crazy for agreeing to this

but deep inside knew it was a great idea.  Here were other women, wanting to spend time doing something I really love.  I know it's therapeutic...that's part of why I do it.  While teaching workshops, I have seen participants get lost in the process.  There's just one problem:  It's not easy to make time for creative ambitions.  I know this for a fact.  I'm the one who kept letting it get further from me.  We have these huge plans for a jaw-dropping finished project and then face disappointment when we can't complete it to our standards.  It's hard to re-examine and set different expectations instead of labeling self as a failure.  We are not failing.  We are still pursuing and that's not failure.  Failure is admitting defeat and not trying again.  We can't do that to ourselves anymore.  What could we paint without trying something too ambitious?

I remembered the trees painted with gift cards.

Gifts cards...those little plastic pre-paid cards that are all used up.  Have you seen this before?  This is not my original idea.  I first saw this on Susie Short's Learning Watercolor site.  Wow!  What a treasure trove of wonderful information.  At the time, I was looking for ideas for workshops and it looked so fun.  To see the actual tutorial click here and then click the tutorial link under its photograph.  It is so quick, simple, and fun...try it with your kids.  They'll love it!

The Long Pause (AKA The Lost Post)

I just completed the March 2013 post The Intermission is Over...only to find...I told you I don't know what I'm doing...the lost post from December 2012.  So I am posting it today.  Two at once!  Wow, I'm feeling a sense of accomplishment today.  I'm not going to spend any time editing it...you get it just as it is.  Bear with me, please.  And if you are reading and following, please add a comment.  What a boost to know whether anyone has been here.  I may be more encouraged to post more often.  hint. hint.

The Long Pause. 

It's been longer than a year since the last post.  This has been on my mind often and now I find myself rusty at posting today.  Why does this matter?  Why shouldn't I give up?  There's this nagging feeling that I've been beaten and/or I've quit.  I love reading blogs and for some crazy reason I can't put my finger on I want to record my own art related ventures.  My desire to write a blog began as a desire to be more than a wife, mother, homemaker, crafty person, Sunday School teacher, and on and on.  I felt like the artist part of me was very much lost.  She was pushed off to the side because there was no time.  It was a sad frustration that this core part of me was fading away.  I made a conscious decision to begin weaving my artistic self into everyday life.

Great times on the back roads of New Mexico.