In Progress aka "Plot Twist"

It's been a busy summer and I have been preoccupied with preparing to be in the 2013 Boulder Open Studios. I am thrilled to be a part of this. I have lived in the area for 10 years and I have visited studios most years and always dreamed of having a body of work and a studio to share. Now it's my time to open up. Not just on my blog or amongst arty friends, but truly with the communtity. This is my opportunity to share, to sell, and to teach. The time has come and I am ready!

But not without some plot twists along the way. I always knew the last 3-4 weeks would be the big push to get it all together. To finalize work and get the word out. What I did not account for was the 500 year CO flood just weeks before. Our crawlspace flooded and water seeped through the foundation and soaked my studio floors. Not too bad, we were lucky. But reality hits when removing all that water and tearing out soggy, damaged floors, along the way revealing two walls that also needed to come out. Luckily Chad is an amazing woodworker and overall get-it-done-guy extraordinaire... so floors are out and new walls are started. All the finishing and new flooring are on hold until after Open Studios. All the prep and hard work and expectations of having it "be perfect" had to be reframed. I am even more proud now of what I have accomplished. I could have easily melted down, and a year and a half ago I would have had no choice. The surrender was hard, but it was easier to just go with it. Am I fully ready? Not quite. I have my space back, but the house is still upside down and there are still loads of loose ends. But isn't it better this way? Won't it be that much sweeter to attain this dream amidst all the chaos and effort? I think so.

So if you are in the Boulder area, please drop by my studio Oct 5-6 & 12-13, 2013 from noon-6pm. Check out http://www.openstudios.org/ for more info!

Where I am, right now.

Before I backtrack and tell tales of where I've been and what I've been up to the last few months, I figured that I should tell you where I am right now. I am in the middle of what feels like taking a big step backward. I know that this is not true, that I am actually making strides personally and creatively, but when your body is operating at a much different pace than your mind these details are easy to forget. I was feeling great. Positive and upbeat, my energy and health felt like it was reaching a more even keel. But as my mind started speeding up, my body started slowing back down.

I applied for and was accepted into the Boulder Open Studios, a reality that filled me with utter excitement coupled with anxiety. Now I have to actually do it. Show the world the artist that I am. Suddenly I am faced with a resistance to working, over thinking, and generally getting in my own way. Fortunately, I am self-aware enough to realize what I am doing, and I compensate by attempting to lower my expectation of how many things I can juggle. Good. I am conversing with myself on what it means to be an artist and open your studio doors to the public. Is it about selling or sharing? Does one make me more "successful" than the other? My husband reminds me that with out a single item to sell I am still an artist, and personally my heart is more in the sharing, guiding, and mentoring than the bottom line.

I am also conjuring some grand projects and truth be told, pursuing big dreams is big work. My whole life I felt like I was too young for what I wanted. Always a step ahead, I am not sure I had the maturity or experience to back up what I wanted. It didn't stop me from going for it anyway, and truth be told, we all have different timelines. Now I feel this all over again. I have something to share of this journey that I have been on. But it feels so much bigger than me, will I be able to stretch enough to see this dream come to fruition. There is a glimpse of something more, something bigger, but I am feeling just at the start with so much research and work ahead of me. Will I be more equipped to help and share and heal a year from now? Five years from now? Many questions and few answers. I respond by doing what I can, letting go, and getting to work, bit by bit.

A Winner!

Thank you all for participating in my giveaway of Gina Armfield's new mixed-media journaling DVD. Gina's fabulous new book No Excuses Art Journaling is now available for pre-order on Amazon. It will transform your life! Please come back to see me as I continue to share more art and inspiration and for future giveaways! Congratulations to CJD for winning!

No More Excuses - A Giveaway!

As some of you know, I am a big fan of Gina Armfield's No More Excuses method and I am happy to announce my participation in her upcoming book, No Excuses Art Journaling, due out in December 2013! This method has literally changed my creativity and productivity into a daily practice. Gina helps you create a daily practice of working in a calendar as a journal, with prompts and inspiration to keep the creativity flowing. NME gives you the structure, and then you get to make it your own! My calendar journals have become home to memories and tidbits, lettering samples, quotes, watercolor, illustration and photography. Bit by bit, I watch my journal grow and by the end of the year I have a potent, creative record of the journey.

If you haven't started your NME journal yet, now is the time! Gina is releasing 2 DVDs to accompany her book, demonstrating just how to incorporate drawing & watercolor as well as mixed-media collage into your work! And I am giving away Gina's Mixed-Media Collage DVD to get you started! Just post a comment stating what you love or are looking forward to about the No Excuses Approach and I will randomly select a winner at the end of the week!

Please take a closer look at the No Excuses Art Journaling site, where you can catch Gina's interview, clips of her DVD's, ordering info, as well as updates on her workshops and book release. For a deeper glimpse into Gina's artwork take a look here!

Be sure to check out the rest of the Blog Release Party for more giveaways and inspiration:

May 20 - Dion Dior
May 22 - Serena Barton
May 23 - Chris Kalina
May 24 - Kelly Kilmer
May 28 - Pam Garrison
May 29 - Jennifer Joanou
May 30 - Tracie Huskamp
May 31 - Leslie Riley

Field Notes

I'm taking Juliana Coles' Field Notes class right now and so far I am having a great time. I am working in two journals, one is a preexisting sketchbook and for the other I am working in a novel with cute nautical and map illustrations. Working right over the printed text is liberating, and I find that it keeps me from getting too precious with the page. Another great tool for that is fat pens and markers. It really helps! Maybe these sketches are a little rough around the edges, but I kinda like that. The whole concept for the class is to get out and about, sketch more, and to create a practice. A PRACTICE people! I still have to reign in my own expectations and remember that it is just a page. If I don't like it I can do another drawing, as many as I like! The beauty of sketching is that my drawings really need to simmer, when I come back I always like it better than when I was trying to strong-arm it into some vision in my head. Have journal, will travel.

This is my favorite! My studio, with all that I love and use. (in progress)

A view of my backyard

Chalkboard Wrapping paper How-to

Inspired by the richly lettered chalkboard art of Dana Tanamachi, I set out to create one of a kind gift wrap for my brother's 30th birthday. Simple enough, right?! The materials were simple, two sheets of black drawing paper, a white Prismacolor pencil, and a white Recollections brand marker. Using images and typefaces as reference, I began what I call "drawing letters". Bit by bit, word by word, the paper filled and by the end I was surprised to see how it all came together. My influences show, but then again so does my own hand and the playful way that I approach lettering.

The Prismacolor pencil lends a softer, more chalkboard-like effect, while the marker stands out a bit more brightly from the background than the pencil. All in all it turns out beautifully, in my opinion, and makes a fantastic and thoughtful addition to the gift!

Happy Birthday Timmy!!!

NME Catch Up - Part 2

More pages from my 2013 NME journal.