I needed my art to mean something & in the early days I was clueless.
Truth be told, I only had access to 50 Gigs of Data per month for many years & it was only on a dial up connection.... ha-ha-ha Who can remember that iconic sound? The younger generation can listen to it here Dial-up Tune
For me this was never a problem as I grabbed some mixed media paper & jumped right into learning how to paint by actually sitting down with my supplies & trying out different things. For me it sometimes still feels like a waste of precious time to binge watch other artists videos. It felt more authentic to switch off all outside stimulation & paint what I wanted to paint.
In my Sketchbooks you’ll see a whole bunch of unfinished projects because my Sketchbooks are mainly used for practice, warm ups & figuring out the fundamentals or composition of a design. It's more of a collection of elements I can paste together to create a pattern with, than a painting. Especially now that I have digital editing skills to add to my abilities to create, it has become so easy to layer & add loose elements to create wallpaper, fabric & other compositions for Surface Pattern Design licensing.
One thing I did know for sure; was that all my skills combined afforded me more opportunities & through it, I can offer more to the world… AND boy oh boy, did it ever come together nicely!
>>> insert a little nervous giggle here as I’m still practising & perfecting every time I sit down to paint >>>
On my socials I’ve shared many of the behind-the-scenes things as they happened & for the most part, there is a whole lot of work happening that people don’t get to see.
And you know what… Everything I had in my long list of dreams are coming true. Yes, there are things that might take some more time than others, but I am more than confident that will happen too. Do you know why? Because there is a clear turning point where I started taking action towards the things I wanted & continue to build on it every single day.
Even after sending out my Portfolio, I am still designing new Surface Patterns & coming up with creative things that help me to find joy in the world. I literally stopped believing the lies of any inability & saw that there was a place for my type of art, my level of creativity, my contribution to human wellness, my style of teachings & so many more aspects I have to share.
This is where the “Play & Paint” ideas really came to life you know. I needed to keep on creating as long as I was waiting for the licensing partners to add my designs to their products. I knew I could do creative things for my community & others too. I followed my heart to create what I wanted to see in the world because I already knew how to bring all my skills together, now I just needed to show up & reveal it to the world.
Making my style of teaching accessible to others has opened doors to live a more fulfilled life. I know my West Coast friends who live in Langebaan, Saldanha, Velddrift & Vredenburg, not to mention Perth friends, are all missing me as I they continue to say it every time we chat on text. I miss you too, but I am here now & building more friendships that we can all share thanks to the power of this Blog Article, social media outlets, Zoom Calls & of course YouTube.
You could always find me on the links in pink to discovered how to add multiple creative turning points to your life. Some I’ve created especially for you, like the products on Spoonflower & others I've added so you can create them for yourself. By watching the Meet Me in the Studio videos on YouTube, or even getting back into the free Sketchbook Retreat, you'll feel like I'm there with you >>>virtual hugs<<<
Do you still think that Creative Play is only for children?
Believe me, you are never too old for this, simply because you can add your creativity to an array of daily projects depending on what you love doing... For example, your Diaries or Bullet Journals, Bible study notes, Scrapbook pages & by building short 20 minutes a day creative habits that aligns you with your own creative spirit.
The lists of applications for creativity & play can go on forever as there really is no end to the way we experience life. You could make & add any of these watercolour Roses in your chosen area of creativity to surround yourself with something pretty. Just looking at this painted floral vase gives me heaps of inspiration to be creative with the techniques I've learned.
I’ll be using my “unusual” Sketchbook to show you what is possible. When you see how the easy techniques can come together, you could use kid’s art supplies & prove to yourself how much fun you can have as a grown-up & become a create-anywhere-with-any-supply type of person.
There is of course a place for the highest standards & really expensive art supplies, but while you are learning to have fun, you can use what you have now.
Can you imagine holding up something you made today to examine it? Then, let me ask you this? While nit-picking, can you spot the moments of genius or are you only going to see what you feel is wrong with it?
Something in what you just created, whether it is a home cooked meal or a drawing, must at least have some aspect of it inspiring you to trust the mess. After all, what you are holing in your hands is the very thing you just made... at least be proud of the completed task & pat yourself on the back today for giving it a go.
We are getting back to Creative Play & the Watercolour Roses topic of the day, so, allow me to share this little video with you. The intro starts with bird sounds this time as I love the sounds from my garden early in the mornings. I sometimes record them when I’m outside for a stroll & at other times you can actually hear them in the background when I record in the Studio Office.
Grab some art supplies & let's get you painting easy Watercolour Roses today
Remember to catch some amazing links in the description box below the video on YouTube
Where I live, there are Roses everywhere, not all in my garden, but around the areas where I love to walk. Open your vision to see the Roses in your area & take a few minutes next time to appreciate them deeply, then step back & continue to admire just how much beauty surrounds us at any given time…
I've added some images to my Facebook of a walk I did after last weeks Play & Paint session in the Sale Botanical Gardens, take a look on Facebook by following the icon below.
Life is miraculous you know; we only need to be willing to see it from a new perspective. Like when we struggle with something, simply changing the way we approach or do the task automatically opens us up to the solutions to complete the seemingly difficult task.
You can do this, just follow the guidelines & figure out how you want to play today!
The only prerequisite is YOUR willingness to give it a wholehearted go!!!
Okay, I’ll catch up with you at the Play & Paint Parties near me or other places online
Love
Tanya
xoxo
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