Art Slam

I have been thinking more about the kinds of things and activities I fill my days with. I have been guilty of saying "I am really busy" and "I don’t have time". Actually, I do have time and my days are busy with activities and nonsense that sucks the life out of me. Admitting that is the first step to living more.

Over the past three years, I have purged my life of things, people and thinking that does not improve me in some way. I took a break from message boards and forums, blogs and people because of all the negativity swirling around. No matter how positive you claim to be, negative garbage has a way of seeping into your life and stealing your joy.

This year, I reclaimed my joy. I took responsibility for the quality of my life. I stopped making unnecessary purchases as a way to fill some kind of void. I started making connections with people I felt a spiritual connection with. I took risks and stepped out of my comfort zone. I stopped making so many assumptions and became a better observer. I have tried to not take everything personally. I have given myself permission to be first in my life more than I have been. I have been living more. Returning to the things that make me happy, cost very little and occupy my time with quality experiences. I am determined to not spend the next few years complaining about what is not right in my life, but instead focusing on what is right. Basic, simple gratitude is an amazing thing. It makes you appreciate what you have and for me, it makes me happy. That alone makes me rich beyond my wildest dreams.

This is one of my all time favorite digital pages. I had started creating my own papers and brushes and mixing them with some of my favorite designers’ work. My challenge to you this week is make your own backgrounds for your work. I don’t want to hear how you can’t do it. Yes, YOU CAN! Use paints, papers, ink, digital elements…anything. In fact, mix them together and see what you come up with. Using paint is one of the easiest and fastest ways to create a background.

This is an exercise in appreciating your own talent. We all have it, we just forget sometimes. I tend to use earthy tones and this page goes completely against that. It is bold and in your face. I love that about it.

I promise to share how I create my digital backgrounds. I have not been one to record my process, but I would like to start. I enjoy sharing and encouraging others to make their own designs. It is easier than you think.

I will be shooting an event in celebration of National Women’s Friendship Day later this afternoon. Sponsored by Girlfriendology.com, the event will be held on Sunday, September 21st from 1pm to 3pm. Held at Tino Vino in East Hyde Park, Cincinnati, this event will feature bottling your own wine (with special girlfriend label) as well as snacks, wine and fun activities for women. Reservations are limited to the first 50 women.

National Women’s Friendship Day was created in 1999 by Kappa Delta Sorority® for women everywhere, this special day provides an opportunity for women to recognize those friends who make a difference in their lives. This is the 10th anniversary of the day established  to inspire women to reconnect with the female friends that make us healthier, happier, less stressed and even live longer – our girlfriends!

Girlfriendology is the online community for women based on female friendship. Share your girlfriend stories at these two events and be featured on the Girlfriendology site and videos! Visit Girlfriendology.com to listen to inspiring interviews with amazing women on our podcasts, watch videos, win contests, get information on this event and more.

I just posted at the Art Slam about build the foundation for your creative life . Go check it out and I hope my post motivates you to either start or give a little more attention to your creative life.

If you want to sustain your creative life, you have to lay down a firm foundation. You ever notice how easily you make excuses for why you can not be creative? You know the ones; you are too busy, you have to take care of the family, this is silly, you are not creative, blah, blah, blah… Well, dismiss them. Making time to feed your creative side is important. We all need a little time to play, relax and return to center. By using the following tips, you will be well on your way to establishing your creative life.

One of the first things you have to do is be in a creative frame of mind. You have to believe you are creative. Without this simple and critical step, you will not reach your full potential. Don’t wait for others to tell you how good you are, KNOW how good you are. One of our biggest problems is we compare ourselves to others. You are uniquely you and can not be like anyone else. Comparing yourself and your artistic skills to someone else’s is a waste of your time. So, start off by believing with everything in you that you are creative.

Secondly, make a commitment to create everyday. If making art is your chosen creative area, art does not have to mean a 30′ x 40′ canvas. Your art can be small, playing card sized, in fact. I have done a series of fabric postcards that were no larger than 4” x 6”. I would create all of my backgrounds one day and work on another layer as each day went by. By the end of a week’s time, I had a set of completed postcards ready to mail to my writing buddies. When I scrapbook, I do not always finish a page the same day I start. Again, I may select my images or do my journaling first, then pick the papers and elements I plan to use and by the third day, start assembling the page. I make time to be creative, even if it is only 15 mintues a day, it is still time I commit to growing as an artist.

Third, create an environment that nurtures your creativity. Dedicate a space, no matter how big or small, to be creative. My creativity spot is mobile most of the time. Since I work a lot with the computer, I have a favorite area on my living room couch next to a large window. I set the mood with some music, my journal and all of the materials I need to work with. If I am being more organic, like painting or working with paper, I have a dedicated area in the basement where most of my materials reside. It is not a big space and I have been known to grab what I need and work on the dining room table instead (hence all the paint and ink marks on the table). I am flexible about my environment, but where ever I am, I make it work for me.

Next, start a creativity file. You never know when you may need some inspiration. I have a morgue to store just about anything that inspires me. My morgue consist of quotes, pictures, color palettes, words, ephemera, blogs and so on. You can read more about starting a creativity morgue here. I read a lot, so I am always finding something new to add to my files.

Finally, surround yourself with like-minded people. If you are serious about building a creative life, one of the best things you can do to help sustain it is build a creative community around yourself. There is nothing like having a support system when you are in a creative slump or having an, “I completely suck at this!” moment. I have a variety of kindred spirits around me who give it to me straight and encourage me to follow my heart and my dreams. We share techniques, uplifting words and empower each other and ourselves with our friendship.

Having a creative life is a lot easier than it may seem. We are all born creative; sometimes we forget that, but we are. Taking the time to nurture and grow your creative life is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Give yourself permission to play, learn and grow. Give yourself permission to just be. I wish you much joy on your journey and wild, free ­spirited creativity on the way.

I am excited to share that I will be a part of the 2009 Digital Scrapbooking Magazine Creative Team . This is a wonderful opportunity and I can not wait to get started working with the magazine. This is going to be one heck of a fun year!

The only thing that would have made this a better week would have been to have a brand spanking new Canon 5D Mark II cradled in my loving arms. Instead, we have power at our home after Hurricane Ike blew through our city and everyone I know is safe.

I am working on some pretty cool projects that I am excited to be a part of. There is nothing like working with other creatives and sharing your love of art, design and photography. I am excited to share that I will be a part of the 2009 Digital Scrapbooking Magazine Creative Team . This is a wonderful opportunity and I can not wait to get started working with the magazine. Funny how digital scrapbooking came back into my life. First with Wacom and the Pen Scrappers and now with this. Very cool.

I am also pretty darn happy to have a new Super Hero necklace coming my way. I absolutely love Andrea’s jewelry and would buy every single one of her necklaces if I could.

I received an email last week from Maria Hammon asking if I would be interested in doing an interview for the Rev It Up list. Hell yeah! I have been a huge admirer of Linda Woods and Karen Dinino’s books, Journal Revolution and Visual Chronicles . Anyone who loves art journaling as much as I do must be awesome.

She presented me with some thought provoking questions that made me think and I must say, it is my most authentic interview to date and that feels pretty good.

I received an email last week from Maria Hammon asking if I would be interested in doing an interview for the Rev It Up list. Hell yeah! I have been a huge admirer of Linda Woods and Karen Dinino’s books, Journal Revolution and Visual Chronicles . Anyone who loves art journaling as much as I do must be awesome.

She presented me with some thought provoking questions that made me think and I must say, it is my most authentic interview to date and that feels pretty good.

Cincinnati was not prepared for the devasting winds of Hurricane Ike yesterday. Ike blew into Cincinnati and put a major ass kicking on us. I watched from the safety of my home as winds gusting up to 75 mph ripping the roofs off my neighbors homes. We had some siding come off of our house, but nothing as devasting as trees falling on the house or someone dying because of it.

By the end of it all, 800,000 people were without power in the area. Right now, the number is somewhere around 600,000 still without power. It is my understanding we had employees from the power company headed to Texas and they had to turn around and bring others with them to help out in our area. There is a possibility people will be without power for up to a week. I hope not. I believe it will be fixed sooner.

What is ironic to me is how many businesses are open and expected their employees to show up to work. Darn near every school in the area is closed. Many gas stations are closed. I waited in line about half an hour to get gas before coming into work. It was crazy. Crazy! It is also strange how there are pockets of electricity. You can be going down the street and everything is dark, go a little further, power.

I am thankful my family is safe and so glad I did not do any grocery shopping yesterday. I would have been pissed to throw all of that food away!