Keep Going - Filling the Creative Well - Blog Series

There are days when creativity feels easy, and days when it doesn’t. On those in-between days, the best thing you can do is simply keep going, maybe even shifting your focus.  It is better to do something than nothing at all. That’s today’s encouragement, show up, even if it’s just for five minutes.

Art is not always about inspiration. Often, it’s about persistence, showing up because your creative self deserves it. Consistency is where the magic lives in quiet, steady effort. 

What you can Try 

• You might not feel like making anything today. That’s okay. Keep your practice light and low-pressure. Pick up your journal and scribble a thought. Smear a color across the page. Rip paper and glue it down. Take one small creative action. 

• When you keep going, you send a message to your inner artist: “I’m here for you.” That kind of trust and nurturing is how practices grow.

• Keep a journal for those small actions, a “just-for-today” notebook. These practices honor the peaks and the valleys of creative life.

• Your creativity doesn’t need to be perfect or productive, it just needs you to be present.

Takeaway Nuggets:

1. Creative practice is built on showing up, not perfection.
2. Five minutes of art counts remember you are filling the creative well.

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Check out some of the free and paid resources below to enhance your creative journey 

Course Platform - there are a variety of FREE courses and resources for you to use in your creative practice.

FREE Tier - Patreon - I have a Free Tier on Patreon that has a selection of early release posts and monthly Digital Download Papers for you to use in your creative projects - Learn More Here

YouTube - Weekly Videos to encourage your creative practice, Slow stitching, art journaling and Artists chats - Learn More Here

Check out Filling the Creative Well which helps you establish your creative practice. In the course Filling the Creative Well, your journal is also a place to answer questions, encourage and motivate you, some days you need a reminder and so filling it with encouraging words so that you can come back to it, especially in those days where you are in a valley is really important. .

New Work Alert - What's New in Paperless Post

Pastel Painting - Amanda Trought

Welcome to the blog, so glad you could stop by.  I did a blog post review earlier this year on a company called Paperless Post - You can check out the review HERE

They have a new feature which is worth while trying out - their Flyer Option. What is new is that you can now create Flyers using GIFs and stickers and share via email or text.  So the above image was created on their platform and it could also be shared on different social media platforms and still have the writing animated - so you can see the image above.  I shared an image on my Instagram  as a mini video.

They have a wide range of templates for you to use and you can also upload your own images, which you can check out HERE

Remember that you can also send  the flyers out, if you wanted to receive RSVPs to your event you can add this to your flyer, and they have a variety of free templates that you can use, and it is a great way to keep in touch with friends and family around the world.  

New Work

Pastel Prints and More

Prints, posters and cards 

Tote Bags and other accessories available

I completed my 100 Days of Leaf Arts recently, which was great fun.  You can check out 

Week 14 - Check out the others in the Archive Section

You can also check out my Leaf Arts Course which takes you through a variety of ways to work on dried leaves.  It is a lot of fun 

If you would like to see the new work that I have you can visit my Website and for videos go to my YouTube channel, you are also most welcome to subscribe!

Join me on Patreon for art and tutorials not shown anywhere else and behind the scenes, chats and insights just for you!

Why not give Paperless Post a try and let me know how you get on.

Stay blessed and be a blessing.

Review - Paperless Post

I was asked to do a review on a company called Paperless Post, and to see what I thought about their services, and it couldn't have come at a better time, because of the service that they offer.

I have been in between homes in London and Barbados and with birthdays, anniversaries and more often coming up I am always looking for a way to remember to send that card for that special person, and stay in touch with friends and family.  Often I have used social media to say Happy Birthday greetings, but receiving a card has always been my preference in this fast paced life.

Paperless post seems to cover two areas in one sweep with their online Invitations, Cards and Flyers.  It is much more special receiving an electronic card rather than a one line message on social media and you can send greeting cards and more via their site.

They are also great for those planning an event and need to send out invitations locally and around the world, and you are able to track whether the card has been opened.  So for those planning weddings and parties you can get a better idea of numbers and following up on your invited guests - all you need is their email address.  You can receive cards as well, and send a reply from your account and keep track of who you have sent a card to.

Paperless Post partnered with designers and lifestyle brands, delivering millions of cards around the world and have an impressive range of designs that you can alter to your own specifications, whether it is the colour, text, backgrounds, and the inside of the envelope.  You can also upload your own designs, and as an artist I love the idea of being able to upload my work and send as a greeting card.

A drawing I created and will upload as an online card

You can send a standard online card for free, for additional functions you will have to purchase coins to use to edit the cards and get a selection of online envelopes. You can purchase 100 coins for $20.  You can create a standard card with text details and envelope for around 6 coins, which is about 1.2 cents per card!!.  If you are sending out invitations and in volume then you will need additional coins which you can purchase to meet your needs.

Flyers are another thing that I am always creating and you are also able to create online invitation fliers that you can post on social media, or send to your mailing list and receive a response to you invitations and keep track of the attendees.

For those of you who still want to send a printed card you can do so.  Paperless Post have a print partner called Paper Source, they have a minimum order quantity of 20.  But you are also able to print your own cards using a design and templates they provide you can do it yourself and add your own spice to the overall look, and is great if you are on a budget.

One of the things I like most about Paperless Post is that I can schedule cards to go out to loved ones.  I can design all the cards for the birthdays coming up, or just send a 'just because' card and then schedule them to go out for specific dates, and they have access to the cards immediately.  So what you waiting for, check it out and let me know how you get on.

Stay blessed and be a blessing.

Come and join me on Patreon

Join me HERE

Thinking about doing a class?

10 Prompts, 10 Days, 10 Minutes - Day 6 - Go Further

Welcome to day 6 of the 10 Ideas to kick start your creativity.  Today's task and additional instructions is below

Prompt 6  - Go Further

Take the Collage a bit further -  On a fresh piece of paper/card Cut some images from a magazine and try and create a picture/collage draw additional shapes and lines. Think about some of the collages you may have made earlier, were there anything from these that you would like to incorporate. 

This is a great way to create other shapes and interesting characters.  Keeping it simple to begin with you can get more and more expressive creating some lovely images.  You can add paint and other elements the more you practice.

Additional Information

The great thing about these ideas is that anyone can do them, you don’t need to be creative, so if you are looking for ways to unwind or give yourself that much needed time then these are things ideas that you should try.

For each activity you can try it using different mediums or surfaces, colours - do not limit yourself.  I want to give you ways in which you can experiment if you want to.  You can adapt it anyway you like to suit, and there are no right or wrong ways to create, so do not put any boundaries on yourself.

The most important thing is to have fun.  The minimum amount of time you should spend on each activity is 10 minutes, it is great if you can spend longer.  You can do a different activity each day, add the activities together, or work on a piece for longer.  

I will be following along and posting to my Instagram account remember to share and put in the hastags #101010 and #realityarts

Each activity will give you ways in which you can very easily strengthen your creative muscles and also provide you with some of the tools and techniques that I will be sharing in my lesson on the BADASS Art Journal  Check out some of the cool bonuses that you can get when you sign up using my link HERE  The Course starts tomorrow, have you joined yet?

If you don’t take the BADASS Art Journal course these tips will provide you with some great ways in which you can keep yourself going and have ideas that you can dip into.

What you waiting for - enjoy, and let me know how you get on.