365 Days of Colour - Flower of the Day 272 - 278

Maturity
....Comes over time. As children we cannot wait to grow up, pretending that we are older.  When we do get older with all the responsibilities we appreciate when we were without a care in the world, we tend to the aching muscles and the not so 20:20 vision as we peer over glasses to read the fine print and we talk to the younger generation about the things they need to appreciate as they go through their season to gain maturity...


Day 272

Reflection 

What matters most right now in your life?

Quote 

As artists, we must learn to be self nourishing. We must become alert enough to consciously replenish our creative resources as we draw on them- to restock the trout pond, so to speak. ...Julia Cameron 

Scripture 

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him  2 Corinthians 5:21

Day 273

Reflection 

What is not working right now in your life?.. you can change it 

Quote 

A fine artist is one who makes familiar things new and new things familiar. ...Louis Nizer 

Scripture 

Thou wilt make known to me the path of life; in Thy presence is fullness of joy; in Thy right hand there are pleasures forever. Psalm 16:11

Day 274

Reflection 

It’s time to focus on what really matters most 

Quote 

When I dare to be powerful… to use my strength in the service of my Vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.  ...Audre Lorde 

Scripture 

And they that know Thy name will put their trust in Thee: for Thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek Thee  Psalm 9:10

Day 275

Reflection 

You have a choice, don’t let doubt creep in and tell you otherwise. 

Quote 

The grace to be a beginner is always the best prayer for an artist.  ...Julia Cameron 

Scripture 

Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord He is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else. Deuteronomy 4:39

Day 276

Reflection 

It is time to make a change in those areas of your life that are not working. 

Quote 

Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast!  ...The Queen to Alice in Wonderland 

Scripture 

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven  Matthew 5:3

Day 277

Reflection

It is never too late to make a change 

Quote 

Art validates us beyond what anyone else can do for us.  ...Anne Copeland 

Scripture

You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13

Day 278

Reflection 

It may seem hard at the time, but you can stand up for what you believe it. 

Quote 

One looks at life as a gift, a painting of lights and darks, each defining the other, not a series of good and bad things. Giving thanks, and often, frees the spirit and makes the heart secure......Fay Bohlayer 

Scripture 

Honor the Lord from your wealth, and from the first of all your produce; so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine. Proverbs 3:9-10

365 Days of Colour - Flower for the day 265 - 271

Laughter

Is sometimes the best medicine we could have.  it can bring relief to a tense situation and also massages the internal organs, what better way to give yourself some much needed love

Day 265

Reflection 

Some doors are meant to be opened, walk through them, stop trying to break down the ones that are closed 

Quote 

Art is not a mirror held up to reality, but a hammer with which to shape it. ...Bertolt Brecht 

Scripture  

Truely, truely, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life..John 6:47

Day 266

Reflection 

Make a place for your dreams, and cherish them 

Quote 

You can’t be afraid of stepping on toes if you want to go dancing. ...Lewis Freedman 

Scripture  

Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.. 1 Corinthians 15:57

Day 267

Reflection 

Your blessings are waiting for you 

Quote 

A path is only a path, and there is no affront to oneself or to others, in dropping it if that is what your heart tells you.  ...Carlos Castenada 

Scripture  

And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit.. Ephesians 2:22

Day 268

Reflection 

You are a beautiful work in progress 

Quote 

Art seems to me to be a state of the soul more than anything else. ...Marc Chagall 

Scripture 

...there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God..Romans 13:1

Day 269

Reflection 

Some things we cannot change, but we can change our response to them 

Quote 

Don’t be afraid to take a big step if one is indicated. You can’t cross a chasm in two small jumps. ...David Lloyd George 

Scripture  

My grace is sufficient for thee:  for My strength is made perfect in weakness.. 11 Corinthians 12:9

Day 270

Reflection 

Peace is possible in your life 

Quote

There is no better opportunity to receive more than to be thankful for what you already have. Thanksgiving opens up the windows of opportunity for ideas to flow your way....Jim Rohn 

Scripture  

He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion.. Proverbs 28:13

Day 271

Reflection 

There are so many wonderful things in your life right now and they are meant for you to enjoy 

Quote 

Art is the triumph over chaos. ...John Cheever 

Scripture  

Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised)  Hebrews 10:23

365 Days of Colour - Flower of the Day 258 - 264

Fun

When was the last time you really had fun, let go and allowed yourself to enjoy the moment?  Think of three things this week that will bring the fun back into your life.

Day 258

Reflection 

When you feel like quitting, reach out to your support network

Quote 

All change is not growth, as all movement is not forward. ...Ellen Glasgow 

Scripture 

No eye has seen, no ear has heard, not mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.. 1 Corinthians 2:9

Day 259

Reflection

Don’t allow the past  to keep you from moving forward

Quote 

Everyone wants to ride with you in the limo, but what you need is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down. ...Oprah Winfrey

Scripture

...he who trustsin the Lord loving kindness shall surround him,..Psalm 3210

Day 260

Reflection

You can have a joyous life 

Quote 

Art has many avenues; love is carried through many vessels. Your oceans are your colours, your ship is your brush and your treasures are in your heart. ...Moncy Barbour

Scripture

Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned; forgive, and ye shall be forgiven.. Luke 6:37

Day 261

Reflection

The future is waiting for you, don’t be afraid to live in your present

Quote 

Trust in yourself. Your perceptions are often far more accurate than you are willing to believe.  ...Claudia Black

Scripture 

God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown Him...Hebrews 6:10

Day 262

Reflection 

You can get up again and flying like the eagle 

Quote 

I want to thank anyone who spends part of their day creating. I don’t care if it’s a book, a film, a painting, a dance, a piece of theatre, a piece of music. Anybody who spends part of their day sharing their experience with us. This world would be unliveable without art. ...Steven Soderbergh

Scripture

The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. Deuteronomy 33:27

Day 263

Reflection 

Go on, let go!

Quote 

You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition....Alan Alda

Scripture

...The holy Scriptures...are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.. 11 Timothy 3:15

Day 264

Reflection 

The doors are opening, are your ready to walk though 

Quote 

How can a man’s life keep its course if he will not let it flow?  ... Tao-te Ching

Scripture

Truely, truly, I say to you , he who believes has eternal life..John 6:47

A Bit of Play

 

Art and Creativity are essential for our health and well-being, I have been spending a lot of time in my art journals - making them and creating some smaller pieces of art

With the course that I have been doing since January nearly halfway through run by Kelly Rae Roberts and Beth Nicholls, it has been getting me to look at the very heart of my business, the why, who, what, where and when.. 

What I am reminded of for the week to come is that ALL of me needs to be taken care of, the business is essentially the heart of me and what I want to express into the world.

We have had a range of inspiring contributions and there is an amazing amount of talented and supportive participants on the course.  I have been doing a lot of searching, developing and writing and know that when you do feel off, or out of sorts you need to listen carefully to that still voice, it can be a reflection of the change that needs to happen or that is currently taking place..

We have to be gentle with our hearts through the change!

Remembering that all parts of us need to be cared for.  I was blessed to have a massage last week, this week I will be doing some more walking, talking lots of photographs, spending time with family and tending to my overall health so that I can continue to flourish and be the whole person I am called to be. 

Remembering that you are blessed - stretch yourself, what are you going to do with your week? 

A Walk in the Park...

Took a stroll in the park this morning.  Had about 3 inches of snow fall last night, there was a lot of ice covered by a new layer of snow so it was crunchy to walk on.  The only only other people who ventured out were some joggers and a couple of dog walkers and me! 

There was such a peace about the place, it reminded me of scenes from Narnia in the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe

 

Scenes enticing you to venture in and take a peak 

I also had the joy of seeing a group of Parakeets.  I was informed by a guy walking his dog that they have been resident in the park for many years, it was great to see their bright colours on such a cold day,

and the blue skies reminding me of summers yet to come....

365 Days of Colour - Flower of the Day - 251 - 257

Well-Being

There is much research done on exactly what 'well-being' means, whilst being more than feeling happy it's about our overall contribution to our personal development, our community and the society at large. We can all make a difference - even if it is just one person in this world, what about making a difference to your own life.   With all the snow we've had here in London we are hard pushed in seeing flowers that are so gorgeous, doesn't hurt to imagine your sitting in the sun as you enjoy them.  

Have a blessed week!

Day 251

Reflection

Honesty, peace and love is what your life needs right now, you deserve no less.

Quote 

People who have not been in Narnia sometimes think that a thing cannot be good and terrible at the same time. ...C.S. Lewis

Scripture

Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness  James 3:18

 Day 252

Reflection

The sacrifices were worth it, you came out whole at the other end

Quote 

He who knows that enough is enough will always have enough. ...Lao-tzu

Scripture

The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth...Exodus 34:6

 Day 253

Reflection

You can do it, you know it, everyone else knows it, are you ready?

Quote 

Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new. ...Brian Tracy

Scripture

All the paths of the Lord are Loving kindness and truth to those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.. Psalm 25:10

 Day 254

Reflection

Take a deep breath!

Quote 

It is better to create than to be learned; creating is the true essence of life.  ...George Niebuhr

Scripture

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?  Psalm 27:1

 Day 255

Reflection

When we come through the pain we can look back at the gifts we had along the way

Quote 

Where you stumble, there your treasure lies. ...Joseph Campbell

Scripture

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer; believing, ye shall receive...Matthew 21:22

Day 256

Reflection

Are you ready to live your life right now

Quote 

Creativity is… seeing something that doesn’t exist already. You need to find out how you can bring it into being and that way be a playmate with God. ...Michele Shea

Scripture

Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty..Job  5:17

 Day 257

Reflection

Your life deserves your attention

Quote 

Creativity can be described as letting go of certainties. ...Gail Sheehy

Scripture

Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away...Matthew 24:35

Massage - Pamper yourself!

                                                                               Source: rikyu.co.uk via Amanda on Pinterest

Spent some time on me last week out of the busy schedule and had a massage.  It was so nice to be able to stop for an hour and just relax and think!  When was the last time you spent some time on you?

I have been going to a delightful massage therapist called Emi Hojo for around a year - off and on.  She is welcoming, encouraging and having studied massage myself, she definitely has a great technique.  For such a small woman she can definitely work those knots and unworked muscles and give you a great deep tissue treatment.

                                                                                   Source: rikyu.co.uk via Amanda on Pinterest

I had promised myself last year that I would have a regular massage each month, but good intentions gave way to neglect and then the thought of 'you couldn't possibly spend time on yourself what are you thinking'.

With 3 months of challenges behind me and ones that are continuing I was reminded that it is the small things that you do on a regular basis that will improve your health and well-being, so going for a walk for 20 minutes, spending time creating and getting a massage on a regular basis as well as anything else that can improve your fitness will have an overall positive effect.  I definitely recommend  Emi, take a look at her website Rikyu Health and Beauty, and think about treating yourself, you won't be disappointed. After the treatment I lay listening to the bird song and waves in the dimly lit room, and after dressing was given a delicious rose tea to send me on my way.

    Source: rikyu.co.uk via Amanda on Pinterest

As well as the monthly things you can do for 'you' think of the daily activities you can treat yourself to that do not cost anything.  You can go sit in your local park, wander round an art shop or gallery, go to a cafe, soak in the bath with your favourite products....the list is endless  With February being a short month think of other ways you can incorporate a 'just for you' activity on a daily basis and enjoy the end results

Photographing Art work - Clearing the Clutter Challenge Day 30

 

This has been quite a month of photographing, writing and posting and still catching up, and one of the major tasks I have been putting off is taking new photographs of art work and uploading them on the website.  I have many pieces of art work and crafts for sale and the only thing holding me back at the moment is how they are presented.   Decided to take a bit of time on this and next week it will be on the top of my list and I will give myself the time and space to focus.  

Started the course Hello Soul Hello Business earlier this month and it is really getting us to think about the what and the why of our businesses, and I have gained new insight into where I want it to go.  In February I will be taking a break from the 30 day challenges, life can sometimes be one big challenge and need to just consolidate everything else that I am doing and get down to the meat of the course, and follow up on some of the things I unearthed over the past few months....also want to get back to some journalling, have been doing some as I have been clearing the clutter, will be sharing some of the pages soon.

I also want to play around with some digital art, itching to start doing some work from Susan Tuttles book - Digital Expressions to see what I come up with.  So with this it's good bye January, and hello February! Do share what will be new for you in February?  Do you have a course or book you want to try?

Clearing the Clutter Challenge - The Teenagers Room

   

What to do in my son's room, there are a few options, not sure he would appreciate all of them..though he would get the leg space he needs in this one!  

 

Source: yayeveryday.com via Vanessa on Pinterest

This one might work without the extra beds and suspended from the ceiling, but with more leg room he's still growing and his legs currently hang over his current bed (help!)

 

Source: ohdeedoh.com via Aurora on Pinterest

Might be forced to use the two palms in the garden to recreate this, there is lot of storage space out there, not sure if  he would enjoy sharing his room with the wild life! But I would get my studio (Lol!)

Uploaded by user via Katie on Pinterest

I think I've found it give or take the colour and the posters and wall space.... (Sekani....come here and look at this! :) 

Source: Uploaded by user via Kaye on Pinterest 

Now maybe a new look for my room is due......

Source: bhg.com via Natalie on Pinterest                                                                                                                                                                

Clearing the Clutter Challenge - What's happening in the Garden? Day 27 and 29

Well, what can I say, nearly the end of the challenge and I have been quite on it (for most of the time).  I know we all have that part of the house, or our space - somewhere that needs clearing, organising or just plain dumping.  Wanting to make a fresh start and catch up with yourself.  I have unearthed many delights I forgot I had.  I will be posting for previous days to let you know how I got on.

Today's challenge was to sort out the garden and I have combined this with day 29

Its amazing what the wind can do, we have 2 New Zealand Cordyline australis palms in our garden I planted about 8/9 years ago, didn’t realise that we would be constantly picking up the fallen leaves, but they do look glorious in the summer with their lovely smelling flowers. When you open up the kitchen window you get a whiff.. 

 

Once fallen I have been using the leaves to tie plants together, when you split the fallen wet leaf they are quite strong and you need scissors to cut them width ways.  I haven't come up with any creative weaving ideas for the Cordyline Australis.... here is more information about the plant if your interested... .  They have also been useful as ground cover to protect the roots of some of the plants, I haven't yet tried to dry them and use them in an art piece....
 
The back of the garden got quite a bashing in the high winds. I have been thinking of converting the shed into an art space, at the moment it has a lot of things that also needs sorting, but thats for another day!

 

The other thing that needs work is the plum tree, it should have been cut back at least 2 summers ago, so we will be cutting it back this year. Hopefully we'll get a better crop of plums, though the birds have fed off the ones we couldn't reach.

Speaking of the birds I hung some fat balls, I love hearing them sing and thought I would take part in the RSPB big garden Birdwatch this weekend. It is an opportunity to see which ones are coming into the garden.  The RSPB also suggest ways in which you can make your garden or space more bird and wildlife friendly. I am hoping to get some pictures of the birds that are our regular visitors, and may be inspired to get some ideas down for the shed come studio! What outside jobs have you been putting off?