Creativity

Creativity for me is an important part of maintaining my health and well-being. It doesn’t matter what you choose to do whether painting, dancing, and writing or a range of other creative pursuits, what really counts is that you participate on a daily basis. Showing up even if it’s for just 5 minutes. Disciplining yourself despite what’s going on around you allows you to spend that time on you, showing up for you, then you can work on spending longer over time.

It’s been widely recognised for many years that art and creative activities can affect our health, and hospitals and more and more private and public sector organisations are looking at how their environment can make an impact not only on their clients, but their staff as well.

Many health authorities are looking at ‘Art on Prescription’ schemes where individuals are encouraged to take part in art activities over a 10 week period in an attempt to reduce the amount of time they visit their doctors and this has been rolled out initially for depression and other mental health related conditions. If you’re ever anywhere near north London check out Creative Health Lab who run art, dance/movement, and horticulture sessions and are based in Kentish Town City Farm.

Finally, when you get a moment, check out this very inspiring video by Jan Phillips You are Worth the Time

Blessings

I have been in quite a reflective mood and thought it would be a good idea to think about blessings, recognising and appreciating those things that have been a blessing to me.  I think it is probably something we should do on a regular basis, just to remind ourselves....

5 things I feel blessed about...

1. Relationships with family and friends, the support, laughter, and inspiration...
2. My mother - whilst she has dementia, she is still holding on to life, she has a sense of humour and a youthful quality about her life...
3. Discovering my passion was art, stepping out of my comfort zone and pursuing my passion, and being able to take the steps to being a mixed media artist....
4. New found friends...my journey as an artist has brought me into contact with so many talented artists and creative individuals, it has been a blessing and every day there is something of themselves shared that is inspiring and motivating....

5. My faith and relationship with God...I am reminded that we are here but for his grace.  My faith enables me to continually step out of the box and even the boat on occasion...If you get a chance check out some of the other participants on the A-Z Challenge, be inspired!...be blessed!

Acceptance

This seems an apt start for the A-Z blog challenge that will be taking place for the month of April.  I will also be posting on my art blog. The word acceptance has been resonating at the back of my mind along with the sentence “accept the things I cannot change, and change the things I can”.......

With the grief we feel when we lose someone close to us there are many emotions that come into play. Since hearing that my friend had passed, part of me accepted that there was nothing I could physically do to change the situation but be supportive to the family. I cried, asking God why her? Why now? Why do we have to feel so much pain?  Why?

The other part of me knew without a shadow of a doubt that I could pray.... that God can and still performs miracles....I dared to hope that he would find favour and bring my friend back. It says in Hebrews 11:1 “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things unseen...”, so I reasoned if Moses could part the Red sea, Jesus healed the sick, walked on water and raised Lazarus from the grave, then bringing my friend back would be like a walk in the park!

I realise whatever the outcome or however I feel - change happens, and it’s happening all around us. We have no control on whether night follows day, whether the tide rises or falls or that from buds just emerging flowers and plants bloom, these are out of our control. I accept this..

I do have control however over how I respond, what I decide to do next, do I become ineffective, crushed by the weight of “why me, why now?” or do I grow, develop and accept change, accept that people come in and out of our lives for a reason, and a season, and accept that things are not always how they seem. 

Accept that there are so many qualities we have been blessed with we are often unaware how we touch the lives of others - a simple smile, asking how they are and really listening to their response, going out of your way to help someone else (just because you can), celebrating our lives and that of our friends and family and most importantly making the most of the life we have to live now. 

Sometimes we have to wait....

sometimes this is the right time and place.....

sometimes this is the right season

Stay blessed.....Amanda

A Time for Everything

There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven

A time to be born and a time to die,

A time to plant and a time to uproot,

A time to kill and a time to heal

A time to tear down and a time to build

A time to weep and a time to laugh

A time to mourn and a time to dance

A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them

A time to embrace and a time to refrain

A time to search and a time to give up

A time to keep and a time to throw away

A time to tear and a time to mend

A time to be silent and a time to speak

A time to love and a time to hate

A time for war and a time for peace

What does the worker gain from his toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11

Friendship

I said goodbye to a dear friend on Saturday 26th March, Barbara,  who unexpectedly passed away. She was the one I referred to in the post Balance and taking time out for friends, I’m so glad we spent the whole day together talking about our art, exhibitions, favourite artists, new techniques, faith and generally what was on our heart.

We have known each other for over 30 years having gone to college together studying a secretarial course. We came out after two years ready to face the world as PA's. Whilst this was not our passion we committed to it. Our paths throughout the years ran parallel at so may points.....

We sung together, trying to fulfil our 17 year old heads the dreams of forming a group with college friends Vilma and Juliet, hoping to tour the world. We trod the boards together, joining a group to write and perform our own community opera called Bloodties, and we toured many theatres.

We were at each other’s weddings. I remember when she first introduced us to her now husband, Phil in our 20’s we all hoped that one day we’d meet men like him. Our children were born and played together and she was blessed to have 4 beautiful daughters and a son. They have all been blessed with many wonderful talents waiting to be unleashed into the world

We shared our work environment for around 3 years literally side by side in the same organisation as executive PA’s sharing our experience, knowledge and much laughter. We shared our love and passion for art together. Barbara took the step to leave the organisation to pursue a degree in fine art. We always talked about wanting more time to be creative, having more space and inspiration but we encouraged each other, and she graduated in 2010. I was very proud of her as I attended her graduation show. We talked about collaborating again on an exhibition together later this year.

We shared our faith together. Barbara had an insight to the word of God that would touch your heart in the very place that it was needed. She had so many books within her waiting to be birthed; she had a unique wisdom and understanding. I saw her preach for the first time two weeks ago, and it was definitely a word for the season.

She touched many people’s lives over the years, both young and old and was a friend who I never imagined knowing after 30 years – (that seemed like a lifetime) - but time passed anyway...there were so many other things we were encouraging each other to do. This experience so brings home to me how precious our lives are, we don’t have any guarantee about tomorrow, so what are we going to do with our today? How many plans we make to see friends, catch up, or things we say we want to do, places to visit, but we put it off saying ‘I’ll do it tomorrow or next week’ and allow stuff to get in the way with our promises to ourselves being pushed further and further into the background.

I’m so glad that our day spent together was spent talking about our passions for art and creativity, our goals and dreams, in laughter and love. I value the years we have known each other and it has made me reassess all the other parts of my life that I have no guarantees about, everything I say I want to do, from my art, travel, adventures, to sending that card, making that call and spending more quality time with my family and friends. I will make the time and space for each, not putting it off or being distracted, but being in the moment, living in the moment and appreciating each moment, in balance.

My thoughts and prayers go out to those who have lost friends and loved ones. To Barbara’s family who I adopted many moons ago as my own, that they find the strength and courage to get through what seems like a very dark place, and find the joy and laughter that follow the tears as they ponder on the memories, Barbara’s grace, understanding, kindness, talent, humour, those laugh-out-loud moments, the way she encouraged and the way she loved.......Stay blessed!

Creative Every Day Challenge - Nest

For Creative Every Day Challenge Our topic for the month is nest and I have been pondering over it  for the past few weeks and for me it represents a place of safety, a place where nurturing, growth and security is present.  Just as a bird rears its young, so we hold on to our core values and beliefts that are at our very foundation. 

While doing the Crafting my best life course with Jenny Doh at Cresendoh we did an exercise where we identified our core values and we put these on stones.  Bringing the two together with this challenge serves as as a great reminder.

On a creative front I am becoming more at peace with my adventures as an artist, exploring, creating, journalling, stepping out, experimenting and on the way meeting some cool, supportive, inspiring and talented artists...

As you think about the challenges that are coming your way, think about the values that are at your foundation, the support network that you surround yourself with and that place of peace that you can retreat, to strengthen yourself as you face another day...

Balance

Took a break from work yesterday to visit my good friend Barbara who lives in Milton Keynes, about 50 miles from me.  she is a fellow artist and I've known her for nearly 30 years! (my... time flies)....I've known her kids from birth and seen them blossom into beautiful young adults.  It was great to not only catch up, reminisce, and laugh, it was also great to share about our art and creativity....She has these Derwent drawing pencils which I loved.  I did a quick sketch using them...(will have to put them on my wish list!)

They are very creamy, almost like a pastel and come in a range of colours

It's so important as creatives that we make time for the other areas of our lives, family and friends.  This is an important part of our lives' as well as taking 'me time'.  Balance was the word that came to me sometimes so many areas of our lives can seem out-of-balance.

Are we moaning about not spending enough time creating yet spend a lot of time watching tv?

Are we looking after our bodies and maintaining our health, or do we splurge on a particular food or 'chocolate'...(chilli chocolate is yummy!)....

With so many websites, blogs, networks and videos, are we taking the necessary breaks?

Are we getting out into the fresh air on a regular basis despite what the weather is like?  Its pouring with rain today and really chilly!

Are we filled with so many creative ideas that we juggle too many at once, surrounded by those new books,  paints, fabrics, paper..... and become burnt out and frustrated when things are not pulling together?  This week I hope to do a schedule so that I can fit in all those areas - work, play, creativity, health, friends, family and 'me time'!

What steps are you going to ensure that you have some balance in your life?.... taking that time to see what is around you, planning, playing, creating, listening and, recharging your batteries?

Making Handmade Books

I won a prize draw!  The book came today in the post, Making Handmade Books by Alisa Golden (Lark Crafts) Looking forward to trying out some of the projects.  It came with a lovely book made by the author.
I have been getting into making my own books and altering books so its a lovely treat to be able to learn even more techniques.
Another book that I started this week was Wreck this Journal

I used to feel overwhelmed by blank pages either on my canvas or my journal, this book provides prompt for stepping out and getting over the fear by doing random things in it, experiment and see where the adventure takes you....  A couple of the suggestions

Some others include:

Hanging the journal in a public place and invite people to draw on it - could be the start of an interesting project or journal page, Tongue painting, cutting, tearing, writing with the pen in your mouth....and much more..should be interesting....not sure about the tongue painting, might adapt that one...but hey, thats the fun make it what you want it to be....post a couple of pages to friends, get them to do something on it and post it back...or give you some ideas for your own journal prompts.

Some might be asking why regarding some of the prompts for 'wreck the journal', I guess it's part of keeping up the creative process, we often complain about not having enough time and some of the things you can do in the book only take a couple of minutes of thinking outside of the box, and may lead you developing your creative projects further and release a bit of tension :)  It would be great to see what you've done if you have one of these books, or thinking of getting one.  It would also be great to hear about any new techniques your learning.  Stay blessed!

March Challenges....

Yay, I've signed up to the A to Z blog challenge  I am the 362nd person to sign up, and more have come after me!  It will definitely be a challenge for me as I have not yet got the discipline of writing on a daily basis down, but I'm definitely looking forward to it, going into unchartered territories.. and visiting some inspiring blogs in the process.  So if you are up for the challenge, click on the link and sign up!

The Creative Every Day challenge theme for March is Nest, so some interesting ideas will come out of that. 

Whenever life throws up a challenge, think about what the lesson is, what are you learning from it and what gifts can come out of it.....have a blessed weekend!

New techniques....

I came across Colin Reef site recently, and he inspired me to have a go at assemblage art, among other techniques.  I have realised that as an artist I have found mixed media allows me to express my many areas of interest.  I still sketch every day and on my other blog http://amandatroughtart.blogspot.com/  I will be showing my sketches and how they develop over the coming weeks. 

I find immense joy thinking about different ideas and techniques for projects. Due to space I can't work on too many at the same time, but I do enjoy having a continuous flow of ideas to work on.  There are some paintings I'd like to do but at the moment they are just sketches in waiting.  I have tried out two techniques that Colin showed on his you tube site.

The first one foil art, this just uses supplies around the house to create the layers underneath the foil. I might make this into a journal cover.  Apparently you can cover anything so will be doing some more....

Here is my first attempt at an assemblage box.  My box started its' life as paint tube container and I have added imagery from stampington magazines.  I am toying between a silver or gold frame which I will engrave.  The gold frame had been initially covered with polyfiller and painted..

This shows you some of the layers.

 A close up of the curtain

I hope to do a few more, been collecting boxes and running out of space around the house, not one to be a horder!....an artist needs to collect for future ideas, so creative storing is a must.  Been reading Organising Your Craft Space by Jo Packham, perhaps I'll be further inspired, there are some gorgeous studios in the book.  What new techniques have you been trying? be great to see:)  Have a blessed week.

Where did February Go?

Who can believe that we are nearly at the end of February!  I keep reminding myself that I need to make the most of what I am doing now, and try not to get side-lined - there are so many techniques I want to try, books to read, courses to do and ideas to develop.  I've been recovering from a bad cold over the past couple of weeks and I think I tried to get back to the swing of things too soon.  I'm still feeling the effects on my throat, its started to get sore again, but the 'family remedy' of garlic, honey, lemon and ginger have always been a fail safe and what my body needs is rest.  It is so easy for us to go into automatic mode and forget to really see all that is around us and what we need to hear.  Hearing the 'hard way' meant I had to cancel quite a few meetings last week as I was just too tired - even to be creative!

The constant things I've been working on is sketching at least once a day in order to develop and refine my style.  I have more examples of my work on my mixed media blog  http://amandatroughtart.blogspot.com and will be showing the daily sketches there.  I'm also trying my hand at assemblage art and a host of other things........

I am currently coming to the end of the 'Soul Restoration' - Brave Girls Club course, it's definitely been an eye opener and I will share in a separate post, but major reconstruction is going on and being ill reminded me that like on a construction site foundations need time to set and plaster and cement needs to harden so that the next team can come in and do their work. 

I realise that I need to give myself time to get back into the swing of things and get back to a healthier way of living as well as working on the creative sides.....so..... more exercise, more healthy food, fresh air and most importantly 'me time' to come!...what about you?

The One Flaw in Women

I think I saw this as a video, and also in email, not sure who the author is but I was blessed by it, thought I'd share it here.  To all the beautiful, inspiring and talented women who sometimes forget how valued and treasured they are. Also, check out the Brave Girls Club for a community of supportive and encouraging women.

One Flaw In Women

Women have strengths that amaze men. They bear hardships and they carry burdens, but they hold happiness, love and joy.  They smile when they want to scream.  They sing when they want to cry. They cry when they are happy and laugh when they are nervous. They fight for what they believe in. They stand up to injustice.

They don't take "no" for an answer when they believe there is a better solution. They go without so their family can have.  They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.

They love unconditionally. They cry when their children excel and cheer when their friends get awards.  They are happy when they hear about a birth or a wedding. Their hearts break when a friend dies. They grieve at the loss of a family member,  yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left.  They know that a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart.

Women come in all shapes, sizes and colours.  They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you to show how much they care about you.  The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.  They bring joy, hope and love. They have compassion and ideas. They give moral support to their family and friends.

Women have vital things to say and everything to give.

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN.....IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH..

Strathmore Workshops - Recycled Journal Pages

I've just finished my redesigned piece for the Strathmore workshop 1.  Found it really interesting being able to use art and journal pages that I had previously done to make a new page and direction.  Here is my efforts over the 4 weeks. 

Week 1 and 2

Recycle journal pages - reusing artwork, this was taken from 3 different pages

that I had done and brought together

Week 2

Redirect - giving pages a new voice - using oil pastels, pencils etc

Week 3

Reuse - adding drama to pages using things you might throw away - sequin waste,

stamps paint, pastels, other textures

Week 4

Re-purpose - Finalising your pages and using creative lettering

I am going to start another one, and see where it leads...

Lots more to show and tell from the other on-line courses that I have been doing over the next few weeks.  Have a blessed weekend

Creative Every Day Challenge

Decided to take the plung and sign up for the Creative Every Day Challenge  as a way of encouraging myself to keep my focus as an artist, and give my creativity the front seat this year.  The optional theme for this month is Cosmos,  and it can be done in any form, which is good as  I have been taking quite a lot of photographs and writing over the past couple of years and it would be great to share them at some point, I have also been thinking a bit about digital art and combining some of my pieces.....so much to do and time is of the essense!  Hope your day is blessed and if you decide to take the challenge check out the link above.

Unexpected

I noticed how isolated you can get as an artist when you don’t take the time to venture out within the community.  Trying to spend more time on my art means that you spend large amounts of time on your own, so to fit in walking allows me to get out and about.  I had a meeting to go to today and would usually take the car to the station, as its not as cold as I thought it would be, decided to leave it and start my walk earlier.  Spoke to 2 people I didn’t know on the way, felt the rays of sunshine on my face, and had a brisk walk to the station.

The new fingerless gloves I brought worked a treat and my hands were surprisingly warm. For this trip part of my journey involves going into central London, round the corner from where I use to work so it brings back memories.  The train journey wasn’t too bad, got quite busy but because it’s no longer a daily journey it didn’t matter.  I was able to be observant and take note of the different characters that spend a fraction of their day closer to strangers than they would normally!

Meeting done,  I was also looking forward to visiting one of my favourite shops where I get some of my US magazines like Somerset Studios. 

At Blade Rubber Stamps, they have a range of stamps, papers and many other things.  I  brought Green Craft and Cloth Paper Scissors - I brought some supplies as well,  suppose this can also count as my ‘artist date’......

One Way?

I had originally thought that I would start this in December, but the best intentions can often go by the wayside.   I also thought I would change the title to walking thoughts instead of challenge, thinking that it should be part of my every day, rather than something that I have to overcome ‘challenge’ and fight with myself to complete, although in a way it is!  I guess we all have something, or many things that we are challenging ourselves with this year.....

One Way???!!!!!

I wanted to continue my drive for fitness regardless of the weather, enjoy the scenery and use the time to think about the creative work I was doing and take some pictures of the things I observed on the way.  This this sign came to my notice.  I had grown up thinking that there was one way, though an internal dialogue was simmering underneath insisting that other ways existed.  The thoughts of being an artist was discouraged, inside I wanted to try many things meet new people and many places to go see.  Its took me a lot of reflection and searching before I realised I could give myself the permission to break out of the constraints and shine my light into the world! It’s funny what can come out of a simple stroll. 

New horizons  - 

Here is some local graffiti art that I passed on my walk, not sure who the artist is, but if I find out will let you know they have quite a few bits of art dotted around north london.  I have definitely grown as an artist over the last 3 years and more recently since 2010.  I took quite a few on-line courses last year, Art, Heart and Healing, Flying lessons, Believers Truth, Crafting Your best life - Crescendoh, which all opened up a new way of looking at my art and just making that step as an artist.  Will be sharing some of the work that I did both here and on my website.

Happy Christmas

Complacency

A big thank you goes out to all those who have been an inspiration, who are currently an inspiration and those who will some day be an inspiration.  I hope your day has been a blessing, and the weekend will reveal untold treasures and blessings in your life!