Wild Abandon is a Good Thing

For most people, when they reach a certain age, they start to think if something they enjoy is not making them money or giving them status then it's not beneficial. I do NOT believe this. And I really feel like one of my biggest truth on this earth is to teach other how to relax and enjoy life. The easiest way I have fun is COLOR! Getting messy and putting my hands in squishy paint is soothing!

Supplies

Craft paint (cheap) in all of your favorite colors
Large sheets of heavy weight bristol or watercolor paper
pencil
ink
water
apron
paper plate or palette of some kind

What to Do

Fill you palette with all of your favorite colors. Begin by dipping your fingers in paint and smearing it on the paper. Use all of your hands. Finger tips for dots, palm for smears, side of the hand for moons- whatever you want. Paint fast and loose! Let it dry a bit and then take a pencil or pen and scratch a design into the paint or write something positive. Let your painting dry and hang it on the fridge. Was it fun? 

If you found yourself getting too serious or technical about it start all over. The whole point of the practice is to loosen up and enjoy yourself!
Make a whole series with the same color or smears...try to awaken that inner wild child of yours!

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.

Pablo Picasso 

If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.

Vincent Van Gogh 

Excuses On Top of Excuses

Ok- I've been gone for most of February, and here's why...

Gaston School of the Arts- the day I was finally set to sign my lease, the day of my new career(!) My partner dropped a bomb...she couldnt do her full time job and art classes too. The contract was for us both, not just me. Which made me feel as if...what am I chopped liver? I can do this alone... Which is pure bunk. 4 weeks of paintings all by myself?!? I have trouble with two new images every month! Coming up with my own art for me is no problem. Coming up with an image I can teach and recreate is a huge deal. My brain doesn't want to work that way! So finally today, the director and I spoke and we are going to hold only ONE class a month, whew! And i'm happy to say my partner is kicking ass and taking names at her job! She's super creative and she'll get back to it, in her own time.

Sick- so dang sick off an on I didnt want to move. yucky everywhere, and as soon as one of us was fine the next would get it and we've rolled it around for about three weeks- yucky ick.

Art Journalling- Every coupla months I become re-obsessed with journal work. Work made for me and my enjoyment...I could totally paint the same page everyday over and over, and I would be just as content...but to have BOOKS with my work is AWESOME! I love to put nonsense on toppa nonsense and it turns into art...sometimes not...but usually yes. So awesome! Glue and paper and paint and marker heck yeah!

Wii U- I'm convinced the government has a movement connected to video games to keep us inactive so that we're easier to herd and overtake when the time comes. (just kidding...sorta) Mario is in my head and dreams!

Wind Through the Keyhole Stephen King- The dark Tower series is my all time favorite works of SK, and this may very well be my favorite book out of the series. When I'm not working, cleaning, cooking, teaching (yoga and art) or playing the Wii...I'm nose deep in this marvelous book. He really transforms me to mid-world, a place i'm not all too sure I'd want to live, but I'd visit...roundtrip.

Other than that, I'm just lazy. But i love to blog...and I'll be more frequent, and hopefully more entertaining!

Journaling

Journal pages, journal pages, time to get your journal pages, time to get your crayons and your pencils...(sang to this tune)



Journaling has become one of my favorite things to do after meditation.The images and words that I gently push to the side during my 'sit' I gather together in my journal through paint, ink, crayon, and pencil. How awesome would it be if they collectively explain all of my subconscious secrets when spread out and read?!? Spending just 15 minutes a day in your journal will give you a deeper understanding of the real you...

Don't you owe yourself a little love and understanding?

Sacred Souls Gathering

I've started a monthly gathering of women- a place where we can re-calibrate our intentions and as a community flourish with love and creativity...I'm excited about all of the strong and independent women that will gather at one time and the amount of power that will be present! If you are in the area please join us...

~A gathering of women remembering their innate power~ Please come and enjoy the power and affirming energy of the Sacred Souls Women Circle. We will open with cleansing the environment, breathing, meditating, journaling, and a bit of music, food- and then closing with a silent circle and three rolling om's... (we would appreciate if everyone would provide some sort of covered dish, dessert, or beverage. I'll provide plates cups cutlery etc) Please bring your journals and an open heart! ~Namaskar~ Anastasia

Friday Sept. 28 7-10pm

212 W. Main St.

Gastonia NC

28052

Prints For Sale!

I've finally gotten around to making prints- Comment here if you'd like to purchase one and help a starving artist out!! Free handmade with love gift with every purchase!!! More prints to come soon!

Workshop Coming SOON!

My next adventure...an online class! 

Starting in July I'll be offering Journaling Inward- Adventures in Art to help you harness your creative energy and put it on paper! We'll create a journal, practice writing techniques and paint with wild abandon! FIVE weeks of fun for only $60.00...I'll provide PDFs and plenty of photo's as well as a few videos of me in the studio!  I'll have more info for you and a page to sign up next week soon as well as a Flickr and Facebook pages so that we can all chat about our process...

I hope you'll go on this adventure with me!


Edit: I'm crazy busy and battling procrastination like the flu right now! The workshop will most likely start in August...sorry for being so slack human.

WishBIG Instructor- Chris Zydel

Chris Zydel

Chris Zydel is an ahhhh-mazzzing teacher, artist, creative soul, and encourager. She focuses on teaching you to release your hang ups of blank canvas and blocked creativity to encourage you to be free and to be yourself - free to create, and to help others realize their potential. She offers a ton of workshops and studio time. She also runs a Expressive Arts Teacher Training course- for women only, that I adore...and will one day attend. She has worked on enlightening herself and understanding herself in a way that I sorta envy and definitely aspire to. And then she shares her life lessons with all...MY DREAM!

WishBIG Instructor- Connie Hozvicka

  The first WishBIG instructor I'm going to gush about is Connie Hozvicka-let me just say- wow-wheee...this lady is super inspirational and creative. She is the owner/operator of Dirty Footprints Studio, teacher, artist, yogini, and soon to be mama!!! She teaches the art of making art, without all the conventional BS of " I went to art school- I think in an art box- you have to practice the fundamentals" crapola. She wants you to experience art from the heart and soul. From the inside out. No pretense no ego, just feel with texture, color and love. And for this- She is AWESOME!So many people are worried about creating for profit, or accolades; she creates for her.Which makes me love each and every piece even more! Go to Connie's website and check out her extensive line of workshops- (all of which I will eventually take!!) BIG is on sale now, and it's the perfect starting place!

I'm a WINNER!!!

 I won a spot in the Wish Studio ecamp wishBIG through Stacy de la Rosa's blog!!! Yahooey! I'm super psyched about particapating in this camp...there are so many creative women teaching, it's going to be a great learning experience! I'll be posting about each of the teachers everyday this week!

Messy and fun

This is the painting I've created for Poor Richards Book Shoppe. It's acrylic, ink pencil and crayon on a wood panel. I paint with my hands only and intuitively. A messy practice but SO FUN!

When I Grow Up...

When I grow up I want to be as funny and beautiful and business minded as Lucille Ball- she makes my heart beat faster with hilarity and love!!!!

 Paint is flowing through my veins and new paintings are in my dreams. I'd rather be creating than anything else right now...so new beauties will be in the shop soon!

Protection in the West

WIP Pitt Pin on Mixed Media Paper

My journey to the West held this magnificent beast in a cave at the bottom of the ocean, holding all of my fear beneath her like an egg. She protects me from the full brunt of my fear, only allowing a little to escape at a time for me to experience...but i'm learning to teach my protector to release that fear into the ocean to be consumed by the elements.

MORE Naked Arts!

Wowee wow wow! This is crazy amazing- Poor Richards Book Shoppe filmed our performance last Thursday and Crystal O'Gorman  took beautiful photos! She made me look soft and artsy!!! That's what I look like in my head:) I was so nervous about painting in front of people, I almost backed out, when the hubby saved me; and now I want to paint with a group everyday! It was such a positive experience, so energetic and warm and wonderful. It has really given me the confidence I needed to continue to create. 

Go here to watch the video!

Preparing for Words

The first of many pre-painted journal pages...for a long time I was trying to do everything all at the same time. I felt like I needed to sketch, draw, paint and write in order to finish a page. Silly! I don't have to follow any rules....there are no rules. Only wants...what do I want to do??? Who cares how others do it? It's so easy for me to forget that the coolest part of being an artist, and a self taught one at that, is that I never have to follow any rules. I never have to go into a box, never have to be structured...

 So the next open path in my journey, is helping others figure out the same thing. There are no wrongs, screw ups, mistakes...it's all meant to be for a reason. You intuitively know what needs to be where, even if your mind and eyes are telling you different. The more we listen to our heARTs and souls, the more in tune we are with everything, and art just flows naturally. Will everyone agree? NO. And not everyone will like it, but you can't second guess yourself based on what you think others will like about you. I officially no longer give a hoot about what anyone thinks of my self expression and creativity. It's MINE! My art(and yours too) will speak to some, and some will dislike it...but you have to love it. Once you love it, the rest shouldn't matter, doesn't matter...Make ART!

Botanical Goddess

Botanical Goddess, ink, acrylic, sharpie, pen and pencil.

                                       

This is the first in the series and I'm really not as happy with her as I could be but I know they will get better and better, Shakti is next! I like to paint flat and cartooney, whimsical, but I feel like some elements are missing. I'm sure staring at her long enough will make me realize whats missing. Until then, on to the next painting!

In the Studio

Best painty day ever...

The state of my palette

My palette needs to be cleaned! And I've found that when I use gouache and then put acrylic over it, it gets muddy. I thought gouache was supposed to be permanent when dry?...hmmmm. Off to experiment!

GIVEAWAY!!!

Win a Print!!


I'm having a giveaway! Leave a comment here and/or "like" our facebook page before Tuesday April 26th and you could be chosen to win a print of my original artwork!! I'll give away one here on the blog and one for the facebook page! Good Luck!

My Inner Child

  It's taken me until now to be okay with my inner child and to let her out, for a while I had completely forgotten about her! And now she's coming out to play a lot. I never realized how damaged I was, how hurt I was on the inside, how bruised and still wounded, but slowly I'm healing my inner girl-child and I'm doing better for it. I had to start with forgiving the badness and evil in my past. Just let it go. I had no control over it then, and I can't control it now. So why let it rattle around in my head and soul and continue to surprise attack me? I got rid of it. I am getting rid of all the darkness, an ongoing process I'm finding, but it's well worth it. I wake up most days with a smile on my face and a very light heart ready to be creative in everything I do. Journaling, painting, art journaling, yoga and love...and a very supportive group of awesome women, those are my secrets! I wake up, make sure everyone's taken care of or gotten off to school, and then I write my morning pages and do about 30 to 45 mins of yoga- all the while fending off a baby that thinks i'm giving pony rides. Then I play with Bama for a bit until she gets absorbed in her doll house and then I paint, sometimes for thirty minutes. sometimes ten. We play, then I paint...throughout the day. Then around lunchtime we eat then get JC at preschool. We run around for a bit then, snack time and paint time for me. By then my hubby comes home and usually takes everyone with him to get the older ones and I paint a bit more then get ready for work. Of course, this is an ideal day. Most days are filled with laundry, cooking, cleaning etc...but I still make time. Nap time is awesome! Nourishing my soul with art and yoga is making me a better person and mom. And it'll make you better too. Take care of you, you deserve it!

me at 3, being creative!