getting published & somerset studio magazine

before i officially started my creative business, i opened my etsy shop and sold beaded earrings and feather hairclips.

these were things that were easy for me to put out into the world. while it felt weird at first, having an online shop and wondering if anyone would ever purchase anything, this was the perfect place to start. 

i remember going to the craft store to find beads and feathers and always stopping to pick up the latest issue of somerset studio magazine, gushing over all of the artwork in every issue.

i had no idea that a year later, my owls would be featured in that same gorgeous magazine. i hadn't even started painting owls yet. and i didn't dream of teaching.

i submitted artwork twice to somerset studio, sending in small illustrations that i created just for their special issues, but i was too scared to send in my best work. to me, shipping original paintings to a publication seemed crazy and way too vulnerable. needless to say, those first submissions didn't make it into the magazine.

it wasn't until i submitted many of my owl paintings to the magazine in a HUGE box that the lovely editor-in-chief of stampington and company, christen oliviarez,  asked me to write an article on how i paint my owls.

amazingly, that step led to me teaching a few in-person owl painting workshops locally and then to launching my first online class HOW TO PAINT AN OWL.

and now i'm crazy honored to have some of my whimsical animal paintings along with an article on my creative process featured in the march issue of somerset studio.

not to mention, my article is in the same issue as a cover story with the amazing cori dantini, who was one of the first artists i met online after she'd complimented my artwork. that was a huge support at the time, especially coming from someone i'd never met.

sometimes it's those little things that keep you going. and you never ever know just where everything might lead.  

xoxo,

..............

ps. THANK YOU so much to everyone for all of your kindness and support around my new workshop HOW TO PAINT AN OWL 2. 

an owl landed in the pine tree outside my house over the weekend, which, i'd say, is a pretty fabulous sign that this is going to be an INCREDIBLE class. and i cannot wait to paint with everyone!

if you're interested in painting owls with us, for all of the details and register for HOW TO PAINT AN OWL 2 right here. 

..........

pps. i just got back the paintings from this article and have listed the originals in my online shop.

Teaching at the SUGAR & SPICE Art Retreat!

TITLE: Beauty In Prayer. Prints available in my etsy shop.

i am so excited to be teaching at the Sugar and Spice art retreat with two of my favorite artists and friends...Mindy Lacefield and Danielle Daniel!

we'll be teaching at Sugar and Spice in Port Townsend, WA June 5-9, 2013.

REGISTER HERE.

TITLE: Willow. Prints available in my etsy shop.

when i taught at artfest in Port Townsend earlier this year, i had the wonderful opportunity to hang out with mindy and danielle. we meandered around town and visited the sweet little shops and galleries, meeting the lovely anna nasset, owner of the AOT gallery. 

little did we know that meeting would lead to anna organizing our first art retreat together... Sugar and Spice! 

one of the reasons i am especially excited about this art retreat is because it will be small and intimate, but still filled with so many fabulous creative people, connecting and making art.

and we'll be creating some pretty amazing journaling and painting projects.

not to mention, i've painted with both mindy and danielle before, and their styles and imaginations continue to inspire me...always! 

if you haven't seen their artwork or heard their stories, i so recommend checking out these lovely ladies...

danielle daniel

mindy lacefield

i know there are already a lot of amazing people attending the retreat...and i can't wait to meet you all.

we are going to have such a blissfully, ultra creative time! 

i hope to see you there!

find details and register for the Sugar and Spice art retreat here.

.......................

ps. congratulations to Heather Williams for leaving the winning comment on last week's giveaway post! 

thank you so much for all of your lovely birthday wishes and cherished comments!

pps. if you feel like painting during the holidays, all of my online courses are available as self-paced, instant access classes. 

find the details and register here.

have a phenomenal weekend!

On Painting, Vacations & Taking Sabbaticals

lately i've been feeling so much like i'm pushing at full-speed, straight ahead. 

so we decided to take a little break and head to door county, wisconsin (where we were married).

i realized these last few months i'd been moving forward with such intensity, that i had forgotten to take a breath and look around.

so i'm taking a 3 month sabbatical.  

to me, this doesn't mean i'm going to stop "working" all together. i LOVE what i do and couldn't imagine not doing it. my work is my life.

but i am taking much more time to breathe. 

i am taking lots of time to journal, read, snap photos, and soak everything in.

and i am taking so much time to refuel my creativity and just paint, paint, paint.

before i move forward with everything i had "planned," i want to reassess and make sure i'm completely and utterly so excited and passionate about my next creative projects. 

so i will definitely be posting lots of new paintings this month. 

find me on facebook...where i post all of my new artwork first and lots of in-progress shots right in the moment too (i can't resist).

it's already been amazing how much inspiration comes when you take a step back. and it's been seriously tricky not to jump in and start on all of these new ideas i'm having.

for sure there will be new online courses coming soon. and i'm so excited to share everything i've been creating with you!

.................

ps. december is my birthday month, and i'm sending out my newsletter on friday (my birthday) with lots of fun things and a special coupon.

sign up here if you'd like to see it in your inbox.

Creative Sugar with Toan Lam & GoInspireGo

I started my weekly blog series CREATIVE SUGAR  to promote positivity and provide a platform for everyone to share their unique stories, knowledge and experiences, showcasing the beauty, connection, and inspiration that exists in our every day.

As soon as I started CREATIVE SUGAR, I knew I wanted to introduce you to Toan Lam and the really wonderful and important work he's doing!

Toan and I were introduced by the lovely Fiona Pattison and met during an interview we did for his Tea with Toan series over on Go Inspire Go, and we instantly bonded over our love of tea, inspiration and storytelling. 

Toan is the chief inspirator behind Go Inspire Go, a multimedia platform that that uses social networking to inspire social change, encouraging viewers to use their powers -- resources, talents and network -- to help others. GIG features inspirational, character-driven stories, about "regular people" who do small acts that ripple out to BIG changes. 

Toan Lam

Chief “Inspirator” of GoInspireGo.com

San Francisco, CA

What’s the greatest advice you’ve been given? 

Wow, that’s a hard one. I’ve been blessed with personal and professional mentors. Perhaps the wisest advice I’ve received was from my late aunt Hong – she told me not to let what others think or say define who I am or affect how I feel. Don’t give them that power! 

I remember people used to honk at her slow driving a lot. Many even cursed at her and flipped the bird while honking. Little did they know that she was battling cancer and just took extra time doing everything, including driving slower. So the next time you honk or judge someone, think about Auntie Hong, or anyone struggling with something in their lives and look at everyone as though they were that person. Be kind to one another and don’t let what others think, say and do make you feel less or more of who YOU really are.

What’s some not-so-great advice you’ve been given? 

There’s so many things I’ve had to un-learn as an adult. The worst advice Ive gotten was to take a TV job that included a big title and big paycheck. I would’ve been so miserable if I would have listened to my head (and the person’s advice) instead of my heart. 

Instead, I decided to pursue my life’s passion – GoInspireGo.com

Any tips and words of wisdom you’d like to share? 

Break the rules if something isn’t authentically who you are. Follow your internal compass, or your gut feeling – it will never fail you!

Watch some of GIG's important work...and head over to GoInspireGo for even more inspiration!

.................................

Join me on my blog every Tuesday for CREATIVE SUGAR, adding a little extra sweetness to your every day! 

If you are interested in submitting your story, find guidelines and submit your story here! I want to hear your stories and give you the chance to share them with thousands of others around the world!  

it's all about timing

TITLE: What Is Calling You? Prints available in my etsy shop.

Lately, I've been thinking that timing really is everything. 

A few years ago, I wrote a novel about a girl who could jump into her drawings. I was one of 14 writers accepted into a 6 week writing workshop on the east coast. And when I finished my novel, I flew out to Washington DC to meet with my ideal literary agent. But then I got scared and burned out.

Because of that burn-out, I started painting in my backyard...ironically, that's how all of my whimsical paintings began! Now I've been longing to return to writing again. But when I took time in February to reread my novel, my heart just wasn't into it. So, I started a new writing project...(which I'll share more of with you soon!). As I've been writing, I started these BIG paintings, but I couldn't finish a single one!

So, I went back to my small paintings. And a funny thing happened...

I let go and started playing with paint again. I forgot about having any sort of my own style to maintain and just went with it!

Then, inspired by film-maker Tim Burton and class with Mindy Lacefield of Tim's Sally, I found in the paint this character with a long face and nose. 

The original sketch was based on a chalk drawing I'd quickly done on the patio the other morning...a sketch of this character with a big head and boxy body, and little wings and feet. 

I wasn't liking the feet in this painting, so i got rid of them with all of that white paint... 

and then the wings just grew and grew! 

You can see the inspiration from Tim Burton's art there on the left.

Well, when I stepped back to take this photo, I realized just what this character was...it's a character from my novel! 

Now I just can't stop painting these Snooters (that's what they're named in my book)! It really took all of that painting BIG and writing and exploring before to get to the right place to paint these Snooters now. 

And I can't wait to see where they go to next! 

......................

ps. i can't wait to paint with everyone in my upcoming HOW TO PAINT A GIRL ecourse. read what past students had to say and see some of their gorgeous artwork too on the testimonials page!

Register here for HOW TO PAINT A GIRL... class begins May 25!

......................

pps. here are two of the BIG paintings i've been working on. both are still in-progress...reminders to enjoy and have faith in the process (and the journey)!

Have a wonderful weekend!

paint your story with tim's sally!

lately i've been getting a little stuck on my BIG paintings. one of the things that is really helping me have fun again and get my mind out of it all is the PAINT YOUR STORY e-course i'm taking with the amazing and oh, so lovely mindy lacefield of tim's sally.

i always try and take a few art classes here and there to keep me inspired and opening my eyes to new techniques. and this class is not only doing that, but it's completely giving me this free space to just play and create!

here are a few of the things i've been working on...

i've been taking myself out for coffee and bringing along my art supplies and laying them out on the table. it's been such a fun way to switch up my perspective. i've especially taken to incorporating parts of overheard conversations in my quick sketches and paintings.

and i was particularly flattered when my nephew saw this drawing and said, "whoa, cool!" i think that was the biggest compliment i could have received, and  actually just what i needed to hear in that moment.

blue painting by my nephew

and then he and his brother spent a good part of the rest of the evening drawing and painting... what could be better! and he even gifted me with this blue painting, which i will cherish and be inspired by forever.

all of these things are reminding me not to take myself and my artwork too seriously. to enjoy everything in the moment. and to remember things will always fall into place.

..........................

ps. if you're interested in signing up for the paint your story e-course, you can until the end of april. mindy will also have the e-course available for instant access this summer...and hopefully, she'll host another e-course soon too! 

pps. a big thank you to suki over at the owl club blog for her sweet post on my how to paint an owl ecourse video. thank you!

..........................

have a lovely weekend! happy creating!

How To Paint An Owl at Artfest!

always, whenever i travel, i wish i'd snapped more photos! during my HOW TO PAINT AN OWL class at artfest, we were all so into painting and having fun with owls that i didn't have a chance to snap a final class photo! 

one of the most exciting things about teaching is being so inspired by all of the artwork that comes out of each class! i mean, who would have thought these owls would be flying into homes around the world! 

here are a few in-progress class shots that i managed to capture...

it's just really kind of amazing to look back on it all...

i had a lot of fun painting my own owl! and trying out lots of new supplies that everyone had...like this brilliant purple india ink that i added to the ground and corners. i had no idea i'd be so delighted with purple! 

and this piece started off as an owl. i didn't feel like i could paint anything else, being that it was a HOW TO PAINT AN OWL class. but when i mentioned i really wanted my owl to turn into a fox...everyone told me to do it! and so this fox came into life!

there is beauty in creating artwork together...thank you so much to everyone for sharing all of your inspiration!

.....................................

ps. if you'd like to paint your own owls, we've been having lots of fun with spray paint during the first week of my HOW TO PAINT AN OWL e-course. find details and register right here!