Week one of life as a full time artist (Insert screaming face emoji here)

So here it goes. Kids are off to school, the house is quiet - this is where it begins. So where DO I even begin? My mind is full of visions of what all this time could be used for. I suddenly have days upon days of playing (I’m using the word play very deliberate here) in the studio. I’ve bought stacks of new things to try out - fluid inks, heavy body acrylics, watercolor paper, canvas and brushes I have yet to try. Creating in a playful, abundant mindset makes all the difference for my outcome. As soon as fear of failure sets in and I paint in the safe zone it almost always ends up in the bin.

There is no right way of doing this I suppose, but to start off, I’m creating some routines for myself. I’m 44 years old and have learned the following about myself so far;

-I’m an Energizer bunny. I get so eager with things I want to swallow the whole world in one bite. My problem is taking the time to breathe, thinking things through and pacing myself. This may be the reason I keep 5-6 paintings going at every given moment.  It has other benefits of course, but to be honest - it’s mostly about my mind not having the patience to see things happening in just one place at the time. 

-I’m an extrovert. Human connection is key for me and the fear of getting lonely is real. Out of pure serendipity I received a DM from a fellow artist living very close to me just the other week, thank you universe! (I now have a full girl crush and will try my best not to stalk her.) Building an online community feels like another great way to have people to chat with, starting with this blog post right here. 

-I have zero trouble working myself to death. If I make myself a to do-list, things get done. Art however, refuses to be controlled so I´ll be looking for ways to create without a goal in mind. It’s about letting go and trusting the journey and that may just be the scariest thing so far.

What I do have is trust that I’m doing the right thing here. I have a bit of painting experience and technical skills to share with you and enough excitement around the coming year to spread to anyone that wants to follow along on this journey. Let’s create boldly shall we?