Happy Artists Life?

On 14 Secrets, one of the sites I visit regularly to refuel my artist side, someone mentioned making a list of things that would make life happier. For some reason, a calendar was what my artist side wanted to do. So, for the month of February, here is a daily list of some activities to try.
1. Realize there is no failure in art. Many times, we have happy little accidents, but even if we feel the piece of art is unworthy, we learn something from it. So no failure.
2. Work with what you have to make art. Expensive art supplies are not necessary to be creative.
3. Good enough really is good enough.
4. Set aside and protect time to organize thoughts, feelings, media, your art space/
5. Post your artwork on the net. Let others view an extension of yourself.
6. Ask for what you need. Others cannot be bothered with guessing games.
7. Document your art. It can be revealing and helpful.
8. Focus on making the time you need to make art.
9. Invite other creative beings into your life at whatever level you feel comfortable with.
10. Say no when it makes it easier for you to make art.
11. Look for a spot in your environment to hide in that makes it easier for you to make art.
12. Keep an idea/love this journal of some kind so you can get creative sparks at will by reading in your idea/ love this journal.
13. Go over a mental checklist of what is needed in preparing for a project so you do not have to interrupt the creative flow in the middle of the “art zone.”
14. Develop your own style. Others techniques and ideas are great…but you got to do what you got to do.
15. Take five minutes when you can to get started on a future project. Gather supplies, look up scratch, do research, so that when you do book the time… you can spend doing art.
16. Do something with a creative friend who appreciates you and your art.
17. Learn something new about art. This can enrich your own art.
18. Throw away the have to rules and play with art in a spontaneous manner.
19. Know what your mistakes are and try to understand what you will do differently next time you are making art.
20. Observe others art and techniques.
21. Let other members of your family do some tasks, if they can, so you can make art.
22. Share your art with everyone.
23. Having a plan and theme is not always necessarily to make art. Intuitive art sometimes turns out to be the best.
24. Visit an art museum.
25. Use stress reduction techniques as often as needed.
26. Be careful about copyrights and plagiarism-protected images.
27. Back up and start over, whenever you need to.
28. Focus on positive; what went right, in your art.
29. Enjoy an extra day to make art this month.
My musings for this day!

Healing Art Dolls and Other Swaps

I have been working on a healing art doll swap. It has been both exciting and fun and rather intimidating. Any time I have to come up with an idea, then try to make it a reality is exciting and fun for me. Seeing it come together, to see it make sense, to have something I can be proud of is the enticement to swapping. I was not sure about making a doll. When I was a child, I did not play with my dolls. I made clothes for them. I made furniture for them. I made houses for them. I created their enviorments. After I grew up, and when my kids were young, I made stuffed creations. I made funny stuffed creatures and other stuff. I sewed many many different things from clothes to quilts. The problem with sewing is I could not stand to make anything as directed by patterns and directions. I always had to add my own twists to each construction. So, they always turned out as a one of a kind thing. An example of this would be a coat I made out of a huge box of silk neckties I bought at a garage sale. I sewed the neck ties together, then cut out a coat and put them together. I wore it for several years. It was my "coat of many colors." Very warm by the way! I don't really sew much anymore. Now I just like art. Which takes me back to the healing art doll. I just did not want to "sew" a cloth doll. So, I used what I use best. Paper. I really think of my self as a paper artist at this time. So, I used a piece of my hand made pulp paper, added a face inside a coin sleeve, stitched some hair with bronze wire, used twigs for arms and legs, and I think she is just great! i decided to write about her from her voice:
"I, Sunny, ...." which turned out to be several pages long. I laughingly said I was writing a book. This led me to make my doll a doll house in the form of a book. So, my doll can sit on someones book shelves with the other books, and come out to play when the owner wants her. It is a combination of two things I love! Reading and Art. What a great experience.

Tea?

Check this out blog out. It shows pictures of the tea house I built and sent to MA for a swap on the 14 Secrets site.
http://14secretsforahappyartistslife.blogspot.com/

The tea house is what I made. I received a box of tea goodies from TX. This was really a fun swap.

And Then There Was One

For the second time in a month, we have lost another of our companion dogs. We found Rosie dead in her bed when we returned home from a Ballard City dinner. Rosie had not been feeling well since Teeny died, but did not seem majorally ill either. It is so sad to lose your dogs, especially when they have shared your space for so many years. Our last dog is older than Rosie, is hard of hearing and seems quite blind so I suppose it won't be long before we lose him too. This cold cold winter has been hard on these old dogs. We really miss thier companionship!