Category: Mindfulness

Don’t Miss Sunday’s Spotlight

December 14, 2022

Art, Artist, Blog Interview, Creator’s Life, Inspiration, Mindfulness, Q&A, Spotlight Feature, Supporting Creators
Meet Audrey Markowitz December 18
Share this:
X
Facebook
Bluesky
Like Loading…
No comments on Don’t Miss Sunday’s Spotlight
Writers, are you doodlers when you need to get those thoughts flowing?

December 7, 2022

Crafts, Creator’s Life, Inspiration, Mindfulness, Musings, Writer’s Life
This month’s guest spotlight will focus on the creative process and the mindful art of doodling (otherwise known as the Zentangle method), which was passed on to me by my friend and artist, Audrey Markowitz.

Audrey, a great teacher and unflagging motivator, will be joining me on Sunday, December 18. Stop by and find out how easy it is to put down a bit of ink on paper in a mindful way that helps get those creative juices flowing. In fact, Audrey will be talking about how she accomplished that in her everyday life.

I thought I’d gather and share a few of my past creations inspired by Audrey during so many amazing classes over the years. Zentangle is super easy to learn, perfect for creating a piece of art with few supplies, just a few lessons, and in a short time… all while being immensely satisfying and relaxing. There are no mistakes! If you can doodle, you can Zentangle. If your hand leads your pen in a direction you didn’t expect, all the better! Mostly, you can use it to unclutter the mind, and restart that imagination.

If you Zentangle or do other arts or crafts to relax and unclutter the brain, I’d love to hear about it in the comments. Happy creating!

Can’t have a complete art journal without adding a spread about my teacher.
Share this:
X
Facebook
Bluesky
Like Loading…
No comments on Writers, are you doodlers when you need to get those thoughts flowing?
My Pod People Went on Vacation this Weekend.

August 29, 2022

Crafts, Mindfulness, Musings, Relaxation, Writer’s Life
So what did I do instead of write? I stitched.

I have been writing nearly every day for a year and a half. But I once enjoyed other crafts before the written word and my pod people took possession of me.

This year started with compiling a chart and goals to log my cross stitching as I’ve done for the last several years, and to go for some finishes of my many WIPs. Sadly, my beautiful stitching projects have languished in their beautiful project bags for most of the year. But this weekend it was movie marathons with the hubby, and because I can never just sit and watch movies without keeping my hands busy with some craft or other, I made some great progress.

My pod people were not necessarily silent the entire weekend, but they seemed to understand and made sure to mill around in my head and keep the ideas flowing, and I did manage to work on a book cover, one of my newest favorite pod people refusing to stay completely in the background… but she still let me spend lots of time stitching…

So, that is all this blog is about. Doing something other than writing for a change. Here’s my stitching progress, just in case you were curious.

Book Three, Tigris Vetus, in my series has also been calling to me. And with my mind freed from the pressures of writing, I came up with some great stuff I’m anxious to get to… all in good time… My friend Lucky has been encouraging me to work on balance, which is a thing he strives for, and this weekend’s activities reminded me how important mindful activities are to maintain balance.

What are your favorite mindful activities to keep you balanced in life? Share with me in the comments. Hope you had a great weekend, too!
Share this:
X
Facebook
Bluesky
Like Loading…
3 comments on My Pod People Went on Vacation this Weekend.