The Fast Lane or the Creative Lane

It seems to me that being an artist and running an internet business contradict each other.  Art is all about feelings and to do it well, one needs to take the time to live the moment.  The piece will be much richer if the artist has allowed their mind and their feelings to truly enmesh into the moment they are creating.  

On the other hand, the internet is a buzz of activity changing not daily by rather by the moment.  Never before has the phrase, "You snooze, you loose." been more true.  There is constant pressure to be here, there, and everywhere posting about all that you are doing.  And if you don't post new work every few days - well, you're just late and out of the loop.  

So how does one keep one foot in the fast lane and the other in the slower more creative trail?  I'm not sure I know the answer to this.  Perhaps you do.  If you have pearls of wisdom on this subject, would you take just a moment out of your fast lane and share it with us here?  I'd love to know.

Thank you!  

Wind and Honey Creations

Doors and Gates of Opportunities

"When one door of happiness closes another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened before us."   -Helen Keller

This quote always reminds me of a saying left over from the Poet's days growing up on a farm.  When someone looks surprised and unsure of what to think or say, the phrase is "They looked like a calf looking at a new gate".

What gates or doors are you so surprised to see or what closed doors are you so distracted by that you are missing some great opportunities right in front of you?


Wind and Honey Creations

This Could Be Yours

Imagine this hanging in your home.  You can draw this beautiful owl when you take my Portraits of Beauty and Wisdom Workshop in Artful Gathering 2012.  This drawing is done in graphite pencil and Derwent Graphitint pencils.  The workshop is being offered during session 2.

Wind and Honey Creations

This is how sweet your Rabbit can look when you frame it.  This bunny is created with a layering technique using soft pastel pencils.   This rabbit is the subject for the Hopping into Soft Pastels workshop in Session 1 of Artful Gathering 2012.  It is for beginner or intermediate students.  I will walk you through the whole project one step at a time.  We'll do it together.   Come and join me!  It'll be fun!

Our Next Artist is Up for the Artful Gathering Blog Hop!

Celebrating Artful Gathering 2012 Online Art Retreat,
Open for Registration!
Blog Hop your way for chance to win!

From June to August 2012, ArtfulGathering.com will be presenting TWO exciting semesters of premiere online video workshops offered by fabulous artists who are known nationally and internationally. We are all very excited to share out knowledge, skill, and creativity with you, and we hope that you will join us for this AMAZING annual online event.

Blog Hop with us for a chance to win a prizes from Jerry's Artarama!

Each week the faculty of Artful Gathering will be announcing a featured blog to visit.

You can hop along with us until the final destination blog is reached, and where ONE Grand Prize winner will be chosen at Random for a chance to win a $200.00 e-gift card from Jerry's Artarama!!!Two Runner Up winners will also be chosen at random for a chance to win a $25.00 e-gift card from Jerrys.

Each week I will announce the next featured blog for you to visit, and there you will find a new secret word or words that you will need to collect along your way from blog to blog. Once you have collected all the words from each blog you visit, they will work out to say a very artsy phrase. Here are the rules:

1. For your chance to win, you must collect all the secret code words and submit them upon the final destination blog in May. A random drawing will be conducted from those contestants who have submitted the complete collection of secret words!
2. Three winners will be randomly drawn. One for the $200.00 e-card to Jerry's, and two runner's up for the 25.00 e-card to Jerrys.
   

Remember to collect all the secret words. These words will work out to say a very artful phrase, and you'll need all the pieces to be eligible for the final prize drawings!

Please HOP over and visit the Amazing

Cristina Zinnia Galliher

http://zinniasart.blogspot.com

(Pick Up the Next Secret Word)


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Wind and Honey Creations

Kid's Make the Best Art Continued

More art from my 7 year old students.  Cute puppies this time.....  I like the floppy ear tossed out to the side.  He has personality.

Wind and Honey Creations

Oh, To Be Seven Again! Kid's Make the Best Art

Here are some friendly felines drawn recently by a couple of my younger students.  The artists creating these drawings were both 7 years old.  Aren't they fun!  They make me smile.  Now, don't tell me you can't draw.  Surely you're not gonna let a 7 year old show you up.  If you'd like to know how you can learn to draw even better than these wonderful budding artists, check out my online drawing lessons. 

Wind and Honey Creations

And This Is Why I Draw! or Harold! Where Can I Get One of Those Purple Crayons!?

There was a time in my young adult life when I thought if I set my mind to something that I could do it.  I decided when my children were very small that I was going to learn to sew.  My first project was to sew Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls for my kids!  And my second was to sew a patchwork quilt.  Ha!  How utterly naive I was.  That about ended my career as a seamstress.  I am reminded of this fact because I tried to sew a little something for a gift to a friend last week.  It was an extremely simple project - one that a child with just a tad of experience should have been able to do.  Well, mine did look like it was done by a child, but not one with experience.

And writing.  Well, let me just say that my college English professor had trouble hiding his smirk when I once mentioned that I might do some writing in my career.  I do have creative thoughts that do sometimes involve words.  But my ability to put them together in a grammatically correct fashion is challenged.  If you've been here on my blog very many times, you've probably already noticed that.




And so I draw.  I find that as I attempt to sew or write or even to do elaborate cooking, that the thought, if only I could just draw this, comes to mind often.  I remember the book from my childhood Harold and the Purple Crayon and I wonder where I could get myself one of those purple crayons. In this book, Harold had a magic purple crayon and everything he drew with it became real.  Just think, all the items I'd like to sew but can't, could be drawn.  Now, I'd probably want them to be a different color than purple.  But if I could find one of those magical crayons, I bet I could learn to love purple.  And then all those thoughts I have that I long to put into words, could just be drawn.


This dancing swan is an example of pages and pages of unwritten words poured into one drawing.  Hmmmm.  Maybe I should have drawn her in purple.

I did give the sewing project that I completed to my friend.  Well, I mailed it to her and it should arrive today.  I sent it with all its imperfections and 'do overs'.  I sent it because perfection should not exist between true friends.  I sent it because it was made with much love and prayers for her.  And I sent it because in spite of all its warts, it was still made well enough to serve its intended purpose.

But next time I feel a need to stitch something, I'll be looking for my purple crayons!


Wind and Honey Creations