Imagine the details.

The second step in the creative process is to imagine the details.

Secret View - Detail

Using your imagination is like playing in a sandbox.

Like castles in the sand, you can make whatever you want.

In your imagination you can be whoever and wherever you want to be. and you can do whatever you want to do…

‘There are no rules of architecture for a castle in the clouds.’ ~ G.K. Chesterton

Whatever you imagine in your mind’s eye has the potential to become real in your life. Everything is imagined into existance.

Once you have a dream or vision of what you want to create, begin imagining the details.

You don’t have to figure it all out. You need only play with it in your mind’s eye…

Using all your senses, begin to imagine what you want to create or experience in your life.

Where do you want to be? What are you doing?... Who are you with?

How are you feeling?

Just imagine...

‘Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions.’ ~ Albert Einstein

The first step is to dream.

It all begins with a dream... 

Dreaming is the first step in the creative process. 

 'To make a great dream come true, you must first have a great dream.' ~ Hans Selye

Dreaming opens your mind to possibilities...

What is a dream?

A dream is like a blueprint in your mind. It is a vision or feeling sense that can be experienced as if it is 'real'.

It isn't yet tangible but it can be very powerful. 

Dreams can spark your desires, motivate and inspire you...

Where do dreams come from?

Your dreams come from your inner truth; the essence of who you are.

When you live your dreams, you live an inspired life of deeper meaning, purpose and happiness.

So listen to your dreams.

And follow your dreams... 

Coming this Fall:

Don't die with the Art still inside you.

I’ve always been creative. It’s just who I am.

But there was a time in my life when I wasn’t allowing myself to express it.

I shut it down.

I blocked it.

I stopped the flow from moving through me, out onto canvas and into the world.

And then one day I bravely signed myself up for a class to start painting again.

I really didn’t know what to expect.

I didn’t know if I would be good or not. I didn’t know if I could do it...

What I did know was that I could wait no longer.

The tiny flame inside me was still alive, though barely a flicker, and I didn’t want it to die... 

I didn't want to die with the Art still inside me. 

(part 2 next week)

"Creating is the essence of life." ~ Julius Caesar

Want to paint with me? Fall 'Back to the Studio' class special begins September 1st.

Click here for more information. 

The Known and the Unknown.

Trust.

This is what I’m thinking about as I begin my first few pencil lines on canvas...

Trust in my dreams, trust in my vision, trust in myself... Trust in the known and the unknown.

It’s just like having a baby. When the baby is finally born and you meet him or her for the first time you say, “Oh hello! Yes of course it’s you!”.

You trust as it all comes together and makes sense in the end.

So as I begin my big, new painting I have my vision clearly in mind.

I think of it often.

I imagine the completed painting... and I imagine the feeling of it completed.

It’s this feeling that ignites and inspires my progress...

It’s this feeling of the known and the unknown at the same time that drives me to create.

When I have this feeling, it is like being on an exciting adventure...

Creating a painting is like embarking on an adventure of a thousand brush strokes...

Summer is...

Summer is... love, beauty, and a time to deepen into your essence.

What is your essence? Your essence is the vibration of your soul. When you peel away the layers of life, you discover your True Self, beyond the roles you play in physical existence. So as you rest into Being, you experience your Soul’s vibration. This is a time to deepen your connection to your Spirit and experience the Beauty in the world around you...

Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter ~ Which one are you? 

Discover your season in the Life Cycle of Creativity Quiz

You can Click here to take the quiz!

True Art

I learn a lot from painting pictures.

I've learned that life is just like painting. Well, after all, life itself is a creative process...

Sometimes I leave a painting for too long and it loses my interest. And like a neglected dream it is in danger of never becoming fully realized in this world.

It's no longer new and I need to get excited about it again.

‘I played with an idea, and grew wilful; tossed it into the air; transformed it; let it escape and recaptured it; made it iridescent with fancy, and winged it with paradox.’ ~ Oscar Wilde

To be playful with creativity and ideas inevitably brings new visions, insights and the excitement that is so important to life itself.

It's the spark of new dreams that keep me going... 

But it is perseverance that makes them real. This is the true art.

 'True art is characterized by an irresistible urge in the creative artist.' ~ Albert Einstein

Fine Art, Fashion, Yoga, Dance ~ new designs!

Daisy Dared to Dream

Daisy was not content to be just another pretty wallflower. She always sensed there was more to life.

Oh, she was happy and grateful to be her bold, beautiful self, but she was restless...

Daisy wanted to travel.

She wanted to go and be and do... She wanted to see the world.

So Daisy dreamed. She imagined traveling to distant lands; the beautiful sites she would see, the people she would meet...

She dreamed and imagined and played with ideas... until one day...

Stay tuned for more adventures and incarnations of Daisy... 

Daisy travels the world...

The Cycle of Creativity Quiz

Creating a life and work I love takes time. It is a journey... 

And along the way I've discovered there is a cycle to the creative process... A never-ending cycle of becoming, blossoming, creating and transforming... Everything that is created in this world moves through these seasons... cycling continuously through life, death and re-birth.

And so I created a quiz!

Where are you in Life’s Cycle of Creativity?

Spring ~ This is a time of awakening and new beginnings. What is the dream that lives inside you? 

Summer ~ You are blossoming and in love with life. How can you deepen into your essence? 

Autumn ~ You are emerging as a greater expression of who you are and ready to give birth to your dreams. Now you want to create and express your Self in the world.

Winter ~ After much activity it's time to rest into Being. You are processing, renewing and transforming... What do you need to let go of so you can open again to the new? 

What's your dharma?

‘It is better to live your own destiny imperfectly than to live an imitation of somebody else's life with perfection.’ ~ The Bhagavad Gita

Everything in nature expresses itself in it’s own unique way. Flowers, plants, trees, animals... they don’t try to be something, they just are. And by being who they are, and doing what they are meant to do, they naturally serve other plants and animals synergistically as part of the eco-system.

So I ask myself ~ Am I living my destiny?

Everyone has a unique talent or gift. Our purpose in life is to express our gifts and by so doing, we will then naturally be in service to others. Our gifts creatively expressed in service to others aligns us with our soul’s purpose; our ‘dharma’.

An oak tree is destined to become an oak tree.

And a rose is a rose is a rose....

So what are you destined to become? What’s your dharma?

You can ask yourself ~ What are my unique talents and gifts? What do I love doing that takes me to a place of timeless awareness?... And, how can I serve others by doing what I love?