Balance

The vendor fair was postponed, but check out a few new pieces I have done above. Now I can really spend more time getting a few more pieces ready. A few people have mentioned they would be interested in some custom work and I am really excited about that. I have done custom work in the past, but it has been a while.

Life as a working at home mother is not with out it's challenges and rewards. I find myself trying to win a balancing contest. Sometimes it is art all the time... and then I really feel myself growing as an artist and living my art dream. I can become consumed by it and, if I am honest, I will admit that it runs most of the thoughts in my day. Even after I have completed a piece, I will constantly look up at it and review it.. critique it... evaluate the lines and the color. "The composition is okay", I will think to myself,"but if only this was different." And then I wonder if I am being too harsh.

I then have to wonder how I would feel about the piece if I wasnt the artist that created it. What if a stranger completed the piece and then wanted my opinion? I find it hard to be honest... maybe because I am too attached to the piece and the process. I can't overcome the fact that I KNOW I am the one who created the piece and therefore my opinions about it bounce back and forth from defensive pride to what was I thinking? I feel confident that I am not alone in this, and that all artists do it on some level....

And as for the balancing act, I don't think I will ever fully achieve balance. Not a 50/50 one at least. My family is just as important to me as my art and there are SEVERAL days that they are the only ones I focus my attention on. And just as I am grateful to God for the ability to create art and put forth the time I can into that passion, I am sooo grateful for my husband and children and the wonderful things I am called to for them. They bring me so much joy. All in all, balanced or not, I am blessed.

I have a vendor fair coming up in a few weeks. I am new to selling my art so it will be my first one... I am a bit nervous about getting all my pieces done in time. I think I can do it- just got to get better at the juggling act of life! Actually, I think it will all turn out ok. I can become a perfectionist at times(trust me, it is selective), and that can get in the way of being productive. It can also really hamper creativity.

At times I have been nervous while working on a painting or other art work and I can always tell I was stiff. When I am nervous, my marks are short and uncertain. The work doesn't have the flow it needs. The whole piece looks forced. But, when I am relaxed and I let the art move through me, some amazing things happen. I find that I can't really "plan" my work to the last detail. It ruins the surprise for me and will lead directly to stiff-ville. Sometimes, my best work is a first draft.

I guess that can tie into a life view as well. If we plan too much and expect things to go exactly according to our plan then we can become stiff when things don't go our way. Besides, our plans are not necessarily God's plans. He is the ultimate artist. Sometimes alittle trust and willingness to be free flowing can lead to the most beautiful artworks-us!

New art

I am finding that juggling art and two kids has challenges, but isn't impossible. It is always a challenge for me to find the right balance. I tend to be all or nothing on just about everything... My children don't quite know what to make of me or what I am doing when I get into the art zone. My three year old thinks it is interesting and always ventures a guess on what the subject is. However he hates to draw and paint and can't fathom why I would want to spend hours at a time doing it.

My one year thinks art is fabulous already and can't wait for mommy to break out the paints. I haven't been brave enough to unleash her on paints yet, but she does well enough with crayons. Oh- wouldn't she have a blast though! I would be afraid she would eat the paint brush... she tends to eat the crayons if I am not paying attention to her "I am done drawing" cues. I am excited that she is so into it and can't wait to see if she develops into a little artist too. That is how I got into it-watching my mother.

I can't quite explain why art is so addictive and why some souls have such a need to create. I find that I am emotionally restored after a good art session. What ever was wrong is better and not quite so bad. My soul is quited. Maybe on some level we are able to commune with God in a special way when we create. After all He is the ultimate creator. Just a thought.

I leave this post with a few new creations. I hope you enjoy them. -Heather

What I have been up to.

This is my first post of many to come. I am a stay at home mom turning into a working at home mom... an artist that is reclaiming what she may have sacrificed unnecessarily in the child rearing process. Becoming a mom feels so all-consuming and overwhelming and it comes with so much joy and exhaustion. These emotions combine with the responsibility you feel for taking care of another human being and it can sometimes rob you of any desire to nuture yourself as a person and a seperate creation of God.

I had a friend make that observation lately and it got me thinking. I am a child of God. One of his own creations- seperate and whole. I am also a mother- but it is my duty to myself, my children, and God to nuture myself so I can take the best possible care of my little ones. So, I have made a commitment. I will continue to grow as an artist and will continue to nuture that side of myself that I have almost forgotten.

I have posted some items that I have done in the recent past. Just some things I have been up to. Take a look... let me know what you think... and maybe you will be inspired to nuture yourself too. -Heather