christytomlinson

Sharing the Love.. happy February!

hello friends! it's been a while since I posted! Lots of traveling in January and creating and kids activities and just crazy! Ive also recently started a NEW obsession.. with all things planning. I Am obsessed right now with planners and getting organized but at the same time making them all cute and adorable and artsy and fun! (here's just a peak).

This planner is my creative planner, Where I dump all my ideas and creative things I want to do.

Currently I am using 3 different planners. All for different parts of my life and business. I created all my own inserts for each planner, using Photoshop and power-point! it's been fun!

This is my everyday BIG planner, too big to take with me places, but the place where I write down EVERYTHING i need to get done that day.

this is my wallet/planner for when I run to town to do errands. so little and cute!

I think the reason I love it so much is that I NEED to get organized in my life, but it still allows me to be creative in SO many ways! I can use all the skills I have an as artist to customize my planner and also use it not just as  a place to organize, but a place to also create! Can't wait to share more of that later..
So now I am excited to be back and just wanted to come and wish you ALL a wonderful happy LOVE week! I have a few things to announce and and share.. so lets jump right in!

First off, in case you are wondering, I am making BIG plans with some awesomely talented ladies, to bring to you the most amazing online course this spring! 12 incredible ladies, all about creating girls and "she Matters" and I couldn't be MORE excited! Details will be coming soon, but I just wanted to give you the big Heads up! you are going to FLIP when you find out who's joining me!

and speaking of workshops.. THIS week to celebrate the holiday ALL about love.. I am having a BIG LOVE flash sale on 6 of my FAVORITE online workshops!  All four of the She Art Workshops series are on sale, the behind the art class AND my color creative class!

Many of you have asked before, do i have to take she art one, before I can take she art 4? or 3? or 2? the answer is NO! all the classes are completely stand alone classes. They each teach different things, and I give you full step by step instructional videos for it! They are all just different styles of girls! Also for those of you looking for a total beginner class and want to learn EVERYTHING about Mixed Media.. Behind the Art is hands down my best class for this!

My newest one, She Art 4, just came in out in November, so this is my most current and the first time it's on sale! wahoo!

All of my online classes, you can join at anytime. It's all per-recorded video, so you have access to everything once you enter the classroom. you can watch them anytime, anywhere!

To access the SALE, you must use THIS link. If you try and purchase it through my regular workshop link above, you won't get the sale discount.  So make sure to click HERE!

February LOVE flash SALE!

AND we are also having a big flash sale in our

Scarlet Lime Store!

35% off ALL washi tape, paperpads, stickers and embellishments! to visit the store, click HERE,

use the code

happy15

at checkout!

www.scarletlime.com

AND LASTLY, because I love you all, , I wanted to offer one of my prints from my etsy shop, as a free downloadable print for you! This is one of  the girls i created in my Boot Series Watercolor Workshop,

(this class is still  available online,  if you want to learn yourself.. simply click here! !).

To Download the print,  Simply download on the file under the picture, (the says view this photo)  and save to your computer!  You can print it out and frame it, use it in your planner, on your art table, as a gift to a friend for valentines day! Just remember, it's for personal use only. :) thank you!

View this photo

 

So I hope you all have have a wonderful week! i can't wait to share more with you about my new planning obsession! I have a couple of videos I am working on to show you the different planners I am using, including how to set them up, and what seriously fun artsy products you can use inside your planners as well! So watch for that. I am hoping to get them done before I leave for Mexico.. in 2 weeks, so we will see!

have a wonderful happy, loving week! BIG hugs to you my friends!!!

xoxo
Christy

 

the world is a beautiful place!

hello friends! wow that last two weeks have been the most amazing adventure! Ben and I, and two of our kids (preston and allie), just got back from a two weeks teaching trip to Australia (with a stop in fiji on the way! :)).

I was so excited this last spring when Jane Davenport, the creative genius of Aussie land, asked me to come be the first teacher to teach in her Studio down under! Of course I was thrilled and said yes!

My kids and ben have spent time with Jane and loved her so much, she said they MUST come with me! So.. the four of us, decided to make a trip of it. I knew they would probably never get the chance again.. so it was just something you just do right? Usually I travel and teach to make income for our family, but this trip would basically be paying for itself and allow me to bring ben and two of my kids along to experience something they would never forget! and it was AMAZING!

(us heading on our first of four flights to australia)

Our first stop was a layover in fiji. We had a 3 night layover there, and so decided to venture off the big island and head to a smaller island to enjoy the TRUE Fiji experience of white sand, blue, turquoise and green waters, and calm clear water, as far as the eye can see. It was only a short 1 hour boat road, so we decided just to do it! We would probably never have the opportunity to come back again, so we were going to make the most of it! (not to mention the beaches were horrible on the mainland near Nadi, and the prices for hotels were CRAZY expensive!).

(being greeted by the locals as we arrived on the tiny island we stayed on. Plantation Island)

(just getting off the boat and staring at all the beautiful fish right there on the beach! see our little huts there in the background?)

we had an amazing time snorkeling, swimming, paddle boarding, kayaking, reading, sleeping, creating art and just relaxing on the beautiful beach right in front of our little bungalow.

(just sitting under a palm tree, working on my embriodery, looking at the beautiful ocean! look how calm it is! I spent most of my time IN the water.)

We seemed to get on this weird sleep schedule as soon as we got there and found ourselves going to bed when it got dark (like 8 pm) and getting up right before sunrise every morning (around 5). I LOVED IT! nothing better than to watch the sunrise each morning, when the island is so still and everyone else is still sleeping and nesting in their beds.

(in our pj at 5:30 am, just enjoying the high tide of the water, quiet moments and the sunrising each day)

After our layover in fiji, we hopped a plan to Brisbane where we rented a car and headed to Jane's house in Byron Bay, about 3 hours away. Driving on the other side of the road was CRAZY and fun and scary all at the same time! Australia is beautiful!!! On our way to janes, we stopped at a nature Zoo, (allie found a brochure on it, in the airport and insisted we stop to go see the Koala Bears!) it was called Lone Pine. IT WAS AMAZING!

(this was the ONLY thing she wanted to make sure she did while in Australia! hold a koala bear!)

We saw so many beautiful cute koala bears, allie got to hold one, and then they had this HUGE massive area of free land, where kangaroos just roamed and jumped around and you could go inside and basically feed them, pet them, sit around and hang out with them. It was SOO cool!

(this little guy was so cute, allie ended up just hanging out with him and sitting by him for like 15 mins, petting him!)

We also made a stop at the Brisbane LDS temple, which was so beautiful as well!  Then we headed on our way to ms. Janes for our 10 day adventure in Australia!

Jane's house is near the beach in a beautiful junlge like setting, what they call the "bush". From her deck you can see the ocean and rolling hills of green beautiful jungle trees and plants of every kind! AND animals! It honestly sounded like you were in the jungle too! all the cockatoos and kookaburras and birds chirping all day long. Seriously music to our ears!

(this is a picture of us setting up for the retreat/class part. but normally jane has couches and comfy chair all over her deck, where you could find us each morning watching the sunrise (and pretty much any other time of day, when we weren't out sightseeing)

(sunrise the first morning there. um yes please and thank you.)


We spent most of our time just hanging out with Jane and her awesome husband Angus! Who makes the best BBQ lamp chops ever! (and the best salads ever). The kids went to the beach, the water-park, Jane took them Trapezing. We went shopping to some handmade outdoor markets (hello i was in heaven).

(allie, jane and I shopping down in Byron Bay having THE BEST NACHOS in my life!) ps. Don't you just love Janes smile??!

(ben and I enjoying the "gold coast')

(below is a cool shot of the kids trapeezing! they learned how to do this in just one hour!)

 

But mostly we just sat on Jane's deck everyday and painted, made art journals, laughed, being silly,  talked and enjoyed the amazing company we were in!

(i brought a Dyan Reavely small art journal with me and pretty much wrote  and created art in it, everday of the trip. I mainsly just used my stabilo and watercolor pans I had brought) 

(me art journaling for the day, and ben painting. Seriously life couldn't get any better. This is the day jane introduced me to COLORING PENCILS and the magical world in which they can trasnform your drawing into detailed pieces of artwork! Hello, now you can't pull me away from my Prismacolor Pencils! EEK!)

Jane showed me how to make an art journal out of pretty much anything and I showed her how to make stamps and printing plates out of foam! (its one of the techniques I show in the mixed media studio class I am teaching with big Picture!) 

( I drew her this stamp and then let her keep it.. so she drew me one too! it was a win win!)

Here's a fun little video with Jane and I showing you peeks at the art journals and stamps we made!

 

(this is the cover of my art journal, i decided to start with that first, so I could have something pretty to look at when it wasn't open!)

 

(this is the back of the journal if created, where Jane give me and Allie a mini course in how to use coloring pencils and draw her signature Jane girls! I treid REALLY hard not to Christyfy it!  Hello I am in love with PrimsaColor pencils now! I bought a bunch from her shop and then i came home to find I had purchased a bunch last year and totally forgot about them, because I didn't know how to use them! I love when I learn how to use new products!! )

 

I ALSO bought a set of Jane's Peerless Watercolor Sets (she has her own line of colors with Peerless) and she showed me how to cut them up and make your own "travel" palette with them out of cardstock and glue! The colors are beyond gorgeous and some of the most pigmented watercolors I have ever seen! they have become another favorite!

(seriously aren't these gorgeous!!)

AND of course the MAIN reason I was in australia was to teach!

I  taught two different weekends while we were there, to two fabulous groups of women! I HAD THE BEST time with them!

(this was our first group of girls! we did the quilt girl (one of the girls I will be teaching in my upcoming fall course!)

(this was my finished girl, which I gave to jane to remember me by!)

Seriously nicest people you will ever meet! AND I LOVED Their accents! The funniest part was when I was talking and I turned to them and said, "sorry, I am talking too much" and they all said.. NO! We love hearing you talk! we love your accent!"  I have NEVER EVER been told I have an accent! I have traveled all over the world and in the US and people always just said that I talk "regular". Nothing cool or special about it.  So  it made me giddy to hear them say I had an accent! I was like.. so does that make me cool because I have an accent? and they said YES! so i made it a point to always talk in public wherever we went, so people could hear my accent! lol.. it was like a little kid. Hahaha. I LOVE the australia accent. oh my gosh, simply beautiful! Sometimes a bit hard to understand.. :).. but I LOVED IT!

 

(my second weekend class.. we found some fun lanterns and galrands during the week and mr. Benny hung them up for us :) Thanks ben!)

(this was a two day class, and we created both a quilt girl and what I call my "flower girls".. also going to be in the Fall on-line class coming up!)

(my finished quilt girl for week two.. THANK You to Toni, Gen and their mom for the beautiful vintage wallpaper they brought me! I HAD to use it!)

(here is the flower girl I made.. she is probably one of my FAVORITE girls ever! I also gave this canvas to Jane as well (though I made sure to scan it on her scanner before I left, so I can make a large canvas print of it). It was Jane inspired.. maybe that's why I love her so much!)

I loved spending time with Jane, I loved having my family there. I seriously could have stayed another week. ANd most of you know me, I get homesick SUPER fast. SUPERFAST! even when I am surrounded by family or friends on trips. But this trip was so different! I didn't want to leave!

I felt so relaxed, so at peace and so inspired by my surrounding and the creative juices that were flowing between Jane and I, as we created each day. Even just taking walks to the beach, or down the street was just food for the soul. My classes were the funnest for me, they have ever been! I usually get super worn out, tired and loose my energy after day one. But this trip, I was bounding with energy, excitement, creativity and loved every minute of it!

(this is me day two of week 2 teaching.. and I was still just GIDDY and happy to be teaching and creating! it's amazing the setting Jane creates, that just makes your soul and body feel rested and happy!)

It probably helped that we found ourselves on the same schedule as Fiji, and went to bed each night before 9 pm, and were up at 5:30 in the morning, watching the sunrise on her deck. Reading our books, journaling, or just enjoying the view.

It was just amazing. We have already decided to go back next year and teach again. This time, it will just be Ben and I traveling, AND THIS time, Jane is going to teach a day class too, so it will be a three day workshop!

 

(jane always wearing cute floral headbands and flowers in her hair, decided I needed to wear one too :). Im pretty sure she is the only one who can get away with it lol. I MISS HER GOOFY SELF!)

That will be next november sometime. But I am already counting down the days! I thought the flight would kill me with my fibro and I was pleasantly surprised it didn't! Totally we flew 19 hours. (the main flight, from Los Angeles to Australia was a total of 14-15 hours). Then we had to get from idaho falls to LAX too. that didn't include layovers, but honestly, wasn't bad at all! I would do it again in a heartbeat! Which is funny because after 18 hour flight to South Africa a few years ago, when I taught.. I swore I would never fly that long again! I proved myself wrong.

I took lots of things to keep me busy on the flight which probably helped.. art journaling, watercolors, mixed media supplies, my embroidery and a REALLY good book I couldn't put down! (Unbroken.. you MUST READ IT!)

(i actually got a lot more down on my embroidery than I thought I would!)

Plus they had loads of tv and movies to watch on your own personal tvs. If you ever fly to australia, I recommend Fiji Airways. They were VERY inexpensive compared to everyone else AND their service was AMAZING. The planes are gorgeous and they just have a awesome staff. I thought it would be worse because the flight was so cheap compared to alot of other companies, but I was pleasantly surprised and felt bad for pre-judging them :). 

Plus having the stop in Fiji, to break up the long flight was PERFECT. On the way back our stop was only 5 hours, but it still was nice and relaxing. We slept, read, did art. They even had showers in the airport you could use. (ps. if you ever fly through fiji.. go downstairs where the bathrooms are, and they have this large open area with long couches everywhere and no one is down there! It's quiet and you can sleep, or relax and its COOL down there! upstairs was hot and smuggy! So theres a tip for you :).

I did miss my kiddos at home though and was ecstatic to see them when we got home! NOw back home, our sleep schedule is totally off lol and we find ourselves staying up until 3 or 4 am and sleeping until 11! NOT GOOD! I feel like half my day is wasted! gonna have to work on that schedule because we have a She Matters Art Retreat here in 10 short days!

well thanks for letting me share about my wonderful experience to Australia. If you ever get the chance, you MUST go! And Visit down in Byron Bay. It's simply beautiful! Small town, beautiful beaches, away from the huge crowds you find in other cities and towns. Promise, you will love it!

Next week I will be announcing my new Fall workshop AND a giveaway for my upcoming workshop with Big Picture! The Mixed MEdia Studios Workshop! Watch for that tuesday!

happy thursday!

xoxo

Christy

Gettings Artsy with Junelle....

you know there is one word that always comes to mind when I think of Junelle Jacobsen. Brilliant. It's always the first word that I find that just TRULY describes her creative capabilities! The second would be generous and kind (okay that is two.. but they just go hand in hand).

I know many of you don't know her personally, but many of you have taken her online workshops and not just in life, but in her workshops she is both Brilliant and generous as well!

ONe thing I love about Junelle's class is that she covers a wide spectrum of techniques. SHe does sketching, watercolors, art journaling, mixed media on canvas, mixed media projects in general and even project using fabric, felt, stitching and more.

I have always loved all of those aspects of creating, but for the last year have focused mostly on creating just on canvas using mixed media techniques. Well as you know for my girl a day challenge, I found myself using a lot of pastels, watercolors and sketching as it was a simple way to get a girl done each day lol.

I started realizing how much i MISSED using those types of mediums!

Then Last week was my turn to add my "goodness" to Junelle's latest workshop, The ARt of Holiday Goodness. As with most classes I host from other artist, I always join in the end of the last week and give my take on what I also learned from the workshop. I take the class right along with each of you and watch the videos just as you do, and then from the wonderful things that are taught create my own "goodness" as Junelle would call it

After watching all the videos and projects (there are over 20!!!),

It  made me want to dig into my watercolors, fabrics, felts.. even more than before!!

 

That girl is just a inspiration all around. YOu can't watch a video of hers and NOT just want to grab whatever it is she is teaching you and jump right in.

 She truly is brilliant in the way she teaches because she builds that little fire under you to create, to spread your wings, to try new things. She is so generous with her knowledge too. Seriously i am so blessed that 3 years ago she took my first She Art Workshop and started posting her take on my class in our Yahoo group. I don't know otherwise if I would have ever gotten to know this beautiful soul. SHe has now become one of my closest friends which through the last year, as been one of my strongest supports of love and advice.

Love tender mercies like that.

So the reason for this post? lol.. I know I always talk a lot. Sorry.. but truly I just wanted to share some of the goodness that I created for Junelle's "art of goodness" workshop. If you aren't taking this workshop.. you can still join. And the good news is that now, once you join, you have access to all three weeks at all once! Since the workshop is now in self study mode. (I hate waiting for each week! lol I am too impatient!)

so here are just a few of the things I created..

of course I had fun playing around with watercolors and sketching. Then I also added in some fun new techniques I have been using lately too. I like to call Hybrid watercolors. Using different mediums to get the watercolor look but with more non traditional supplies

I went a little crazy with my postcard watercolor sketches.. don't mind me. lol

Told ya I went a little crazy. I think I am now addicted to these postcards from Strathmore. They come in a pack of like 15. Anyhow they come with the postcard already designed on the back, so once you are finished and seal off your work, you can just pop it into the mail! Seriously?? how cute! I keep s"Borrowing" more sets of them out of our Scarlet Lime Store lol.. (poor benny.. I better order more so he doesn't notice how many i have really taken :) EEK!). If you haven't ever played on them.. you should try them.. and yes I believe right now we do still have them in stock haha. Might not be the case by the end of the week, if I keep getting my hands on them. jk. By the way if you don't like the idea of just sending a postcard.. you can also create watercolor cards too! And yes we DO sell those in the store as well, and come with envelopes.

anyhow.. LOVED getting back into sketching and watercolors! Then of course I had to go for her wood block projects she taught.. getting all messy with paints, papers, rubons, and stuff.  Here is the project I created .. did my own take on a christmas tree set..

those ended up being super fun and now I am addicted to making all sorts of wood block projects as well (wonder if ben will notice I am borrowing all of his wood blocks out of the store too? ;)

(love these soup blocks that Junelle made.. she puts recipes on the back.. seriously? how cute?? )

I think my favorite part of the class is that she then shows you how to bundle everything up you have made and gift it as sweet adorable gifts for the holidays! That girl.. always thinking of others.

so anyhow.. this post has ended up being WAY longer than I expected. I just wanted to come on and share some of what I have been working on the last week or so.. hahah. Yea I guess you wouldn't expect less than a mouth-full right? :)

If you ARE still interested in taking Junelle's Holiday workshop.. its always still open! you can find out more about it here! I LOVE supporting this wonderful girl! With everything she is always doing for other people.. how can you not love her?

well later this week I will be sharing with you some sneak peeks of my upcoming workshop.. the 2013 Twelve Artsy Ornaments Workshop! I have 11 Freaking AMAZING artist joining me this year and starting Wednesday I will be posting sneak peeks of what we will be making in this workshop.. WHICH by the way.. starts early this year.. NExT WEEK!! the 19th!! Wanted to give you plenty of time to create for the holidays.. goodness know I need it! lol

Well happy monday! Hope it's a non chaotic one (is that even possible for a monday?)

xoxo

a girl a Day challenge.... checking in..

a week or two ago, I posted about my girl a day personal challenge I gave to myself.. to try and accomplish two things..

one: to make myself create EVERY day.. and two: to become more confident and better at creating girls in all art forms.

It's actually been helping both.. except last week I pretty much missd 4 days in a row, and then found myself friday night playing catch up, while I sat and watched a football game with my family. Of course then I grabbed the easiest thing available which was my mixed media journal, stabilo pencil, and a wet brush. (LOVE it when the stabilo gets wet and smears slightly like a watercolor pencil.. kinda gives it that charcoal look but with watery edges). 

BY THE WAY..we just added the Stabilo Pencil in both black and white to our Scarlet Lime Store! wahoo!! 

I thought it would be fun to come and share some of the girls I have been working on since I last checked in.. so here is what I have been up to!

I first started again with my watercolors and my stabilo pencil..

I drew the girl first with my stablio then filled her in with watercolor.

This next girl was also watercolor, but this time I just painted her straight out.. didn't use my stabilo to sketch her first. I finished her by using my copic multi-liner pen to add the little details.

this girl was a late night.. crap it's midnight I need to get my girl done.. mishap. Lol. She was done using pastels on mixed media paper. She's not bad.. but she's got some funky things going on with her face :)I was going for great gatsby.. kinda sort got there.. but not exactly what I was hopping for. Good thing there are still 5 days left to the challenge I can try again.. right?

this girl was a hybrid. I was tired of just using pastels and watercolor... so I decided to bring in a little paint, decopauge and patterned paper too. Her wings were stencils on with Pan Pastels, her skirts is paper with decopauge, and the rest is done with watercolor. Plus of course my handy stabilo :). It felt good to get out a little bit of "messy" stuff! by the way.. I found I can totally "shade" with my watercolors.. which is good to know that they give me the same look as my Faber Castell pens! More work.. but still fun!

now comes my series from missing 4 days lol. These are the sketches I did while watching football games. I decided I wanted them each to have different types of "butterfly wings" if you will. Again used my stabilo and then water to smudge/smear the edges.

I loved this one actually.. Loved how her wings just kinda fell a bit. Not "set and ready to take flight".. but you knew they were there for any moment. Kinda like.. she was happy to stay a while. Content to stay a while.

for this girl I wanted to try to create a "braid" all over in her hair. I am not sure how successful it was, though I do like all the texture going on! The wings were another texture I wanted to try. BOLD wings. SHes a bold girl.

this was my last girl for that night, which caught me up to my challenge. I didn't intend for her to look so "young" when I started, but I think the combination of her shoulders being so small and her face being done. She just comes across as a little girl, maybe a little sad.. maybe embarrassed? Not sure. Maybe upset she has to wear this giant flower thing in her hair. who knows lol. Shes fun though.

 so that brings us up to current. (well sort of, I am two days behind again.. haha. But plan to head out to my art studio today to catch up!)

I KNEW i needed to get into my art studio and pull out my mixed media supplies. Paints, Tissue paper, Patterned paper Acrylic and Decopauge.

I was kinda intrigued with the sketch I had done earlier in the week.. the simple stabilo sketches. And I wanted to re-create her onto a large canvas with paints, etc.

I actually reversed my process, and painted the entire girl first.. paper piecing bits and pieces of her like the rose, her bodice and her collar. Then I painted in the rest. The background came last. I knew I wanted it to be simple, yet have depth. ANd so layering old tissue patterns seemed to be the solution.

I outlined her with my stabilo and added water to soften the lines.
I like the simplicity of the background. Not sure I will do anything else to it. HOWEVER I do kinda want to add wings. So we will see how that comes into play.

So there's a report on my girl a day challenge. I started it in October on the 5th.. so I have about another week to go! Gonna make this last week count and try some techniques ideas that have been circling in my head. Time to get serious and finish my challenge with a bang! lol

By the way.. two things!

Our Scarlet LIme SHop is having a BIG sale this week.. my 39th birthday is tomorrow, so we thought it would be fun to have a week long "celebration" and have a week long sale! Ben is offering free shipping on all orders over $30.00 for those in the US, ... and 15% off for all international orders over $30.00

AND ben just added TONS of new things to the store (Loads of new watercolor supplies, new pastels, new paints, new lining pens and pencils AND the famous stabilo pencil :)

AND he also restocked tons of favorite products as well! (Ranger Paint dabbers, claudine hellmuth Paints, archival stamp pads, catalyst brushes, Dylusions Sprays,  Chalkboard supplies, Charcoal pencils, etc!)

Simply use the codes below

US customers: happybirthday13

international customers: birthday13

Another fun thing.. I have been waiting to share.. is that I have asked a couple of talented artist to help me do project each month with our Scarlet Lime Mixed media kits! Robin Blackman and Junelle Jacobsen will start helping me doing fun mixed media projects, to give you ideas on how to use the kits! I will be posting the first one this week on the Scarlet Lime Website.. AND will post a link here as well! So watch for that! She is starting with the October kit.. and is also working on past kits as well! I have been lame at doing tutorials with those.. I know it's not part of the sub.. but I still enjoyed doing it and I know those of you getting the kits enjoyed it too! So this will help us both out! I still plan on doing some here and there too, but this way, there will always be projects each month using the kits! wahoo! Happy dance :)

well happy tuesday!

Hope your day is wonderful!

xoxo

 

a Girl a Day Personal Challenge

So.. the crazy in me.. decided my plate wasn't full enough and I needed to give myself one more thing to try and accomplish on a daily basis! A few weeks ago.. at my She ARt Matters Retreat, one of the sweet girls attending the retreat.. Michelle.. talked about a sketch a day challenge she participated in on another blog. The challenge was to do a face a day. Whether it was draw, paint, sketch.. scribble. lol.. just SOMETHING to help you become a better face artist. I LOVED the idea.. and mulled it over in my head for a few days.. and then decided I wanted to create my own personal challenge to create 30 girls in 30 days. A girl a day.

I didn't want to limit myself to just paint, I wanted revisit old favorites like using charcoal, my stabilo pencils, sketch pencils, oil pastels, watercolors,  CHALK pastels, mixed media techniques and more. Somedays I knew I would spend more time on a girl, somedays would just be a simple drawing. But I wanted to challenge myself to create EVERY day. So on the 5th I decided to start. (who says it has to be on the 1st of the month?? right? :)). I am always known for making my own rules. lol.

I can tell you this challenge so far has been a BLAST. Somedays Its been seriously close to midnight and I have run out to my studio to sit and sketch something really quick to get the challenge done for the day!

But I did!  AND.. some days and nights,  I have gone out to my studio to sketch something really quick and ended up staying hours in there.. painting and exploring! Which I have ended up cherishing!

you may think I spend so much time in my studio.. heck before we moved into this new/old house I couldn't get ENOUGH of my studio. I was over here everyday I could.. just being here. Whether it was sitting on one of the couches reading books, or actually painting and creating. I LOVED being over here. Needless to say.. my "other" responsibilities seemed to fall by the way side and I found myself getting behind. lol.

Now that we have moved in.. I noticed that i would go a week sometime TWO without even stepping FOOT in my art studio! WHAT?? hello? it's across the driveway! lol.

(this was taken with me standing next to our house. Seriously that is my studio.. across the driveway. that close lol)

I just got so busy with the other aspects of my creative job/Life.. i would forget how important it was to be creative in THAT way too. I always felt so overwhelmed try to keep up with our Store.. ordering and listing new product, getting ready for upcoming retreats, Ordering products for the kit club, and running the back end of the kit club. Plus answering emails, trying to blog (once in a while hahah). Creating new workshops.. and not the actual filming of them.. but creating the classroom, back end website stuff. Same with all my websites. Scarlet Lime, my blog, and even creating logos, etc... not so fun stuff. . Etc. Many might think I hire a lot of that side of things out. But I actually do all of it myself. I dont have a background in web design.. but I have taught myself because I have never been one to "pay" for something I am determined to figure out on my own. I also have a hard time letting things "go" to other people too. Like I need creative control on EVERYTHING lol. It's a bad problem with me. So i just hunker down and do it all. Spend lots of day.. and nights after kids go to bed, managing the blog, all my workshops, our mixed media store, our kit club and even our online bead store. it's a lot and it's sometimes tiring.. but it is how we support our family and so I do it and don't complain because we are BLESSED to have this job. BLESSED i tell you!

I started realizing though.. I was hardly EVER making time to create! AND HELLO?? isn't that the reason I do all of this? To create?? I think so.. and to SHARE what I create with others.. not just in my classroom but in other ways as well.

So I started this challenge for myself as a way to kind force myself into creating something EVERYDAY and being in my studio everyday too! It IS a challenge to find the time.. when I feel like I have WAY more important things to do.. but I have decided it's important!

I have been sharing my daily progress on facebook and Instagram. I admit. Now that I share everything on instagram/facebook..  I have a hard time "bloggin" as I feel like so many of you already follow me on instagram or facebook and I post so much about my life on there, that it feels "redundant" to be posting about it again here.

But I also forget that a short "blurb" on my instagram about something.. isn't the same as writing and sharing with you all here. Here I can be so much more involved and open, here I can give so much more detail... Here I can be long winded and bore everyone to death! lol.

But you know what I mean. I also haven't spent much time lately sharing about my personal and struggles on my blog. I used to do that alot.. I think I have shied away from it because our little family of 8 has been through some pretty life changing, heart breaking trials over the past two years. Even more so over the past year. Things that at times I thought would totally just break me to the core.. and I didn't feel like sharing my struggles with the world. I could barley get through some days as it was.. let alone sit down and write about it. I just shut down.. and closed myself off to others. Seriously i did. Ask my family and friends. I HAVE.. not just did.. I HAVE. Which normally isn't me at all. I am a gabber and love to talk and love to share and LOVE to be around people! I think sometimes when you go through hard things.. your heart gets hurt and your spirit gets broken and you close yourself off to others as a way to i guess just survive? I don't know. I don't know the right words for it. I think for me too, its just so personal.. I feel like no one will understand.. so why share.. right? I don't know. Who knows. I didn't use to think that way.. but i guess sometimes we change :). Maybe someday I will feel different and be more transparent with my struggles.  right now. not feeling that vulnerable lol.

Anyhow.. holy cow.. we have gotten sidetracked from this ENTIRE blog post.. SERIOUSLY lol.

SOO about this 30 day challenge! I have really had a lot of fun with it and just wanted to share some of what I have been doing with YOU! My BLOG friends! So here are just a few from the past couple of weeks. I will share more as the 30 days continues! 

this was a fun watercolor I did on book paper. I LOVE watercolor as it can be so simple and LOVE using NeoColor Crayons and Inkense blocks. They give such BOLD color. Which for me.. well you know me! I love color! lol

I also have had fun exploring just simple things like charcoal.. and just a stabilo pencil. The pencil I love to sketch with and then turn it wet with a brush. LOVE the look. Charcoal is just fun all around. SPECIALLY love using charcoal sticks. yum.

Also have been playing with my soft pastels. I am not usually a fan of these when I work with mixed media because they don't translate well wet. I mean They "move" when you get them wet. Like Pan Pastels look awesome wet.. but not if you are layering other things on top of them and your design goes to pot. So these were just fun to do because they were done using only pastels and a stabilo. I also had fun trying different papers.. like using pastels on watercolor, bristol and charcoal paper. All with every DIFFERENT results.

The two small ones above were on cold press watercolor paper. VERY loose and smudgy. I kinda liked them.

this girl was done on charcoal paper. Smoother paper and you can see that her lines are a little more clear.

Just fun playing!

this girl was dong of course using messy paints and sprays, stencils, rubons. you name it! Trying a new technique for my upcoming online Abstract class!

here's another one I got messy with. This one I had actually started back at the retreat. But left it way undone. So decided one day I would take the time to finish it. Had fun with all the details on the shirts and hair. Always love getting messy on canvas!

and like I said.. some where just simple sketches with my sketch pencil on sketchbook. Nothing fancy.

All in all it has been a FUN experience! I have more to share.. but I think I have already bombarded you with words and pictures for today.

now whats up next for the blog?
WELL I have written a very long.. very "full" blog post of pictures and my experience with my She Art Matters Retreat here 2 weeks ago. It's was an emotional post to write! I have to say.. but I can't wait to share the experience with you.

Also.. next week will be announcing two new art retreats for Spring Here in my Studio/House. A mini more affordable retreat ALL about girls (kinda exploring things within my 30 day challenge.. like charcoals, pastels, watercolors, paints, etc). and then a full week long retreat where you will get to experience EVERYTHING.. girls, abstract, gelli plating.. the WHOLE shabang!

So next week! I plan to share both of those with you!

In the meantime. Have a happy weekend. Hey if you want.. JOIN me in this 30 day challenge! I would love it!
If you are on instagram.. tag me! @christytomlinson  or #girladaychallenge. I would LOVE to see them!

xoxox

Happy Thursday

 

A She Art Pioneer

Hello friends! happy wednesday!

I wanted to share with you a recent canvas I made for my mom.. for her birthday.. BUT before I do.. I have to tell you about a exciting thing I am apart of for NEXT YEAR!!! I am teaming up with 12 Other FABULOUS artist to bring you an amazing class.. LIfebook 2013!!! 

Want to see the sneak peaks??

Clear here for more details!

 

Soo onto the piece I created for my mom!
So my mom is a very spiritual person like me and she also has a huge place in her heart for the early Pioneers of our faith who traveled thousands of miles through difficult circumstances to come find a place here in the West to live and be free from harassment. We are LDS (also knowns as Mormons :))  and  Because so many people didn't under our religion early on.. there was actually alot of terrible things that happened to the members of the church in the early years including being tarred and feathered, houses being burned down, children and women being killed with gunfire (who were hiding in houses or in the woods for their safety). They were actually at one point driven out of their homes and the entire town they had built by a huge mob.. and forced to leave the East.. so they traveled in covered wagons west across unknown territory facing many hardships including starvation, death, and sickness. Today we pay homage to these wonderful people who risked their lives and moved west so we could be free practice our religion.. which is centered around Jesus Christ.  We really look up to the courageous men, women and children who sacrificed their lives and mom mom especially has a soft spot in her heart because she had many ancestors who made that first journey and some that lost their lives.

SO for her birthday this year I thought it would be neat to paint her a picture of a pioneer woman. A strong but silent girl, full of faith and hope and courage..  that actually reminds me a lot of my mother as well.

Here she is..

I wanted to create with a calm, neutral background. Simple

I knew I wanted her eyes to kind be harsh.. but also full of kindness. The pioneers faced SO many hardships, so I wanted to show those trials in her eyes, but also wanted her to have a kind heart

I made sure to include words around the canvas the represented both her and my mom

Also wanted to keep her clothes true to what they wore in during that time.

My mom's birthday was a couple of months ago.. so I have already given it to her.. but thought it would be fun to share this with you!
Hopefully inspire you to go paint something that is part of YOUR history and YOUR Story!

Happy Wednesday!

xoxo

New Behind the Art MixED Media Tutorial AND A GIVEAWAY!!

well hello! First off! Update on The Fund-raising cards! They are being mailed out tomorrow!  ( i didn't realise it but today yesterday was actually the last day to sign up.. so they are getting all of their cards today!)  The  actual card and insert has all the info about the coupons on them AS WELL as the code for our Scarlet lIme store will be SHIPPING out tomorrow!  :) So those who helped out.. AND THANK YOU!! (you helped raise over $4500 for team!!.. INCREDIBLE!), They are on their way! I will also be sending out an email today with the code in it as well. So you have it in both forms. xoxo

So as I mentioned over the last few weeks I have been working on some videos for my blog!
Many of you have asked me why I don't do videos anymore.. however.. I actually do! lol. Since January I have done over 100 videos tutorials! Crazy!!.. but they are all for my online classes, I offer.. which many of you take. However be doing so many, and with moving, etc.   it didn't leave much room or time to do them for my blog as well. I know I've shared written and picture tutorials over the last few months, but not a video one. So i figured it's about time to do SOME! Right?? lol

I am hoping to post one tutorial each week for the next several weeks.. AND when I do post them, I thought it would be fun to do a giveaway as well!! Since I will be making finished canvases with them, I thought it would be fun to giveaway either the finished canvas or a kit!

For this tutorial I would LOVE to give the finished canvas away.. SO all you have to do to enter.. is to post a comment on thIS blog post and you are entered in! Then Monday I will pick a winner! Wahoo!

I like to use the kits from our Scarlet LIme Store and kit club for the videos, because many of you already have the product (you purchase the kits).. or you can go buy it in one kit in the store. So it's easy peasy! But if you don't have a kit (you can still purchase them in the store).. you can easily get inspiration to use things similar that you have on hand!

For this tutorial I used the June 2013 mixed media kit (from the scarlet lime kit club & Store HERE).

 

When I first picked out the products for this kit, I was thinking "banner" project. On canvas! All of the items included in the kit can easily be used to make a "banner" on canvas. So many possibilities with them! Plus of course add texture, and such as well.. this is what I came up with..

 

I used a 10"x10" canvas and also paints, in addition to the pieces in the kit.

These are what I used and are linked for your convenience to our store!

(plus of course paint brushes, my Scarlet Lime Doodle pens,  Faber Castell Pens, DecoPauge, a few stamps and Archival ink for texture. and Paint!)

By the way.. I just got done LISTING my favorite roller stamps (as shown in this video).. in our store HERE.

And remember TODAY we aer still offering FREE SHIPPING on all orders over $30.00!

Use the code: freeship30  -for US customers.  FOr  international customers you receive 15% off your order: use code: happyday13

note: you can only use one coupon per order so they can't be combined with any other coupons.

here's a little peak below of more detailed pictures!

of course I used lots of doodling as well..

and that's it! Here is the finished piece one more time!

So without further wait.. HERE is the video that shows the process!
Don't forget to leave a comment on the blog to be entered to win this canvas! I will pick a winner MONDAY!!

 

Happy thursday!
xoxo

Christy

 

a new way to create.. backgrounds gone crazy :)

Soo.. I promise some videos are coming! As you know, we have moved out to a new house.. (the new old house).. and with moving into a "older" home and out in the country.. we are experiencing some technical difficulties with our internet! SWEEET!! lol.

We have internet out in our warehouse.. which is on the back of our property.. and we thought we could just use it in our house as well. All connect into the same line. BUT it appears that while we can (and it's even a hard line into the wall???).. it is super sketchy and cuts out ALL the time! We only get wireless in ONE room of our house.. and so yea it's a pain right now. My problem is, I  can't seem to get a connection in my office (which off of my bedroom) to last long enough to upload a entire video.. SOO we are working on that! Hopefully it will be fixed THIS week!

In the MEANTIME.. I thought it would be fun to share a little art project I did a few weeks ago, at the art retreat I hosted here at my house!  While I LOVE painting girls (and they are my first love).. I also really love creating what I call Abstract art. it's probably not so abstract.. but you know.. I like to make up words to mean what I need them to mean lol. SO to me I call them abstract :).

There are a couple of things I love about painting with this technique..  one.. i can paint REALLY large and it doesn't intimidate me!

This painting is a 3' by 4' deep edge canvas. Not the largest I have created.. but still SUPER fun!

The other thing I LOVE about painting this way is that it involves creating a TON with the background.. and usually on a girl, you have to stop at a certain point and go.. okay this is enough.. if I do anymore, it will be WAY too busy.

But with this background, you can keep going and going.. adding more detail and more layers and more depth.. because for ME (and I know there are a lot of artists who paint this way and don't like to add the detail as much as I do).. but for me.. oh goodness I love all the little pockets of goodness that shine through..after the painting is done.

What I also love is that I don't really need to know before hand what it is I am going to create in the final project!! It could be flowers, it could be a large sun, it could be a large symbol of some sort (like a butterfly or a heart with wings).

here, after I was done playing and having fun with the background,  i decided to go with a sort of flower look with fun little stems and words coming off the stems.

really the ideas are endless with this method. I know with some people, they like to look at the background and see what the background looks like and create shapes based on what they see.. but for me.. I really like just creating designs that make me happy!

It's a really fun way of painting, that doesn't require a whole lot of thought process in the beginning. It's just fun and relaxing and honestly a way to just relax when you are stuck on a more structured painting like a girl or a house or something else.

I also LOVE using spray paint and stencils with this background method.. even modeling paste. Its like taking all the things i do with a regular background for a girl and magnifying it times 10! it's backgrounds on crack lol. and it's SUPER fun.

Of course I LOVE the end process as well, not only coming up with the designing but going back in and adding details with rubons, and stamps, and my trust Scarlet Lime Doodle pen (um hello.. i can't resist using those on a canvas).

 

this little cutie is heading on it's way to a dear friend, Liz Eaton,  who was responsible for gathering her sisters and mom to come to the retreat. Those girls were SO much fun and  when I got done with it. I KNEW it had to be hers.. so I am sending it to her this week! Which is great because it makes room for me to paint another one for my house or art studio!

They honestly make awesome gifts for friends and family. NO one expects it and its so personal and different! Unique in every way!

So.. I just thought I would share this with you!

I plan on doing an online workshop this fall .. so watch for it! AND SPEAKING of online workshops I have two I will be announcing SOON! One that starts in just a few weeks.. and it's something different, something fun.. something SUPER hot right now.. (it has to do with Chalk.. and hand lettering.. and even a SPIN on canvas! ) Oh you are going to LOVE it! I will be announcing it NEXT monday! 

Hope you have a HAPPY tuesdsay!

xxoxo

 

 

Blog Hop Question.. What is Success? & New Book: Declaration of you!

Hey sweet lovley friends.. isn't summer just freaking awesome. Holy cow! I forget how good it feels to sleep in, have lazy mornings.. walk outside and bask in the sunlight. Seriously.. 2 months of summer here just ISN'T enough!

So as I mentioned tuesday.. I have been asked to participate in a fun Blog Hop hosted by Jessica Swift and Michelle WaRD .. co-writers of the NEW book.. Declaration of YOU!

They asked me a few questions about what success means in my business Scarlet Lime and with my Christy Tomlinson Licencing & Workshops Business.  So here it goes.. :)

Warning: This is just a straightforward.. no pretty pictures.. kinda of blog post. Hope you still get something out of it :).

First off just a little info about me:  as many of you know since 2007, i have had a online kit club called Scarlet Lime.  A monthly kit club where we send out kits each month.. it started with Scrapbooking kits and have now grown to Mixed Media kits, Art Journaling kits and coming SOON this fall.. SMash kits! (Plus we are adding some fun new features including monthly ideas by other designers!) . In 2011, we decided to expand our kit club to also include an online Mixed Media Store.. which we now sell over 1500 products! Adding new ones all the time! All of which are products I used in my online workshops to make mixed media canvases, and art journals. In 2011 I also launch my first online class hosted on my own site (i had done several before on other websites).. and that also has grown and over the past 2 years, I have offered I think.. around 13 workshops! Crazy! With more coming this fall. We also have an Etsy store, where I sell prints, originals and other products with my artwork on it. AND lastly, I teach and host art retreats all over the world.

So that is what I DO in a nutshell. I am BLESSED and blessed to have my husband, Ben, also work side by side with me in this adventure! He runs the mixed media store and ships out the kits for the kit club. It's so awesome to be able to work with him everyday.. have him home everyday. What a blessing. We are blessed to have 6 kids.. ages 8-17.. (5 boys and one girl). ANd we are so blessed to both stay at home and work and support our family. I am also always blown away,  at the amount of work I am able to accomplish while also dealing with Fibromyalgia. I wake up EVERYDAY in pain.. everyday. Like I don't want to get up and face the world.. kinda of pain. But just as always.. the Lord has blessed me with things I have learned to help that pain manageable, so I can get up and work.. play or spend time with my family.  Usually an hour or so after a hot bath, using oils and my medication.. I am ready to take on the world!  I do have days where I just can't go one more step and I find myself in bed all day.. sometimes frustrated and crying.. sometimes just realizing it's not the normal and tomorrow will be better. But I think that is my Heavenly Father's way of saying.. SLOW DOWN. Take time for yourself. Remember who you are and why you are here. Always a wonderful reminder :).

I also took some time in 2011 to "licence" my art designs to some major home decor companies.. and while it was the thrill of a lifetime to see my first release (which just came out last year.. almost 18 months after I started the process). It just wasn't for me. I enjoyed teaching online and in person SO much more.. and creating art solely for the licencing world.. didn't allow me to do that. I would rather see thousands of other women learn to become self confident and realize they ARE AN ARTIST.. then see my artwork on mugs, pillows, iphone covers, etc in major retail stores.While I have some wonderful friends who inspire the world that way.. i just knew it wasn't the way intended for me.  Ill tell you more about that in a bit :)

And I guess that is where the success comes in. I believe success means so many different things, but for me.. the ONLY thing that matters in having a successful business is doing what matters most. Doing what feels RIGHT.. doing what I know in my heart is what my Heavenly Father, wants me to do. That is success. It's not about which opportunity makes me the most money, or what 'gig' gives me the most exposure and advertising.. its truly about listening to the Spirit and following what I know is what I should be doing at the time.

I believe success is being the true you and following the beautiful heart of yours. Your heart is a pretty amazing gift we have been given.  It certainly KNOWS what is best for you.. and sometimes your mind overshadows that with thoughts of how awesome an opportunity looks, or how cool making $$$$ would be. But your heart ALWAYS grounds you, and reminds you of what humility is and why you were blessed in the first place. I swear.. just when I have it all figured out and I think I am just awesome and proud of myself.. something happens that grounds me.. and reminds me.. all of this is not mine.. but His.

Side note: (I realize this post is a pretty spiritual one.. Maybe not QUITE what Jessica and Michelle had intended..  as I refer to my Father IN Heaven a lot.. but dude.. I would be kidding myself if I didn't think for one second.. all of this comes from something greater than ourselves. it's just a given... )

To get a little more personal,  in business.. FOR ME.. success is TRULY being able to help others. I can't tell you how many times I have been brought to humble tears.. by emails, or letters or even women coming up to me at art retreats or events.. telling me, how by me taking one of my online classes, or sitting on one of my retreats.. or watching my online tutorials.. has changed their lives. Not because I was this awesome artist.. but because I gave them the freedom to BE an artist and the confidence to FEEL free and take leaps!  They felt lost, they felt like taking time for themselves in anyway way shape or form,  was just a waste of time.. silly. But after taking a workshop, or trying something I taught in a tutorial.. they were able to connect with what was being taught and realize a new found love of creating art that could help them express what was in their heart. Art that they could share with family and friends. By Helping them build confidence to take leaps in their OWN dreams and endeavors.  THAT is a HUGE factor of what success means to me.

I remember when I was about 6 months into licencing... I had already created my first line.. I had approved the samples they had sent and would be seeing them hit shelves the following year. I was working with two major companies in the home decor world.. and one of the Companies came to me, before my first release was even done.. and offered me a 2 year.. Multi-million dollar sales projection during that time. (and no.. that doesn't mean I would get  millions dollars lol.. believe me.. not even close. SOunds cool.. but promise.. your cut is just a wee bit :).  But even so, it was a HUGE opportunity to get my name out there, to brand myself and to create a secure future in licencing. . Basically they were saying, for 2 years. .they wanted me to create lines for their home decor items. IN Spring, Summer, Christmas, Fall, etc. They wanted to build a brand around my name and my art. They wanted to promote me as one of their top artist. I was shocked, humbled and just blown away.  BUT at the very end of the email.. they asked me one simple question, something I would need to do to help make it successful for them as well. They asked me to  STOP teaching my art, online, in person. Everywhere. They said that by me teaching my girls and other techniques, they were starting to see images of art that looked similar to mine, popping up everywhere on the Internet! (just google She Art. crazy how many pages there are!) And NOT of my work! Work of other awesome women who have taken my workshops and were then sharing what they had made on their blogs and online communities.  The company was afraid that if I kept teaching, that my "brand" and my designs.. would no longer be unique.. because I really do give step by step video instructions on how to create the way I create. The minute I read that part of the email.. it stopped me dead in my tracks. Me? Not teach? um.. that's not EVEN an option!

I didn't and still DON'T believe, that Heavenly Father gave me this gift of creating.. to keep it all for myself.. for some.. yes! We need people who create beautiful things for us to buy.. but for me.. I knew I was intended to share it. not keep it all bottled inside.

I KNOW.. KNOW  without a doubt....  that I was meant to teach what I know and not keep it in. I do Not profess to know everything there is to know about Art .. or paints, or what a medium does. But I do know how to explore and learn and make beautiful messes.. and make mistakes  and turn them into awesome little unexpected layers that in the end, create this heartwarming, meaningful piece of art.  To teach others that it's okay to get something wrong.. that you can always turn it into something right and something beautiful! I just knew.. that if I were to accept this huge contract with this company.. I would NOT be doing what matters most. No matter HOW awesome or cool having my name a national brand would be. Just wasn't worth it. 

So.. without much thought at all, I simply replied back.. I was sorry that while I was thrilled they wanted to continue on with me, I knew what I was supposed to do and what was expected of me. That I needed to share my art with the world, but, not in the way they wanted me to share it. At first.. my agent was pretty upset. so was the company.. but shortly after, I sent them several emails with several of my friends names, images of their work and their blogs.. and suggested maybe they look at THEIR art, and contact them.. and see if that is something that would be a good fit for them. I had friends who REALLY DID want to licence, and I knew they could create some pretty wonderful things too. I felt so good about my decision. I felt at peace and happy and right. Btw.. my friends who's names I sent them? well I just got my catalog for the companies new line and BOTH have beautiful featured product in there! See a perfect fit! there always is :).

Well a few months went by.. and they sent another email.. this time saying that if I would reconsider, I could still teach my art online and in person.. and they would just take their chances with the affect it may have on their home decor lines.  But by then.. I had become SOOO okay with just being a an artist and a teacher.. that I realized.. it truly wasn't what I wanted.. and the decision had been the right one all along. It had been a HUGE blessing in disguise not to take that route for myself. Success. 

So for me.. that is what success means.. and that is just ONE tiny story of the many many moments that have happened to me over the past 10 years... of owning my own business. Many little "tender mercies".. reminding me of what is important for ME..  WHAT is expected of me by my Father in Heaven.. and WHY he has blessed me AND my family with this humbling opportunity and experience of being able to share my art and the talents i have been given,  with the world.. and support my family as well. It's not MY talent.. it's the Lord giving me this talent, for the purpose of blessing others.. and being blessed as well in the process. Success. 

So my advice to you when it comes to creating a successful business? Be open to the unexpected.. reach deep inside your heart and think about what is TRULY your goal.. and then strive for it! Sometimes our goals change.. sometimes we realize along the way that what we thought we wanted, doesn't fit into what we really need and is best for us.. and that's okay! We need to experience those things to grow and know for sure.. and not think "what if". Not everything we do will be a success, but I promise everything you do.. is meant to help us develop and grow for future opportunities. Everything happens for a reason and everything has a purpose. So Stay true to  you. Another bit of advice for success. Make it your goal to have it be about OTHER people.. NOT yourself. Let it never be about yourself. Also.. Takes leaps when your heart is saying yes.. and learn to hold back when your heart is saying no.. even when your head is saying JUMP IN! THAT will be success. It might not come in the form of making a lot of money.. or having your name in lights.. or seeing your designs on iphone covers.. but it may be as simple as blessing someone else's life, in the simple things you do each day. Sharing  YOU with the world. Letting others feel comfortable about themselves. Sharing your ups and down, your mistakes and your triumphs.. letting people know.. YOU are just a real person JUST like them.. no better.. no different. That we all come from the same wonderful Person.. who has made us all so perfectly different and special. If we will always remember this simple truth... success isnt about US.. and never is about us.. then we will always be successful in our leaps.

I know it is for me.

well better get to working on the house today.. more rooms to paint and things to put up :) don't forget.. as I posted tuesdasy! Huge sale this week on online Workshops and NEW things listed in the Etsy Shop! Check out that blog post HERE!

xoxox

Happy Thursday.

New Originals! Online Class Sale and More for this week!

Hey lovely friends!

it's been a busy last two weeks.. getting ready for the reunion and then HAVING the reunion.. but I am happy to say it was a HUGE success! We had 97 people attend the 4 day reunion and it never felt like we had more than 40! More than half of them camped in our backyard in tents and trailers under the big pine trees we have back there and the young moms with babies stayed in the house! It was PERFECT.

 

  Ben did an AWESOME job of providing all sorts of fun activities for everyone to do. Shuffle Board, Ring Game, Horseshoes, Tight Rope (which ben's Nephew brought), Frisbe Golf, Volleyball, Ping Pong, Badminton, Boccie, you name it! He had it set up somewhere on the 6 acres of property! We also had 4 bouncy house water-slides set up.. a size for all age of kids. It truly worked out perfect. Of course we had the boat running the entire time for anyone who wanted to learn to surf, or kneeboard, wakeboard or tube.

We had lots of hammocks set up around the property for people to lounge around in. Friday I even did a 3 hour painting session.. and we had over 30 people join in! Both men, women and children.. and I taught them how to do an easy abstract painting. It truly was a lot of fun!

I even snuck in a mini painting session with a few of the young girls (ages 3-5).. we snuck away to the art studio and I let them just paint on canvas.. and decided to finish this girl up while they painted as well..

She was a painting started by one of my art students from the Art Retreat a couple of weeks ago. She had painted the hair but didn't like the face she had done, so she left it here. I knew it just needed a little TLC.. so I painted a base of cream over the face.. and started again. I added the flowers in her hair and a green background.. and now I am sending it to her as a gift.. hope she likes it!

Now it's over and it's back to real life. It's crazy, but we are now living in the new/old house.. and it feels AMAZING! of course we still only have mattresses, our couches, and a dining table over.. we are still living out of suitcases.. but we weren't able to get all the rooms painted, and tile done in bathrooms or the kitchen before the reunion. so we don't want to move it over until it's done! SO yesterday, we got up and after pulling and shipping orders in the warehouse, we painted the hallways and my office. Today we will finish our bedroom, our bathroom and our walkin closets. So it's coming along! My favorite part of the house? the Laundry room!!

(this is a picture of the old washtub I bought.. it's on wheels and I  use it to hold dirty laundry in the laundry room. LOVE IT!)

First off, it's been 9 years, since we had a real laundry room. AND We have had super old washer and dryers forever.. passed down from bens family.  WE had to always run the dryer 2 maybe 3 times to get anything dry. I freaked OUT with glee when did my first load of laundry in our new washer and dryer.. It was a HUGE batch of towels.. and It fully dried in one hour!! Before the washer was even complete with it's load?? I seriously was clapping my hands, giddy.. with excitement. You have NO idea how that is going to change the laundry situation at our house.. with 8 people. WAHOO! im in love! Plus we actually NOW have a laundry room! THAT is exciting too!

ANyhow.. so that's a recap of last couple of weeks and whats going on now. Sorry.. boring i am sure. lol. I also wanted to let you know about a few things!

One: I just listed a bunch of new originals in my Etsy shop (the last time I listed them was last Fall) so it's been a long time coming! AND i also listed a few new Canvas PRINTS.. so they are prints of some of my she art girls.. but on 8"x8" canvas! makes awesome gifts!

Here is a peak of just a few of them..

SO make sure to check out the Etsy Shop for those!

 We are also gearing up in both the warehouse AND online classes.. to bring in a bunch of new products and a BUNCH of new online classes for fall.. that will include some fun new artist I KNOW you will love (think ChalkArt by Chrissy Gardner and Adorable Girls by Danielle Daniels).  So in order to get ready for that.. we are also doing a sale on past online classes..

INCLUDING SHE ART 3...

AND 2012 Artsy Ornaments of Christmas!!.. 

ANd next week, we will be having A MAJOR sale in the Scarlet Lime Store! I mean MAJOR! Making Room for tons of new products coming out this fall!

So if you are wanting to renew some of your online classes (they are good for a year.. but if you want to extend them for another year).. now is a good time to purchase them! Even if your year isn't up.. it will extend it another year.. after your year is up! AND it's HALF OFF!! that is a GOOD DEAL! OR if you just want to take a course you haven't before.. now is a GREAT TIME!

You find the big CLass WOrkshop Sale HERE.. by following THIS LINK! YOU MUST USE THIS LINK to get the discount. .if you purchase it through my sidebars on the blog you will not get the discount.. so use this link!

Also don't forget to come visit the etsy store! I have listed over 15 originals.. waiting to go to new homes :)..

Come back thursday because I have a special blog post i am doing as part of a blog hop with Jessica Swift, Kelly Rae Roberts and more! About my business and how to jump in head first! Can't wait!

Happy Tuesday and Happy Summer!