Is Anyone or Anything Ever REALLY Done?

Motivation Monday

Found In A Project 

I haven't written a Motivation Monday post in over a month.

Why You Ask?

30 paintings in 30 days

Blogaversary

Flu

Pneumonia

 Learning to paint figures.

Nothing going on in my world.

Today, however, I am getting back in the groove.

I got up early

Exercised

Weed Eated

Took apart our old metal rusted out fire pit and got it in the trash

Watered plants.

While I was weed eating I began thinking of Motivation Monday.

I was gone a lot this summer, so my flower beds got out of control.

It's been very dry, so pulling the weeds isn't going to work,

so I carefully got in there and started whacking them down.

  I used up two batteries in the process.

It came to me as I was weed eating, that sometimes beautiful things are pretty ugly for a while.

If you're an artist you know often when painting, in the beginning the painting doesn't look very good.

I don't know how many times I've gotten 1/3 to 1/2 the way into a painting and thought,

"What am I doing?  I don't even know how to hold the brush".

"It looks like I don't know a lick about painting".

"I can't believe I ever thought I could paint".

Ever have those thoughts?

STOP IT!

My next project for today is a project that had been abandoned.

It's a wreck.

Can anything that needs tools like this,

be beautiful.

 

I know,

it's pretty crazy looking, isn't it.

I bought this several years ago on the 127 Yard Sale,

the world's longest yard sale.

It goes near where I live and it is so much fun.

 

I bought this portable bath tub.

Yep, it's a bath tub.

 

And it was painted this awful avocado green and had teddy bear decals on it, right out of the 50's.

I worked on it several years ago and then it was abandoned out in our shed.

It's been on my mind for a week or so and the weather is so beautiful right now, I can work outside and it's not hot or cold,

so, today was the day

to get back on it.

 

I allotted one hour to this project today.

 

 

One hour made a huge difference!

The inside of the tub is mostly done,

the arm rests are in much better shape,

the front bottom still needs work.

 

But I am so much closer than I was an hour before.

I'll work on it for an hour tomorrow and I'm pretty sure I will be very close to done.

 

Not sure if I'm going to paint it 

or leave it au natural.

Leave your suggestion in the comments.

 

But Sharon,

what are you going to do with it?

 

I'm not installing it in my bathroom,

that's for sure.

 

But I love crazy yard art.

I have an old sink in a garden in my front yard.

This might end up out there with the sink.

Then you know I'll have to add more art to complete my bathroom out there.

Maybe a bed also.

 

My husband is now rolling his eyes. 

 

Finishing a project feels wonderful.

Driving past the "this is going to take forever"

to the "I love this and I'm so glad I stuck with it",

is often hard,

but also so worth it.

 

Look around,

find that painting, craft or project

and get it out and gittr done.

 

Leave me a comment what you're working on.

We all have them.

Let's share them.

 

 

   

Taking a Look Back

Taking a Look Back

Sometimes we just need a reminder to be motivated,

the why and the how can be elusive.

I find motivation in my studio.

Today, on Motivation Monday

I'm going to bring up a few Motivation pieces

for you to read, 

mull over,

and consider,

all on one page.

Click HERE if you want to make some changes in your life. 

Click HERE if you struggle with fear. 

Click HERE to learn my word for 2017 and it's influence. 

Click HERE to learn to live in the moment. 

Click HERE if you suffer from insomnia. 

So there you have 5 Motivation Monday posts

without having to hunt, scroll, or query.

Art Camps are forming for this summer.

This is the first one up for the summer.

We are going to learn about these 4 major artists,

several 19th-20th century artists,

and artists in this part of the country.

Your student will paint a different painting each day

in the style of the 4 major artists we'll study.

Sign your child up today.

Click HERE to see all 5 camps and sign up.

 

 

Can You NOT Talk For 5 Days?

NO TALKING!

For 5 Whole Days!

In April I started having trouble with my voice.

It was raspy at first, then hoarse, and then almost non existent.  

I went to my family Dr., who tried something that didn't work,

I went to an ENT who tried something that didn't work,

and then I went to a voice specialist who found the problem.

I have (had) a lesion on my right vocal cord.

It's no bigger than the head of a pin,

but it kept me from being able to talk.

So Friday I had surgery to have the little bugger removed.

And while they were in there, they found a cyst that also was removed.

I'm not in pain but part of the recovery is 

no talking for 5 days. 

I'm a talker folks, so this is hard.

But I'm doing it!

The hardest part is in the morning when I first get up,

because I forget.

But by Tuesday I should be able to talk.

I will probably have to have several weeks of speech therapy because my vocal cords are pretty screwed up right now,

but hopefully I'll be able to talk more normally after that.

So now you know why I haven't made any more single subject classes or any free videos.

Looking forward to getting back at it in a few weeks.

So. . . you ask, how is this part of Motivation Monday.

Because, we CAN do hard things,

and not talking for 5 days is pretty daggone hard for me.

Doing HARD things is an every day deal for me,

because most of you may know,

I'm not the healthiest horse in the barn.

But, really, no talking for 5 days may be one of the hardest things I've ever had to do,

but my family loves it.  (hehe)

Forcing yourself to do something that's hard,

but that's good for you can be very hard,

but the pay off is great.

More on that later.

But I am still painting so here is my latest work.

  This is the background I did on an 8" x 8" panel.

I loved the colors and the looseness of it.

I flipped it to the other side when I painted on it, 

because I wanted the dark side on the bottom and the lightest part on the top right. 

Then I wanted white daisies on all that color,

and then I sort of covered it all up.

 

Oh well!

I still like it and I hope you do to,

because I'll be giving this one away for my August painting.

 

If you haven't signed up to receive my blog in your inbox,

what are you waiting on?

 

I give away a FREE painting every single month

and in September I'll be having my blogaversary

and I'll be giving away a lot of great art,

including one pretty good sized painting.

 

So scroll on back to the top and on the right hand side,

put your email in the box that says "Subscribe to My Blog".

 

And if you don't mind, please share this with your friends who you think might be interested in learning about art, how to stay motivated for anything with my Motivation Monday posts, and to be in the proverbial hat for a free painting.

 

 This bad boy is heading out to Gayle in Lebanon, Ohio on Monday.

 

I painted this at the boat dock in Carrollton, KY.

You could be my next winner,

but not if you don't get signed up.

 

Congratulations Gayle.

 

Click HERE to view my online beginning painting course and single subject class.

 

Motivation Monday - Shut Up and Paint

Shut Up and Paint With Me!

I love that song,

Shut Up and Dance with Me.

That song has special meaning to me because I was a dance student and dance teacher and I married a man who doesn't dance.

You can see the problem and the irony.

I've had a lot going on over the last six months health wise with me and my husband.  And in December I closed River Run Gallery.  It was sad, disappointing, but necessary.

 I brought all my art supplies home to my old studio,

and guess what?

I didn't have enough room for them all.

They had multiplied while I was at the gallery.

I began the year on a quest to bring order to my life.

I was overweight,

I had too much stuff,

My home and life was unorganized.

My spirituality was waning.

I spent several days working on plans to improve the areas of my life that were out of whack.  I finally got a plan together to help me get on track.

And

it's working.

I'm purging my home, one room at a time,

participating in an online weight loss challenge,

reading more, watching less TV,

learning to rest and breath!

This morning was weigh in for my online group,

and,

I lost 3 more pounds this week.

Three pounds isn't that much, but when added to the other pounds and the inches I've lost,

and all of a sudden

I felt much better about things.

I've struggled to get back on track in my painting.

It's amazing how those three little pounds lifted my heart and motivated me to get back in the studio to paint.  I haven't painted in two months, and today was the day to say,

enough!

I didn't actually get back in the studio,

I commandeered my husbands office because he has a beautiful view out his window and with all the snow we received yesterday, it was a wonderland!

(More on that tomorrow on Technique Tuesday)

The point of this post on Motivation Monday,

is even when things don't look particularly sunny, it doesn't take much to turn it around.

I don't have a depressive personality,

but I have family members who struggle with that disease and I know it can be devastating.  I wasn't depressed, I just wasn't ready to paint.

When I got on the scale and realized 3 more pounds were gone, the motivation took care of itself.  I don't know why those 3 little pounds affected my outlook so much,

but they did.

So, I guess we never know when things will change for the better for us.  Maybe we need to just keep moving forward the best we can,

knowing things don't stay the same forever.

Now,

if spring would just hurry up and get here!

 

  10" x 8" stretched canvas

Sides painted.

$100 + $6 shipping

      

Thanks for stopping by today.

Leave me a comment about how you get back on track. 

I Am Worth It!

I AM Worth It! 

Motivation Monday

This year I am making a number of life style changes

and

I began with this thought.

I am worth it.

I am worth the time it will take.

I am worth the effort.

I am worth the struggle.

I am worth being dedicated.

I am worth it all.

I will be writing a motivational post every Monday.

I currently am working on

Weight loss

Muscle tone

Organization

Improving my art

Growing my business

and most importantly,

Feeding my spirit.

Success!

  On the business realm,

This painting went to its forever home last week.

Thank you so much Meredith.

This painting was part of a 30 paintings in 30 days challenge

I did a year or so ago.

Since I shut down my website and don't have all my work listed anywhere else, yet, 

she had to really search hard to find it.

I am so grateful!

On the weight loss front,

I've been participating in an 8-week online challenge with my daughter-in-law Angela.

The first several weeks we were on vacation and I was not very successful in the weight loss.  I did get my exercise in daily, so that was a plus, but it would have been easy to just chuck it and continue on with my old habits.  

We report our weight loss on Monday morning,

so when I stepped on the scale this morning,

I almost held my breath.

Finally,

a decent weight loss for all my hard work.

4 1/2 lbs gone for a total of 7 so far.

On the organization front,

I laid out a plan for the year of purging

 a different room every month. 

I started with the room that needs the most help

and usually gets the least,

our bedroom.

I went through every drawer, my armoire and my closet

and I purged all sorts of stuff.

I have lots of catch all surfaces in my room,

and they are all clean, 

right now.

I'm working on forming new habits to keep it that way.

I'm telling you all this,

for the one thing that is critical in forming new habits,

and making life style changes is

Accountability!

So now you know!

Post in the comments things you are working on changing.

We'll be your support group.

Check back in next Monday,

for more motivation. 

  

I have added a new tab on my blog on available paintings and I am adding more all the time. 

UPDATE - 2021

I have worked on many of those same goals but 2020 saw me make real headway in most if not all of them.  I have lost 30 pounds over the last year and I'm pretty happy about that.  We've moved so all that downsizing and purging really came in handy.  My home is much smaller and we've gotten rid of loads of "stuff" so things are better on that front as well.  

I've been painting and teaching a lot.  I would love to have you join me.  

Click HERE to get the skinny on my Beginner's Painting Club, a monthly membership created specifically for beginning painters or those who've been painting for a while but aren't happy with their results.  You can learn all about it and get on the waiting list for when it opens again in May.  

Click HERE to see my online painting course

painting with acrylics 101.

Thanks for stopping in and have a great day. 

 

Course Correction - Good or Bad? Motivation Monday

Course Correction or Changing Course?

So, what is the difference between a course correction and changing course?

Pilots have to plot a course.

Report their intended course.

Check their course.

and sometimes, they must make a course correction.

Other times the plane is diverted to a completely different airport, possibly in a completely different state.

Making a course correction is not a bad thing, particularly if the error is found early and the correction isn't drastic.

Sometimes the error goes on for a while and will require serious effort to make the correction.

Even then, if the correction will put you back on the path to where you want to go, it is still a very good thing.

Sometimes, we just abandon the course when the going gets too tough, and often right before we are about to achieve the goal we set out for ourselves.

Let me explain this in painting terms:

When you first start a painting, you have an idea.

You sketch out your idea, maybe.

You set up a palette.

You get out your brushes.

You make sure you have everything you need.

You start the painting.

For me I start with the underpainting.

I block in large areas of color and it doesn't look like much.

I add cool somewhat blurry details in the background.

I add warmer more defined details in the mid ground.

I add even warmer brighter details in the foreground.

Still it doesn't look good and I get frustrated.

Doesn't look like much

I have two choices at this point.

Push forward adding highlights and shadows

(course corrections)

Or abandon the whole painting

(change courses)

I'm sticking with it.  Not sure why at this point.

Experience has taught. me to keep going.

Keep adding shadows for depth

and highlights to give the painting life and form.

I'm starting to like at least this part.

Sometimes it is one simple brushstroke 

that changes a painting.

Oh yea, now we're getting someplace.

One stroke where you realize,

Oh Yea!  This is going to work!

This is going to be beautiful.

I am going to love this.

I'm falling in love with this.

What if I had given up before I got to the ONE Stroke?

Think of all the lessons I would never have learned if I gave up before I got to the magical part of the painting.

Almost every artist passes through the ugly phase of almost every painting, then the magic starts to happen.

But you have to pass through the ugly part first.

You don't get the magic first and then go through the ugly.

It's always the other way around.

So I guess the moral of the story is,

DO NOT GIVE UP!

Keep learning,

Keep figuring things out

Keep improving

Keep painting

and loving it.

I really would love to have you come along on my art journey as I try to get motivated on Monday mornings, teach and practice art concepts on Wednesday and bring a famous artist to life on Famous Artist Friday.

If you did not receive this in your inbox, you are missing all those great topics and posts.

My art blog is all about teaching beginning artists how to achieve things, how to have fun in the process, and how to appreciate the art of other people.

Yes, you can buy my art on here, but it's definitely not the main focus of this blog.  In fact, I've been told you have to look pretty hard to find my art that is for sale.

So, if you are a beginning artist or a home school family who could use some help, this is a perfect place to start as you travel on that fun road to appreciating, understanding and creating your own art.

Scroll back to the top right hand side,

put your email in the box that say "Subscribe to my blog"

(very original Sharon) 

You will receive a confirmation email and you will need to click the link in that email showing that you did in fact sign up.  Finally you need to drag that email into your priority folder so the goodness I'm sending you will not get lost in cyber purgatory.

Click HERE to see more Motivation Monday posts.

Click HERE to see FREE 10 minute art lessons.

Click HERE to begin your journey learning about famous artists.

Thanks for stopping by today.

I hope you enjoyed this post and if you know someone who would love it also, please feel free to share it, so you can all become part of the Painter Nation!

Leave a comment below on your own struggle with course corrections or changing courses.