Art for Self Care: Watercolors for Breakfast

I had planned this morning to have an art adventure before work took me away from the beauty of spring dawning in nature.  I grabbed my backpack & my morning tea, sat outside, and quickly spotted a scene I wanted to sketch.  

Approaching the grand landscape with a 3" x 5" postcard is a wonderful way to simplify, reduce expectations, and allow yourself to play.  And playing with watercolors is one of my favorite self-care practices.

My kitty Boo joined me at my picnic table in the sunshine.

Wishing you a happy spring full of artful self-care and connection with nature!

Learning to Play with my Nature Journal

I've been watching John Muir Laws' YouTube channel lately and feeling inspired by his videos.  I have to admit, I resisted some of his advice, like Don't try to make pretty pictures.  Use your journal to explore, make discoveries and ask questions.  I thought, "But I want to make pretty pictures!"

This morning, I tried a value study of the view out of my window.  My goal was merely to try a new technique -- using a black Aquarelle pencil to draw a simplified landscape.   I can now see John's wisdom.  When you focus on "This must be beautiful!" you hamper your own creativity, trying to force an outcome.  When you approach the journal with the attitude of curiosity and exploration, you free yourself up to make discoveries and to reach a flow state. No expectations = maximum freedom and creativity.  Try it!

I sketched this with a Stabilo Aquarelle pencil, then used a waterbrush.