Spent some time back east with family for a few days. Every year I go there are so many changes. New shopping malls and streets in all new places. We drove around town looking around at all the changes. My Dad took the photo above on one of our trips around town.
I did learn something new about travel...I love Jet Blue! The seats are not too close together and the XM radio and Cable Channels are great. I also enjoyed my Nook Color. I purchased it for the trip and it was perfect for reading magazines and books. I could make notes in the Nook Color and highlight sentences to refer back to later. It's my new favorite toy.
Aren't these the most beautiful sugar packets ever! I saw these in a Coffee Shop in Santa Cruz, CA. Each one is unique and holds 2 perfect scoops of sugar. Little things like this bring me such joy!
Before I begin to journal I look for inspiration. Sometimes I need to go to a new location or have new experiences to spark a creative journaling idea. I went to a local park in a new part of town I haven't explored in a while and walked along the water and took a few photos. In the distance I saw a park with a well manicured lawn. I could not wait to get over there to take off my shoes and stand in the cool grass. I love the feeling of grass under my feet. This grass was so thick I could hardly see my toes.
Here is my most recent manifestation from my Vision Board. As I shared in my vision board class, images are powerful tools for manifesting our desires. If we set the intention with images or words we must also be ready to take the actions as they come until the dream is realized...
In January 2011 I put an image on my Vision Board of a smiling woman with naturally curly hair. I have always wanted naturally curly hair. I started having my hair straightened from the time I was 7 years old until about 5 years ago. (a long time) I never thought I had curly hair until I decided to find out what my "real" hair looked like over 10 years ago. For a short period of time I stopped straightening my hair. My hair grew into an unruly frizz ball and I returned to straightening my hair.
So I set my intention in January 2011 to take my hair on again and learn how to manage and style it. July I met a woman at an event with the most beautiful curly hair. I asked her about her hair and she gave me the name of a salon in San Francisco,CA (Madusalon.com) that taught her how to manage her naturally curly hair. The salon specializes in naturally curly hair. They offer product recommendations and prepare a plan of action to restore your curls. I made an appointment and today I am rockin' the curls I always wanted. They are more like waves now but my stylist gave me a plan and each day some new curl forms. It may take 6 months for the full curl pattern to return but I'm on my way.
Set and intention, take the actions and don't give up. :)
"Explore new techniques... Deeper into techniques...Business opportunities...The world around me."
What's happened since you made your creative resolution in January 2011?
Explore, has helped focus my artistic energies as well as actively search for ways to make my art pay. More in-depth exploration has been in screen printing and layering design.
I traveled to Virginia and South Carolina where I renewed friendships and further explored Charleston, SC and Ashville, NC.
How has your creative resolution evolved since you made your declaration?
It hasn't changed. I needed a focus and I seem to have chosen wisely.
What have you learned about yourself?
I have always needed focus to stick to a plan. This hasn't changed.
What's next for your creative journey?
I have some ideas about where to submit teaching proposals and will pursue that. Since the screen printing offered lots of variety of design and mark making, I want to do more as well as use some of my work in art quilts.
Juicy Soul Retreat Sunday, September 11, 2011 11 - 5pm San Jose, Ca
With Andrea & Julie
The Juicy Soul Retreat is an afternoon of journaling and creative play. We will be teaching you how to live and create in your journals as your own personal studio for creative expression. You can begin a new journal or you can continue to build in one of your existing journals. The choice is yours. Our intention is that you spend time in your journal with paints, textures and words and revisit the bliss of journaling through art. You will learn techniques for creating backgrounds, color pages, and share your experiences in the pages of your journal.
RETREAT SCHEDULE:
Juicy Journaling Techniques
Big tables, tons of art supplies...What could be more fun! You will learn some amazing techniques to turn flat blank journals in to juicy journals for your words, poetry, collage, photos, lists, mantras, ideas, songs, prayers, intentions, stories, notes, and dreams. Bring a journal of your choosing.
Living in Your Journals:
Spilling open and celebrating your life through journaling
You will discover the wonderful world of fonts, journal page frames, images and story windows. You will be guided through the journaling process to begin to design a focus for your journal. You will explore the variety of tools available to you to support you in journaling your ideas, dreams, stories, experiences when the creative muse appears in your path. We will explore the variety of fonts, letters and methods of capturing words on a page. We will also give you a chance to journey with words, frames for your words and given journaling prompts and ideas for topics you might explore in your journal pages.
Juicy Journaling Studio
Self Guided time to experiment and play
You will continue to tell your own stories in your journal using the techniques you have learned in the early part of the workshop. We will act as muses for your creative process and offer the space you have been craving to create on big tables with tons of art supplies and friends to play with...What could be more fun! Spend time in community turning your flat blank journals in to juicy journals for your stories and dreams.
As the 4th of July weekend begins, I've been thinking about freedom. I have been on a journey over the last month or so to discover spaces in my life where I can expand my experience of freedom. When ever I call out to the universe in that way, there is a response...
I was at a workshop and saw this woman with the most beautiful curly hair. I could not stop watching her hair. I found myself looking at each shiny curl. I pulled out my mini journal and began to write about the experience. What I discovered was that its time for me to embrace my own naturally curly hair. I have been flat ironing my hair for years to hide the curls and keep things neat. I tried going naturally curly years ago and I just looked like I put my finger in an electrical socket. As I wrote in my journal, I could see how my concerns about my hair have limited me in ways I had never seen before. I never choose humid places to go on vacation because of my hair. I don't like to go to dance clubs because of my hair. I don't like to go anywhere when its rainy because of my hair. One time I had a chance to live in Seattle and I turned it down because the weather would mess up my hair. Its kind of funny when I think about it.
So my journey is taking me in a new direction...to find freedom and acceptance of my hair. I asked the woman with the beautiful curly hair where she got her hair done and she told me that there was a salon in San Francisco that specializes in curly hair exclusively. That's the next part of my journey. I'll keep you posted.
Journal prompt:
Where are you experiencing more freedom in your life?
