Blog-Tember | Day 22 Creativity

Today's prompt: Get creative! Sketch, paint, dance, play music, whatever, give us a glimpse!

I absolutely adore this prompt! I have been SO excited about it. 

This quote by Kurt Vonnegut really reminds me what art is all about. It's about staying curious and getting creative. I am always amazed by how versatile being creative really is. My husband shows his creativity through what he cooks in the kitchen and his meal presentation. My friend shows her creativity through making her own hand-lettered stationary. My other friend makes herself pillows with left over fabric. My family is all very creative when it comes to being strategic and you can see this come out very strongly when we play games together! 

I drew and wrote everything growing up. I was always "making books" complete with illustrations, staples and printer paper. It was usually about dogs, my sisters and swimming pools. They were so much fun. 

But I"ll never forget my freshmen year as a 13 year old. It was my very first art class in high-school. It suddenly felt serious and stern. I felt perfectionistic and bored in this class working to make grids, graphs and lines as straight as possible. It didn't take long before I knew I couldn't keep up with everyone's parallel lines and neat angles. I dropped the class and dropped "art" through all of high-school. 

What I didn't realize was that I still continued doing art at home, whether it be journaling, craft projects with my mom, writing letters, singing, doing my make-up or decorating my bedroom. Art really is about helping the soul grow. And the soul grows best through freedom and space and curiosity. It does not grow through rigidity, judgment and perfection. To create art is to be brave because it is embracing one's truest self. 

I love being creative. I love walking through Michaels and dreaming up a new craft idea or art project. Right now my "go-to" is my art journal with large blank white pages. I love hand-lettering and quotes. My medium is either water-color pencils or oil pastels. They are so forgiving! I adore them. My mother-in-law bought me these amazing water-color pastels for Thanksgiving last year and I have been hooked ever since. For me, taking time out to doodle or write is self-care time for me. It helps my soul grow. I connect with God here. 

I can't wait to read about what makes your soul grow and what makes you come alive!