Friday's Freedom and Coffee Friday

Good Morning Everyone. Wow, I don't know what I did to sleep so well last night but I slept like a baby and woke up bright and early feeling refreshed and excited for my day...I just love days like this don't you?

Let me just quickly show you the sight that usually awaits me when I go up the stairs from my studio...

What could be better, ha ha.

I feel abit free today and I know exactly why! I was putting off some work that I really needed to get done, but I wasn't sure how to go about illustrating what needed to be illustrated etc, so I just kept putting it off and putting it off. Last night I worked till about 11:30 and I got both sketches done and now I feel great. Whether they are going to be approved or not is another matter but I didn't realize how badly I was procrastinating and now that I did the hard part...filling up that blank page and getting them emailed off to the authour, I feel free today to work on other things I've been craving to get to, Yay.

I think this whole nasty procrastination thing is really something that I struggle with. Do most creatives suffer from it, I don't know honestly. My best friend is such a disciplined worker, she never puts off tomorrow what she can do today, and I admire that. My creative disciplines are defiantly better than most I believe, but I am aware that I still have some work to do and I welcome the struggle actually. If any of you have any suggestions or stories about how you over come your procrastination please feel free to share. I think for me, I get so overwhelmed with trying to figure everything out ahead of time, and you just can't function that way because well of course you never know how things are going to turn out. So I think I need to just keep listening to my heart and my instinct as to the next step to take, and than do just that...just take that next little step. Viewing things in tiny little steps/stages just makes anything scary melt away...projects and plans don't seem so insurmountable. Sure, things may move forward abit more slowly, but at least I am doing what is most important; constantly trying; getting back up when I fall and always moving forward.

I do notice a difference in the last few months in my attitude towards work, a change for the better. Because I suffer from Chronic and Acute Migraines and on average have a throbbing head 4 out of 7 days a week. I find myself working really hard on days when I feel great because I know when that migraine kicks in, sometimes 2 week long ones at a time, that I work alot more slowly and sometimes I can't work at all. So yes, what I am trying to say is 'seize your creative day, don't take it for granted, and just suck it up and get to work'.

Now let me show you this week's stamps;

I am really happy with this morning's stamp of the bird. I almost stopped doing them because the 'slave to the industry' side of me poked about it's not so pleasant face and said 'this is a waste of time...' but I kept going, because I am doing these linos strictly as a creative flow exercise, I promised myself that I wouldn't worry at all about their intended application. So next week, I'll do 3 more and than 3 more the week after that...

This morning when I was making my breakfast and mixing orange juice in my favourite new glass pitcher, I realized that I should share this website with all of you. It is called Ten Thousand Villages, an online market providing third world artisans a fair income by marketing and selling their handicrafts. My friend Becca bought me a couple wonderful presents from there and I was thrilled not only at the gifts but at the whole ideal behind it. Check it out at http://www.tenthousandvillages.ca/.

I was quite excited last night, as a woman from France actually came across my blog and wrote me a quick note saying she really enjoys my blog and work. I want to send out a thank you to her and also remind myself and everyone else that leaving comments behind or sending quick emails to people you admire and whose work you love is really important and uplifting to the artists/designers/illustrators. It is my firm belief that you can never get or give enough encouragement.

Last but not least, "Earth Hour"...did you all participate? I hope so. I loved it. I heard of it briefly on the radio and automatically thought "What a great ideal...and so easy to do". I kept running to the windows to see if everyone else in our neighbourhood turned off their lights too...honestly half expecting most to not care enough. Much to my surprise and happiness I would say 97% of the lights were off in the neighbourhood. It just filled me with a lovely feeling, that people do care about the earth and they are willing to make these small efforts, it really did mean alot to my spirit. So to go abit farther my Jonathan and I have decided to do an "Earth Hour" every week. Friday nights from 8-9 or maybe even till 10pm, we are going to turn off all of our lights.

Well, with my day of freedom I am going to sketch out some long-awaited things I've been wanting to play with. Than later this afternoon is my usual Friday coffee and cake date with Maria, I always greatly look forward to this time, especially after a week of being in my studio alone.

Have an excellent weekend all, be safe and be well.