apropos of may, wishstudio is cocooning.  we have moved from our Newburyport studio and are in transition to our new space, soon to be announced!  along with a very much needed personal hiatus, the timing of this move just seemed a natural segue into a month of quietly recalibrating and readying for what’s coming next, so i’m letting go of resistance and just going with it.  you’ll still find me here and there, staying inspired and catching up with all you lovely folks, fueling up during the metamorphosis. i’m excited for what’s to come.

loyal members, you will receive a special update shortly from me about this gap in studio offerings… thanks for patiently hanging in.

so, this post is also a big permission slip to give yourself what you are needing right in this moment (a lesson i keep bumping into again and again), even if it seems impossible.  nothing is ever impossible… just ask alice.

see you in june!

Hugs & Wishes… mindy

art and words by Jennifer Parker

“The heart is like a garden. It can grow compassion or fear, resentment or love.
What seeds will you plant there?”
~Buddha

The ancient Taoists observed five forces of cyclical movement in nature, which translate as the Five Elements. We are currently residing in the wood element. Wood is “rising”—upward and outward energy—it is the time for personal and creative growth, inspiration, motivation, rebirth, planning and follow through.

Life is cyclical— it ebbs and flows. For me, both professionally and personally, the past three years have been a period of growth. In my early thirties, I was safe and comfortable—the common illusion of stability. I loved my job, my boyfriend, and I pursued my passion for travel. I was in the flow. But by 2009, my foundation started shaking. The Northern California satellite studio office that I managed closed and my seven-year personal relationship ended. The ebb was devastating!

Wood is rooting yourself to earth, standing tall and rising above your fears, and persevering through the uncertainty and heartache. In 2010, I was ready to rebuild my life. Wonderful job offers started to flow into my life. I felt ecstatic (and a little overwhelmed) with so many options and opportunities blossoming. Unfortunately, all of the job offers required relocating — I was happy in the Bay Area and wasn’t ready to make that commitment. And energetically, I felt a nudge (perhaps a shove or push) to reach higher. The universe whispered: “You’ve worked hard and you deserve it! You now have permission. Claim your personal creative power and create the life you desire!” So, I took my passions—travel stories, spirituality, my collection of artworks, photography—and mixed it with my 15 years of career experience in vintage design to create my own personal style.

Supporting myself and barely making ends meet, I chose the path of licensing and decided against using an agent. I wanted to learn everything firsthand. Determined and confident, I naively jumped into the business world thinking I knew enough about the stationery industry to make a go of it. I was securing contracts, but I wasn’t quite prepared for the obstacles that lay on my path.

I quickly realized that it is not an easy task to reinvent myself and become one of a kind in the market today. Even though I am able to use my career experience as leverage with manufacturers, most consumers are unaware of my extensive design background with the vintage style. An abundance of vintage paper companies have surfaced in the past decade that are using the same or similar antique art resources I have used for most of my career. Comparisons were evident and unavoidable.

So, how does an artist become recognized as unique and original when artists are influenced by the same design trends? As I stare into the crowded vintage ephemera fishbowl, I ask, ”Where do I go from here?” My reflection appears in the water. It seems to say, “Stand tall and grounded in your truth and passions. Create from your core, the place that feels true and flows naturally. Nothing else matters.” Like the Five Elements, we are kindred spirits on the same cycles – we are all connected and actually help each other succeed.

In order to grow, I needed to make mistakes, test my creative passions, and accept the comparisons. I am becoming stronger and wiser for choosing the true path. Learning how to stand tall in midst of the growing pains is one of the greatest blessings —the quickest pathway to inner freedom.

With care and dedication, my tree is beginning to bloom. As we move into the next cycle, the FIRE element — “forceful” energy expresses itself as joy, expansion, love, laughter, transformation and enthusiasm. The rays of sunlight are fostering my creative growth and I can see the results of what I’ve planted. I am ready to celebrate my progress and accomplishments thus far as I continue on this journey of personal and professional self discovery

{Stand Tall greeting card is available for purchase on my website}

What I’ve learned in the past few years about growth:

1) Be true to and believe in yourself. Compromising your heart’s natural creative expression because of how others may perceive you is like death to your spirit. Be bold, be nice, but don’t hold back. Be fierce in your truth.

2) Mistakes WILL happen! Mistakes are opportunities to LEARN and GROW. Most importantly, you must forgive yourself, then others, and then move on.

3) When the going gets challenging or confusing, just keep going, knowing you are always doing your very best.

4) Be open to re-evaluating your goals, making adjustments when things feel strange or you feel stuck. And feel free to let go of what is not working.

5) If something doesn’t feel right, back off and let it sit for a few days. The answer will eventually come.

6) The universe always provides what you need. Trust the process.

What are your experiences of creative/life ebb and flow? What are your experiences of creative/life ebb and flow?

Jennifer Parker is an innovative graphic and mixed media artist from Mill Valley, California. She has been art directing and designing gift products for over a decade. Her extensive knowledge of vintage imagery “ephemera”, coupled with a mastery of digital collage, have set Jennifer’s signature style apart in paper product design. Jennifer’s designs are inspired by her global excursions, spiritual interests, and her sensitivity to natural materials, layered textures and nuanced colors.

Many of my designs are inspired by personal stories. I weave a passion for travel, life experiences, and spirituality into my art. My resources include copyright-free images, natural or found objects, ephemera artwork that I’ve purchased while traveling abroad or at antique paper shows in the US. I also incorporate my own photographs of rustic walls, doors, and wood for background textures. When appropriate, I weave in an empowering message to complete the design tapestry. My deepest wish is that my artwork inspires women to envision, explore and express their unique gifts with the world. Please read what others have to say about my work.

I’m happy to announce that my Etsy Store officially opened last month. My art prints make meaningful gifts for yourself, a loving family member or a dear friend. There are many formats and prices to choose from. Acid-free Laser Art Prints, Premium Quality Giclee Prints, Art Boards, and Framed Prints. Stay tuned for handmade glass trays and plates. If you interested in purchasing greeting cards $4 including shipping, please visit my website.

BIG thanks to the lovely Laura and Tina of the wonderfully inspiring collaborative blog Laura TWO Tina for awarding Wishstudio with a Liebster blog award!  i’m so honored (blushing, really!) by such a delightful surprise and nod. Liebster is a collaborative effort – you know i’m a sucker for collaborations – to shine a light on up-and-coming blogs.  A way to leave a love-filled trail of breadcrumbs in the blogosphere for others to follow.   The origins are unknown but point to German roots, with the English translation meaning darling, beloved, and sweetheart.  i’m so excited that i get to pass this little nugget along!

here are the rules:

To accept the award you must do a few things:

here in this growing season, and as part of our April Wishful Living theme {grow}, some cool ideas and a little eye candy for inspired container gardening… let your imagination grow wildly!

a couple of days ago i was inspired to go hunting around to salvage a piece for a rustic table top that could serve as our new dining room/kitchen table.  i’ve always had a love/hate relationship with our current table, a smallish, round pedestal table with drop leaves which made it easily fit into the tiny kitchen we had had at the time.  we bought it when our first son was very young and still in his high chair, so maybe 7 years ago.

you can imagine as the kids have grown the messes at said table have grown exponentially as well. the grooves on the small round tabletop, which in the beginning i thought added charm and character, have been the bane of my otherwise (somewhat) peaceful existence.  they drove me crazy. i’m sure you can picture it… every crumb, every spill, every tiny grain of sand that could find refuge in one of those cracks, did indeed.  there was never any quick clean up, in fact, every time i would wipe the table, more stale little bits would surface the way the same way beach sand always finds it’s way into our living room – unavoidable and never ending.

aside from the crevices, the table in all honesty was suddenly feeling a bit small with the four of us sitting around it and the accumulation of all of our stuff that seems to gravitate to this surface.  i hadn’t really realized it, but suddenly i saw that we had outgrown the old table.

i’ve always had romantic visions of having a great big old farm table, one that would invite gatherings of friends and family, good food and laughter, and of course crafty goodness. something rustic, unassuming, simple, but with the grace of line and spaciousness. there is something about a table, a good solid piece that becomes the central part of daily life in such a seamless and integral way. to me there is something sentimental about it, it’s comfort, it’s togetherness, it’s a practice and meditation, a canvas on which so much life is lived upon. yes, a table holds stories and memories and years.

it didn’t take me long to find what i was looking for.  hidden in a local antique shop’s $10 sale garage this giant, vintage, oak monstrosity sat partially unfinished and without it’s original base. an orphan of sorts.  it was beautifully crafted with gorgeous heavy moldings and a very unique shape.  there was something about it, and at ten dollars i couldn’t pass it up.  i couldn’t even buy a piece of plywood at that price.  the dealer said i definitely got the deal of the day!  so in the car it went.

i had planned to marry the top to a frame and base i already had, another table i had bought at a steal due to the significant crack on it’s surface, but i had loved it’s basic design and could ignore the imperfection for the price.  we loved and used it for almost two decades as a dining room table for two, a desk, an office table, and for many years as my beloved studio table as now tells the tale of so many colorful paint splatters on it’s surface.  another piece in many ways we’ve outgrown, though i ‘m not sure i can part with it just yet.

i’m not sure how the new table will come together, if it will get a white coat of paint and then a fun and utilitarian top coat of chalk board paint, or if it will be stripped of the dark stain that is on half of it’s surface and simply be refinished, but already i love it. the frame fits perfectly, the old now a foundation for the new, and with much debate and hemming and hawing i finally took the heavy molding off around the perimeter finally realizing it wasn’t really “right” otherwise. it comfortably seats 6 with room to spare. yes, grace of line and space. just what i wanted.

already it is special. it has a story, a beginning. maybe that’s what the last table was missing, a tale of it’s adoption as it was just an uninspired furniture store purchase. i never really felt connected to it (does that sound strange? it sounds strange saying it.). somehow i feel like i am both unearthing something as well as clearing and creating a new space for our family and things to come, seaming in a new piece of history and possibility.  the table really is the center of our home, a touchstone in the chaos of all of our lives. there’s no doubt why i deeply sense it’s soul-filled substance, constitution and form. a tangible and visceral connection for sure.

joining in the festivities of our Artisan Trunk Show today, i have released 6 special edition wishBIG necklaces in my Etsy Shop!  each is a one-of-a-kind piece of art and poetry,  in collaboration with Stacy De La Rosa of Bella Wish with a special hand stamped sterling silver, numbered charm that adorns each unique piece.

these were so fun and special to make, truly a labor of love… tiny poems, little collages made from new and vintage papers and beaded charms in 6 distinct color pallets. i’m not sure if i’ll be making more of these, so if you love one, grab it and fill it with your wishes

head on over to the shop for more photos and information

Green is the color of nature, fertility, life. it symbolizes self-respect, freshness, fertility and well being, and is the color of balance. Green also means learning, growth and harmony. In heraldry, green indicates growth and hope. It is the master healer and the life force.

Green is the color of nature and has a strong emotional correspondence with safety. Dark green is also commonly associated with money. It is often favored by well balanced people. It’s the most restful color for the human eye. Green suggests stability and endurance. Sometimes green denotes lack of experience; for example, a ‘greenhorn’ is a novice.

Green Energy:

Green contains the powerful energies of nature, growth, desire to expand or increase. Balance and a sense of order are found in the color green. Change and transformation is necessary for growth, and so this ability to sustain changes is also a part of the energy of green.

green’s element is, Wood which is associated with renewal and new beginnings.

Inspired ideas for green:

* plant something, indoors or out
* lay down in the grass and daydream, meditate
* wear a piece of wooden jewelery
* grow fresh herbs in your kitchen
* eat lots of leafy greens (salads, juice,fresh veggies on the grill)
* add a pretty plant to your living area
* paint on a wood panel for a change
* gaze at the blossoming spring leaves
* wear jade, aquamarine, peridot, turquoise, emerald
* create on bark… draw, write, make little scrolls
* go for long photo-walks in the woods
* think sustainability, hope, and growth as prompts for creative living

Saturday, April 21st
10am to 3pm
in the Wishstudio

featuring:

Sweet Mojo Apothecary & Junque Revival Jewelery by Jessica Moreau-Berry & Jolene Hoch
WeeHah! Greeting Cards by Louisa Wimberger
Art by Brittany Soucy

*******

also featuring… wishBIG necklaces by Mindy Tsonas, a special collaboration with Bella Wish

*6 limited edition and numbered necklaces will be released in the wishstudio etsy shop
and also available at the show!

{#5 speak to me}

come by for something special and handmade… gorgeous art, yummy bath and body products, cards for all occasions, and a little creative merriment.  we will be making and trading artist trading cards (ATCs) in the studio all day, an open project free for all… come join us!

by bridgette heidi newfell

{my paris address}

{along the river}

{town hall carousel}

{metro station, and huge glass beads… design is everywhere!}

{me… very happy… in sensory overdrive…}

{top of the Pompidou Museum of Contemporary Art, cafe}

{forms for decoupage in the department store!}

{even mc donalds looks lovely!}

{beauty in the grocery store too}

{sacred places… beauty that made me cry}

{night cafe in parisian pink and gold}

by Amy Flurry

Creative collaborations are great fun, but they’re also a smart marketing move!

It is easy to get people excited about DIY publicity (it works!) and about opportunities that come of sharing your story with thousands of people (for free!) But if you’ve made your passion profitable, you also know that the business backend can be a time vacuum and zap the creative juices you once called on to keep your marketing efforts fresh.

That’s why I love and encourage collaborating to keep create content –like blog posts, mailers, newsletters—engaging. In fact, I devoted an entire chapter to the idea in my book, featuring Rebecca Wood, owner of R. Wood Ceramic Studio (www.rwoodstudio.com) in Athens, Georgia and friends. Instead of letting their need for editorial-style content become a burden, she treated it as an opportunity to get together with friends with businesses and to share inspirations and bolster their outreach efforts. They choose a day each quarter (so pictures reflect the changing seasons) and a different location each time to finish projects, style vignettes with their products, cook, craft and eat together.  “Make beauty, inspire each other, photograph it all,” says Wood. “It’s like a retreat, with a purpose.” At the end of the day, they have enough photographs to spice up their social media needs and to keep fans engaged in their story and brand lifestyle.

How does this approach also help in landing press?  The first thing media influencers look at when you reach out to them is the picture associated with the pitch. After reading a pitch, editors then visit your website, poke around the About page, your blog, Twitter feed or inspiration board to get to know your brand better. They are looking for a compelling story, one that, if they covered, would inspire their readers and even better the publication by inviting you in to their community.  A good brand tells a story through how it handles every single photograph along the way.

Collaborating like this can have even broader perks. Recently, some friends who were also jewelry designers threw a party in New York as a way to better get to know some influential bloggers and to introduce those bloggers to their brand. The designers invited friends from home to join them, to share the ride and rise; a stylist served as the group’s muse and model in the lead up, and a photographer made her first trip to New York to document the behind the scenes, other happily contributed products to fill out the goodie bags and to also enjoy the marketing opportunity. When it was all said and done, each participant blogged about it with their own spin, shared images with their own communities and expanded the reach of the host designers substantially. And they had a good time doing it, developing new friendships along the way.

How do you collaborate in business?  Are you in the habit of photographing it? Before you know it you’ll have a deep well of images to pull from to keep your customers, friends, and vendors captivated and coming back for more.

Amy is a longtime freelance editor and contributor to Country Living, Lucky, Better Homes & Gardens, InStyle, Daily Candy, Conde Nast Traveler, Paste, Jane and others. She also co-founded Paper-Cut-Project, a company that conceives highly crafted installations in paper for companies including Hermes, Cartier, The Bay, Christies, Kate Spade and Korres.

Her new book, Recipe for Press, pitch your story like the pros & create a buzz, represents Amy’s irrepressible desire to share with small business owners, designers, crafters and local brands how to create fruitful relationships with media influencers and score valuable press. It is a “how-to-be-your-own-publicist” guide to all of the information a seasoned editor wants to share with you before you pitch your story.

Available on Amazon and at www.recipeforpress.com for $23.95

In this e-course, you will create a ringed journal and then use it to explore and determine your personal truths so you can use those truths to live your life to the fullest.

• Step by Step creation of a ringed journal designed to hold your explorations from this e-course
• 6 soul-searching prompts (as printable pdfs) to help you determine your core truths
• for each prompt I will post my journal spread for you to see – and a video talking about it, what I was thinking, how I completed it, including techniques I use and how I delved into the prompt.
  
  
  

Hope Wallace Karney is known for mixing old elements with modern principles to create unique and whimsical designs. Her work has been featured in several national magazines, including Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion and Country Living.

Hope also has a love for art journaling and enjoys sharing her pages with others to inspire them to start a journal of their own.

Look at the stars
Look how they shine for you
And everything you do
Yeah they were all yellow

I came along
I wrote a song for you
And all the things you do
And it was called yellow

So then I took my turn
Oh what a thing to have done
And it was all yellow

Your skin
Oh yeah your skin and bones
Turn into something beautiful
You know you know I love you so
You know I love you so

I swam across
I jumped across for you
Oh what a thing to do
Cause you were all yellow

I drew a line
I drew a line for you
Oh what a thing to do
And it was all yellow

Your skin
Oh yeah your skin and bones
Turn into something beautiful
And you know
For you I’d bleed myself dry
For you I’d bleed myself dry

It’s true
Look how they shine for you
Look how they shine for you
Look how they shine for
Look how they shine for you
Look how they shine for you
Look how they shine

Look at the stars
Look how they shine for you
And all the things that you do

~ coldplay

*{for my dad, love, light and yellow}

“If you do not feel yourself growing in your work and your life broadening and deepening,
if your task is not a perpetual tonic to you, you have not found your place.“

~ Orison Swett Marden

by kat pevzner

“Feel yourself being quietly drawn
by the deeper pull of what you truly love”
~ Rumi

84 Miles. That’s how far it takes for me to find my place. I drive 84 miles one or two times a month. My car creaks out of the dusty driveway, bombs into the city while my supplies rattle around in boxes, bags and cases in the back of my old Subaru. I’m off to Wishstudio. I’ve been spending a bit of time up there as artist in residence. I’m planning my paper cutting (and other chaos) as the miles roll by.

From the moment I turn out of my little Plumfield Lane to just about 10 miles in I’ve already compiled my “to do” list for the week. I make a mental note of a few groceries we need, a few phone calls I haven’t returned, camp enrollment packets that I’ve had to remind myself (for the 10th time!) to fill out and which kid needs to be dropped off at whatever place on whichever day… blah blah blah… head noise.

Miles 10 to about 22, I’m wondering if I turned off the heat… did I? Didn’t I? Did I? Didn’t I? I turn on NPR and geek out for a spell while I try to quiet my inner heat miser. Yes, I seriously spend 12 miles freaking out about my electric bill. Hard times… you know?

Miles 22-38… ahh… the city… it starts with a few low buildings. I notice the windows, the dimension they bring to the façade. I notice the rise, the frame-outs, and the reflections. I realize that I MUST HAVE A WINDOW in the work I do today. The road rises, it curves, the speed picks up a bit and suddenly the sun takes a perfect turn and lights up the sky in a delicious warm, sleepy kind of way right before I dip into the tunnel….

The tunnel… twists, dims, vibrates. I think about how steady I have to hold my hand when I work with an Exacto knife. One wrong move and someone could lose an arm! A star could lose its 5th point.! A sparrow could lose its tail! I could never find peace like that in a rumbled tunnel such as this. One last swoop and then… SPARKLE! … into the LIGHT at the end.

Miles 39-52… over the bridge and straight onto RT 1. The lines of the bridge strike me as poetic. Think to myself, “I could cut a bridge if I wanted”. I could measure out the braces and the barriers wield my knife into the grating and make sharp lines, lines that are strong enough to hold up. It would be strong like this bridge that cushions and floats my car over the water. Dear bridge, thank you for holding me so safely as I ride up to Newburyport.

RT 1… oh you crazy beast! Cars careening in from the right, businesses jam packed together and huge overbearing chain restaurants line the street like parade goers. Vehicles weave intricate patterns in between each other, all over the road making a statement that goes something like, “I can drive this way because I’m from MA”. While this madness goes on all around me, I see colors work their way into the corner of the piece I started on my last trip to Wishstudio. I was really unhappy with how I left it. It was too “cute”, too “crafty”. I wanted it to say something important… and I left that day feeling like I didn’t get to speak my mind. I know that I can spend miles 50-52 scanning the color department of my mind until my finger stops on…… something dark! That’s it… I need to be a dark color. There… new direction.

Miles 53-54… let’s review. What have we got so far: windows and dark colors. Check.

Miles 55-70… the crammed businesses give way to green. The tree line gets taller. To the right is a cliché of a farm yard. No lie- two silos with a marquis, “Alfalfa Farm’. Brilliant! After a while NPR gets boring (I know… funny, right?) so I switch to WERS, an Emerson College radio station. I catch the tail end of the Unitarian Universalist church service broadcast. I happen to be a UU, so it brought familiar humble warmth into my car as my odometer ticked off the miles. The speaker was reflecting on “truth”. She spoke about how to get people to believe your truth, and whether your truth was the same as someone else’s truth. It was a profound enough moment for me, but suddenly it was enhanced by a giant hawk, diving into the median and tilting to the right in an upswing right in front of my car!

Truth: I almost peed my pants.

More truth: once I calmed down, I knew I had to ‘put a bird on it’ when I got to the studio.

Miles 70 to 75… I’m thinking about what I left behind the last time I was at Wishstudio. I’m thinking of the feeling I was left with. I’m thinking of all the things I plan for today. I’m thinking that I’m going to make it count. I’m thinking that I have a much better plan this time.

Mile 76… I’m thinking, “I just blew past my exit!”. Crap.

Miles 76-84… finally, back on track. I sail off the exit and take a straightaway into Newburyport. I round a corner and BAM… there’s the harbor; there are the oven baked brick buildings, the cobblestone streets, the funkalicious little business. One more left turn and there it is. A red lamp hangs over the door. A beacon that welcomes me. I see Her Royal Pinkness, Mindy sitting quietly as I do the slow drive by to park. I gather myself. I gather my supplies.

I gather.

I’m here. I’ve arrived.

red tail hawk, art by pixie campbell

i am on a precipice.  every fiber of my being is pushing me to this new place.  my life is undeniably growing in every single way possible.

it feels like a great wave of energy pooling and swirling, and i am digging and searching and creating new space for a way to release this energy into the world.  lately, i have been seeing hawks everywhere i look… setting in a tree, gliding across my sky, diving fiercely, appearing as a reminder, a harbinger of something.  his presence has been comforting and also very curious, so i did a little research and this is what i found:

“In representation to humanity, the hawk is called messenger, protector and visionary. Keen vision is one of its greatest gifts. Hawks see things others miss.

The hawk comes to you indicating that you are now awakening to your soul purpose, your reason for being here. It can teach you how to fly high while keeping yourself connected to the ground.  As you rise to a higher level, your psychic energies are awakening and the hawk can help you to keep those senses in balance. Its message for you is to be open to hope and new ideas, to extend the vision of your life.

The Hawk teaches you to be observant and take a close look at your surroundings. It soars with the power to overcome difficult situations. It soars in circles over the life of the earth, asking you to circle over your life and view it from a higher perspective.  The Hawk has a distinct cry, one that most people are aware of. Its cry signifies awareness. If you hear the cry of the hawk use your intuitive ability to discern the message and seek the truth.

If a hawk has soared into your life, you require a higher perspective. You need to see the details of what is going on and look at the bigger picture. Take a look at your situation from above.”

yes.

growing into your life is exciting and joyous, incredibly freeing, but you can also run into growing pains.  so grow gently.  protect yourself.  see the bigger picture.  fly but stay grounded.  seek the truth and you shall find your Life rising up to meet you.

by Tara Swiger

I just finished the longest project of my life – my first book. During the process, I was vitally aware of inspiration – I needed a daily dose to keep writing and to keep living my life.

How do you stay inspired during a long project?

*** Tara Swiger is a maker, writer and Starship Captain.  read more about her creative pursuits and life on her website and blog taraswiger.com

setting down the foundation for the life you want to live is no small feat.  it is also something worth digging into and reinforcing on a regular basis.  this is hard work as fundamentally our lives are made sturdy and sustainable by working on those core elements that are less shiny, less sexy… finances, support systems, organization, understanding how you operate and what makes you tick so you can integrate and embrace best practices and systems that nurture you.  these are the things that give our lives real roots.

quite often we have to move through the discomfort of dealing with these aspects in order to create the solid ground for our lives to flourish. this is sometimes my struggle too, to get moving through the muck.  it’s very easy to get stuck or to want to avoid this discomfort.

a lesson that is always reinforced, always, is that even a little momentum and a small amount on intent and focus can shift things to a better place.  the anticipation of the discomfort is always worse than the reality. i tend to play up the drama, and in our minds this only serves to create a kind of imaginary gridlock.

so as you root into your life, go easy.  take small steps into the challenges and shore up your efforts with small goals and little rewards.  it’s about the long-term goal, a happy and sustainable creative lifestyle, an so the work will always worth the effort.

rooting is ongoing, like feathering your nest.  think of the upkeep as reinforcement, self-care, a necessary kindness you undertake for yourself so that when it’s time to add sparkles and dreams they will truly have the space to shine!

a little creative magic happened in the studio this weekend… thanks susan!

we had so much fun trying some cool ARTlab techniques, bubble printing,
string painting, and painting with salt!

buy a copy of this fun and inspiring book here.

by latisha guthrie

We shall not cease from our exploration
And at the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time
~T.S. Eliot

I’m a natural gypsy soul. I love to try anything once. I’ve lived on a beach in Spain. I’ve taught English to Vice Presidents in the Czech Republic. I managed six figure retirement plans in Washington when I was 19. But none of those experiences have been as fulfilling as finding my creative muse as a mama. And don’t be fooled, it can be tricky business. A creative fire lit from some place deep within after the birth of my children, I spent several years sampling the smorgasbord and trying on every possibility.  I’ve painted, crocheted, worked with clay, made jewelry, the evidence of so many hats tried on gathering dust in a craft pantry now rarely opened. That was the easy part. But once I came face to face with my soulcraft, I experienced an awakening. There is lack of sleep. There is sacrifice. There is promise and presence and power. And eventually, there is an intense desire to lay down roots. You start to realize how important it is to build a steady foundation upon which your creative work can flourish in order to share your light with the world. You take time out for yourself. You hire a babysitter. Mountains move, tides shift and action must be taken or the tidal wave of doubt can push you back into darkness until you’ve forgotten your gift.

In about a month, I will be moving my family back home in order to grow my creative work in a big bold way. Back to the home my gypsy soul was certain I’d never see again when I left it almost 15 years ago. You see, digging deeper to find out what you really want sometimes means being willing to swallow a worm or two.  As an herbal artisan I find my creative inspiration in nature. The muse dances with me when I have dirt under my fingers and mud under my toes. She comes in the whisper of the stories carried by the wind. In the palette of the wildflowers that play like a technicolor waking dream. I find home in nature anywhere, but the muse is calling me back to the place where my childlike wonder for the natural world established its first roots. I am returning to the land I know to rechild the mother that has become a little too serious about it all. I’m going home to honor an established system of roots, to give my children reverence for their ancestry, and to build our legacy.

We’re taking a big risk. We’ve gotten rid of everything we own to start fresh in an old new place. There are 100 reasons why we shouldn’t go, but it’s only the one reason we should that matters: it’s where our heart leads us. We’ve spent plenty of time gathering dream seeds. Now is the season to plant them and watch them grow.

Latisha is a passionate earth lovin, community herbalartist. Mama of two desert pixies, married to the one. Join her adventures of the savory life at her blog Herbmother.com. Before she leaves her desert home for an ocean view, she’s dropping sunshine seeds all over the world with The Sowing Sunshine Project. Read more on the blog and send her an email to receive a FREE packet of dream seeds.

the birds are singing… the waves are beckoning… the light is waxing… the sun is warming… the buds are plumping… ideas are brewing… the energy is rising… the town is bustling… nature is calling… juices are flowing… the beach is enticing… the kids are running… the geese are leaving… toes are baring…  temps are rising… the grass is greening… the farms are busy… the daffodils are blooming… the sky somehow seems wider.

embrace the possibilities!  spring is here.