that means a fabulous weekend for YOU too! even if you are not participating in our exciting event (don’t worry, there is always next year!), you can join us for our wish*full artisan trunk show that begins tomorrow night.

get some serious shopping goodness just in time for mother’s day.  we will have exclusive gift packages made just for this event, one-of-a-kind art and jewelery only sold in this show, fabulous vintage goodies, stationary, art prints and more.

the trunk show will start promptly at 6pm saturday evening, may 1 (est) and will stay open through monday morning, may 3rd.  shop early for the best selection!

for those of you joining us for the retreat, you passwords will be emailed to you before the event begins.   also, be sure to register in the cafe as a user so you can jump into all of the wish*full conversations happening in our private discussion boards (you can not see them until you’re logged in).

it’s going to be a fun and exciting weekend here in the wishstudio, so hang around  :)

trunk show goodies (a little preview)

special book & notecard set by christine mason miller ::  castle of dreams by elayna alexandra

see you this weekend!

Read more >>

by christina rosalie

A Field Guide To Now :: It’s about this

I want to tell you about the book that I’m making, because in a way, it’s a book about you.

Or for you.

Or both. (You decide.)

IT’S ABOUT RIGHT NOW

It’s about living with gusto, and bravery, and grief, and worry, all at the same time, right there at the brim of your cup; at the cuff of your sleeve. It’s about small ordinary moments, distilled into the fine salt of the present, and about shifting your attention, so that the present can be an hourglass for the profound, almost unspeakably huge moments in your life.

It’s a book of illustrated essays. A Field Guide To Now. And for the past two months I’ve spent nearly every available hour with ink on my fingers and paint on my jeans; or writing anywhere and everywhere: in cafes, at the dining room table, on the couch with my sons twirling around me, at the kitchen counter.

Because making this book is urgent. Making this book, right now, with a one year old and a five year old, and a precarious financial situation, and a part-tome job, and a to-do list a hundred items long, is the only thing that I can do and still feel whole. I am a writer and an artist, and this truth becomes thunder in my head if I delay or dally or become distracted from it for too long.

IT’S ABOUT DEFYING A MYTH

Making this book is also about defying the odds that declare that mothers are rarely such things (artists, writers, successful in their craft.)

What is that about anyway? Why do we tell each other that story? Why do we listen? (You’ve heard it: “Oh just wait, everything changes when you have children…”)

Is it because being a mother means that your days are segmented like an orange, and you give all the plumpest pieces away to the neediest, loudest, most urgent things in your life—and those things are not, often, the things that attach you uniquely to this world, but are instead your sticky-handed kids? Why is it that children consume the very same oxygen and energy and time as art?

This book is  a dare (to myself.) It’s a prayer. It’s a challenge. It’s a way of asking and answering at the same time. If I can do this, then you can. If you can help me, then I can make something to offer to you, to help you do whatever it is you long to do, too.

It’s about being afraid, and it’s about leaping right into the middle of that fear.

It started in January when I picked the word action as my mantra for 2010—no going back with a word like that… though there have been days, many days, when I’ve considered cancelling the whole thing, giving up, shredding every page, because who cares anyway? (Do you know these voices?)

But there are also many days when my heart is hopeful (because of you) with a thousand helium balloons; a hundred red Chinese lanterns hanging in an alley in a rainstorm; a dozen finches that alight and take flight unison, the air around their wings sighing in sudden ruffled wonder.

And then there are my two small boys….

IT’S ABOUT BEING A MOTHER, AND BEING MORE THAN A MOTHER

I have two little boys who scatter the floor sharp Lego bits (always to be stepped on, unsuspecting,) and wake at 5:30 a.m., and manage, remarkably, to stain every single shirt that they wear every single day, so that there is always laundry (more laundry than I ever imagined for my life.)

My older son is five. He says things like:  “When you die and I die, we’ll come back again and find each other, Mama, right?” and also: “Why?” (repeated a thousand times a day.)

My younger son is one. He says “Mamamama,” and reaches for me with sticky hands. His face blooms into a smile as soon as I enter the room. He has just discovered that he can reach the knobs on our gas stove. He thinks removing the dirt from the potted tree by the couch is funny. Dirt gets everywhere, often.

I am mother to these little boys and while it stuns me and astounds me and fills me to the brim, it is not enough.

Is that okay?

Maybe it’s not. Maybe this is devastating and wrong to admit. Maybe when I became a mother I also made choices that I never believed in, or knew about, or understood. I have a teacher who might think this is so. She might say that writing and babies are incompatible, and some days it is hard for me to argue. My boys are like a black hole: their magnetic force, their love, their need, draws me to them, and fills me with the tremulous vibration of love.

So I am their mother. Is it also possible to take this time and shake it and make it into something else, something fertile and pliant and productive? That is what making this book is about.

AND ITS ABOUT ASKING FOR SOMETHING

It’s about asking for help in a way that I have never asked for help before. It’s about putting some numbers onto some days and hours that I might be able to spend really focusing on this work (and not on other work.).

But really, this book is about hardly anything at all—these present moments dissolve before we know it; before we’ve had a chance to dig our heels in and make our mark.

Or maybe it’s about doing just that: about making a mark on the present moment.

You can too. (Please do.)

~Love,

Christina Rosalie

***because i believe in this project so much, i am offering you a chance to support this books journey with a sweet little deal!  if you become a backer of christina’s book project from now until may 15th (when the fund raising effort ends… she’s almost there and needs to reach this goal in order to get the funding), leave a comment on this post that you have done so then drop me an email with your contact info.  i will then match your pledge in an equally valued wishcertificate that you can use towards a workshop here in the wishstudio in 2010!  go watch the inspiring video, and hurry… there is only a couple of weeks left to help!***  thank you for your support.  xo, mindy

by kate swoboda

Why, hello there! It’s great to be here.

At the beginning of any relationship there are usually introductions to be made, and this is where we first begin sharing the stories of who we are. There’s something interesting to me about the parts that we humans include, and the way we include those parts, when we tell stories. There’s something even more interesting to me in the parts that we choose to omit. Most of all, I love how often I realize that we can be “seen,” even when we choose carefully what we say, because something essential about who you are and who I am always shows up, even when we think that we’re very carefully keeping things “normal” and hiding our individuality.

Before I share anything about myself, I’m curious: Who are you? Here’s why I want to know: For six years, I taught English at the community college level. I learned a lot from that experience, namely that while my students did want to know about me—would I yell at them if they were late? what was my policy on texting?—what they really wanted to know was what kind of relationship we would have. I liked to start off that relationship with learning about them. I wanted to know what would make them unique. I wanted to know what their dreams were, the things they wanted most deeply, because it wasn’t the threat of an “F” that would motivate them so much as it would be the possibility of getting to that dream. The more I knew about them, the more I could be of service in motivating them to stay the course.

Also, I liked to joke, I was curious to know who had family members who were on the local police force, because I wasn’t above tapping my students for parking ticket fixes.

So I’ll start this writer-reader relationship in the same way. Who are you? What do you yearn for most deeply? What moves you? Where would you like to be in one year? Who is the biggest supporter in your life, and where in your life is there an energy drain you’d like to get rid of? What is the most courageous thing you’ve ever done? How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Tootsie Pop? What do you think Scarlett Johanssen whispered in Bill Murray’s ear at the end of Lost in Translation?

My name is Kate, originally Katherine. I was named after Katharine Hepburn, but in post-labor exhaustion the spelling was accidentally changed. I was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, though I now call the San Francisco area my home. My Catholic conservative father and atheist liberal mother divorced when I was seven; reading and writing saved my life because they gave me a place to escape to and a place to tell my truth, in that order. We lived in a neighborhood where we heard gunshots; where drug deals took place on the street; where I dared not wear too short of shorts in the summertime for fear of cat-calls or, worse, rape.

Until I was nine, I wanted more than anything to write and illustrate children’s books, but in third grade I went head to head in a drawing competition with Brad Busby, whose mother was a doctor. Brad Busby practiced drawing the skeletal system from his mother’s textbooks; I drew rainbow butterflies. Brad was declared the winner and as I compared our work, I knew that his was “better” and in that moment, gave up. My enthusiasm for art moved to music. I had been playing the piano since I was 5, and would later add the flute, clarinet, cello, violin, and viola. This became my passion; I practiced for hours each day and competed. I got a job one week after I turned fifteen and a half, the legal working age in Missouri, and began working evenings and saving money for the two things that would get me out of Kansas City: a car, and college. There were a series of jobs: I made gyros at the mall, slung pizza, changed watch batteries, cashiered at a drugstore, and folded denim at The Gap.

I went to a small college just outside of Chicago, where I got into computers and started blogging. This was before blogging was even remotely deemed acceptable, when it still carried with it the stigma of being something that only skinny high school geeks did, in between playing Magik and Dungeons and Dragons. I ate dinner sometimes with a group of people who talked about the virtual world they had created via something called the MUCK: Multi-User Character Kingdom. But how else does one survive a Chicago winter?

On my summer breaks, I worked for an insurance company that underwrote worker’s compensation policies for a restaurant chain, and I read the claims to pass the time. The weirdest one I ever saw was this: an employee filed a claim because he was bitten by a stray kitten. It occurs to me only now that I was blogging this entire time, but never once wrote about such oddities as this. Talk about a missed opportunity!

I’ll quickly sum up the rest: I finished college; went to graduate school in California for writing; became an English teacher; met my sweetie; grew increasingly frustrated by the limitations of the current educational institution to meet the needs of remedial, second-language, and multi-cultural learners; realized that if I spent the rest of my life teaching thesis statements I’d probably need to take up drinking; trained to become a life coach, and a few months ago, let go of teaching in order to become a full-time coach, retreat leader, and e-course developer.

FIN.

But here’s what I left out: bulimia at fourteen; a history of depression and suicidal tendencies that didn’t stop until I was 22; anxiety; worry; perfectionism; lost relationships; anger; rage. Also: falling completely in love; opening my heart; dropping the snarck; processing out the anger; studying Zen Buddhism; receiving reiki transmission; traveling to Italy; meeting my coach/guru Matthew; volunteering for Challenge Day (www.challengeday.org); finally arriving at a place where I could leave laundry on the floor and clutter up the kitchen counter with dirty dishes without bursting a vein (YES! Victory!).

I find this last paragraph to be inherently more interesting than all of the DOing stuff that came before it. Lately, I am far more interested in BEing, and that’s part of why I want to know about you. DOing is solitary; BEing is collaborative.

I’m curious about you because I think that you matter. I think that there is something courageous that shows up within each of as we get up to face the day, armed with our complicated and imperfectly beautiful histories and baggage, and I love it when we share our stories of who we BE rather than what we DO.

So in your story of who you are: Who do you BE? What parts of your story are most important to include, and how complete are they? How much room do you make in your story for imperfection, and how much room do you make for how perfectly it all turned out? What parts of your story are you most inclined to omit? If you’re so moved, consider this the subject of a blog post for your own blog; link back here in the comments and we can get a lovely amalgamation of inspiration going.

I’m so excited and grateful to be a part of this space! Thank you for having me and I look forward to seeing what comes!

by irene nam

Every time we express ourselves through our art, with words, images or vegetables.

Every time we are passionate about what we do and share our enthusiasm with others.

Every time we jot down a few words on a piece of paper while waiting to pick up the kids from school or for the pasta water to boil.

Every time we indulge in something just for ourselves, and don’t have second thoughts about it.

Every time we pick up the camera (or the pen, needles or brushes).

Every time we unplug.

Every time we teach our children how to use a ruler, make paper planes, spell words correctly and deal with the consequences of their own choices.

Every time we find pure joy in the little details and ordinary moments that collectively provide a glimpse of what a good life is, and don’t give in to the idea that “there” is better than “here”.

Every time we share what we have, and give what we can.

We may not be having it all or doing it all well. We may not live a balanced life. But we are building a creative, authentic and fulfilling life for ourselves. And there’s nothing more beautiful and valuable than this.

Believe it.

join irene this fall for her lovely photography workshop simple soulful photography here in the wishstudio… get all the scoop on the workshops page.

by kimberly wilson

“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.” – Coco Chanel

J’adore this quote! I want to turn it around a bit to share that inspiration is in the sky, in the street, inspiration has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening. Inspiration can be found in our every day if we’ll only slow down a bit to savor it.

When I am seeking a dose of inspiration coupled with creativity, I will gravitate toward creating a collage. This image above is of two file folders I covered with images that appealed – style, sass, yoga, color, Paris, and simple pleasures. Taking the time to nurture my creative spirit always puts a skip into my step.

Where do you find inspiration? How can it become a regular part of your routine so that you can find a little more tranquility during your busy day? Here is a non-exhaustive list of ways I like to find inspiration:

Farmer’s markets
Flower stands
Browsing the travel section
Sipping tea
Reading the Sunday paper
Curling up with a beloved 4-legged friend
Walking through the woods
Donning a flower pin
Strolling through a museum
Volunteering
Brainstorming
Penning a blog post
People watching at a sidewalk cafe
Mind mapping
Lighting a candle
Doing sun salutations
Choosing your groceries
Writing in my journal
Listening to live music

Inspiration surrounds us in colors, scents, and special touches. Infuse your home with a bouquet of tulips. Frame a favorite postcard and display it in your office. Add edible flowers such as pansies to tonight’s salad. Consider taking a day trip to a surrounding city. Let your imagination be your guide as you explore the sky, street, and what is happening. Inspiration abounds, if only you will take a moment to bask in it.

Kimberly Wilson is a yogini, do-gooder, entrepreneur, and eco-fashion designer who penned Hip Tranquil Chick and Tranquilista. Learn more at kimberlywilson.com.

by madelyn mulvaney

“let’s go for coffee’

I seriously can’t think of anything more cheery than hearing someone say “Let’s go for morning coffee.”  Instantly my mind makes balletic leaps to visions of an aromatic machiatto made with freshly roasted organic beans, (sprinkled most generously with cinnamon)  sugardusted almond pastries, and that most coveted corner seat by the coffee house window.  Just Imagine Sunday morning in a wonderfully cozy cafe humming away with the reverence of coffee culture happiness, lending such a joyful spin on the word ‘wakefulness.’

It’s quite amusing to me how I will wear jeans and t~shirt to a gallery opening but when I go to an old fashioned café I love to look my best ~ floral print dresses, bohemian  silvered earrings and bangles,  as well as a jaunty pony tail to lend a little pizzaz to my outing.

Somehow the world seems so luminescent in a café with the chattering buzz of happy togetherness, people are oh so much more friendly I am convinced in this delightful neighborhood meeting place. And have you ever really looked at the espresso machine? ~ truly that gleaming sculpture is a work of art.

“a place to sit and write…and eavesdrop”

I am absolutely content to go spend a few hours alone in a café, as it is such splendid place to sit and write and eavesdrop on the parade of everyday life.  Delicious snippets of overheard conversation will include wicked philosophies, heart warming affirmations, sigh inducing lamentations and humorous observations that will make you smile happily to yourself, or laugh outright.

You can ogle people secretly (using a book as you peek over the pages) and even take some discreet photo’s holding your camera in your lap while you snap some documentary style shots of café culture.  If you are lucky even, your favorite local shop will have live entertainment in the evening or gasp! ‘open mike night’ where you will be coaxed to stand up and read that poem you wrote over scrambled eggs and hot sauce, so dear to your heart.

“the good morning café’

Sometimes  I dayream about the idea of owning my very own little coffee shop.  It would have mismatched china, stacks of books and magazines, a record player in the corner with records you could choose from and play, a battered but comfy mid-century green velvet couch, free wifi (of course), sunburnished walls filled with art, and an abundance of windows.  Oh and excellent, freshly roasted, fair trade organic coffee of course that you could smell all the way down the street.

“Want to go for coffee anyone?”

photo by kerstin martin

“a little coffee house song for your listening delight”

by michelle ensminger

Every day I wake up and try to make
something beautiful of this life
I try to pay attention, to listen,
to find scattered hymns of stillness
I press moments into the grooves of my mind,
like petals in the pages of a book,
simple images that offer something to believe in
while my world whirls on, tangled, messy, uncertain
Each day finds me more willing to release my grip on absolutes
and surrender to a strange unknowing, the always present
mysteries we call being human
I open my heart to what is simple, what is easily overlooked,
those things which appear too ordinary to hold any truth—
the way the daylight slips through the slats of the blinds
even when they are drawn tight,
as if force, will, and intention couldn’t
keep out the light or
the curled edges of the sleeping hydrangea
whose sighs whisper that there is a certain kind of beauty
in death, in rest, in release
I try to pause in the busyness to listen for anything soft and true
so that my hearing, while often compromised by urgency,
never forgets the song of the divine tucked
in the deep pockets of breath and being
Every day I wake up and try to make
something beautiful of this life
so that nothing goes unwitnessed, unheard,
unsung

April is National Poetry month.  I hope you will take time in the coming days to read a poem, write a poem, or kiss a poet.  The following are some links to support you in your celebration of poetry.

Poetry.org—where you can get poems for your pocket (April 29 is Poem in Your Pocket Day), poems e-mailed to you daily, and a poetry app for your phone

Scholastic—great resources for teachers that can be used by everyone, includes poetry printables and an interview with one of my favorite poets, Dr. Maya Angelou

Poetry 180—poet Billy Collins website which promotes reading poetry every day of the school year

Nation Council of Teachers of English—get your daily does of poetry

Poetry everywhere—includes links to poets reading their poetry as well as other super cool stuff like animated poetry

Poetry Foundation—all kinds of goodies…

The Journal—poetry prompts to get you started

Writing Forward—more poetry prompts as well as some writing tips (see poetry tab at the top of the page)

If you have any favorite poetry links I would love for you to share them in the comments or by e-mailing me at michelleensminger@wishstudio.com

“summer day” hand felted and beaded necklace
wish*full trunk show exclusive by shannon kinney-duh
will be available for purchase in our may 1st show!

winner of the launch week wishstudio swag bag is paula!  thank so much for joining in on the exciting conversations going on in the cafe.  please email me by the end of the month to claim your prize package.  check out some of the new topics of creative chatter going on over there.  you now can also add your avatar to your profile (thanks brianna :) so head on over to the cafe!

the wish*full artisan trunk show will open on may 1st at 6pm EST.  stop by the wishstudio for a fabulous opportunity to buy some exclusive handmade goods from many amazingly talented artists, including some of our teachers, who are all participating in our spring wish*full virtual art retreat.  there will be one of kind pieces, special wish*full gift packages, and items created just for this event not available anywhere else… we’ll have jewelery, art prints, books, vintage craft supplies, and more!  mark the date and shop early for the best availability.  keep an eye out for a show preview of more of the items that will be available in our trunk show coming later this month.

your wish*full toolkit and goodie bags should be arriving in your mailboxes!  it was so fun putting these together for all of the participants (my son loved helping).  some of you have already emailed me with excitement… let me know when you get yours!

may is going to be a special month here in the wishstudio… in honor of mother’s day we will be having loads of fun extras especially for creative moms, like additional wishmama features from amanda soule, jenny doh, kim mcmechan, pixie campbell, and lisa leonard, a guest post and giveaway from karen mazen miller about her new upcoming book hand wash cold: care instructions for an ordinary life, great mom related links in our ilounge, the announcement of our creative mama and child art playgroup coming this fall, and more.  for those of you who are not mamas, there will still be plenty of fun inspiration for you as well, so stay tuned!

christine mason miller is an extraordinary artist, a thought provoking writer, and a passionate explorer.  her art and writing gives viewers a peek into a variety of details from her life, including travels around the globe and memories shared with her grandma. using materials as varied as acrylic paints, ink, coffee, mannequins, vintage photographs and other ephemera, christine’s creations are full of color, texture and hidden stories. she inspires me daily with all that she has to share with the world…  check out her blog for loads of sparkling inspiration!

today, christine is offering one winner a set of her new yummy art notecards.  get all the details in her shop and check out all of her other amazing goodies while you’re there.

to enter this giveaway, please leave a comment on this post sharing how you are an explorer in the world and in your life.  check back to this post on wednesday, april 21 and i will announce the winner of this lovely prize!  one entry per person please.  good luck!

************************************

…and the winner of christine’s fabulous art cards is, stephanie!
yay for you!  please email me by 5.21.10 to claim your prize.

thanks for playing everyone :)

and be sure to check out christine’s special
ordinary sparkling moments book and notecard set
priced especially for our wish*full artisan trunk show
on may 1st!

by jennifer lee

When you’re a musepreneur who works for herself, you probably wear many hats – from creator and writer all the way to bookkeeper and scheduler. I bet as a creative entrepreneur you love making jewelry, blogging, or painting, but you probably loathe the more left-brain business tasks. Believe me, I’d rather be drawing colorful doodles than drawing up dry legal contracts. But just because I loathe those left-brain details doesn’t mean I can ignore them, even if I desperately want to bury my head in the sand.

Maybe you’ve reached out for help before and you feel like you’ve gotten burned. I’ve had that happen more than once and it can be very frustrating and discouraging. But before you vow that it’s easier to just do it yourself, ask yourself what are you truly passionate about? Why did you start your creative business in the first place? Chances are you’re passionate about everything but those burdensome details that are driving you crazy! You started your business to bring beauty and creativity into the world, not to be buried in bank statements or endless administrative to-dos.

When I first started out, I handled most of the business details (and my hubby helped, too, with all things techie and research-related). Soon enough I realized that in order to help my business grow (and for me to stay sane!), I needed to invest in some help. Since then, I’ve slowly expanded my “virtual team” to include an accountant, bookkeeper, virtual assistant, and when needed, a lawyer and graphic designer. They help me focus on the things I enjoy and they get to focus on what they enjoy. It’s a win/win for everyone!

Here are some tips for when you’re ready to start working with someone:

• Be clear about what you need help with. List the tasks that you want to delegate. Even if you don’t have an ongoing need, perhaps you have an upcoming project that could benefit from expert advice or an extra pair of hands. Maybe you’re launching a new website, developing a new workshop, or preparing for a big art show.
• Be clear about whom the perfect person would be to help you with these tasks. What qualities and experience does she possess? What are her values and how do they align with yours? Get out your journal and write about this perfect person as if you’ve already been working with her for a while. Describe what you enjoy most about your partnership.
• To find potential people, ask friends and colleagues for referrals, network and talk to people, and search online.
• Interview at least two to three people so you can get a feel for who would be the best fit. Ask a set of questions to help you gather the information you need. Inquire about their process, turn around time, rates, and anything else you need to make your decision. You might even want to ask to speak to past or current clients.
• Do your homework, but also make sure you follow your gut. You want to have a good feeling about working with them.
• When you decide to hire someone, spend some time during your first meeting to get to know each other and learn about each other’s working style and expectations.
• Keep the lines of communication open so that both of you can give feedback and raise any concerns before they snowball. If things can’t be resolved after having conversations, don’t be afraid to move on. It may feel like an awkward or uncomfortable “break up,” but be willing to start looking again if it’s not working out. Don’t settle. You’ll be much happier when you find the right person!
• Continue to develop your working relationship with your outside partners. Show your appreciation for their good work. Let them know how much they are helping you and what you love about working with them. Help them expand their business by referring them to your friends and colleagues.

If you’re not ready to hire outside services, check out these other tips for getting help so you don’t have to go it alone.

Musepreneur and certified coach Jennifer Lee, of Artizen Coaching, is the creator of the Right-Brain Business Plan. She loves yoga, painting, reading and hanging out with her husband and dog. She blogs at Life Unfolds.  Want more help with building your creative business? Join Jennifer’s upcoming Right-Brain Business Plan e-Course from May 17th – July 9th.

by carment torbus

“Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do.  Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.”  -Ella Fitzgerald

So far, 2010 is just rocking my socks off.  I mean it.  Does it get any better than this? I’m so excited with all the magic happening around me these days.  And ya know what really blows me away?  The fact that all this magic started happening when I decided to make magic.  True story!

Ya know what else? I believe you can make magic too. I think we all can.

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing.  For several years, I felt as if something was missing, like some part of me was lost.  I know so many other women with children or careers or busy schedules, or all of the above, who have expressed similar sentiments.  Maybe you can relate.

Can you think of a time when you were filled with passion or on a mission towards something big? A goal, a kick butt project, a new love or a big dream? Something so incredible that it was all you could think about?  It kept you up late at night, your dreams were filled with it, and it’s what got you out of bed in the morning and kept you going through the day?  A time when giddiness ensued and you found yourself grinning from ear to ear for no apparent reason at all?

That’s how I feel about my creative journey right now.

I’d love to share a bit of what inspired me to dig a little deeper and honor who I am.

Although I did a lot of soul searching, reflection and things like core values exercises, what it really came down to was the following three questions:

1.  What did I like to do more than anything else when I was younger? If you liked doing that thing when you were a kid, it makes sense that you will probably still love it to pieces today. Maybe you loved to color, jump rope, draw, dance, write poetry or go exploring when you were younger.  Asking myself this question was a huge a-ha moment for me.  I knew immediately what it was I loved doing when I was younger.  How about you? What’s your thing?  I’d love to know!

2. When and why did I stop doing it? There are loads of reasons why we stop doing things we did when we were kids.  If you never stopped doing your thing, I applaud you! There are even people out there who have found ways to turn their thing into soul nourishing careers… which is exactly what I hope to do some day. (Now that I’ve finally given my “thing” attention again.)

3. How can I bring it back into my life? Think of the smallest, teeny-tiny step you can take to reclaim your inner _____ right this very minute and do it.  Right now. If it’s coloring you loved to do, go grab your kid’s coloring book.  Or maybe it’s exploring, so go outside for a few minutes. Drawing you say?  Grab a pencil and a piece of paper.  Dancing? Turn up the tunes and bust a move! Get up and do it. Yes, now.  I’ll wait.

3.  How did that feel? How can you bring your “thing” back so it’s a regular part of your life?  Grab something to write on and make a list while it’s on your mind.  (Hint: do it now.)

When I realized it was cheerleading that was missing from my life, I decided to bring it back full force!  Now don’t get me wrong, I’m never going to look smokin’ hot in a pleated skirt again, and my high kick leaves a lot to be desired, but my passion for encouragement, motivation and spirit are still alive inside. The only difference is that instead of cheering for the high school basketball team, I get to cheer for creative women like you!  How cool is that?!  I get giddy just thinking about it!

I’d love to hear how you’re going to bring your “thing” back!  Let’s hear it in the comments!

xo & belief in you,

Carmen

More from me at http://www.carmentorbus.com

and if you’re up for dreaming big and getting creative, join me at The Purple Cottage in May for the Art & Dreams Bound retreat!

winged creativity, inspired self discovery, and sparkling and supportive community!

welcome! i am so excited that you are here!  come on in, sip a glass of pink champagne {cheers!} and have fun browsing around during our launch party and open studio.  there is so much to see and to celebrate!

many thanks to our two special guests who are here supporting our launch… head on over to {pink}studio and peruse kelly rae robert’s gallery event, or stop in {sky}studio and learn all about irene nam’s workshop that will be launching here next fall!  these events will be going on until the end of the week, then both virtual studios will be closed through the entire month of may to host the wish*full virtual art retreat (yay!).

in june we will begin offering new classes and workshops brought to you by many fabulous teachers.  be sure to check out our workshops & events page for all the exciting offerings and to register.  be sure to also join as a studio*girl member so you can start earning wishcertificates with all of your class registrations!

and don’t miss our fabulous launch giveaway ~ a wishstudio swag bag full of inspiring goodies!  it’s sure to add some creative sparkle to your world.  to enter,  simply visit the cafe by saturday and join in on the exciting wishstudio buzz.  post a comment or start your own discussion topic and one winner will be randomly chosen from the cafe conversations and announced here on sunday.  it’s a great place to share ideas, ask for advice, and connect with your kindred community.

also, now you can get in touch with all of our fabulous monthly contributors via wishstudio email, so send them a love note to say hello.  our connect page has all the  info.  please note that the new wishstudio general email address is mindy@wishstudio.com ~ i look forward to hearing from you!

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i’d like to say a (huge!) and special thanks to my website dreamteam, christine castro of darling design, and brianna privett of utopian.  these two worked tirelessly to bring you this amazing site from the first design concept to the very last button programmed.  it was no small feat let me tell you.  these two were invaluable throughout the entire process and are officially my website superheros!  please be sure to leave a kind word for them, and let them know how much you love the site ( i hope you love it as much as i do!).  i would like to also send out big thanks to ali edwards who shared her beautiful custom font with the wishstudio for the site design… thanks ali!

i must also share an extra special thank you to my endlessly patient and supportive husband, alex, whom without i could have never, ever accomplished this giant life-changing leap!  i appreciate every sacrifice you’ve made… all the leftovers you ate, all the nights you put both kids to bed, all the time you ignored my grumpiness and frustration when i was stressed.  most of all, thank you for always believing in me.  that means more to me than i could ever express.

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with all that the wishstudio has to offer, it’s my wish for you to create unforgettable experiences, beautiful connections, and inspiring life and art while you are here in the studio.   welcome to your creative home away from home!

wish big, and most of all simply have fun.  thank you so much for being such an inspiring a part of my wishstudio world.

hugs and wishes,
mindy

by maegan beshline

I always knew I would be a mom. And I have always been creative. What I didn’t know was that my most creatively inspired period would come smack dab in the middle of motherhood when I would have very little time to create. As ironic and paradoxical as that may seem, it also makes complete sense. My years of creativity have provided me with the best tools for being a mom. Conversely, my experiences being a mother have taught me how to tap into deeper places within my creative soul. These two parts of myself, the mom and the creative, have been like having two children, loving each one differently but equally, combining and dividing my time with the two, and each one helping me and teaching me to be better with the other.

As siblings always do, these two sides of me squabble and compete for my undivided attention. I know that favoring one will result in heartache and outcries from the other. Each one is unique and deserves to have undivided time with my full attention…even if it’s just a little, infrequent, or masked as something else. Of course, I love the times when we can all play as one; me, my mothering role, and my creative spirit. And often they do.

In fact, as with my children, my time with one ends up teaching me more about the other. My creative side has taught me to be intuitive, to work with what I have, to look below the surface, and to make the ordinary extraordinary. These skills have helped me be a better mother. They have helped me turn bad situations into heaps of laughter, rainy days into magical opportunities, and learning time into cozy moments. They have helped me to see my children at their core and adapt my approach with them accordingly. Our mundane and everyday becomes special and exceptional because of the creativity I’m able to bring to the table.

Being a mother has taught me to feel things more deeply. It has made me want to capture moments and feelings and breaths as if they are falling right out from underneath me. I work constantly to try and capsulate these moments, these indescribably wonderful moments, in words or pictures or a combination of both. Motherhood is giving me a surfeit of exercises in putting feeling, depth, and story into my work. From my children, I am learning to observe, to be patient, to be persistent, and to take pride in my milestones. On top of all of this, motherhood has given me the ability to listen to a thousand voices and yet still hear my own; a skill that as an artist, has proven to be one of my greatest assets.

When I was pregnant with my second child, I wondered if I could possible love another human being as much as I loved my daughter. I wondered if I would feel the same desperate attachment to both of my children. I learned that the heart has the capacity to love and nurture all that it needs to. So too with the similar yet very different sides of me, the mother and the creative, it is impossible to separate myself from either one. And though it becomes more of a juggle, it is an act that I perform with fierce dedication.

Maegan Beishline is a wife, mother to three, and a photographer. She shares her life, her work, and her inspiration on her blog, Life Set to Words.

read all previous comments on the post here

by susan tuttle

We all need a little adventure to shake up the routine, stir our souls, alter our path, tweak perspective — whatever the reason may be. As I await the onset of full-fledged spring in Maine (we don’t usually get spring until May here, after mud season) it feels like being in limbo — I could use an artistic distraction to add some spice to this waiting period.

So, I pull my macro lens from its bag and set out on an adventure — right here at home — I haven’t left the premises, but it sure feels like it. Getting up close, getting inside is a wild ride!…

Susan Tuttle is a mixed-media and digital artist who resides in a small-town community in the state of Maine. Her first book, Exhibition 36: Mixed-Media Demonstrations + Explorations, was released by North Light Books in December 2008, and her second book, Digital Expressions: Creating Digital Art with Adobe® Photoshop® Elements, a technique-based publication on digital art, will be published by North Light Books in May 2010 and is currently available for pre-order on Amazon. Susan is a frequent contributor to Stampington & Company publications and other mixed-media books. You can visit her site at www.ilkasattic.com and her blog at www.ilkasattic.blogspot.com through which she is offering online digital art workshops on the subjects of photomanipulation, digital montage, and a variety of Photoshop techniques.

i wanted to pass along this book, the necklace by cheryl jarvis, because it was a big part of the inspiration behind the necklace project here in the wishstudio. here is a little about this true story…

“The true story of thirteen women who took a risk on an expensive diamond necklace and, in the process, changed not only themselves but a community.Four years ago, in Ventura, California, Jonell McLain saw a diamond necklace in a local jewelry store display window. The necklace aroused desire first, then a provocative question: Why are personal luxuries so plentiful yet accessible to so few? What if we shared what we desired? Several weeks, dozens of phone calls, and a leap of faith later, Jonell bought the necklace with twelve other women, with the goal of sharing it.

Part charm, part metaphor, part mirror, the necklace weaves in and out of each woman’s life, reflecting her past, defining her present, making promises for her future. Lending sparkle in surprising and unexpected ways, the necklace comes to mean something dramatically different to each of the thirteen women.

With vastly dissimilar histories and lives, the women show us how they transcended their individual personalities and politics to join together in an uncommon journey. What started as a quirky social experiment became something far richer and deeper, as the women transformed a symbol of exclusivity into a symbol of inclusiveness. They discovered that sharing the necklace among themselves was only the beginning; The more they shared with others, the more profound this experience–and experiment–became.Original, resonant, and beautifully told, this book is an inspiring story about a necklace that became greater than the sum of its links, and about thirteen ordinary women who understood the power of possibility, who touched the lives of a community, and who together created one extraordinary experience.”

so if you are interested in reading this book, i would love to see it passed along (which really is in the true spirit of the book). leave a comment on this post, and i will choose one person to send the book along to. you must be willing to pass it on when you are done reading it, and don’t forget to follow our own necklace’s journey right here in the wishstudio! i will announce the recipient right here on wednesday, april 7th.

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laura, please get in touch… you are the one who will be sent this book!
and because of all the interest, i am thinking of hosting a book group around this title
… anyone interested? let me know!

by brandi reynolds

I find it kind of difficult to put into words exactly what it is about my style journey that has been so profound for me. Oh, by the way, I’m on a style journey in case you didn’t know.

I’ve always been a fan of low key comfort. I’m not one to walk around the house in a cute little outfit when my husband’s tee shirts and sweatpants work just fine. And I can’t remember the last time I wore makeup.

Yet even as a little kid I remember being fascinated by fashion. Putting pieces together inspired by outfits in magazines, figuring out how to make look work with what I had, getting creative with accessories. I loved it. It was a way to express my creativity. Sure I still liked my jammies but I also liked putting a fun outfit together for school and outings to the skating rink.

But then…I stopped. Part of that, I think, was college laziness. It’s pretty hard to stay motivated about style when everyone around you is also wearing baseball caps and sweatshirts to class. But I am realizing that part of it was a desire not to be seen. During my 20’s I went through some times that kind of knocked the wind out of me (who hasn’t?) and my confidence was shaken enough that I didn’t feel comfortable dressing in a way that would get me noticed.

Fast forward a few years and I start on a creative journey. I try just about every creative medium out there. And as my comfort level with expressing myself artistically increases, so does this desire within me to start playing with style.

At first, I resisted. Hiding myself had become a habit. For a long time, I’d dressed to blend in so I wasn’t sure where to start.

So I looked at the people around me and started letting myself be inspired by pieces they wore. I started photographing my outfits and it’s amazing how that small change in perspective-I mean, it’s not like I leave the house without looking in a mirror-can influence how I dress. And I became a member (and rabid fan) of wardrobe remix.

And just like with my artistic journey, my style journey has become about play and creative expression. What I wear can now be an extension of how I see the world instead of just something to cover my skin. Another layer of depth has been added to my life because of experimenting with style.

I would love to know what style means to you and how you discovered your own style. Do you play around with fashion? Do you have style icons? As I am falling more in love with expressing myself with what I wear, I have become fascinated with how others choose to dress themselves. Please share!