This week was a doozy at my day job so I needed to relax with a bit of painting. Having these two to cuddle didn’t hurt either 😉 They look sweet and innocent here, but both have a sassy streak that I absolutely LOVE 💗
Arts & Crafts Kits and Painting/Crafting Parties
Kits are a great way to get all the tools you would need for a single project in one go. I’ve been gifted painting kits, crafting kits, sewing kits and I have also purchased them – usually to try a technique or a new product. The downside is I’m not actually finishing the kits; they’re just sitting on my shelves. But those will have to wait for another rainy weekend.
some of my unfinished kits 😕
from Etsy possibly?
Kits are also a great way to rehome duplicates of some of your arts and crafts items. Put together a “kit” of yarn, a pattern and a crochet needle and invite friends over to learn to crochet. They can take the supplies when they leave. The same with art supplies – do you really need that many tubes of paint? Combine some nice watercolor paper, a bit of paint on a paper plate and some brushes and let your kids, grandkids, neighbors, ladies group, etc. go wild. You could even contact your local sewing guild, nursing home or library to see if they take donations of supplies for adult programming. If you have enough and pitch it to them the right way, they might take the whole lot.
The Painting/Crafting Party
I’m not always a fan of participating in “painting parties” because I like the freedom of expression from painting. I don’t want someone else telling me what/how to create. But that’s just me! They are a really great way to pare down your arts and crafts supplies.
Recently, I had an unexpected email from a woman I met back in early December at a show. She was hoping I’d come for a painting party and teach her and her cousins some watercolor techniques. This is a great idea for a winter Sunday afternoon and I’ve taught so many workshops for the local arts council that it’s no stressor for me. This week I put together 14+ Winter Cardinal Painting Kits for the group, all from supplies I had on-hand (almost wiped out my inventory) and am headed off this Sunday for a pre-Superbowl painting party. Wish me luck!
Finish Those Old Art Projects
I can’t be the only artist who starts a project, gets into it, “hates” how it’s looking, so moves on to something else? So what to do?
Get back in there and find something you like about your unfinished work. Finish it whether you love it or not and you might be surprised.
Of course, there are some types of artwork that are past the point of fixing and do you really need to keep those? Toss them out if there are no redeeming qualities and give yourself a break. I need to take this suggestion to heart.
I started this painting of the Amanita muscaria – Fly Agaric mushroom months ago and didn’t like the background AT ALL! Couldn’t get it right. Hated the look. So…it’s been sitting at my workstation, staring at me 👀 for all these months and frankly, making me feel unsuccessful.
But, I had an inspiration the other night.
Most of the original painting was watercolor with a bit of ink to add details, dried long ago and no real visual “punch” to it. I decided to go in with some pastel pencils on the background, and all over really and now, I LOVE THIS! I really need to spray the finished painting because the pastels will just swipe off of that paper surface, but it’s been raining for days and I like to spray outside. What can you do?
So… don’t give up on your projects just because you hit a snag. Sticking with them may give you a great boost of confidence in your ability as an artist and crafter. It will definitely free up some space in your work area for new and exciting projects.
That’s all my cleanout advice for this week. Hope you have some new ideas from my weekly tales 😊 and feel free to share you successes in the comments.
Talk soon,
Cara