Stepping out of my Comfort Zone-Creating with Acrylics!

Stepping out of my Comfort Zone-Creating with Acrylics!

I’m creating simple wall art with acrylics and finding my creative chi along the way!

Hello, friends!

I hope this day finds you well.

Even those who have been following along with this blog for a wee bit know that this girl LOVES a good repurpose! She also LOVES just a simple good ole’ fashioned DIY.

But those days, which have now turned into months of being quarantined have really taken a toll on one of the biggest parts of who I am.

My creativity.

You see I’m a very visual person. I, unlike Michael, thrives on visual overload. The more things in my site the better focused I become.

Which I why I absolutely LOVED our weekend visits to my favorite thrift stores, flea markets, and yard sales.

The thrill was picking up each item and turning them from side to side. Then Visualizing and imagining what they ‘could’ be. It wouldn’t take long before my creative juices got flowing and I couldn’t wait to get home and start each transformation!

But that thrill was taken away from me when COVID 19 began. And slowly over time that creative fire went with it.

Yes, I know. Things are opening up now. And so too are some of my favorite stores. Even so, I’m just not ready to venture out to the city right now.

I won’t lie, my friends. The very thought of doing fills me with a great deal of anxiety.

So yes, It has been a struggle for me. Because creating makes me so happy. And frankly, I haven’t felt much like creating Anything.

Then one day a week or so ago,  I stopped at our local Dollar General for some necessities (like toilet paper) LOL!

And as I quickly raced through the store to grab what I needed, I passed their craft section and saw these acrylic paints.

It just so happened that my grandson had just painted me this beautiful picture that previous weekend!  So I guess you could say, as he always does, Max inspired me and so I grabbed that paint set and adorable palette and headed to the checkout!

Later that day I ordered up a couple of canvas’ and for the first time in months, I actually felt excited about creating something!

Now let me just say this. I am NOT an artist. Heck, I’m not even a good painter! At least I’m not a very ‘neat’ painter. But I get the job done.

This is why while I waited for my canvas to arrive I started to study up on what would be a good “beginners” painting. Many of the articles I read advised starting out simple so as not to get discouraged.

I found this video to be SUPER helpful! The artist literally walks you through step by step on how to create an ocean scene.

So I chose her ocean scene to start with. Unfortunately, my paint set didn’t have all the colors she used so I had to improvise.

Here’s how I did it!

First, I started by mixing the blue and white paints that came in my set. When I had just the right blue I began painting the sky in the scene.

Following the artist’s advice, I just ran my brush lightly back and forth and filled in the top 1/3 of my canvas with this blue.

Before I had completed the sky I noticed two things. A calm that I hadn’t felt for months had come over me. But more importantly, my creativity was slowly seeping in. Because instead of the silver paint the artist had recommended adding an iridescent look to the sky, I chose this light blue instead.

After all. It didn’t have to be the EXACT same, right? And from that moment on, even though I followed the artist’s guidelines, the painting had become… MY creation.

And so I went on to the second section-the ocean. With each brushstroke, I felt myself getting more and more relaxed. And happy. So VERY happy. Because even though my painting looked NOTHING like the artists, I was PAINTING!

ME! Painting!

If I hadn’t been stopping from time to time to document my progress, I wouldn’t have believed it myself. But that wonderful, crazy, gift that the Good Lord had given me was still there. Just waiting to be inspired.

As I began the last section of my painting-the Sand-I realized something more. I didn’t need thrift stores or flea markets or anything else to find my creativity. I just needed to slow down. Relax my mind. Breathe…and IT would find me.

So I added a touch of white here. And more blue there. And I turned the painting from side to side and did it some more.

The artist that shared the video went on to do more intricate details that someone with more skill would be comfortable doing. For my first time. It was enough. But I wasn’t done yet.

This totally imperfect painting is just one of many I plan on creating. And if I get better I hope to share more of them with you!

For now, my plan is to create a frame for this ocean scene and hang it in my office. It will be a reminder to me daily that creativity doesn’t come from a store. It comes from within!

As for how this experience changed my way of thinking for the future?

I’m definitely looking at the items I’ve collected in my stash in a whole new way. I’m picking them up and turning them from side to side just like I would in a store. And I’m visualizing and imagining again!

So look out friends! There are projects to complete and items that need repurposing and I can’t wait to share them all with you!

If you’ve been struggling through this pandemic, I hope I’ve inspired you to step out of your comfort zone and do something different. Change IS good!

And  I know that whatever you create…it will be AMAZING!

 

Thank you for stopping by!