More Wonderfully Diverse Inner Diva and Inner Heroes

JD Hogarth Gr. 7 & 8 Students Create Inner Divas and Heroes

Divas searching for the right piece for their inner diva paper dolls....Art Day at J D Hogarth is a great way to keep the arts alive and well.  The arts gives the opportunity to the students to find alternative ways to introspect, have fun, lift spirits and learn on a whole new other level.

Some Inner Heroes being created by some cool guys in the group....

Bold Inner Diva, created with lovely affirming words and expressions.

Hats off to the staff and organizers of this wonderfully inspiring day - celebrating the arts and the students.  Grayce Perry and Amanda Clark are two of the powerful forces behind the day.

Encaustic Cards - Small Treasures

These are minature art cards that are frame able; they are 5 x 5 gift cards ready to be framed.  I am absolutely loving doing these art cards, enjoying the paper collage and layering of wax and lightly gouging the wax (encaustic medium) and adding tiny embellishments.

Particularly, trees are very meaningful to me and the series of trees I am creating are about the gifts that trees give us and how grateful I am of their life giving gifts.

I look forward to sharing a large variety of these products at the various shows and events I will be at this summer and fall.  Come take a look and let me know what you think!  I love feedback.

Wind Song

Falling asleep to wind song music, singing through the branches, leaves rustling, sighing through the night air....Lulling me to sleep taking me to what awaits, the dreams that have been brooding, stirring and been in the making throughout the day....Will there be vivid colours, feelings and stories to be absorbed??  Opening myself to the messages, the other pieces of the puzzle to self-understanding.  Sweet dreams...

Creative Divas - My Sisters - Blessings

Leigh, Lisa, Robin, Jane, Mel and Effie...are my stamping, artistic divas...I have enjoyed going away with them for over 6 years and we each bring a special quality to the weekend...Mel and Robin are the jokesters, Lisa is not far behind them, Jane is the nature, hiking creative diva, Leigh and I are the coffee and FRIDA fanatics, and Effie, Robin, Mel and I are the mummies of the group (other than of four legged children : ) .... Though each of us come from diverse backgrounds, we each share the passion of art, creativity...we all ooohhh and ahhh over paper, I can hear LEIGH's OOHHS in particular, ahhs over colour, new stamp designs, precious embellishments and others found treasures to use in our card making, art creating, scrapbooking masterpiece designs....here is an example of Lisa's snazzy cards....Jane had the awesome idea to begin the card exchange this art weekend.....so now we all go away with a special handmade creation from all of our sisters. How cool is that, I won't be able to give mine away I think....Looking forward to more late nites, creating to the tunes and stories and most of all those funny jokes...thanks Mel and Robin for having so much to share.  These womyn, are truly an awesome group of creative divas, compassionate souls and so generous with their gifts, love and friendship...I am blessed. Thank you!

We have descended....Stamping & Creative Weekend Heaven

Weekends like this are such a long awaited delight....the seven of us descend on the cottage and stay up

 until wee hours of the nite, wake early and create, eat, drink and be merry.  Forgetting sleep, forgoing showers, but feasting on each of our creative kitchen delicacies, yummy, yummy food ....Artistically we each have a style of our own and we each treasure and appreciate our designs and creations. With you my sisters I am able to loose myself in my art making...as the passion is alive in you as it is in me...how wonderful to find a community of sisters who  love art as much as I do.

Inspiration abundant at the Priestly Cottage

The Priestly Cottage has lots of inspiration for artistic creativity....it is such a blessing to be able to escape on a weekend with my stamping, creative diva sisters and enjoy the lovely surroundings.  Robin's dad is an avid collector and fire hydrants is one of those items he has collected and placed around the property.  I naturally gravitate to fire red and it was such a joy to soak up the morning bird song, crisp spring air while sitting on the fire red old bench....The bench's red painted covering still alive, though the vibrancy has faded so long ago, it holds many memories of others in the past sitting seeing the same things I am seeing, hearing the same sounds and enjoying the tranquility of it all.  Thank you Robin for sharing this sanctuary with us.  The red bench is a lovely meditative spot to see inspiration and notice all the treasures around.  This was a lovely reminder for me to take time each day to see the simple pleasures and treasures....being in the moment to moment.    

Dreams are like "Treasure Chests of Self-Understanding".

"Imagine all the people living in peace.  You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one.  I hope someday you'll join us, and the world will live as one."  ~ John Lennon.

Recently, I have been enjoying the process of dreaming and dream work, the reflecting on them and being totally amazed at how crazy the dreams can be sometimes.....sometimes they are full of colour, vivid, vibrant and loud....full of emotion, images and meaning...other times they are hazy, vague and distant..as if I am only observing..yet these too are still full of meaning but more "ephemeral and mysterious" which require a little more pondering, wondering, as if I am making my way through a thick, overgrown tropical jungle during a thick fog.  What I am absolutely loving is that I am finding the act of dreaming and the journalling of my dreams are like "treasure chests of self-understanding".  The process has been a gift given to me by a wonderful fellow, local artist, Marilyn Koop, whose vision it was to put together, curate and coordinate a "Dream" Exhibit...where 21 artists will be sharing their dreams, process and the meanings that they derive from their dreams.  This exhibit opens June 12th and runs until July 20th, at the Minarovich Gallery, at the Elora Centre for the Arts. 

I imagine this to be an intriguing, meaningful, fun and inspiring exhibit....as I am sure many of the creative artists involved will have wonderfully vivid dreams, full of imagery, symbols and stories to be told, created, heard and enjoyed...I wonder what your dreams are like, what meaning you get from them and what you would be willing to share about your dreaming process or dream content with others in the world????

"Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart.  Who looks outside, dreams.  Who looks inside, awakens." ~ Carl Jung

Yoga Meets Dance - Delightfully meditative and liberating

Movement is prayer to the universe...so dance, dance, dance your little heart and soul away....Recently I began "Yoga Meets Dance" with Jill Davey ...and it has been like a window in my spiritual and physical house has been sprung open after years of being 'painted' shut...now all the dry paint has been chipped away and the open window has brought in fresh new air and songs that free my body and soul as I dance away.  'Yoga Meets Dance' is a very lovely way to stretch, centre, claim your space and place in the world and celebrate all that you are and the thriving spirit within.   This guided dance practice takes you through the yogic chakras energy system using the imagery of the elements: earth, water, fire and air.  After the powerful rhythms of fire building energy we are guided to the ultimate resting into the stillness 

of spirit.  This yoga dance practice has found me craving more....and that is what I am hoping to get more of at the "Journey to the Heart" - Pathways of Sacred Connection workshop - it is so important to fill your vessel with love, joy, laughter, lightness, spirit so that you can give back and out more of the same to the world - in fact it is essential we take care of ourselves so that we can give more to those near and dear to our lives....enjoy a little jive for me ...dance like no one is watching.....  If you would like to join in on some delightful yoga and dance practice with Jill - check out her website: www.rasayana.ca