Being Busy updates and an announcement

In my last post I promised I would update you on how I was getting on with some other classes and workshops I'm doing or getting behind with.  It is a very long post but please stick with it.  Or just scroll down to the bottom for the announcement.

Firstly One Little Word and Documented Life.  I have been combining these and really not enjoying it.  I haven't totally given myself to the Unplanner which has weekly art journaling type suggestions.  I really only kept a 'diary' of what I had been doing.  So as a result of Pathfinder - more on that later - I decided to discontinue the Unplanner in its previous form. I also decided not to continue with the I am tags.

I decided to keep track of what I do each day on the calendar on the back of each monthly divider and concentrate on One Little Word.  In April I went to Florida to attend a Ladies Getaway and I stuck the programme cover onto the April divider.

I filled in a key activity from each day on the calendar.  April's OLW task was to define what life was like with more of your word in it.  I attended Pathfinder right at the end of April so I have only just completed this task.

I was trying to exercise every day but that didn't always happen.  The photo on the May divider is of Lacock Abbey.  We went to stay at a B&B in Lacock for our wedding anniversary.  We didn't stay in the Abbey!  However the B&B was absolutely five star.

I signed up for an online class Art & Spirituality because it has been written by someone I know.  It is excellent but requires a daily commitment each week.  As we went away at the beginning of week 2 I got behind.  Still I can keep all the PDFs and do the course when I have time.

So on to Pathfinder.  This was an excellent day with Anneliese Bates.  I've done art workshops with Anneliese before but nothing like Pathfinder.  She provided us with an A5 sketchbook and we coloured the backgrounds however we wanted and then she asked questions.

The class was described thus:  This workshop is aimed at anyone who doesn't know what direction they really want to take, whether you have a new business idea, thinking of a big life change, a change in career or even moving home, Anneliese will guide you through the thought process step by step, interspersing it with art for which you need no experience.

Included in the workshop is a journal that will be become your working thought process, beautifully decorated and personalised with your own artwork and full of your thoughts, dreams and how to make those become a reality.

We will explore the changes you want to bring about, the things that are stopping you, and ways to overcome the obstacles.

I had gone with the idea of looking at whether I should stick with art journaling or concentrate on textile art or do both.  A somewhat simplistic idea in the light of what happened.

The first question was what were you unhappy with in life at the moment and what did you want to change.  I did add a couple of things to my answer.

Anneliese continued to ask questions and we continued to write down our personal answers.  The best part was as there weren't many of us that we were able to ask questions and make comments.  Discussions ensued which helped clarify our thoughts.

Here is a really key page.

When I got home I wrote down all that I had signed up for!  No wonder my head hurt holding all that information in my head.  I went through the list and decided which ones I should stay committed to, which ones I should give up on entirely and those that I had online lifetime access to and could do when I have time.  I have also withdrawn from the Cas Holmes weekend workshop.

This was a really useful page that I did at home.  Some of what is written here came out of the discussions we had on the day.

However you know me, I ignored my own advice about not signing up for anything else and enrolled on a 9 weekend course called Experimental Textiles led by Kim Thittichai which starts in June!

We had also talked about decluttering.  We had loads of boxes of my Dad's stuff in the conservatory - they had been there 2-3 years.  I had made a half-hearted effort to get them sold at an auction but had kept putting it off.  We also had over 300 owls that Andy collected as a child and other collections of stuff.  And stuff it is.  However I emailed a different auction house who accepted everything I listed and we took it all to them - 18 boxes of stuff.  They are sorting it into lots and it will all be put in an auction either in June or July.  Result!

Just as I was sorting out the boxes of stuff to take to the auction house this article popped up on my Facebook newsfeed.     How to declutter and let go of family treasures

I thought this was excellent from that article.

• Memories take up space in our hearts; stuff takes up space in our homes.
• Memories last forever; stuff breaks, gets lost, and fades away.
• Memories bring joy; stuff brings stress.
• Memories are honoring; stuff is diminishing.
• Memories bring peace; stuff brings chaos.
• Memories actually matter; stuff really doesn’t matter at all.

I feel much more in control of what I am doing although there is still much to work through.

Well done, if you're still here having waded through this post.  And now for the big announcement.

Drumroll please!

This is my 998th blog post.  Wednesday will see my 999th.  And on Friday we will celebrate
1000 with a giveaway.


See you on Friday.  Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

March

I am combining my One Little Word, the Unplanner from Art to the 5th and the 'I am' statements from His Kingdom Come in one binder.

I have ignored the Unplanner art challenges during March and just kept a record of what I've done.  Where there's gaps on the pages it's because I can't remember what I did or I didn't do anything special.

For the divider page for March I stuck the card that came with the bouquet of flowers for Mother's Day and then stuck some of the cellophane over the top.

Lots of the doodled pages and dividers in this binder can be coloured in but I haven't got round to it yet.

You can see the 'I am' tags that I am making for a bible verse each week.

The last few days of March are on the same page as the beginning of April so I have put that page into this month's pages.

The challenge in One Little Word for March was to create a large collage using bits and pieces cut from magazines.  I toook a photo of it for my binder.

I have tried to exercise every day and although I haven't lost any weight, I have lost inches!  Yeah!

Here's a better photo of my OLW collage.

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

February

In January I told you how I am combining my One Little Word, 'I am' tags and my Unplanner all in one binder.

I managed to keep up with February although some days I didn't do anything other than art so at the end of the month I printed out some small photos of the pages of my February Challenge Sketchbook.

February Divider
I planned to put a large photo of snowdrops on this page and at one point thought I might have to find a photo from a previous year.  However we eventually did go out and find some.

Week 1
The theme for the I am statements for February was  'Made in the image of God'.  I don't usually include photos of peoplein my art but managed to do it this time on each tag.

Week 2

The List Ten for this month was about things I shouldn't have done and one of the art challenges was Gratitude so I decided to list 10 things I'm thankful for.

Week 3

Week 4

One Little Word
The assignment for February was to practice something everyday and record it.  I used my February sketchbook as my art practice everyday.

I damaged my back at the beginning of the month and wasn't able to do the Salsa exercise I had planned to do.  I was eventually able to do short walks.  The back is ok now so hopefully in March I will be able to exercise more frequently.  Just have to find the motivation!

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

What have you signed up to do in 2016?

If you've been reading my blog for a long while you will know that I had/have the tendency to sign up for online classes.  I tried very hard this year not to do too many because

1. I was rather busy with other things and
2. I hardly ever finish the classes

I am currently doing a class called Creative+Practice and today is the start of week 6 of 8 weeks and I am totally up to date.

At the beginning of the class we were asked to write our intentions for the class and I wrote 'I intend to finish the class'.  I'm patting myself on the back that I have got this far - I've got beyond the point where I normally give up.

So maybe that's the key thing when starting a new online class - commit to finishing it!   Sometimes with me it's even the case that I need to commit to starting it.

Currently I have signed up to do several classes in 2016 but maybe I'll just hold a watching brief over some of them and do my own thing rather than follow slavishly along and then feel bad when I fall by the wayside.

So what is on offer?  There's Take Me Deeper-DNA and Logos365 on His Kingdom Come.  Both of these are free and I will probably amalgamate them with other things that I might do.  Fortnightly on TMD-DNA there is a technique prompt and an I Am statement which I hope to play along with.  (For my US readers - fortnight means 2 weeks).

In January I am planning to follow a free bible study and a short art journaling course from Jeanne Oliver.   The Bible study, Listening:Finding the Quiet, is a four week study all about finding the quiet in each day and hearing the voice of God.  The art journaling course, Reflections, is a 'two week art journaling online course all about unraveling your own story and creating authentic art that only you can tell'.

Fortunately the art journaling class starts the week after Creative+Practice finishes.

Also in January I've signed up for Creative Jumpstart.   This isn't really a class as such.  There are 25 downloadable videos with various teachers showing techniques.  You can keep the videos as a reference library for when you are stuck for an idea.

So that brings me to the year long classes or workshops that I've signed up for.   I really like learning techniques and learning about different products so Wanderlust was a must for me.

One Little Word is a monthly class from Ali Edwards which I have done in previous years and will probably combine with Logos365.

I'm going to dip in and out of Documented Life Project - the unplanner.  I enjoyed parts of Documented Life Project in 2014 especially the fact that I combined my one little word with it.

And finally starting on January 6th, there's Glimpses of Jesus in the Old Testament - a Bible Study that I am working on with Simon Clay from Jubilee Church.  This is a free weekly bible study with optional creative responses.

Have I taken on too much?  Probably.

Will I complete it all?  Possibly not.

Will I enjoy it?  Definitely.

What have you committed to doing in 2016?

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

More planner pages

My planner is so full and we still have 8 weeks left.  I'm wondering whether it will need surgery again.

Week 39

Week 40

Week 41

Week 42
The task for One Little Word this month was to write yourself a letter of encouragement.

People are already talking about their Documented Life Planner 2015 and what their one word might be for One Little Word.

For a change I'm not going to follow either of those particular projects.  I'm going to take part in Take Me Deeper a 52 week devotional and Logos 365 which is about living with God's One Word.  You can find out more here.

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

9 months!

I have been keeping my planner up-to-date for a whole 9 months!  And taking part in One Little Word.  I'm really pleased with  myself.  Of course, stickers are really useful when you sit down to catch up and find you can't remember what you did 2 weeks ago!

My last update was here!

Week 35

Week 36

Week 37
The real story: One Little Word entry for September

Week 38

And it's amazing how the colourful stickers make it look as though I have a colourful life!

Don't forget to have a look at Pause, Ponder & Prepare.  Not long to go now!

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

Blog Hop - with a difference!

I was asked in June to take part in a blog hop with a difference but it came at a bad time so I had to decline. But last week Sandie invited me to take part and it seemed like a good idea (until I came to actually write something)! Why is it a blog hop with a difference? You are given 4 questions to answer and you have to invite 3 people you know to blog the following week and invite 3 people. So here goes!

What am I working on?
At the moment I seem to spend more time thinking about what I should be working on rather than actually working on it. I have lots of projects on the go and none of them seem to be getting anywhere. I signed up for a Sketchbook course with Linda & Laura Kemshall and then realised it really would be better if I finished some of my other projects first.

I’m working on an Advent blog called Pause, Ponder & Prepare with my friend Diane who lives in Florida. Diane has written an Advent study and I have found the Bible verses that tell the Christmas story for an Advent Calendar. All of this is on the blog already although there are still PDF links and such like to add. Also we are both going to do our versions of the study and calendar and blog about it on our personal blogs. I haven’t even started on that yet.

I have been attending a class called Make It Personal taught by Hilary Beattie at The Bramble Patch. It’s six sessions of 2 days over the year. Session 5 is at the end of this month where apparently ‘we will work using our fabrics/papers as a starting point for inspiration and designs.’ Come back at the end of the month to see how I got on!

If you are a regular reader of my blog you will know that I am taking part in One Little Word and Document Life Project – although with the latter I tend to ignore the prompts and do my own thing.


How does my work differ to others of its genre ?
I’m not sure my work fits into a genre. I do different things for different projects. I like to work with paper, paint and inks when I am art journaling. I like to work with fabrics and paper when I’m working on a textile piece. At the moment everything I’m doing is driven by a course or a project and I rarely just play.   I need to do more of that.   I’ve learned loads of techniques from attending workshops, doing on line courses or watching YouTube videos.   My aim is not to be a poor imitator of well known tutors work but in doing that I don’t start working on my own work.  I must find time to play.

Why do I write/ create what I do ?
I love setting up what I call art challenge blogs. Click on the tab at the top of the page to find links to them. I started them as in the creative circles I was mixing in online there were people asking for challenges. I decided that I would do them with quotes and Bible verses to use. I particularly wanted to make them easily available to everyone and not charge for them although the planning takes up a lot my time. I include a particular art technique to use each day. I also work on the challenges myself and do photo tutorials on my own blog of how I did my pages. However I encourage people to use their own ideas, the paints and papers that they already own and to come up with their own work. I am always astounded by the wide range of styles and work I see as a result.

Earlier this year I launched more Christian-based studies. These are based on teaching series from my church to which I add journaling questions or prompts. These studies offer opportunity for creative responses but I don’t put art techniques to use.  You can find a link to Identity and to Honour at the top of this page.

I feel that I am called to use my creative gifts and my teaching skills to help other people release their creativity and their faith.

You may like to read this post From under the sideboard.  It explains a little bit more about me.  The coaching sessions I had with Robin encouraged me to launch my first art challenge blog, An Attitude of Gratitude.

How does your creating/ writing process work ?
I spend a lot of time thinking and then have short bursts of creativity with the paints, inks and papers.  And then I go back to thinking.  Sometimes I wonder if the ratio of thinking to doing ought not to be the other way round - more doing and less thinking!


Well done for getting this far down the page.  I seem to have written rather a lot after all.  Thank you for sticking with it and to Sandie for inviting me to share my creative processes with you.

Let me introduce you to three friends:  Mary, Shonna and Merri who will be sharing about what they are focussing on next Monday, 22nd September.  Do hop over to see them.

Mary Brack stumbled on art journaling about 6 years ago.  She makes and sells altered book journals and you can find her at Me, With My Head in the Clouds.

Shonna Worsham Bucaroff teaches art classes in San Diego and online.  She has set up a Ning Community - Twistedfigures and has just started offering the Free online course "Kingdom Come". 

Merri Dennis is running a year-long free online creative Bible study using Psalms.   You can find her at Bible Crafts and Activities.

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

More planner pages

Last month I shared the pages for weeks 26 to 28.  The 52 Psalms study is being posted again after a short break but I have carried on sticking them into my book week on week which means that when I was sharing weeks 26-28 I hadn't received the study.  So here's a catch up.

Week 26

Week 27

Week 28
One of the challenges for Documented Life Project was to add hearts to the page and I found this great piece of scrapbook cardstock.  When I came to stick the next Psalm in there were more hearts.

Week 29
This was another week of watching the Tour de France.

Week 30
And yet another week of watching cycling.  Although I did go off for two days to a workshop with Hilary Beattie.

In One Little Word for July we were presented with a prompt which required us to do three things during the month: Self-care, Giving and Celebrate.  The page on the right is a gelli print.

Thanks for stopping by.

Bernice