Daily Drawing August Success! :D

 Well hello again! :D 

Despite it being a good bit since my last post, I am finally back on her to say....I did it! :D For every day of August, I did not let myself sleep until my pen or pencil hit the page and I at least sketched! I am so glad to have committed myself to my daily drawing goal, and even though I chose not to post the drawings, I can honestly say it was a success!

Through this challenge I learned what I suspected; that a large barrier to getting back into my artwork was the self-imposed pressure to complete something post-worthy here. That pressure lead to some anxious feelings and the thought that if I felt like all I was capable of doing was "bad" art, that there was no point. But I know that's the furthest from the truth! So, I made the decision to let go of that expectation of myself, and wow, it made all the difference. It still strikes me how enormous of a weight that took off my shoulders. Even though I'd love to include 30 stunning pieces with this post, I believe I have made my peace with the fact that to get to that point, right now, I need to let off some steam to be able to be myself again.

Since the end of August, I allowed life to take priority again, but I am so glad to say the daily drawing has made its way back into my mind. Even after a long day, I have felt inspired to sit and create before winding down for bed. With a cup of tea and more positivity and less pressure to post, I have found myself excited for this quiet creative time :) I can't express how dearly I love having that feeling again!

All this said, I do intend to get back to sharing my artwork, as I am ready and happy to do so! :D

A Dog Day (Days#7,8)

 Last night I sketched, but didn't feel like posting anything. But hey, the goal is to get me drawing so...success!? All the same, tonight I felt like I just had to draw something I could post; if only to keep myself accountable to my challenge! 

Tonight's sketch is inspired by my cutie, my doggo Belle! No picture will ever do her justice, but I would love more time to create art of her :) Just not tonight...it's so late already! 

Good night all!

Little Butterfly Days#5,6

 

A sunny break in the storm got us all outside! While Belle-doggo went sniffing and rolling in the wet grass, my Little-Guy and I enjoyed watching the little white and orange butterflies flutter around. from flower to flower it flew until it landed on a leaf, seemingly full and happy as it rested.

I started sketching this Monday night, but again my art-time was cut short by a fussy Little-Guy! So, here's another unintentional two-evening sketch, again rough with some digital color :) 

P.S.- According to the internet, I believe our little butterfly friends to be "white peacock butterflies".

Movies on Disc (Days#3,4)

 It has been an odd couple of days. They have reminded me (against my will) how much I rely on the internet these days. With a storm coming and connection very, very spotty, I ended up digging out a movie on disc *whoa!* to have some background noise as I work. I found an unexpected amount of comfort in a familiar movie’s menu loop :) 

 

Nice to see you again Qui-Gon!*

It was so nice to enjoy the movie without sputtering or ad breaks. I forgot the peace that comes with the intentionality of having to put a disc in a player. No auto-play, no jumping instantly to something else at random like you can with streaming services now.

After sketching in my book with good-old pencil, I had the urge to bring out my old drawing tablet! It has been so long since I sat with it. I took what I'd started in my real sketchbook yesterday, redrew a lot of it, and added a dash of digital color for fun ;)

Still just a rough drawing, but hey, it's getting late again! I hope you had a great weekend! Good night all!

*As always, fan art is for fun, and I make no claim to their characters/property. 

Sketchbook Day#2: Too Tight!

Whew! I feel like I need to shake it out! 

I know starting a new challenge for myself always gives me nerves, but geesh. I started sketching tonight and I felt all the tension trying to think of and draw something “good enough” for this blog/challenge. My sketching started off super stiff and soulless; too tight!

Though I’m not satisfied with the results today, I know it’s the habit of drawing and the journey that I should focus on right now! Little victories, right? So, here is a super rough sketch from tonight’s pages as I sketch through this funk!

My Way Back (Day#1)

One goal of my return to blogging is to be unashamedly myself and honest. I don't want to deny my struggles; and I hope someone can feel a little less alone in their struggles by reading about mine. I didn't expect my first day back to drawing to be quite so heavy, but here we are *chuckles*. Which brings me to today...

I stayed up too late to “just doodle” and found a flood of emotions waiting to engulf me. I’ve missed it so much, I’ve missed the art community I used to be part of. I’ve let my skills get rusty, pens dry up, pencils break. 

Part of me feels like I’m nuts to put myself through this when I could be asleep….and the rest of me knows I crave creating so much. It is the part of “me” I have been missing! In some ways it’s not about choice; I am not “completely myself” when I am not creating! 

So I push through with good music and doodle this. Here’s to day #1 of getting back to “me”.

In the end I am glad for the wave of feelings. It means this endeavor is worth it :)

Another Chapter

 Another new chapter starts today!

Around this time one year ago, I sat at my desk with my baby asleep in his bassinet next to me. I finally had just enough peace of mind and energy to paint! And I chose to paint his cute little face :) 

Introducing my Little-Guy!

Everything before and after that moment seems both far away and like it happened in a blink! Either way, today I sit with a one-year old sleeping next to me as I write, and I am again setting myself a goal to get back to my creative pursuits. It has been very difficult for me to carve out time for my art on any kind of consistent basis; or post things online! With a new determination to guard time and energy to make it happen, I will embrace this new month as a new start!