The most important decision...

“The most important decision you make is to be in a good mood.”   

Voltaire

Torchbearers of the Heart

Day two of Women Unleashed Online Retreat included a guided journey by Shiloh Sophia - an intentional creativity exercise on Torchbearers of the Heart. 
These are my torchbearers. This was done in about 10 minutes using waterproof pen and watercolor paints. Amazing for me because #1 - I tend to avoid drawing people. #2 - I rarely create artsy things quite so spontaneous and in the moment.  
It was fabulous creating it. I need to do more of this. :) 

This retreat is just what I need to recenter and focus. 

A journal in process...

My journal for Women Unleashed Retreat 2016 is a work in progress... 

Here is the beginning. It's painted with two colors of acrylic, a metallic teal and blueish green. This shows much bluer than it is in real life.... my phone camera just don't do greens well. I just used random brush strokes and then while wet, made bubble wrap texture. I used it like this for the opening session. 

And then because one cannot waste all that good paint, I printed the inside cover with the paint on the bubble wrap.

I used a sunflower stencil.  several layers of paint later... 

 Here's the journal cover for today's session. 

I intend to add details to the sunflower, and maybe some words. 

I'm just not sure what all yet. I'll work on it as I go along. 

Release joyful light

I'm attending (online) the Women Unleashed Retreat again this year. In this mornings beginning meditation vision, we focused on finding our intention for the retreat. The word that came to me was - LIGHT. (Interesting on the shortest day of the year) 

My intention expanded itself... "Dispel the darkness. Release joyful light!"

dis•pel (dĭ-spĕlˈ)

v. To rid one's mind of: managed to dispel my doubts.

v. To drive away or off by or as if by scattering.  

The official retreat begins tomorrow on the Winter Solstice. I shall end the year by releasing what was before and moving forward with intent. 

Winter Bird Series

I got an itch to create some winter bird ornaments, and this is the result. 

These ornaments measure 3-7/8 x 2-7/8 inches - collage melded with beeswax, mounted on heavy mat board and backed with decorative paper. 

All are available in my Etsy Shop.