Usually when I work in the studio, I put on my “painting” costume, you know, paint splattered clothes. However, on this particular day I dressed up for the studio session I was about to undertake. This included addressing wedding envelopes with gorgeous gold ink and working on several paintings with acrylic paint, acrylic ink and some collage. Needless to say, we’re talking, permanent mess making goodness.

Lately, I’ve been inspired by some interesting people. One is Marie Kondo, the author of The LIfe Changing Magic of Tidying Up. Her “Kondo Menthod” is all about only having things in your life that spark joy. While I haven’t gone through my entire house, I have been much more eager to discard things that don’t spark joy. There’s a long way to go…but I have this lovely skirt that I haven’t worn in years. It does spark joy. So it was donned for the paint party.

Laura Horn offers an online, botanical abstract class, Flourish and Flow. Laura reminds us to look around our environment when choosing a palette. Look at the color of your clothes, furnishings, etc. The colors of my skirt are ones I love, and, yes, it does make me feel more bohemian.

Depending on what I’m working on, I’ll either listen to music, podcasts or books. The book I’m currently listening to is The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. Here we are reminded to use the good linen, dishes and wear the pretty clothes instead of waiting for “someday”.

This studio session was particularly inspiring and fun. I did wear an apron, but so what if I got paint on my clothes?  Several years ago I attended a lecture with the artist Hyatt Moore, He claimed that he only had two kinds of clothes…those with paint on them and those that will have paint on them. He inspired me to practice art for thirty minutes a day. Set up a card table and just draw or look at art or reasearch art, just immerse yourself for those thirty minutes. So I did, and continue to, most days. How about you? Do you change-up your style just because? Do you have an art practice?