February was a darling. I was vibing with the colors. I got to see so many of your faces in live art sessions *win* and I have been putting the finishing touches on a new MASSIVE course I've been working on for the last 6 months. IT'S SOOO GOOD YOU GUYS I CANNOT WAIT!
Aside from that, there's a major personal challenge I've decided it's time to overcome and I'm sharing it further down there 👇
Procreate Bootcamp
The past 6 weeks have been sooo fun as we've explored the ins and outs of Procreate, along with creating with prompts that we wouldn't have otherwise thought to draw. Not to mention technique challenges to elevate artwork.
And topping it off with Procreate Party this weekend was the icing on the cake!
Beautiful artwork by: Clare Woodroff, Caitlin Villers, Mrunmayee Das, Erica Coombs
If you missed this round of Procreate Bootcamp, you can jump on next year's waitlist right here 🥰
Ceramic Studio Scene
A few of these emails ago, I shared about my ceramic paint tube mini vases and you all had the best sayings for them! The shelf these tubes and little critters are on is to go into the first of 3 kiln firings. I can't wait to finally get these into the wild! And there will be more than the 6 you see here, don't worry.
P.S. They'll get finished in 22k gold at the top and bottom for a fancy foil effect ✨
Favorite Finds
Hot finds! Show me your wares! From essentials to splurges, these are my picks for this month…
- Hear me out. If you fly more than 0 times a year, THIS. Never am I as grossed out as when I fly. No matter what they tell you, planes do not get cleaned. Ever tried using a wipe on your seat? What about *gasp* the tray?! Don't get me started on the seat pocket. (PSA: BRING WIPES) I fly a good amount and I've seen things.
Anyway, I just found this sleeve that slides over the tray table and hangs at the bottom with its own pockets. Basically, NONE of your stuff will touch any of that nastyness. I have a 27 hour travel time ahead of me that I leave for tomorrow and this thing is going to get some major use. I'm pleased with myself for this score.
- While I was searching for plane conveniences (that are more affordable than business class) I found this magsafe phone holder. I've used little rests and clamps before, but if you have a magsafe phone, this might be enticing cuz this magnet is strong.
- Ahhh I'm sorry this is also airplane related but it was too good not to mention! You can connect to any bluetooth enabled headphones to the seatback screen with this adapter so you never have to use a cord again.
- Ok this is kinda giving something away (that I'm sharing in a hot second) but I'm obsessed with this dog fleece. It's not bulky and acts a bit like a second skin (er, fur?), and my goooodness do they feel fancy-pants when they wear it. We started with hunter green, but I just ordered chipmunk (tan), charcoal (actually more of a heather gray), and obvs had to get the red classic plaid.
And of course, my monthly can't live without item…
- I am nottt only sharing this because it's a TPL product, I swear ittt 😅 but the other day I was chatting with a few ppl about how we don't know what we'd do without these round brushes. Seriously, if you want watercolor brushes that hold a ton of paint and have a super quick snap back for itty bitty hairline strokes, and have a long generous brush bod, these are the answer. I kept struggling with brushes myself and that's how these came to fruition and I couldn't be happier when I paint because I get the exact results I want. The reviews say it all! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Random Fact
This month's random fact for no reason is …
… maybe a fact? maybe not a fact? Either way, the fact is that this is news:
Cat personalities can be determined by their paw pads 🐈🐈⬛
I won't put us through another round of personality tests (yet), but I do think this is the cutest thing. Elina sent me a link to a tiktok sharing there was a Japanese study where researchers studied over 2,000 kittens and determined six personality types that can be identified by the appearance of their paw pads. Accurate? You be the judge. I most certainly didn't fact check this because I wanted to ride the fun wave 🥳
Little Edie is a proud diva & Franny is an eccentric dreamer.
Personal Musings
I'll start by sharing that in no way whatsoever were we considering getting a new dog. We've been living in luxurious silence now (RIP Lucy & Billie) unless Edie is hunting socks cuz that's when she howls into the night like a true slayer. Aside from her beast calls, though, it's been nice not being soooo needed. BUT - Laura sent me this picture. And I couldn't help myself. I filled out the application that second, and we had this sweet, almost deaf, partially blind senior dog, who loves to tuck his head under my arm, play with toys, NEVER barks, and is such a fancy boy on his walks (wearing his fleece of course). Meet Jim (aka Sir Jimothy Cricket Merriweather). We don't know much about him. He was found with lonnnng matted fur running in the road about the time that we had that massive storm. We think he's around 12yo. We know he's a little angel cutie.
A MAJOR (to me) PERSONAL CHALLENGE:
I'm gonna brave it. I'm putting it out there so I can feel more motivated. Accountability. I'm gonna do it. I'm going to finally learn how to sew. Because dang it, the stack of pants I have in my closet that would be so fun to wear if only they weren't made for people 18 inches taller than me. And look, I know I could take them to an alteration person. But I've been there, done that, and have had terrible experiences (not to mention paying half the cost of what the actual pants cost me 🤮).
So to all my seamstress pals, do you love a basic betch sewing machine that you got off Amazon 10 years ago that'll do the trick? Or would you say that it'll just massively add to the frustration of and I should suck it up and get a heavy duty guy? I see that you can create invisible seams with sergers too. (Do you see that? I know what a serger is. Looks like somebody (me) is on their way to being a pro now that I've read a few reddit threads and watched some youtubes …)
That's a wrap for the fourth version of nonsense blab. Thank you for being here. Thank you for contributing to this incredible community that we've built together. Thank you for letting me be a part of your creativity.
Don’t miss the next monthly digest overshare!
Who knows what’ll be in these emails, but I can promise you that they’ll be entertaining (to say the least). You can make sure you get the next one here!
