A creative monthly challenge for 2021

My word for 2020 was tide. It turned out to be a good choice, what with Covid lockdowns, a job change and losing my children to their grown up world. It helped remind me to ebb and flow with the wash of change and to not resist.

Strangely enough, 2020 was also one of my recent best years. I enjoyed working from home and slowing down, not rushing through the traffic, consuming less and being with my family, together in lockdown. I know I am one of the lucky few- many didn’t have good experiences, were terrible lonely and businesses suffered. So I know many hope that 2021 will be more like pre 2020 times.

This got me thinking. It reminded me of some of the creative challenges I ran a few years ago and that it might be time to run an annual challenge with monthly themes. So many people are stuck at home or less likely to  be able to travel or see loved one. Focusing on a creative pursuit is a mindful activity that not only helps us through difficult times, but may be a vehicle to discovering something about ourselves or helps to push us creatively. It doesn't matter where you are, you can create with very little.

Each month there will be a prompt for you to interpret.

It must be original - original you. It can be an art piece in any medium, a poem, a captured moment, a flower arrangement, arranging shells on the sand, sewing, knitting, crocheting, bookmaking. Something made or created by you.

Join in. Let’s get creative and inspire each other! Be experimental - use it to try a new art medium or style of photography or to develop a way of making in your preferred medium. Where will it take you?

Think about whether you want to create a theme of your work throughout the year? Do you want to use particular colours, moods or media, or, simply use the challenge to play?

In 2020, I enjoyed filling a beautiful Bespoke Press diary with an ink drawing a day. 

For 2021, I plan to repurpose a disposed book and make my own art journal. Creating every day can be difficult to achieve, so I decided that having one place to play in, is useful as I can simply grab my book and go. My repurposed journal is my Book of Days. It is quite large, slightly less than A4,  but the idea is to have space to try new things and what I don't like I can simply paste over the pages again and again, if necessary. 

I called for prompt themes recently on Instagram and some kind souls shared some topics that you may recognise below.

The 12 monthly themes for 2021 are:

January - word/s

February - compassion

March - nature

April - beginnings

May- sky

June - sea

July - food

August - mountains

September - seasons

October - courage

November - thoughtful

December - magic

The hashtag for posting is

#2021_creativegrowth

 

Before the start of each month during 2021, I will post a theme on Instagram and will feature posts in my Stories followed by a monthly round up on my blog. 

If you would like to get notification and inspiration about the new prompt, please sign up on the Follow by email link on the adi & bert blog home page.

Here is January’s prompt - word/s

Do you have a word for 2021? Do words move you? Is font something that inspires you? What is your favourite quote?

Sometime in January, share your word/s interpretation and together let’s celebrate the magic of letters and words. 

So I can follow along, please tag @adiandbert and #2021_creativegrowth  

I hope your 2021 will be just what you need and so look forward to seeing what you create. Claudia x

Interviews, tools and other tales

After a thoroughly enjoyable interview (my first!) with the delightful Liz Constable from @bookartstudios on FB live and having a lovely supportive and friendly audience tuning in, I was inspired to finally get back on the proverbial (writing) horse again and do a blog post. It’s been a while as you can see!

I am always interested to hear about what inspires other artists, how they learn and what materials they use, and after the interview, I realised that others may too. So here are some more thoughts to build on the interview with Liz and to document some of the people and techniques that I mentioned. I hope you will find it of interest. Also there is a Giveaway surprise at the end, so read on!

Creative Challenges

Firstly, to get the creative juices flowing, if you are stuck, or you don't know where to start,  I have found that doing creative challenges is a superb way to help give you a focus and a goal. Signing up to a challenge is a great reason to have permission to keep on task and take out your materials to create, day after day. 

So here is a list of some of the challenges that have helped me grow my artsy habits.

1. 100 day project - do something creative every day for one hundred days. Anything goes, it could be a piece of writing, a poem, knitting or any medium of art you like or want to try. Choose a theme or medium that is achievable on a daily basis, otherwise you will make it too hard for yourself. 
   
   [My reflection on doing the New Zealand 100 days project is here if you want to read more about why these challenges are so helpful.]
    
2. Inktober with Jake Parker. Practice your ink drawing style, drawing everyday for the month of October.
   
   
3. Are you book enough with Sarah Maker from @inkandawl. Each month Sarah has a theme to which you make a book. And when I say ‘book’ don’t think conventional turning-pages-type-of-books necessarily. Check out #areyoubookenough.
   
   
4. icad- index card a day for 61 days introduced by Tammy of daisyyellowart.com or @gyspy999 on IG #icad2020
   
   
5. #7vignettes by @interiorsaddict -sadly Jen's challenge doesn’t run anymore, but at the time, it helped me learn to style a table to photograph my creations and fed my guilty pleasure - STYLING! ;)
   
   
6. Tune into what’s happening around you or in the world and be inspired by events or causes and interpret what's going on creatively e.g. the bread tag project by Shani Nottingham @thebreadtagproject on IG.
   
   
7. Look out for challenges like Sara Tasker’s @me_and_orla #15minutemagic - great if you only have a few minutes to spend taking photographs and only need to post once a week.
   
   
8. The Sketch Book Project - buy a sketch book from the Sketch Book Project and have it stored in the Brooklyn Art Library. You can even have it digitised as I did mine. 
   
   
9. Creatively Squared  is a whole community creating content and earning through the endeavours of co-founders Ruth Stephenson and Scott Thomas. There are monthly challenges and they have content creators that share amazing tips on taking and editing photographs @creativelysquared on IG.

I  have found that that there is so much support from the creative community on Instagram that you will never feel a failure! And anyway, failing is just an opportunity to learn.

Learning

Speaking of learning... some online courses that have inspired my development and encouraged me to try different mediums and styles, were taken with the following astonishingly clever and warm people.

• Mati Rose McDonough who inspired me to take "daring adventures in painting" and to "show the world my magic"
  
  
• Jeanne Oliver jeanneoliver.com @jeanneoliver IG / FB who helped me "answer my creative calling".
  
  
• Liz Constable @bookartstudios who has the most amazing workshops on offer and who generously shares free tips and techniques for bookmaking. Visit Liz's FB site for her videos and the Book Art Studios website for products and workshops.

Something I have noticed is that private Facebook groups are often created by teachers during these courses and this channel provides a safe space to share your newly discovered techniques.

Materials

Some favourite materials I use are:

• Stick charcoal to draw with and size 3 brush and water to move the charcoal around the outline and create water colour effects
  
  
• Strips of unwaxed sandwich wrap used in collages or to draw on, or scrunch up and flatten to add texture
  
  
• Old library index cards covered with gesso or torn and cut pieces for collage or used for blackout poetry 
  
  
• Bits of fabric with torn threads dyed naturally with beetroot or coffee
  
  
• My kids' old water colour set, a Windsor and Newton travel palette I bought more than 20 years ago and more recently some new metallic watercolours I picked up, called "Watercolor Confections"
  
  

In her Studio publication

I was very fortunate to have an article published in a Stampington publication, The Artful Blogger a few years ago and gave away copies in a giveaway. During the recent lockdown in New Zealand, the publisher notified me the same article would be appearing in their sister magazine called In her studio in their summer 2020 issue. 

Do look out for the issue in your local stores or online and if you find a copy please do tag me and #inherstudiomagazine as the copy they sent me sadly, never arrived. 

Giveaway

 

In celebration of my first ever interview, I have a little giveaway.

I made a ceramic ring cone (with a botanical impression of course!) and which is one part of the giveaway. There is also a small handmade notebook made with original paintings. 

I learned the notebook making technique from Liz @bookartstudios during a live tutorial that Liz so generously offered for free  on Zoom, during lockdown. 

(Note the ring and other paraphernalia are not included . The ring is my mother's (Adi) wedding ring and now mine, so if you got that you will have to take the husband too!)

If you'd like to be in the draw, please 

1. Follow @bookartstudios and @adiandbert on Instagram 

2. Post an image of your favourite book, handmade or not, tagging it to the above handles and  to the hashtag #the_book_series. 

The draw will be made on Sunday the 12 July. 

Enjoy your gathering of books and taking photographs - its a wonderful way to unwind!

(This giveaway is in no way linked  with Instagram or facebook)

Next Time

In my next blog post I will give a shout out to some amazing artists on Instagram who have and continue to inspire me and some of whom, I have made wonderful, long lasting connections.  

Have a joyous July, stay safe and keep creating.

Claudia x

Woodland wonders in the #ab_the_nature_series winning photos with Sarah Becvar Design

Yay! We have a Winner of #ab_the_nature_series with @sarabevardesign 

Well done Barabara @barbaracarrollaz! You will receive this beautiful shopping tote, hand made by Sarah Becvar as well as an embroidered card,

Sarah has chosen Barbara's photo as the winning entry, below, because "both flower and butterfly are perfectly captured and beautifully coordinated! The colours and patterns in both subjects are exquisite. Amazing photography!"

The good news it that there are also three runners up who will each receive one of Sarah Becvar's lovely freehand, machine embroidered cards! 

First Runner up: 

@juliemoo1960. Sarah says "This is a great collection of natural items, and full of inspiration. The texture and colour of the wood and the hessian with this pretty posy is styled beautifully".

Second Runner up 

@cornishhomemade. Sarah commented "What a stunning view. I find it incredibly calming looking out to sea and this captures the coastal greenery as well as a beautiful sea. A perfect environment to reflect and clear our minds".

Final Runner up

@happily_ambling.  Sarah found this "such a lovely picture of this bluebell wood. Walking through natural environments is so beneficial. Not just mentally, but inspirationally and this captures a woodland walk perfectly. I’d love to walk in this wood!"

Thank you so much to all you you for playing along.

A big shout out too, to Sarah, for being so generous and donating some lovely products as well as the unenviable task of judging the winning entries. Thank you Sarah!

Until next time.
Claudia x

Nature inspired - join in the latest photochallenge

Sarah Becvar of Sarah Becvar Design is my collab for the next adi & bert  photo challenge on Instagram. Sarah, a textile trained artist, creates fabric art - beautifully freehand machine embroidered, with simple nature-inspired forms.

Read below about what inspires Sarah to create such lovely designs and to find out about her creative process. Sarah also shares some tips for selling and online web design.

1. Sarah, have you always been interested in creating and what inspired you to sew using botanical/nature based themes? 

SB: I grew up on a dairy farm, surrounded by acres of beautiful Sussex countryside, orchards, farm animals and plenty of wildlife!  As a child I would gather handfuls of items that I’d collect from my surroundings such as leaves, shells, tree bark and plenty of flowers, and from an early age I would sketch them or make collages of my nature finds. 

 2. What artists inspire you and why? 

SB: My inspiration still comes from my natural surroundings. I often refer to my old botanical guide books to identify flowers, but also love studying the botanical drawings and the aged, muted colours. I was fortunate to find Sketches For The Flora which is a volume of field sketches by W. Keble Martin (published in 1972) to which I refer. His simple line drawings give clarity to the form of the flower I may be drawing. 

3. How do you stay focused when you are building up stock for your website or a market? 

SB: I enjoy each step of the construction of my products whether it’s a greetings card, bag or artwork and it gives me great pleasure to hear the lovely feedback from my customers which encourages me and keeps me engaged.

4. For someone's starting down the track of selling art and crafts, what is the best piece of advice you could give?

SB: Some advice to someone who’s in the early stages of selling their work would be to have confidence and belief in their product. I prefer to give a brief description of how I make the product as I feel it’s important to explain that the item is handmade, and it gives the product a ‘story’. 

5. What tips do you have for crafters/artists setting up a website or selling online?

SB: I designed and constructed my own website which has been an enormous learning curve, but I have fulfilled my brief of a site that is clear, simple and sophisticated with ease of navigation. It is the product that needs to stand out with a clear call to action. Keep things simple in a style that reflects your work. 

  

6. What are you happiest doing creatively and why?

SB: I am at my happiest creating a new piece of work, from its initial sketches through to drawing it in thread on my sewing machine. I often sew straight onto the fabric without drawing the design onto the fabric first, and find this incredibly exciting! Seeing the lines of stitches appear before you, forming an image on a blank canvas, is a wonderful feeling. 

7. Where would you like to be creatively in five years' time? 

SB: I hope to run freehand machine embroidery workshops where I’d love to teach my processes and encourage people to try freehand machine embroidery themselves. As I have a background in textile design I’d like to design more fabrics which incorporate my sketches and have discussed publishing a book using images of my freehand embroidery. I feel so fortunate that I enjoy what I do and am surrounded by a constant source of inspiration enabling my creativity to have a constant flow. 

Thank you, Sarah!

-------------------------

To celebrate Sarah's charming work, Sarah and I would love you to join us in a photo challenge on Instagram and the theme is nature!

Sarah is offering a beautifully embroidered shopping bag and hand made card to the winner and two runner’s up will each receive one of her enchanting sewn cards.

Be sure to follow the rules, to be eligible:

1. On Instagram follow @sarahbecvardesign and @adiandbert 

2. Post a new photo with a nature theme, to the tag #ab_the_nature_series 

3. Invite a friend to join

Comp close on 30 April and is open worldwide.

Sarah will select the winners.

Have fun and we look forward to seeing your entries!

Claudia x

Photo Credits: Sarah Becvar

Giving is receiving: #thebotanicalseries giveaway

There was much talk at the beginning of the year by many on Instagram about choosing a word for the  year. I decided fairly early on that it would be give. It's so easy to get stuck in the trap of  making and creating and getting too attached to your work. So I decided I would make and give away. It's been a fun and refreshing experience.

So to thank you for tagging and to celebrate #thebotanicalseries tag reaching well over
20 000 tags,  I am giving away this original collage, titled 'Evince'.

To be in the draw to win this original, please write a comment on my Instagram post that shows this photograph. The giveaway closes Sunday midnight, New Zealand time and I will randomly select a winner on Monday (open worldwide).

Look forward to you joining in.
Happy Valentine x

'In the Moment Series' Winners

Firstly, a big thank you to those of you who have played along with the  photochallenge #ab_inthemomentseries with Ann Davis @annld60 and I on Instagram. It's such a buzz seeing photos deliberately taken for the theme.

Thanks also to Ann for taking on a promoter and judge role. Ann very kindly selected the winners and has written a few words about each of the winning entries. 

Ann writes- 

"Thank you Claudia for inviting me to judge the 'In the Moment Series' photochallenge on Instagram. These are my selected winners."

... and from me - Thank you Ann - your generosity to support the challenge and help promote it is greatly appreciated!

About the winners, Ann says:

"Kathy @prairiepeony took her  tulips that were gracefully falling apart and began to work her creativity. The  colors, composition and styling along with her beautiful words were a perfect 'In the Moment' photo."

"Jill  Meyer @jillemeyer2796 loves nature and is a master of improvising.  Cold and snowy, Jill gathers her favorite things, a cup of tea, books, a flower.  Her photo speaks to the moment and I wanted to jump right in and start reading one of her books."

"Nella @floral_passion had a calmness in her photo.  I could imagine Nella sitting in the house reading, drinking her tea and looking out the window, calmly waiting for the rain to stop."

"Mayumi Ichiryu @atelier_cocon_m works magic in her photography with her beautiful ribbons, antiques and of course her J'immy the Mouse'. This picture spoke to the moment with bringing back winter. If only for the moment."

Well done to all our winners and thank you again for taking up the challenge. There were so many beautiful entries and deciding who the winners were, was no easy task. 

To the winners - to redeem your prize, please email adiandbert@gmail.com or DM @adiandbert on Instagram with your postal address and I'll pop along an Artful Blogger magazine in the mail to you.  

'Till next time.

Claudia x

A new year and a new challenge - 'In the moment' series

The photographer, Ann Davis (@annld60 on Instagram) and I have collaborated and will host a competition to win one of three Artful Blogger magazines (recent Nov/Dec/Jan 2018 issue of the magazine).

This magazine is produced by Stampington & Company that publishers a range  of other magazines that you may be familiar with, including Bella Grace, Artist’s Café and A Somerset Holiday etc. For more of their beautiful publications, to sign up to newsletters or read their blog, visit Stampington & Company. 

Ann, who is an accomplished photographer, loves flowers. Her speciality is taking photos of bunches of lush flowers in vintage vases using white backgrounds. Seeing her photos in my feed as I browse Instagram, is an uplifting moment in my day.

I asked Ann a few questions about her photography and what inspires her.

1.  Have you always been interested in creating and how did you become involved with photography?

We had cameras around our house from the time I was eight years old. I became the family photographer. In college, I took my first Photography class. When I met my husband 42 years ago, he liked taking pictures and it has been our hobby ever since.

x

2.  What photographers inspire you and why?

Claire Brocato (@claireb_photography Claire photography on Instagram)   is inspired by many of the things in life that are important to me -  nature, traveling and flowers. Her use of colour and composition is so inspirational.

Another favourite is Barb Brookbank (@keepingwiththetimes on Instagram). Barb’s photography is so inspirational every single day and her willingness to share information about gardening, styling, learning, food…. there are so many more … but I think I will stop here!

3.  What are you happiest doing creatively and why? 

I love taking pictures, whether it is on a road trip with my husband, walking the neighbourhood, snapping flowers, or still life in the studio. They all make me happy and contribute to my wellbeing.

4.  How do you store your images and what editing tools do you use? 

   I store my photos on both my computer and an external hard drive (always). I use Lightroom and Photoshop to edit my photos and have taken many Kim Klassen @kimklassen classes to help me with both Lightroom and my still life photography. 

5.  What approach do you follow when you find you are creatively stuck?

When I am creatively stuck I will do one of two things. Go for a walk or cruise around Instagram looking for inspiration.

6.  Having a word for the year has become really popular. What is your word to work / live by and that you will follow as your mantra? 

I am still using the same word, or should I say phrase, with a few variations and that I chose a few years ago. Embracing the moment. For me I have found that I seem to do better if I live in the moment. You will see me using Embracing Stillness - to help me slow down, Gratitude and I am going to use Kindness too this year.

Keeping Ann’s beautiful images in mind, this photographic challenge is to capture the little moments in life that are meaningful to you or that bring you stillness.

Inspiration can come from incidental everyday moments that make you smile or give you a feeling of wellbeing, or that represents your chosen word for the year. 

It could be as simple as the way a fabric falls in the light, or a steaming cup of tea on a chilly day or a simple curation of your foraged items. 

To participate and be eligible to win one of the Artful Blogging issues in the competition, you need to:

1. Follow @annld60 and @adiandbert
2. Post a new photo with the theme in mind
3. In your opening caption include tags to @annld60 and @adiandbert and #ab_inthemomentseries

The competition closes on 31 January and is open worldwide.

Ann and I will feature entries in our Stories on Instagram and Ann will select the three winning entries after the competition closes.  

We look forward to seeing your lovely entries.

Enjoy the moment. Claudia x