"My Mama is an Artist"

Photos taken by my son- J. Swift, age 5

I wrote this post in my head last night while I was putting my son to bed. I was thinking about a moment earlier in the day when he had my camera. He was snapping pics and said in this oh so serious voice, "Now I want to take a photo of the Artist with her Art." At the time I just thought how cute his little voice was when he said it. But later, as often happens, he was going to bed and I was going over the days moments in my mind. Suddenly I began to think of that comment in a different light.

My son is 5. He has never known the mama that was too scared to call herself an artist. The mama who wanted more than ANYTHING in the world to be an artist. He never knew the frustrated me who was always out of sorts because I had a dream with no idea how to realize it. He never knew the mama who was, honestly, scared to reach for her dream because there was risk associated with it.

The mama he knows is an artist, who makes art every day, who has business cards that say "artist" under her name. The mama he knows wrote a book about her art journey. He doesn't know anything different. I think I'm very glad that the mama he knows dreams big and reaches for those dreams. He's seen my work in magazines, he's seen me excited, he's seen me selling my work and goes with me when I ship it to places like Vancouver, Singapore, and Australia.

I wonder if he'll grow up ready and expecting to reach for his own dreams someday because of this. I wonder what kind of influence this mama will have vs. the me that existed before. And I wonder if maybe the timing of it all wasn't due to the fact that this me had become a mama. There's something about becoming a mother that clarifies your view of the world. That makes you more ready to stand up for your family and your self as an extension. Truly, I wonder if I would be the artist I am today if I hadn't become a mama first.

What about you? What has changed your life and are you ready to grasp your dreams? Will you be the person you want to be or the person you don't? What kind of mama or papa will your child know? Will she be an Artist? Will he see you frustrated by life, or reaching for your dreams in spite of the daily frustrations of life?

As always I'd love to hear what you think- so please leave a comment!

Adding Categories and Making Changes to Art as Usual!

Maybe you noticed, maybe not, but the blog now has 3 columns and YES I did it myself. Awfully proud of that. I'm in the running for most horribly technologically illiterate person in my age group. Usually I rely on my husband, a software engineer, to take care of these things for me, but he's been busy and so I decided to take some things on myself. Per a request I've also added tags to my past posts to help with the whole searchability thing. As well as a few different ways to do these searches. Adding these tools started to make the right column seem awfully packed- which led me to the quest for 3 columns.

I've also worked out a list of categories that I'd like to create posts for regularly. One is Local Craftiness which will not only include any of my local classes and fun local finds but will also highlight the local craft fairs, artists, brick and mortar boutiques and indie craft suppliers in the area.

Another category will be titled Inspired Reads and I'm planning on introducing you to some of my favorite art and craft authors and their books. I'm huge craft book-aholic and always have several checked out from the library and laying around the house. I'd love to highlight some of my favorites as well as the techniques within them. I'm hoping to integrate some author interviews a little later down the road as well.

Additional categories would be Tutorials, and Art Everyday in which I plan to include inspirational ideas for living art everyday, in your home, and in our world.

I chose the title Art as Usual a year ago because it states in three little words my personal Artist's manifesto. I need art to be an everyday, all the time, integrated, take-it-for-granted part of my life. This blog helps me to live this and I want it to help you to live it as well.

So here, in my little corner of the blogging world, I plan on encouraging you. Through experiments, through tutorials, by providing information and inspiration so that you too can make a life with art, your everyday usual.