« April 2014 | Main | June 2014 »
A few of my recent Etsy faves...
Working: on some free goodies for you involving flora, watercolors, calligraphy and happiness. Not sure about the format yet, whether it will be an e-book or what, but the image above is a tiny hint of what's to come!
Cooking: pre-planned meals from Plated. Have you tried them before? They send you a box of ingredients and recipe instructions to cook gourmet meals at home, eliminating the need to plan or grocery shop. The lazy couple's dinner. Tonight we're making cheesy quinoa stuffed tomatoes. They're currently running a promotion for 2 free meals!
Learning: pattern design from Kristi O'Meara's Skillshare class. It's pretty good so far. Eventually, I want to turn some of my art into repeatable patterns for textiles, home goods, gift wrap, and fabrics.
Planning: a new business venture with two of my best gals. We had our first meeting this past Friday to discuss the details and covered a lot of ground. I'll reveal more soon, but for now I can tell you it involves tiny tots and tambourines!
Loving: Millie, the rock-climbing adventure cat. She and her owner, Craig, go on weekend camping trips to hike and explore the wilderness together. And snuggle up in tents at night. She even has her own harness and climbing gear! I'll definitely be following their travels on Instagram.
What have you been working on, cooking, learning, planning and loving lately?
Happiness is officially contagious! A Harvard study followed 5,000 people over the course of 20 years, and found that positive emotions spread up to three degrees removed from the original source. Which means, we transfer our happiness to people we interact with directly and to people we haven't even met. Like a chain reaction. When we feel good, you can bet a friend of a friend of a friend will feel good too. And the effects last up to a year. I absolutely love this concept, don't you?
So let's try an experiment....
Who's in? :)
{Original image by John Van Noate}
I've been chewing on this topic for the last few days. Creative blocks. I'm currently experiencing one in the worst way! I haven't been able to create the art I want to eventually make available on Etsy. I've been making art for friends and for events, but not the work I need to do for myself to further my career. I can't remember the last time I recorded a piece of music. Or wrote a new song. And you'll never believe how long I procrastinated just to compose this very post.
Creativity takes courage.
- Henri Matisse
Are you in the same boat? Do you ever avoid what you most want to accomplish? For me, it stems from the fear of not living up to my own expectations. Creatives tend to be perfectionists. And the more important something is to us, the more likely we are to resist it. I like to call it - perfectionism paralysis. When high expectations of a successful outcome keep you from creating it in the first place. When you DO find the courage to begin, self-doubt robs you of any enjoyment of the creative process.
There are two kinds of perfect: The one you can never achieve, and the other, by just being yourself.
- Lauren King
There's an incredibly inspiring TED Talk by multimedia artist, Phil Hansen, who developed nerve damage and could no longer control his dominant hand from shaking. He quit art all together. Years passed until he finally figured out a way to put his unsteady hand to good use. By accepting his limitations, he was able to come up with genius works of art that never would have been possible had he not "embraced the shake". The ultimate limitation became his ultimate liberation.
So instead of seeing our creative blocks as stop sign, maybe we should view them as flashing green lights. To remind us to keep moving forward. To go, and let go, of expectations, outcomes or failures. If we free ourselves from perfection, if we release the pressure to do great work, if we allow ourselves to be unencumbered by results.... our blocks can be broken. Which is, in a way, the most creative thing we can do.
If you hear a voice within you say, 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.
- Pablo Picasso
Do you experience creative blocks? How do you break through them? Tell me in the comments below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
Have you ever taken a staycation before? This was my very first one and I'm convinced it's the way to go when you're itching to travel but aren't able to due to limited time or resources. Hal and I recently celebrated 12 years of togetherness right here in town. Best date day/night/day ever.
Friday after work we met up for dinner at Matt's In The Market, a beautiful restaurant on the third floor of a sun-drenched loft overlooking Pike Place Market. They've been a staple in Seattle for quite some time, and we were surprised we'd never been there before. It might be my new favorite spot to take visiting guests.
Compliments to Chef Shane Ryan who served up incredible (and artistic) Pacific Northwest-inspired dishes from the local and seasonally changing menu. I ordered a lambretta cocktail (gin, cocchi americano, elderflower, lemon, dandelion & burdock bitters) and a few small plates, including the best cheese board and beet salad I've ever had, hands down. Hal was equally impressed with the deviled eggs, wings and wild boar chop with fennel and farro. I almost got the burrata with nettle pesto (!) and pickled fiddlehead fern, but I'll save that for next time. We were tempted to get dessert, but knew there would be some sweets waiting for us at our hotel.
We left Matt's feeling full and giddy, then checked into our room at the Pan Pacific to see this....
Our suite on the 9th floor had a 180 degree view of the Space Needle and Lake Union. We knew there could be Space Needle views, but we weren't expecting this. It was jaw dropping.
Our suite had a full dining room table, floor to ceiling windows, shoji doors opening up to a European soaking tub, and the coziest L-shaped velvet sofa where we snuggled up to watch a movie and nibble on chocolate truffles and a tower of white chocolate coconut cream pie. Pure decadence.
In the morning, the curtains were opened to reveal a whole new view in daylight. We ordered room service for breakfast, and got pampered with a couple's massage at Vida Spa. Have you ever had an Ayurvedic treatment? This was my first and certainly not my last. You fill out a questionnaire to discover your dosha: Vata, Pitta, Kapha or a combination thereof. Based on those results, your therapist will personalize your massage with the appropriate essential oils. Lots of oil. We were pretty greased up by the end, but it felt wonderful. Hal's massage was the best he's ever had in the city.
We took the Pan Pacific town car to the Seattle Center (where the Space Needle stands) for lunch at Collections Cafe. Right as we walked in and observed the hanging accordions from the ceiling, I was sold. Since the owner has a lifelong passion for collecting, the tables were filled with his vintage cameras and the walls were lined with old bottle openers and funky vintage radios. My collection of Viewfinders would have fit right in!
The menu was extra tasty. We feasted on crispy Beecher's cheese curds with bourbon tomato jam, rainbow chard and oyster mushroom salad and a to-die for pear-brie ravioli.
Right next door is the Chihuly Garden & Glass exhibit which was built 2 years ago, but we'd never had a chance to see it until now. Glassblowing is a big deal in the Northwest and Washington is very proud of our renowned local glass artist, Dale Chihuly. His pieces and large architectural installations have been commissioned all over the world, from museums to schools and private residences.
Don't you love how the glass sculptures seem to be growing out of the ground? Chihuly often said, “I want my work to appear as though it came from nature so if someone found it… they might think it belonged there.”
We really couldn't have asked for a better staycation. It's so much fun to celebrate a special occasion by experiencing your city through the eyes of a tourist. And if you're not local and happen to be in town for a quickie trip, this would be a perfect itinerary for your overnight stay....
HOW TO DO SEATTLE IN 24-HOURS:
Got a few more hours to spare? Order a lunar orbiter at the top of the Space Needle and then go Ride The Ducks!
This post is sponsored by the above establishments. The content and opinions are all my own. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that keep Happiness Is running!
