What is the most important thing in life?.

How can you get motivated out of your creative rut?

     
       I often hear people talking about how they have a block or are stuck in a rut of some sort and can not seem to get their creative juices flowing again. Help! Well don't panic whatever you do. This is the opposite intuitive to creativity. There are many factors that cause us all to have that stuck feeling at times. I can not even cover them all in this one post. Sometimes you just have to get out of your normal element to find inspiration.
 When I find that I have come to a weird dry spell I see what other creatives are doing and talk to them. Whether it is about painting, dancing, writing, gardening, or even making dog clothes, you can learn something from everyone! Go to an art museum, a concert, take a walk, sit outside, go to a poetry reading, thumb through instagram or etsy, interview a complete stranger, sit in a park and people watch, do something extremely out of your comfort zone, write lists of things you enjoy, make a bucket list or vision board, read, read, read, watch a documentary. I take my journal and sketchbook with me everywhere. You never know what or who you will run into! It sounds weird but I actually come up with my best ideas while taking a shower. Sometimes we have to relax and just be  long enough to let the creative come to us instead of trying to force it to be captured and enslaved against it's own will. A book for all you creatives and even inspiring creatives out there that I recommend you read is called  "Big Magic" by Elizabeth Gilbert. It is a great inspiration to just...stop beating yourself up and create! Don't be so hard on yourself. Enjoy your work and the journey and it will take care of you. Check the book out here! Relax. Get out and learn something new about anything and have a great day!

Why you should stop waiting on the world to change.

                                      

Make your delicious fruit and veggie smoothie at home!

What to eat when you can't chew? Obviously my mouth is still sore from the wisdom teeth removal.
This is my good morning fruit and veg smoothie. It tastes amazing! Very fresh and tropical. Try it out!
2 cups Guava fruit juice,
1 1/2 cup Dole frozen mangos carrots and bananas mix
1 ripe banana
1 avacado
Two hand fulls of spinach
1/2 a cucumber.  Sometimes I leave out the cucumber to make it a little more rich.

Blend it up! Enjoy!

 

New Facebook page!

I recently joined facebook to share more about myself and mass post photos of things I have made in the past. Please check it out! https://www.facebook.com/florence.marie.7587?ref=bookmarks

Beautiful creatures painting series. Painting #1

      Growing up I will admit that I was that strange little girl who loved insects, snakes, and everything a girl "shouldn't" be interested in. I drew dinosuars, lizards, dragons, creatures of the rainforest, and just about every type of animal facinated me. I had pet chickens, lizards, turtles, seahorses, hermit crabs, butterflies, you name it. I probably caught the whole yard and brought it home to my parents to say, "And what do we feed this one?!" I even had a black cat so I really freaked out people.
      Today nothing has changed accept the keeping of pets. I love animals of all kinds and probably should have gotten my second degree in biology. So my passion continues and I am doing a painting series of beautiful creatures. Prints available for purchase are soon to come! Here is painting #1!  The Tiger Moth.

All I want for Christmas is my wisdom teeth. Oh, wait, no I don't! Ouch.

      Yes. Today was the day I finally decided to part with my wisdom teeth...because...bout time! They were not growing in correctly so...ciao teeth! Oh pain, much pathetic! Actually the doctor was awesome and he couldn't have made me feel any better. It took less than 20 minutes. So here comes a week of mush dieting! How to loose 10lbs in a week! Drink fruit smoothies, eat really really silky mashed potatoes made the day before, take fiber like an old lady, and laugh at youtube videos until you cry. Seriously, laughing burns calories. But anyway, since I have nothing but time on my hands I have sketches!
                          

Have you gotten your five minute Journal yet? You need to!

I am excited about a new mini project I am doing that I encourage you guys to try for yourselves!  I found a new type of journal that is called " The five minute Journal". I was excited to see it arrive in my mailbox today because it is a great tool to use if you are not the journaling type and find it hard enough to read a book let alone write in one. This journal focuses on you and improving your day every day with just 5 minutes of jotting down answers in the morning upon waking and 5 minutes at night before you shut down. I personally have found that this refocuses my thoughts to a more positive outlook and positivity has benefits far beyond smiling more often. It improves your health, your motivation, your relationships with others as well as your relationship with yourself! How are you and yourself getting along? Do you even like yourself? If not, try just a page or two and think about the questions and explain specifically your thoughts. Having an attitude of gratitude can change your life forever in all aspects. Don't believe me? Pick up your own 5 minute journal at https://www.intelligentchange.com/products/the-five-minute-journal See where it goes! Even if it just makes you smile you owe it to yourself. I will be sure to post my progress as I complete my journal and share my life changes with you guys. Let me know what it does for you!

How to make your own Pumpkin spice pancakes! Yum!

Good morning all! It was nice and chilly this morning so I decided to make a favorite recipe for breakfast. Pumpkin spice pancakes! You can make it the old fashioned way and use your grandma's pancake mix from scratch or just buy a box of pancake mix. I went with the regular dry mix this time.
                                
So to make the pancakes you need :
 a griddle or frying pan,
cooking spray,
 your handy dandy spatula,
whisk,
a medium sized mixing bowl,
1cup measure,
1/2 can of pumpkin purée,
1 cup of pancake mix,
about 1 1/2 cups milk or water,
 2 teaspoons granulated sugar,
and 2-3 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice mix.
 You can find the pie spice mix in the spices section of most grocery stores.

Depending on how thick or thin you like to make your pancakes determines how much milk or water you should add. I used almond milk but regular milk or water is fine.

Measure out 1 cup of the pancake mix and add it to the mixing bowl.
Add your sugar, pie spice and whisk together dry ingredients.
Add your half can of pumpkin purée and slowly add little by little the milk or water until thickness is desired. Remember you will have to scoop the mix out or pour it so don't make it too thick!
Whisk the wet ingredients together with the dry until combined. If it is still too thick add more liquid.
Heat your pan or griddle to high heat and spray with pan spray.

Pour or scoop out batter with the cup measure onto the hot griddle. When the edges start to get solid see if you can flip the pancake. Since the batter is orange you just have to keep testing to see if it is solid instead of golden brown. Wait about 5-10 mins. Flip er over! Voila! Makes 5-7 pancakes.

Get your favorite tea or coffee and syrup and enjoy!

Improve your stress level, loose weight, sleep your best! Health Tracker Leaf

So today I would like to share with you a health tracker I recently started wearing over the past few months called the Bellabeat Leaf. There are so many devices out there but this one really stood out for me. I support apple products as much as possible but I did not see the point in buying an iphone just so I could have an iwatch. I was looking for a device that would help me not only track my activity levels but my sleep patterns, menstrual cycle, stress, and it looks beautiful! It also has a battery that only needs to be changed every 6 months which you can do yourself with the tools they provide you. No plugging up to charge every night or at all! Though the newer versions are improving with added features like water resistance, this device helps me track my over all well being and even has built in meditation sessions you can follow in the app which you download to your phone or device. All the stats are tracked in the bellabeat app and they are constantly updating the app to make it greater and improved. There are many other features and designs you can check out for yourself on their website Bellabeat Leaf . I recommend the Leaf whether you are simply trying to get moving or reduce stress you also get a new beautiful piece of jewelry that is unique and classy.

Do you love to sketch and paint? Check out this watercolor sketchbook!

Today I have been minimizing my things as much as possible and in hopes to have a yard sale soon. One box I came across was stuffed full of my old sketchbooks. I have had many more in the past but decided for some sad reason to chunk them. These are some I have kept and I continue the collection.

Out of all the sketchbooks I have gone through and enjoy using, my favorite ones are the Handbook watercolor journal sketchbooks. I prefer the long panoramic format because it pushes me to use the odd format to come up with more dynamic pieces. I like to challenge myself to fill as much of the space in the page as I possibly can. Another plus is the watercolor paper used for the pages which allows me to use paints, inks, and load it down with water and mixed media projects. The covers are made of canvas so you can even draw or paint on the outside if you wish! I highly recommend getting your hands on one if you decide to start doodling.

A little about me and my sketchbook blog. Chai tea you will love!

         Hello everyone! It has been some time since I have had a blog and I have decided to start it up again with the hopes that someone may gain some encouragement, inspiration, or just enjoy looking at the art I create from a day to day basis and things I enjoy! I will be posting mostly daily sketchbook pages and my art process. I did this for a few years in college and found it very rewarding to see how far I had come throughout the years. I will be sure to add in my favorite books that I can't put down, recipes I am cooking up and anything else I find that has inspired me that day. Hope you find it compels you to create, cook, read and explore more for yourself! Enjoy!

     This time of year always brings about thoughts of being cozy and warm and what better way to warm up than with a nice hot cup of tea! I looove tea and my family is tea crazy. Today I am having a coconut chai by Zhena's gypsy tea. You can find it at your local World Market store or online. It has the perfect blend of coconut and cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, clove and spices always make me feel festive!