Een frisse nieuwe start

De afgelopen weken heb ik hard gewerkt aan mijn website. Heb je er al een kijkje genomen? Alle pagina's zijn in een frisse nieuwe opmaak gezet, alle teksten zijn helemaal vernieuwd. Je kunt er ook een prachtige foto-presentatie bekijken van alle “Wondere Wereld Creaties”.

De kracht van inspiratie

Inspiratie, het is en blijft iets bijzonders. 

Ik vind het soms in iets simpels als de zon die een mooie schittering brengt in een glaasje, of een bos bloemen. Soms ga ik er bewust naar op zoek. Dan ligt er een stapel tijdschriften die ik doorblader. Ik neem alles in me op, sta stil bij wat me raakt als mooi of bijzonder. Het romantische van een vaasje rozen, het bruin van oud papier, het koele zeegroen met wit, dat mij aan Scandinavië doet denken.

Zo ligt er dan ineens een tafel vol met vitamine Inspiratie. Voel ik me weer opgeladen, krijg ik zin om zelf mooie dingen te maken.

Niet dat ik deze inspiratie bewust in mijn nieuwe creaties stop. Sterker nog, als ik dat probeer, wordt het zonder uitzondering een mislukking. Ik kan alleen creëren vanuit mijn hart, vanuit mijn gevoel, en dat valt eigenlijk niet te sturen. En dat is maar goed ook. 

Ik laat mijn muze graag haar gang gaan, luister goed naar haar gefluisterde aanwijzingen.

Deze quote van Vincent van Gogh sluit daar mooi bij aan. 

En toen ik er nog eens goed naar keek, zag ik hoe de inspiratie vanuit mijn zoektocht in de tijdschriften heel mooi zijn weg had gevonden naar deze creatie. 

Zo mooi werkt dat, je mee laten voeren op de stroming van je onbewuste.

Ik wens je een fijne dag,

Maureen

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Inspiration, it remains something special. I sometimes find it in something as simple as the sun that brings a beautiful sparkle in a glass, or a bouquet of flowers. Sometimes I deliberately go looking for it. Like in a stack of magazines that I flip through. I take everything in, pause at what touches me as beautiful or special. The vase with romantic roses, the brown of vintage paper, the cool sea green with white, which makes me think of Scandinavia.

Thus, there is suddenly a table full of vitamin Inspiration. I feel recharged, can't wait to go and create beautiful things myself.

Don't think I deliberately transfer this inspiration into my new creations. In fact, if I try to do so, I invariably come up with a failure. I can only create from my heart, from what I feel, my emotions, can't really 'steer' it towards something specific. And that's a good thing. I let my muse guide me,  listen to her whispered instructions.

This beautiful quote by Vincent van Gogh fits in nicely. And now that I have taken another look at it, I see that the inspiration from my quest in the magazines actually did find it's way to this creation. That is how beautifully going with the flow will work out. 

Wishing you a lovely day,

Maureen

Swirly Owl

This owl was born yesterday, sitting on his swirling tree. Still sleeping (or is he meditating?).
At peace, that is for sure.

Again, the owl mirrors me. When I drew the owl I was very much at peace. After a few days of being very busy. Well, in my head.

Too much thinking... Too many sensations from the outside world.
I do realise what is going on sooner now though. A few years back it would take me weeks before I started to realise what was going on. Now it may not even be days before the bells start ringing.
That is a good thing.
The unwinding and finding my way back to myself... well, that still can be, let's say a challenge.

Yesterday music was the key. My headphones on. Beautiful music. Soon I could feel how the uneasyness in my body started to flow out.

The owl is on the table, I smile when I look at it. Feels good to see it. I can be pleased with my creation.
That is a big thing. No self critique, no doubt. My owl is beautiful.

How about you? Have you taken some time for yourself these past days? Do you ever feel like music is the key to feeling better?

Wishing you a peaceful day,

XO
Maureen

Dit uiltje werd gisteren geboren, zittend op zijn wervelende boom. Nog in slaap (of is hij aan het mediteren? ) Hij is tevreden en rustig, dat is zeker.

Alweer weerspiegelt de uil mijzelf. Toen ik de uil aan het tekenen was, voelde ik me rustig en tevreden.
Na een paar dagen van heel erg druk zijn. Nou ja, in mijn hoofd. Teveel denken ... Te veel prikkels van de buitenwereld.

Ik besef nu wel eerder wat er aan de hand is. Een paar jaar terug het zou me weken kosten voordat ik begon te beseffen wat er gaande was. Nu is het vaak al binnen een paar dagen, of zelfs binnen een dag, dat er een belletje gaat rinkelen.
Dat is een goede zaak.  Het weer loslaten en het vinden van de weg terug naar mezelf ... nou ja dat is, laten we zeggen, nog een uitdaging.
Gisteren was muziek de sleutel. Mijn koptelefoon op. Prachtige muziek. Al snel kon ik voelen hoe het ongemakkelijke gevoel uit mijn lichaam begon te stromen.

De uil ligt nu voor me op de tafel, ik glimlach als ik er naar kijk. Voelt goed om hem te zien. Ik kan tevreden zijn met mijn creatie.
Dat is een groot ding. Geen zelfkritiek , geen twijfel. Mijn uil is prachtig.

Hoe zit het met jou? Heb je wat tijd genomen voor jezelf de afgelopen dagen ? Heb je ooit het gevoel dat muziek is de sleutel tot je beter voelen?

Ik wens je een rustige dag ,

XO
Maureen

Inspiration

Next to my computer this wire heart is the place where I put my 'Inspiration pieces'. Last week  I bought these lovely cards, couldn't decide which one is the most beautiful, so I ended up putting them all in. They are made by Katie Vernon, currently sold by IKEA in the Netherlands.
I love how she combines simple black and white line drawing with beautiful colors fills of nature. A true inspiration.

Wishing you an inspirational day!

XO
Maureen

PS: Find Katie here http://www.katievernon.com/IKEA-art-cards & https://www.facebook.com/pages/Katie-Vernon-Illustration

In a cocoon

Every time I step out into the world

I need to take time to find myself

once I get back.

Back in the safety of my own little place.

I reconnect with my soul,

let go of all that has stuck with my during the day.

All of it needs to go back to where it belongs,

so I can be just me again.

Resting in the comfort of my safe place.

Home.

Have a safe, peaceful day.

XO 

Maureen

Finding Magic

"Magic" quote by Roald Dahl

Leaf on Fire

Fall has come to my town.

It sets the leafs on fire.

Their flaming colors warm my heart.

Today the autumn storm sends them flying.

Like bright confetti in the wind,

they come tumbling down. 

Down from the tall trees,

onto the pavement, 

where they again catch my eye.

I pick one up and bring it home to me,

to let it warm my heart, 

just a little longer.

Wishing you a bright day,

XO

Maureen

Happy to be me

Today there is a feeling of joy.

Last week I let go of my shadows.

Turned to what makes me happy once again.

I let go of pressure I put on myself.

Turned to the whispers of my soul.

Telling me: "If my creations are good enough for me,

they will at one point find their way into the world."

I let it go.

The seeds were sown.

I left it to the forces of the Universe.

Yesterday the first seed turned into a little flower.

One of my creations left my store.

What an amazing feeling.

Feeling happy and blessed.

Wishing you a happy day,

XO

Maureen

Inner peace

Today is a day of solitude, of turning inward. 

Recharging my battery.
Drawing a little owl.
Listening to beautiful music.
My headphones on.
Just me, my pens & paper, and the music.
My breathing slows down.
The turmoil in my head starts to fade away.
The soft whispers of my soul surface.
Tell me all is well.

Looking at the owl I realize: she is me...

Wishing you a peaceful day.

XO Maureen

Owl in the Clouds

Owl in the clouds

Isn't he cute? I was sort of amazed at how my owl turned out. You know, I have had absolutely no confidence in my own drawings trough out my life...
When I started with Zentangle, that started to change, although I still didn't really see myself draw figurative things.
But, you're never too old to learn, and certainly never to old to shake old habits, thoughts, insecurities.

Now I am so happy with this cute owl. It is a mixed media creation; the owl is hand drawn. The background is created on the computer, with pictures I took myself. See that sort of embossed effect, that's a texture I captures somewhere.
Anyway, I'm happy. Feel my soul singing, if just a quiet tune.

I'm certain there will be more owls after this one. I've fallen in love with them :-)

Happy sunday!

XO
Maureen

Flowers, moss and wet slippers

When I was having my morning coffee, I noticed the flowers on the terrace outside.

A little wet with morning dew, rays of sunlight shining down on them, warming them up.

Lovely pinkish purple, or is it Mauve? It's a beautiful color, that I do know ;-)

Right next to it there is other beauty, in shades of green and yellow.

Almost an abstract painting if you get real close up. Painted by mother nature. I just love those cute tiny spouts that stick out.
The moss sits wrapped around the stem of an honeysuckle. Oh, their smell in summer...

Remember how I said the flower was wet with morning dew? Well, so were my slippers after my little adventure on the terrace. No time to get my shoes, my camera was right by my side. I had to capture the moment. For indeed that sunlight could have been hidden behind a cloud any minute...!

XO Maureen

Key 2 - Inspiration

Inspiration hit me in the shower, this time. It happened after my first 'session' of using water color markers. Trying them out, getting a feel for what they do, how to use them. Taking baby steps, no rush, no pressure. That little corner of yellow and pink was the result.

First baby steps...

The next morning, while taking a shower, it was the shower curtain that caught my eye. Not that it is a new one... it's been hanging there for a little over two years. Having used the water colors, it occurred to me that, this was something I might be able to create too...?!

More baby steps...

Back to my markers, more babysteps, but no magic. I felt myself getting more frustrated by the minute. Not a good mood to be in. I stepped back from it for a while, retried, just experimenting again. Wetting the paper first, then applying the color. Even wetting the marker itself. The frustration level started to decline, I must say, yet I didn't feel that good either yet.

As it was dinner time that was a good moment to just let it be. Literally feeding myself with nice food got me over that bit of a cranky feeling that was lurking to get me.
There was time left for me to get back to it after dinner. Watching the paper with the water color experiment, fighting the urge to just throw it away, I took the middle way: I turned it over...
Then took a few minutes to breathe, get to that more peaceful state of mind, to listen to my inner whisper, looking for a little nudge in the 'right' creative direction. From this meditation I started all over again. About an hour later there were these: water color papers.

They are digital works, reminiscent of the water colors.
You see, the whisper from my inner voice was: "do what you love, use what you know, go back to where your heart lies".
In my case, that means I turn on the computer, fire up Photoshop, switch on my hard drive full of my pictures (flowers, clouds, trees, landscapes, rusty things, textures.....).
Using that, I can let go of everything. It's like taking out brushes, paints, stamps, papers, blending brushes, scissors. They are just not physical, they are in my computer.
So I flipped through the contents of my treasure chest, picking gorgeous blue hydrangea, soft pink tulips, deep pink peony. Added sunset pictures, with fluffy big clouds set on fire by the sun.
The flowers, clouds and scanned in papers I layer, rearrange, using different blend modes, so they eventually melt together, Soft brushes take away the harsh edges. Little by little the 'magic' then happens.

After this exercise I finally felt peace again. Filled with energy. Bubbling with ideas for more papers...
Isn't it beautiful how this all works? I mean, without the water color markers, without Bonita's e-course, these papers may very well have never come alive.

And the water color markers you may ask? Well, more baby steps to take. I'm sure that I will learn lots of new things from my friends in the e-course. I haven't given up on them, or should I say: I haven't given up on me?

Wishing you lots of inspiration for your creative undertakings

XO
Maureen