DAY THIRTY!!

Well I made it. Thirty straight days of a painting a day! I want to thank you all who read these blogs and took this journey with me. While these small paintings and writings may not seem like much, they have been a huge deal for me.  I learned a lot, which I will be sharing over the next few days in future posts.  But today I'd like to start with the biggest thing I learned.  I learned I can find at least an hour in any day to paint!

 An hour a day, I figured, to paint a small painting. No sweat!  But to find an hour to an hour and a half in your busy day is not easy I found.  That's a total of seven to ten and a half hours a week. But I find I paint in spurts.  I paint feverishly for days or weeks in a row and knock out some nice stuff.  Or, I go months without picking up a brush.  I learned I'm not very routined or disciplined.

Now I may paint every day sometimes. And I may paint for three hours in a day sometimes. And let's even say I (in a good week) paint two days for three hours. I realized I don't usually devote seven hours a week in total on average to my painting.  And I know why. I have a lot going on. But it's an hour a day people! Didn't seem like much when I started, but I soon realized it adds up!

They say it takes thirty days to build a habit or routine into your life. I have to tell you I'm a little addicted! While I proved I can carve out even an hour a day to paint, I also learned I don't want to finish a painting every single day! Its a lot of pressure!  But I set another goal. To paint daily, at least an hour, and blog every few days (so I don't wear you out). I should then have at least two or three smaller or one large painting a week I'm willing to share. That's still a big challenge!

Below is a 16 x 20 finished painting from the sketch "Arm in Arm".  I had to work on this in my spare time and am lucky to finish it for today's post!  This painting will go in my upcoming show.  I loved the sketch and the way the sketch felt. The larger piece has a different feel.  I like them both for different reasons.  And I felt the bigger one is worth framing for the show!  

So thank you for riding the wave with me!  I really enjoyed your emails and "likes" on Facebook.  The feedback was fantastic.  So many of you said you'd miss the "daily's".  So while they wont be daily, I am going to do my best to paint in a more regular way.  That way you should see, hopefully two to three paintings a week!  And stay tuned for more of what these thirty little paintings have taught me!

Looking forward to the next painting!