The last week of Jodi Ohl’s Color Lovers Challenge which runs 30 days. Just a few more to go! If you missed my earlier creations, I’ll have links at the bottom of this post. These are my latest creations:
Day 26 – Favorite Color
My favorite color is blue, for my love of the ocean. So for this prompt I did an abstract and added a fun quote “We do not stop working and playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop working and playing.”
Day 27 – Contrast
The prompt was contrast so I decided on painting the night sky in watercolor. No words, no quotes, just the magic and mystery of the night sky.
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Day 28 – Apple/Orange/Lemon/Pear
I took today’s prompt literally. I made a whimsical watercolor painting of an apple, orange, lemon and pear and added texture to each one. I added a quote: “Eat Well, Live Well, Be Well.”⠀
In case you missed my previous pages, just click the links:
The mind is very powerful. It can create a happy life for us or an unhappy one. But it all comes down to what thoughts are you planting in your mind.
Mindfulness was and still is a big movement. But how often do you mind your thoughts? There is a constant chatter going on in your mind every minute of every day. Experts guesstimate that the brain has an average of 60,000 – 80,000 thoughts per day, which translates to 2,500 – 3,300 thoughts per hour. This in itself is mind boggling, so how can you be mindful with so many thoughts all the time?
Sadly, the majority of our thoughts are negative. It’s how we’re programmed as human beings. So how do you keep your thoughts in check? Because it’s very easy to have your negative thoughts take control of your daily life, which if left unattended day after day, will create an unhappy life.
Here are a few ideas ideas to help you plant seeds of happiness:
Before getting out of bed, visualize what a great day you will have.
Get up 30 minutes earlier and have some quiet time to relax your body and mind.
Everyday write down at least 3 things you’re grateful for.
Write down positive affirmations and repeat them to yourself throughout the day.
While exercising repeat positive mantras in your mind.
Read inspiring quotes and start a collection of them to have on hand.
Take time off from social media.
Take a break from your phone and set times to check in.
Go for a walk or hike outside, enjoy the sunshine and reconnect with nature.
Listen to a good Life Coach or Motivational Speaker.
Spend a few minutes every morning visualizing where you want to go in life and the person you want to be.
Meditate daily. If you’re not sure what to do, then start with a guided meditation.
Create art like painting, sculpting or drawing Zentangles.
It’s normal to try something new and go right back to your old habits. But pay attention when this happens and make the decision to get back on track. The choice is yours, sow some positivity.
Thanks for stopping by!!
Share the Happy 💖
“Whatever we plant in our subconscious mind and nourish with repetition and emotion will one day become a reality.” ~Earl Nightingale
I joined Jodi Ohl’s Color Lovers Challenge which runs 30 days so I’m posting several days at a time. If you missed my earlier creations, I’ll have links at the bottom of this post. These are my latest creations:
Day 14 – Forest/Mountains/Grass
I painted this a while ago in watercolor but thought it went well with the prompt.
Day 15 – Flowers
I decided to do a loose watercolor painting of flowers and of course couldn’t resist adding glitter for a little bling 😉 I added a quote by Henry David Thoreau which I love “This World is but a canvas for our Imagination.”
Day 16 – Sad
I had a hard time with this one because when I looked at all of my paint colors, they’re all bright and happy. That’s not a bad thing but definitely made it hard to paint “Sad.” ⠀ So this was my take on it, an abstract watercolor, kind of a stormy day. I added a quote by Vivian Greene “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.”⠀
Day 17 – Candy
Yesterday’s prompt was candy and with the holiday season fast approaching, the only thing that came to mind was a candy cane which I love. So I painted this in watercolor and added a little quote, “Candy Cane Wishes & Mistletoe Kisses.”
In case you missed my previous pages, just click the links:
Alfalfa sprouts are mild flavored and very nutritious to eat. Studies have shown they are a high anti-oxidant, anti-aging food source. These little sprouts can help fight cancer, lower cholesterol and diabetes, prevent osteoporosis and more.
I used to buy fresh living alfalfa sprouts at my local grocery store but sadly they stopped carrying them. So I decided the freshest and safest way to get them was to grow them myself. I’ve tried several sprouting trays and they don’t always produce the best results.
Getting frustrated, I decided to go back to basics and try using a large, wide mouth mason jar with a sprouting lid. This is working beautifully and is very easy. I only need 1 Tbsp of seeds and in about 4 days, I have fresh organic alfalfa sprouts that are delicious and crisp. The sprouts can be stored in the fridge for about 4-6 days.
Alfalfa Sprouts taste great on salads, sandwiches, in smoothies and anything else you can think of. Below are instructions to grow your own spouts and links to Amazon.com for the supplies.
Instructions to Grow your own Sprouts:
Fill a wide mouth mason jar with 2 cups of cool, fresh water and add 1 Tbsp of High Mowing Organic Alfalfa Seeds (I’ve had good results with this brand, the seeds are sourced in the United States). Cap the jar with a sprouting lid and soak the seeds for 8 hours. Then drain and rinse the seeds keeping the lid on. Store the jar upside down, in a bowl, at an angle so water can continue to drain.
Rinse and drain the seeds with the lid on once in the morning and once at night. And again store the jar upside down, in a bowl, at an angle.
Repeat step 2, everyday for about 4 days until your sprouts are ready.
On the last day, depending on the light in your kitchen, you may want to move the grown sprouts to a window where they can get indirect sunlight to make them a little more green. You only need to keep them there for a few hours and then store them in fridge until you’re ready to eat them (also, I rinse the seeds before eating to remove the hulls).
I joined Jodi Ohl’s Color Lovers Challenge which runs 30 days so I’m posting several days at a time. If you missed my earlier creations, I’ll have links at the bottom of this post. These are my latest creations:
Day 10 – Happiness
I did a watercolor wash with a watercolor butterfly painted separately and then cut out. I added a quote from the Dalai Lama” Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.” ⠀ After putting everything together in the journal I made a last minute change and decided to write the quote directly on the page. This is why you shouldn’t create art when you’re tired because I finished this late at night and well, I left out the word “made” from the quote 😂😂😂 Oh well…
Day 11 – Neutral
This was a little challenging because I love my bright, fun colors. I painted an abstract and added a quote by Teilhard de Chardin “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience… We are spiritual beings having a human experience.”
Day 12 – Vibrant
I debated on using this but it just went perfectly for the prompt because it is most definitely vibrant. This is actually a work in progress. I’m painting a 24″ x 36″ canvas with bright fun happy colors. So stay tuned for the finished piece.
Day 13 – Spring
Since I used a canvas for Day 12, I thought I’d continue with this 9″ x 12″ one. It’s one of my favorites for spring. When I think of spring, I think about cute little bunnies. There’s lots of color and texture on this piece. My favorite part is the crocheted flowers. What do you think?
In case you missed my previous pages, just click the links:
As you may know I joined Jodi Ohl’s Color Lovers Challenge. It runs 30 days so I’m posting several days at a time. If you missed my earlier creations, I’ll have links at the bottom of this post. These are my latest creations:
Day 6 – Soft & Cuddly
I can’t think of anything softer and more cuddly than Winnie the Pooh. I made this little Winnie painting a while ago and had it set aside so I thought this was perfect for the Day 6 prompt, Soft & Cuddly. I added a Winnie the Pooh quote “Nobody can be uncheered with a balloon.”
Day 7 – Favorite Color Palette
I love happy colors so my favorite palette is pink, blue and yellow. I painted very loose flowers with leaves and added a quote by Abraham Lincoln “We can complain because roses bushes have thorns or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
Day 8 – Warm
For warm I came up with a palette of yellow, orange, red, purple and pink. I applied a coat of gesso to the pages and after it dried I painted them with acrylic paints. I added the quote “Love warms the heart.”
Day 9 – Autumn
I love the colors of Autumn leaves so I did a loose watercolor painting of leaves with lots of glitter. Got a little carried away with the glitter. I added the quote “Autumn paints in colors that Summer has never seen.”
In case you missed my previous pages, just click the links: Day 1 and Days 2 thru 5.
I hope you enjoyed my ColorLoversChallenge entries. Have a lovely weekend!
Last week I entered Jodi Ohl’s Color Lovers Challenge. I posted Day 1 this past Saturday. Since it runs for a full 30 days I thought I would post a few of these together. I’ve been enjoying adding quotes to all of these and I think I’ll continue doing that. Hope they inspire you in some way 💖
Day 2 – Teal and Orange
I painted the background teal with acrylic paint and made some marks while it was still wet. I painted a piece of watercolor paper bright orange and a page from an old book, green. I cut out all the pieces and glued them in place. I added the quote, “Sometimes you have to make your own Sunshine!”
Day 3 – Cool
There’s nothing better than a nice cool night under the stars. I tried something new, it didn’t quite go as planned but I still like it for my first attempt. I added the quote by Vincent Van Gogh “I know nothing with any certainty. But the sight of the Stars makes me dream.”
Day 4 – Black and White
I painted the background with black acrylic paint and made a few zentangle tiles. I drew in a few doodles and added a quote from Lau-Tzu: “Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.”
Day 5 Anger/Hurt
This was a tough one for me because I love happy colors. So the only colors that came to mind were all the warm colors like red, yellow and orange. I painted an abstract in my journal and added a quote by Benjamin Franklin “Anger is never without a reason, but seldom a good one.”
In case you didn’t read my earlier post, Jodi Ohl, a very talented mixed media artist is hosting a Color Lovers Challenge. It runs for the next 30 days until October 15th. Yesterday was Day 1, Summer Vibes.
When I think of summer, I think of the lounging on sandy beaches and enjoying the ocean with it’s beautiful colors of blue and green. So this was my creation in my Arteza 8.25” x 8.25” Watercolor/Mixed Media Journal. I added a quote by Wyland: “The ocean stirs the heart, inspires the imagination and brings eternal joy to the soul.”
You can still join if you’re interested. The rules are, there basically are none. You can create a piece of art of any kind, big or small, using colors of your choice. All you do is follow the daily prompts. The link to the list of prompts can be found on her Color Lovers Challenge page.
This was a watercolor painting I created as a background for an inspirational quote that I’ll be adding to it. It’s made with bright, fun, happy colors. At least that’s what I intended for the viewer to feel. What does it make you feel?
Color is amazing in the power it has in the mind and it’s affects on how you feel. A painting can be pleasing to look at, or not depending on the colors used. Some colors make you feel happy while others make you sad or depressed. Colors can even impact your shopping and hunger pangs.
Have you noticed how a lot of restaurants and fast food chains use red and yellow in their branding? It’s no mistake, it all comes down to psychology. Red has a tendency to make you feel hungry. While yellow tends to make you feel happy. When you see these colors while driving, you may pull in for a quick bite to eat even though you’re not necessarily hungry. So it’s no wonder that this is a popular color combination for them.
Blue can evoke feelings of serenity and trustworthiness and purple evokes feelings of luxury and romance, while pink is associated with femininity and innocence. I can go into great more detail about color but I think this gives you a pretty good idea of how it affects our minds. So stop and take notice of how you feel when you see certain colors.
Speaking of colors, Jodi Ohl a very talented mixed media artist is hosting a Color Lovers Challenge. It started yesterday and runs until October 15. Every day you have a new prompt to create a piece of art of any kind, no rules using colors of your choice. The link to the list of prompts can be found on her Color Lovers Challenge page. I entered and will be posting my creation for yesterday shortly on this blog, so stay tuned.
Would love to see you join and have some fun!
Thanks for stopping by!
Share the Happy 💖
“I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way.” ~Georgia O’Keeffe
Having lots of fun painting angels in my Strathmore 5.5″ x 8.5″ watercolor journal. I named her Ana and thought I’d try keeping her more simple. Love how the colors blended on her wings.
Flowing Waters Art 