Favourite Plus Fun Fact

In early March, I started participating in an Instagram "hashtag" started by a local artist. It was fun at first, but quickly became stressful and overwhelming for me. (Especially when I saw what the other folks were creating in response to the prompts.) I realized then that I wanted a simple, silly, easy creative outlet in these PANDEMIC TIMES. So I created "Favourite Plus Fun Fact".

Everyday I could share a drawing of a favourite something. And a fun fact about that thing or why it was a favourite. For the first few days, I was coming up with the something on the fly. But then I got my proverbial shit together and started writing out my options. I figured if I could put together enough prompts to take me to the end of April, I was laughing.

I created some graphics to share on IG in case anyone wanted to play along, and off I went! It was "real" now.

WHAT I WANTED

I was really hoping that this would catch on! That parents and their kids would sit down to create with each other. And that this would become a "thing".

And you know. Sometimes things don't go as planned!

WHAT I GOT

But I had fun! And we had some good chats in the Comments too. And my pal Nicole played along with all the prompts. And would text me pictures of her creations at the end of the day (for which I am 100% eternally grateful).

And most importantly I now have a fun book filled with drawings of some of my favourite things. A good reminder to create for yourself first.

It also served as a fun way to practice some new Photoshop skills! My goal at the end of April was to start looking into online education opportunities. And Photoshop was at the top of the list.

But rest assured, pencil crayons still hold my heart.

xo
Lis

Favourite Plus Fun Fact from Lisa Kercher on Vimeo.

FURTHER READING

If you are also looking for Photoshop help, I have found some good articles on the Adobe site (here). Otherwise, I use the "Guided" setting within Photoshop for the basic actions.

From the Archives - I used to do a "feature" on this blog called "Tell a Story." This one from 2013 about Lucas and drawing is the sweetest.

I really enjoy creating mini albums out of envelopes, old cards or other bits of paper that would normally go in the recycle. Here's a fun one I did for my 5 Year Plan.

Art for the Mantle, Art for the Season

Springtime calls for a new, fresh look. The winter canvas headed to the basement, and I created a bright design to match my goofy little banner. These colours are so fresh and cheerful. Reminds me of what is to come, once the tulips start poking through the ground, and the buds on the apple tree in our yard burst open.

I love spring. I love winter. I love all the seasons. Life is what you make of it.

"Come with me into the woods where spring is. advancing, as it does, no matter what, not being singular or particular, but one. of the forever gifts, and certainly visible." - Mary Oliver

xo
Lis

FURTHER READING

Art looks like many different things in my life. I have collected all of my art-related posts under one tag, which you can access here.

One of my favourite themes that I keep coming back to is what I call "Big Messy Flowers." This restyled vintage record stand is one of the favourite favourites.

Painting Details

• Canvas measures 27 inches square
• Assorted acrylic paints
• "Neocolour" watersoluble pastels by Caran D'Ache
• Stencils by Balzer Designs (Crafter's Workshop)

100 Days of Finishing Projects

One week after I officially started this season's 100 Day Project, I finished one of my projects! I feel weird getting excited about finishing this one so fast...it feels like a way to procrastinate doing the other ones. Oh well. A finished project is a finished project!

I started this back in March with the intent to do a page a day. I did really well until the last week, when I started getting busy packing for Dubai. All my free time was preparing for my big vacation, so this was put on hold.

First off, I wanted to show off the supplies I used for this book. The more I do little projects like this, the more I realize that I don't need fancy supplies. Simple acrylics and a few pens do the job just fine.

This way nothing feels too "precious" so I don't mind playing, experimenting, making messes and covering everything up when I change my mind!

Here's the whole book

My best tip for myself: when you're stuck, paint your palette.

"Hazeldean" is a representation of the Runtastic map of the walk we took as a family on March 17th.

The "fanciest" paints I used in this book were neon pink and shimmery copper (which doesn't show up in these photos...blast!)

FURTHER READING
Intro post to 100 Days of Finishing Projects
Working on a 100 Day Project is one of my April Goals.
100 Days of Carving Patterns (2018)
100 Days of Watercolour Whatevers (2017)
100 Days of Stamp Carving (2017). This was my first 100 Day Project
And all of my 100 Day Project posts are available here.
The official "The 100 Day Project" page is here.
If you like the "art journal" posts, check out this tag.

xo

Showing my Love Through Art

I wanted to share some of the art I have been working on lately! I have been sending "fun mail" for a long time now - going back through my archives is quite the trip! - and I am turning to it more and more as a fun and low pressure way to create art, gift it away and hopefully make someone smile!

It's my step-Dad's birthday this weekend, but we celebrated last week. Lucas & I collaborated on a portrait of him and his cats! Speaking of Lucas, February meant a new semester for him and he's back in Art, so we had an art night at home and drew his favourite Sonic the Hedgehog characters.

These other pieces are going to dear friends, and are made with my favoured, trusty neon Sharpies. I felt like a kid again, doodling fun patterns on whatever surface I could find!

ART GOALS
This re-framing of my art "practice" is going to help me be a better parent. This month especially I am focused on how I can be a good role model to Lucas, and part of that is teaching him how to embrace a hobby that doesn't have to "do" anything other than make you feel good, stretch your brain a little, and bring you joy. Drawing is a simple activity we can do together without a lot of fuss.

Next month, in addition to continuing my journey in becoming a better parent I want to purposefully make time to work in my art journal for fun. I think this is going to have to start with a bit of a clean up or a reorganization of my work space, but it's long overdue! A key component for me and my low key art making is ease of access. It's the maintenance of that access that gets me into trouble, and right now I still kind of want to light a match to all my shit. So I guess I have some things to work through first!

Being off Instagram has removed some of the pressure I place on myself when creating. I do miss the community aspect of connecting over art, but I do not miss the pressure and comparisons I feel as I see other art in my feed. I find myself slowly moving back into art (of any kind), after taking a bit of a break. I still can't bring myself to touch a canvas, but maybe (hopefully) that will come back in time. Until then, give me all the doodles, cartoon characters, and neon sharpies.

FURTHER READING
Check out this post for an adorable photo of wee Lucas and what I think is my first mail art post!

xo

One Little Word 2018 - Connect

Whoa! It has been AGES since I did a proper One Little Word post! I made some time last weekend to do some of the prompts, going back a few months now, and paint a few pages.

May's prompt was to include photos of examples of your One Little Word for that month. I had a lot to choose from, as May was a positive month for connections for me. This last page shows the We Believe Gala in support of the Sexual Assault Centre of Edmonton. I volunteer on their support line, so it was important for me to help them out with their silent auction that night. Also, Tarana Burke was their special guest. which was a real treat. She is the creator of the Me Too Movement. For both May and June, I wrote a simple summary of some of the ways I connected with my word that month.

I used the prompt from last year's OLW workshop for August. Ali Edwards asked us to think about the current "Chapter" of our lives, what we are struggling with and what we are celebrating. These are important thoughts to ponder in every chapter, and I might have to add them into more regular and purposeful rotation.

This next spread is for July. In last year's workshop Ali Edwards asked us to include our favourite quote or song lyrics related to our words. This year I found some lyrics of a song that I think fits well with how I was feeling about my word that month. (That was the month my sister and her family moved to Dubai).

September was ROUGH for me this year, and my reflection and the quotes on the following pages accurately show how I was feeling both in general terms, and as related to my word. When everyday life becomes difficult to show up for, it can be difficult to focus on something so abstract as a "One Little Word". On the other hand, it can also be empowering to have a lofty aspiration, such that a OLW can provide, to focus on and bring some light to the darkness.

I don't yet have an overall opinion on how my One Little Word is going this year. What I do know, is that it feels totally different from last year's word and my experience living and documenting it. Even just a few months ago, say in the spring, it feels like I am relating to my word on a completely different level. It's exciting to see such a change in myself in only a short time. Whether or not the change has been for the better, only time will tell.

Until then, I continue to enjoy this practice of maintaining and documenting my life as it relates to one word, and I look forward to the final months of the year and how CONNECT will manifest in my life.

FURTHER READING
All of my 2018 OLW posts are available here.
If you like the "art journal" posts, check out this tag.
And as always, find more information here about the creator of One Little Word - Ali Edwards - and the workshops and inspiration she provides.
My Connect 2018 Pinterest board.

xo

Art Journal

At the annual "Scrapbook Ninja" Camp He Ho Ha retreat over the weekend, I was able to finish some more pages in this little art journal. No story behind these. They document what I've been thinking and feeling lately.

Enjoy!

FURTHER READING
You can see the first few pages of this album in this post here.

xo

Get Messy Art Journal

I joined the Get Messy "Season of Story" this month, and I have been slowly (inconsistently) checking out the prompts, and working in this random book I grabbed.

And it appears that I inadvertently picked a palette for this book. Hmm.

Feels good to play around with paint these days. And even though I am not strictly following the prompts, it feels nice to at least pretend to be part of of something bigger.

xo

FURTHER READING

Get Messy is a cool online world for art journalers. They offer classes, prompts, tutorials, inspiration, and encouragement. For more info, click here.

Words + Faces

I started this at the beginning of March, with the intention to complete one face and word everyday. I wanted to practice drawing faces, really focusing on the shapes. And I found that working with a tiny paint brush also helped my "painters block" somehow. The faces ended up taking longer to complete than I anticipated, so I got a bit behind. But it all managed to come together!

Materials:

- Pencil crayons (Crayola)

- White & black acrylic paint

- Shimmery teal & copper paint (Prima Marketing)

Enjoy!