I took lessons from my kids on creative play.
Art lessons from the minds of 12 and 9 y/o girls.
2022 was my year. I made the decision to get out of my way and trying my hand from painting on clothes and accessories to painting on paper and stretched canvases. Learning valuable lessons from my last two businesses, I had to always keep on the forefront of my mind about setting realistic expectations. Don’t be afraid to take risks, don’t dwell on the criticism and above all else enjoy what I do.
As I work on my projects, there are days when the creative juices are flowing the way I hoped. Perhaps I’m overthinking an idea or stumped on colors or textures to use. Instead of walking away so quickly after 30 minutes of trying to decide on which color and texture to use, I hear a small voice that enlightens me. “Oh Mom just do it this way. You got this. Don’t think about it so hard. If you don’t like it just change it. It’s just paint.” That’s my youngest girl, Ivory. The things I share with her everyday, she shares it right back to me. She’s right. It’s just paint and instead of forcing myself to like it, I can always start over as many times as I need to. Nothing is every truly permanent and understanding that makes creating art much easier. When I ask Ivory how does she paint, she explains that she doesn’t think about it so much. She just paints what she feels.
My oldest, Lilly, is more private with her sketches but seems to enjoy giving herself temporary full hand tattoos with her favorite markers. I don’t fuss as long as it’s not a distraction at school. On an early Saturday morning, Lilly finds me either drawing at the dining room table or in the basement. She gives me a hug and wants to see what I’m working on. She doesn’t say anything and I don’t expect her to but I like to think she’s taking small mental notes for her own art.
When I see their work, and have collected my favorite painting since they were toddlers, they taught me how to let go and enjoy creative play. Not only using the brushes but using my hands, mixing the colors, scraping, making prints and adding a dash of glitter on top. This type of art makes sense to them and no different than an adult that attends art school or someone that is self taught. I don’t give myself credit for teaching them how to paint and usually give them simple instructions, such as how to use the spray paint cans and remember to wipe the paint off the brush before you put it in the cup of water.
Do I want a full hand tattoo like Lilly? I’m not gonna lie - I kinda do. Do I need a third grader giving me lessons on finger painting? Probably so.
My Sweets has only been here three years and she's already teaching me so much about life and myself and I can only hope she continues to do so when she's your babies' age! Good job momma, you're doing amazing.
I can relate so much with this! My kids inspire me in so many ways, often with the same words I’ve used to encourage them. Each one has taught me different lessons in life and really it’s still amazing after 17 years how much they have to show us when we let our egos down and listen.