Create Space for What is: Self-Compassion
I am beginning to realize that I cannot do it all. Writing weekly or every other week blog posts and sending weekly newsletters is not sustainable when I am working full time on top of a private practice consisting of workshops, supervision, consultation and psychotherapy. And though I have not been practicing that level of […]
Discovery Through Art Process
Over the years I have dabbled in this and that when it comes to implementing art-making for my own creative self-care practice. I love to be able to try new modes of expression, pushing my creative edge and make new discoveries about myself. What I notice is that there is always a lesson in the […]
Creating Joy
This time of year can be daunting for many. Surrounded by invitations to find joy through consumerism. Giving, getting and satisfaction outside of ourselves can often become the focus, even when we do not want it to be. The arbitrary year-end sometimes is also a factor that contributes to a year in review, followed by […]
Honoring Your Strengths Through Art
The other week I had the honor of being invited to facilitate a creative self-care workshop as part of a Day Away retreat for the Prevention Staff at Sick Kids Centre for Community Mental Health (CCMH). In the morning they focused on their individual strengths, similarities and differences within their smaller and larger teams. […]
The Space to Create: Decluttering and Creativity
For the month of August I have been off work: no clinical work, no teaching and no workshops. Every August I take the month to rejuvenate and spend time with family. I get to spend more time in the garden, riding my bike and creating. This time, much of my creative energy has […]
Adventures in Art Journaling
Well Spring is finally here in Toronto with warm weather, sunshine and spring showers. Though I am outdoors more, I still turn to my art journaling as my main mode for inner solace. You may be wondering why I am such a big art journaling fan. It all started back even before I was training […]
Creativity Thaw
Winter brings a coldness that is meant to allow things to prepare for the spring, for new beginnings. It is the cycle of life. It is also the cycle of creativity: the deep sleep that creativity sometimes falls into, often when we least want it to, is an essential part of the process. We need […]
Deep Painting
Last weekend I had the pleasure of facilitating another Painting With Your Muse intuitive painting workshop here in Toronto. Each time its a new experience for me as I shift the format with lessons learned in between these workshops. I’m forever a student, taking in new information and layering it, weaving it into each workshop […]
Creative Inner Work and Balance
In November I held my last workshop for 2017. I was honoured to lead one of my Creative Self-Care workshops in my home studio with a full house so to speak. It was exciting to have some new and old faces join me in this self-care series. One of the things that I spoke […]
Gratitude Art: A Free 7 Day Journey
In the beginning of August I asked those in the Virtual Art Circle Facebook group what most interfered with their having art-making time and the response was mainly “not having enough time”. Over the years in my creative work with others this has been an ongoing theme that seems to deter people from creating art […]