My art life is always growing and shifting as my personal and familial life changes for me.

Right now I am taking a few weeks to care for my partner who just had carpal tunnel surgery on both hands. And last week my youngest was home with the  flu. So the sofa became my studio - in between caring for sick family.

But generally I start my studio time by lighting a candle and some white sage or incense for clearing my space. I then light some palo santo and do some self reiki. I ask that the work that I am about to do be in the service of the higher good of myself and all others.

I then turn on some solfeggio frequencies and I journal 3 pages - stream of consciousness. A beautiful gift passed down to me from Julia Cameron’s book “The Artists Way”.

Sometimes it is more than 3 pages and sometimes I doodle along the way - ideas that I have for expressing universal love and healing.

I then carry this journaling over to my canvas or textile work. Painting, crocheting and weaving my daily experiences into my work. Asking the universe for what I wish for the world - love, peace, caring, abundance, compassion and  I ask for healing for the parts of me that are still unlearning and learning.

I often use aromatherapy, reiki symbolism, oracle card reading, crystal  and sound healing in my studio sessions. Infusing each artwork with additional energetic medicines.

My day is spent researching, creating, sourcing supplies, and doing administrative work.

I try to meet with other artists and build in time to explore museums, galleries and art exhibits.

Energetics and spirituality are a big component of my work and I incorporate reiki, sound healing , aromatherapy, and tarot/orcale in my daily studio routines.

This is full time work for me. Often I am working during the day plus evenings and weekends.

I am essentially running a small business where I am creating the product by hand - without an assistant ( on my dream list). So the hours are intense and I do my best to build my routines around family time.

I have a very supportive partner who helps with a lot of the household chores so I can focus on time with the kids and my work. He also helps out in the studio with projects he finds interesting.

And I have the kids in the studio as much as possible. I find I learn so much from their open minded exploration and conversation.

And our home is an extension of the studio - we spend a lot of time making together.

KEEP SHOWING UP!  When things get hard, when things seem like they are not going to plan, or not making sense in the moment  - keep showing up! In my experience, this is often when the big breakthroughs are about to occur. You just have to find the passion and drive to keep showing up for yourself and your work.

My one other big piece of advice is - BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!  If you don’t believe in yourself, and your work, how can you expect others to believe in you??? Do some self reflection to find out why you don’t believe in yourself and clear those blocks. If you don’t believe in yourself, your work, your worth and your message - then why should others?

My youngest was really sick for a long stretch with covid this winter and it meant no studio time for weeks - so I started crocheting again. 

A gift my Grandmother shared with me when I was a child… and from that pivoting to meet the needs of my family came my series of crocheted hearts.

I find life is always throwing curve balls, especially as a Mum caring for the needs of others, and I am constantly adapting my studio practice to consider my needs and those of my family.

I am very grateful to be a part of an artist parents group started by Sarah Cullen and Alison Thompson, called Mothra, here in Ontario. I have attended two very magical artist residencies with the group, along with my partner and our youngest son, on Toronto island.  And the group now meets monthly over zoom to talk all things art, parenting and life related. Did I mention how magical this group is???

I also have very supportive kids and a partner whose family comes out to as many of my exhibits as they can. One of my stepdaughters joined me as my right hand at a recent exhibit in New York CIty and my Mother-in-law traveled with me to London UK for my exhibit there with the Other Art Fair. They not only support me but they support the arts, and artists, in general . It is fabulous!

Both support networks have led to many deep conversations about life and art.  And both have shifted the way I perceive myself, my work and the world around me. I wouldn't be where I am today without them.

Parenting has taught me a lot about the importance of being in the moment, experimentation and play.  And has allowed me to drop the accumulation of societal pressure and debris for perfection and judgment.

There is a freedom in the way young children express themselves in the world. How they befriend everyone they meet in a minute, and are just curious about being alongside friends, and learning from them. No masks or pretense - no ego - all heart centered openness to present possibility and play.

Do I believe Mum guilt exists - yes. Have I experienced it personally - Yes! Do I desire to perpetuate it — absolutely no.

I believe Mum guilt is part of a larger societal problem of toxic patriarchal systems, designed to diminish a woman’s worth, rather than support and celebrate women.

I find it crops up for me when  I am parenting - and feel I should be working. Or when I am working and feel I should be parenting. Or when I am with friends and not with my kids and partner…. It is there, living like a mania right under the surface of my skin, always. It has me discounting every little thing I do or do not do… questioning… Am I working too much, Mothering too much, socializing too much…. Or not enough….

My way of working through it is being as fully present to each moment of my day as I can be. I have a daily journaling and meditation practice that helps a lot.

I anchor myself with reminders of what my overall day, week and month has looked liked. Right down to the nitty gritty like reminding myself that I made a healthy lunch that took 30 minutes of time - but is a priority for my health and the health of my family. Without these grounding practices I find it is very easy to lose sight of my priorities, how much I have grown, and accomplished right up to the present moment .

So I do my best to be fully present. If I am Mothering - I do it by choice. If I am painting - I am doing it by choice.

If there is a chore that I am doing that does not excite me - I focus on the larger picture blessing.  I am folding laundry because I make the conscious choice to bless my family with a clean and well organized home. Another chore I do not enjoy is washing my paint brushes - so I focus on the way I will feel when I walk into a clean, tidy studio. And the way I will feel when I am painting in that clean studio with well cared for brushes. It's all a mindset thing for me. Creating the beautiful life I desire, and deserve, to live.

When my schedule calls for more rigorous work hours, away from family, I ask for help from my partner. And I trust that my family is in good stead and that I have banked precious moments with them and let them know how important they are to me. I cannot tell them enough in a day how much I love them and how I feel I won the lottery to be their Mom and partner.  And because words can be cheap - I do my very best to live that caring through my daily actions  and by taking more family time when my work schedule is less rigorous.

I have essentially had three entirely different experiences with Motherhood. Once when my older children (now in their early 20”s)  were born, once when I stepped into the role of stepmother  and then again when my 5 year old was born.

I don't identify with parenting as an identity shift at all. Parenting for me has always been more of an extension of me. A  deepening of my relationship with myself, and of course, others. I see Mothering as such an immense gift.

I find Motherhood very fulfilling, but of course, it is important to me to be more than a Mother! Just as it is important to me to be more than just a daughter, or wife, or sister, or friend, or artist. All of the parts are important and they all hold different importance at different stages of life.

I do this by deeply listening to my own intuition and heart whispers and again being as fully present as possible. Learning to edit my life and prioritize what is most important to me. Saying yes to what excites me and no to what doesn’t elicit full belly butterflies.