Despite the ongoing quarantine, my motivation to create art/write has been stronger than ever! I recently watched a TED Talk about the power of constraints as catalysts for creativity. For me, in the current situation of social distancing (more specifically, stay-at-home orders), creativity has served as a means for responding to the coronavirus pandemic and minimized in-person connection in a constructive way. In troubling times, many people turn to the arts to feel a greate

The previous post about organization (in the classroom) is from September of 2016. You can access that post here. I was recently inspired by the show Tidying Up on Netflix. I initially intended to watch something else, but that show just happened to turn on and start playing, so I tuned in. Was it a sign?? I finished watching the episode and reflected on my own life. Last night I decided to try out some of the strategies from the show. It started snowing earlier in the evenin

I just went through my blog archive to do a few things: record all of the titles I have used, document the number of posts from each month, and analyze trends in my writing. I noticed that there are several reoccurring themes. I suppose it’s because I find inspiration (to write) about many of the same things, such as art, education, gratitude, and wellness. Speaking of gratitude… So, I’m a big fan of Instagram. There are so many inspiring people whom I will likely never meet

Subtitle: When Procrastination Pays Off. Well, it’s done! After months of preparing drawing prompts and arranging pieces for our sketchbook, I am happy to announce that it has been mailed in! When I say ‘our’ sketchbook, I mean my students. The Sketchbook Project is a crowd-sourced library that features thousands of artists’ work from around the world (this information was taken from the website). The submitted sketchbooks become part of the Brooklyn Art Library’s collection.

At the beginning of the month, I participated in a Green Smoothie workshop, facilitated by health coach Stephanie Misanik. During the workshop, Stephanie asked each of us to explain why we chose to attend and what we hoped to gain/learn from the experience. It was inspiring to hear each participant’s reasons. Generally speaking, we all wanted to do something good for our bodies. Personally, I hoped to gain knowledge on how different foods impact my energy levels. During the s

“Our earth is only one polka dot among a million stars in the cosmos.” – Yayoi Kusama I had the opportunity to see and experience the Infinity Mirrors exhibit at the Hirschhorn Museum on Friday, just a week before it travels to a new city. This exhibit has been wildly popular and sold out for the past few months since it came to Washington, DC. I knew some people who waited in line for several hours before getting in, and others who waited in line just to learn that the museu

The title for this post was inspired by a banner I saw downtown on Sunday. The past few weeks have been busy and full of energizing/inspiring events. As a result, my inner light has certainly been shining! Today is the first official snow day of the 2016-2017 school year. We had a 2-hour delay a little while back, but that was it. There was a point where I thought we wouldn’t have any snow days this year, based on the unusually warm weather we have had over the past month. Al

Happy 2017! I’m happy to say that this first week of the year has started off with a lot of creativity, writing/reflection, and mind/body wellness. In my last post I mentioned that my Daily Sketch Journal had arrived. I started my first drawing on January 1st, and here’s the progress so far: ‘Be the Lobster’ might be the motto for 2017. The idea was inspired by the concept of stress, change, and growth. Lobsters experience discomfort as they grow, since their shells do not ex

There was no school today, so I planned to spend the day running errands, grabbing lunch with my sister, and doing something creative (I know, ‘something creative’ sounds really vague). The first item on my agenda was to have my last name officially changed. Our marriage certificate came in the mail last week, and I planned to bring it with me to the Social Security Office. My birth certificate was among the other documents needed. Unfortunately, I locked it away in a safe, a

It’s true. Artists can and will take their creativity anywhere and everywhere. They don’t need fancy art materials or a large studio space (although those things are nice to have!) Today’s art inspiration shout-out goes to this guy. Simon Beck creates massive geometric designs in the snow by walking in snowshoes. Before beginning his journey, he plans and maps out his designs, and he finds flat terrain to be most suitable for his creations. He discusses more about his process