Have a lovely Thanksgiving weekend!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This morning, we woke up to this...

Winter has come a little early this year! 

My 3-year-old made this Thanksgiving craft at preschool. Isn't this adorable? I couldn't help but show it off :)

I have to admit, this is as far as I went with decorating for Thanksgiving this year. I've been super busy preparing to open my online shop! 

Coffee (and lots of it) and those mini pumpkin chocolate chip muffins from Wegmans helped me get through this crazy week.

This year, I'm grateful for all the lovely things I have in my life, as well as some of the challenges we've been through.

Wishing you a weekend full of warm hugs and sweet treats!

I'm going to make a big announcement on Monday, so please check back then!

XOXO

Getting Ready to Open The Shop

Hello friends!

I've been a busy bee preparing to open my Etsy shop. 

I'm literally spending my every awake moment painting like a mad woman, except when I'm with my boys, cooking, folding laundry, or sleeping. 

Note that I didn't say "cleaning." Cleaning has gone to the bottom of my priority list, and our home looks, less than well... desirable. I hope to catch up on cleaning before Thanksgiving.

Today, I wanted to share some of the artwork I've recently created for the shop. These are my grainy Instagram photos, but you get the idea :)

I'm turning them into prints. What do you think?

Shop opening announcement coming soon. Please stay tuned! 

* * *

In the meantime, I managed to do a teensy bit of fall decorating.

I was inspired by Myquillyn's eye-patched decorative bust and Stacey's polka dot pumpkins (and you might want to check out Stacey's gorgeous Halloween party, too!)  

So my fall decor isn't that original. I guess I used up the "originality" part of my brain when I was painting! But I put my own twist to them and wanted to share with you how quick and easy those projects were. 

This polka dot pumpkin.

I just used this oil-based paint pen in gold to paint the polka dots. Make sure to let the dots completely dry before touching the pumpkin. I ended up smudging a few parts because I was impatient. It only takes a few minutes for the paint to dry.

And this burlap eye patch.

I just cut a piece of burlap ribbon into a heart shape and applied the fabric glue all around the outline to keep it from fraying. Then I attached a piece of white yarn to the burlap using the same glue.

I better go back to do more painting now! 

Hope you have a wonderful start to the week.

Goodbye Fear

If you've been here for a while, you know I've dealt with my fair share of fear over the past year. 

The fear of becoming who I deeply am. 

The fear of expressing my true self and sharing it with the world of online.

Uncovering the true shape of my soul has been spiritually satisfying and scary at the same time. Does this make any sense at all?

I've wanted this blog to be the catalyst for my creative journey, and I've shared various creative pursuits and personal stories here. 

Why do I share them, you may ask?

Because you never know what possibilities might open up when you give and share. 

I believe that everyone has a story to tell and we're meant share our story. As ordinary as it may seem, there might be someone out there who needs our story. 

This has been the place for me to share my story. I'm so grateful you've taken the time to visit here. Thank you.

After almost a year of creating, writing, sharing, and finally realizing what makes me come alive, I've reached another milestone recently and I'm excited about it: 

My constant creative companion, fear, has finally let go of my hand. 

My fear and I've had a life-long companionship.

As long as I could remember, I was always creating something, whether it was drawing, painting, or carving wood. It didn't matter what it was as long as I was using my imagination. I would come home from school, eat a quick snack, and spend the rest of the afternoon turning my vision into reality.

But there was something that frustrated me even as a child. Something I knew was holding me back creatively. I felt as if I couldn't come out of this invisible shell - the shell that forced me to draw a small picture on a big piece of paper, all neatly contained. I hated it. I wanted to break free from it and go wild, but I couldn't.

I'm finally breaking free from the shell of fear.

Face the fear and do it anyway. This has been my mantra over the past year. Dreaming and planning how to turn my dream into reality has been fun and absolutely necessary. But I've learned that taking action is where the true magic happens. (And taking this course has pushed me to take the actions I was afraid to take otherwise.)

I am finally free and it feels great.

Now, I'm ready to create.

What Do You Think?

Hello everyone! 

Did you notice some of the changes I've made on the blog lately? This blog is currently undergoing a major overhaul.  

Okay, it's probably not that major, but it sure feels that way. 

I now have a menu bar under the banner, although they are not linked to any pages yet. On the right sidebar, you can find social media buttons where you can connect with me outside of this blog. My husband, Steve, has been working on making those changes, and I can't be grateful enough. He's my hero!

I just created my Instagram account and facebook page a couple of days ago, so they are still in their infancy. But I'm looking forward to growing them and growing with them, and I hope you'll be part of this exciting journey. 

I'm going to make a few more changes on the blog over the weekend as part of Blogging Your Way course I've been taking. It's been a little overwhelming to do this much in such a short amount of time. But then, I have to remind myself that change is good.

I just have to remember to pace myself a little, slow down and take a deep breath.

* * *

Today, I have something I wanted to ask you. 

If you've noticed, there is a link on the menu bar that says "shop." I've been thinking about selling my artwork, both originals and some prints on Etsy. 

The truth is, holding onto the finished artwork is keeping me from becoming a better artist. Instead of cherishing and marveling what I've already done, I want to push myself and try something new.

I'll be honest. It probably won't be easy for me to let many of them go, but I don't want to stay where I am today. I want to be the best artist that I can be. And I believe that my best is yet to come. 

I'm also interested in creating more pieces that I can turn into prints, like this one.

I think it will be a fun way to practice illustrations for my children's book project. 

So, what do you think? Is selling my artwork online a good idea or not so good? Any thoughts or encouragement? I'm curious. 

In the meantime, let's hang out here:
Pinterest - @yukojones
Like my Facebook page?
Instagram (I only have a few photos, haha!) - @studioyukojones

Have a wonderful weekend!