The Stages of my Felting Process

Three Poppies, wool, 8.75" x 12", custom-matted to 12” x 16”, CAN $450

Blog 12


Since the beginning of the year, I have posted my daily art to inspire you to increase creativity in your life. I wanted to show that it doesn’t have to take hours to create art. Some of my sketches were more detailed because I often forget everything around me and keep drawing or painting.


I have also continued to work on my needle-felted paintings. I usually work on several at the same time, each of them at a different stage of completion.


I cannot sit still and usually work on a piece while watching television or chatting with friends.

 

I start the blocking-in phase of the painting while watching TV because I don’t have to worry about details and fill the background with colours that match the basic shapes of my composition.


Once I get to the second step and start working on blending colours, I continue when I chat with friends because I need better lighting and have to pay more attention to the transitions of colours.


Most of the work on my needle-felted paintings happens when I add more details. I need to concentrate on the artwork, keeping my eyes on the artwork. The participants of the virFriday Crafters Afternoons are all in the same boat. We chat, we laugh, but we also have times when we spend the time silently working. To find out how to join us, send me an email to info@KerstinPeters.ca.


The final stage of my process usually takes the longest. Sometimes, when I consider a painting almost finished, I realize something feels off. Outsiders might not even see something wrong with the artwork. I take a photo to view the artwork from a different angle. Sometimes, it is only a quick adjustment. Other times, I require additional hours until I am satisfied.

When I created my calendar of needle-felted paintings last November, I realized I had to change the following tulip painting. When you look at the second image, can you guess what caught my eye?


 

 

 

 

 

 

If you want to learn needle felting in a small group, I invite you to the Easter Egg workshop on Sunday, April 2, 2023, from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm, Zoom. You will learn the basics of needle felting and might find a fun and relaxing hobby.


I will offer the next needle-felted painting workshop on June 4 and 11, 2023. What would you like to felt?

• Landscape
• Still life
• Flowers
• Birds
• Butterflies
• Other animals

Please send me an email with your suggestion to info@KerstinPeters.ca.

You Have a Choice

Blog 11

 
Last week, I was disappointed and frustrated. A course I looked forward to sharing didn’t run because nobody signed up. I was questioning my path and how and if I should continue with my business.

image provided by M. Shannon Hernandez

Fortunately, the book Practical Joy by my coach M. Shannon Hernandez had only arrived days earlier. It is an easy read at less than 100 pages, but don’t let that fool you. There is a lot of information, exploration and inspiration on these pages.

Her three key points of making joy a choice are easy to remember:

1. Your joy is a daily practice.
2. Your joy is contagious.
3. Your joy is limitless. (page 84)

M. Shannon points out “that you have zero time to waste on things, people, relationships, and experiences that aren’t bringing you joy!” (page 12)

Each chapter contains her observations, suggestions for reflections, space to note your thoughts and a colouring page to get quiet and meditative.
 
It was interesting to read that the author thanked two creative instructors for helping her to “heal so many years of wounds and blocks around creativity,...” (page 97) They guided and supported her to rediscover and nurture her creative voice.

While M. Shannon talks about joy, her three key points are relevant to my mission to help you find and nurture your creativity. Being creative is a choice. Others might encourage or discourage you. However, your creative expression is foremost for yourself. You might decide to share it with others to inspire them to discover their voice, but first, you have to find yours.

“True joy will be yours when you find the courage to pull the weeds of achievement, never-ending to-do lists, and mediocre living.” (page 31)

Whenever I doubt my mission, I remember the joy art brings to my life. It has been there for me in good and challenging times. I want you to experience the same. Join me for a coffee date to see how I can support your journey. 

 

P.S. I continued my daily art projects. This week, I drew many people, which I will not share, to respect their privacy. The image of the lovely young woman in the collage is my daughter Christine, who turned 22 this week.

 

 

Daily Art

 

Blog 10


I started my daily art with preparations for my two Cartooning and Comics courses at the François Dupuis Recreation Centre in Orleans, where I instruct two groups of children. At the end of this semester, they will create a comic with two characters they picked.

The younger group (5 to 7-year-olds) selected the Minecraft characters Ender Dragon and Wither Storm.

The older group (8 to 12-year-olds) chose Tanjiro Kamado from Demon Slayer and eyeballs.

I drew the first image of the comics, which forced me out of my comfort zone. All subjects are not anything I would choose. Everyone will start with the first image and then develop their own stories. I always enjoy the challenge and learn something from the kids while I teach them.

 

For my own projects, I picked various subjects and spent some minutes to about an hour creating the art. I used pencils, coloured pencils, watercolour pencils and watercolours.

I drew the rooster and the faucet for my German students to demonstrate how you can easily visualize new words to anchor them to your memory. Both words mean Hahn in German, which makes it important to figure out the context. After all, you don't want to get a rooster for bathroom. 😊

What have you learned this week?

I Am Too Busy to Create Art

Blog 9

At the beginning of January, I started my yearly Creativity Challenge to encourage myself to create a small artwork every day. I managed to keep on track until the end the January.

I could make the excuse that I was too busy as I had a full schedule, but in reality, I prioritized other things or was too ambitious in picking a subject to get started. However, often the simple things make exciting subjects, as you can see from the drawing of the kiwi I created this week.

There are always things that you need to do. I still attempt to worry less about perfection and be more spontaneous. Can you relate? What struggles do you face when you work on a project?

I will continue to share my daily art in my blogs. I might pick a specific subject for a week to practice different styles and use various materials. Is there a subject that you would like me to explore? Please send your suggestions to info@KerstinPeters.ca.

Here is a selection of my daily art from the past week:



I encourage you to pick up a pencil and paper to explore patterns and colours. Have a mug of coloured pencils and markers in reach. You can create images of things that are on your mind or in your surroundings, exploring different mediums. In the beginning, it might feel challenging or even frustrating to get started. However, the more you draw, the more it feels liberating and the more ideas you will get. 

I would love to see what you have created in the past two months. If you are on Facebook, I invite you to join the private group Creative Connection for Artists and Crafters. This group is for creative people who want to connect with other like-minded people.