Kristin Victoria Creates

I finished my first attempt at the 100 days project in just a little while ago. It was a mixed bag of emotions but really got me back into a few mediums and gave me more confidence to try undeveloped thoughts. I didn't fully follow the 100 days exactly as more often then not I'd take part or all of the weekend off. (I like to blame my hubby and cute kitties, but it's just laziness.) I now think it's time to take on a smaller challenge; a month of drawing challenge. And I really haven't sat down and drawn regularly since July of 2014 when a small accident at my then job resulted in nerve damage of my dominant hand. It's not too bad now as I have full motion and ability to draw, sew, paint, etc. October is just around the corner and seems fitting for this challenge, even though it will be very different for my little family this year. This October, my husband will be finishing a schooling program, we'll hopefully be done with house hunting,  pcsing / mo...

After many days, I have finished the 100 days project. These last 100, plus, days have added another layer of creating, stress, joy,  as well as stress relief to my daily schedule. This project helped push me and expand my various thoughts on what my abstract paintings can be. A few days of the 100, I really did not like the end result of the painting. Luckily this project isn't about the daily result, it's about the process of creating, over and over and over again. I knew this therapeutic repetition would be helpful, but I didn't realize it would be pushing me as much as it has.  With this in mind, I really enjoyed creating these 100 pieces. It gave me a small zen moment in the mornings when I worked on these. Even on days where the painting didn't turn out how I had intended, the act of painting was mostly enjoyable.  I am planning on trying my hand at expanding some of the paintings and ideas that I came across and created thro...

As many quilters can tell you, sometimes, quilts take a long time to come to completion. This red, white, and blue quilt is no different.  This one began in late 2012, after a heart breaking death, which I won't go into on here. I poured over so many star patterns on-line, trying to pick the ones I liked, ones that would be "good enough" for the red, white, and blue quilt I wanted to make. I ended up saving over 60 images of quilt star patterns and began trying to arrange them into a pattern via photoshop and many, many sketches. Nothing I liked worked, which made my determination grow.  Eventually I came to like a few certain stars, and drafted them myself on graph paper.  I enjoy drafting out patterns and blocks this way, as I'm a visual person.  I also did this, so that the measurements were to my liking. Next came finding the fabric which also took a long time. I adore glitter, but did not want any glittered fabrics for th...

Slowly but surely, I am drawing nearer to the 100th day of the 100 Days Project challenge I set for myself.  As time goes by I am enjoying the paintings I do for this more and more.  It has been an experience in allowing myself to expand my style and challenge myself in areas I hadn't previously considered. Materials used for these pieces include: cold pressed, 300 gms watercolor paper, water color paint, acrylic paint, water soluble pencils, and oil pastels.   Below are pieces from days 80 to 90. No. 81 - 6" x 9". No. 82 - 5" x 7". No. 83 - 5" x 7". No. 84 - 5" x 7". No. 85 - 5" x 7" No. 86 - 6" x 9". No. 87 - 6" x 9". No. 88 - 5" x 7". No. 89 - 6" x 9". No. 90 - 5" x 7". Hope you enjoyed a look into the last ten ish days of my creative painting life. Happy creating, and...

Motivation is something I continually chase. Today and this last, long, weekend are no exceptions. Don't get me wrong, I actually was able to accomplish a lot over the four day weekend. I managed to relax, clean a little, cook, work on several quilting projects, finished a book, and spent a lot of time with my husband.  But as with most people, my motivation can come and go as it pleases. For days when it wants to wander off, I keep five steps in mind to help get it back in my corner. As always, I feel that I could have done more. And this brings up my first step for me keeping my motivation at my side: I don't think of all the things I could have done. I know this sounds strange, but it's happens. On even my most productive days, I can let myself down by thinking of the things that I didn't get to, didn't finish, or didn't complete enough steps in. The negativity and guilt of "you could have done more" often outweighs what I did accomplish.  Thi...