Salon this year was a special one for me. It was me and Evan’s first international trip and to a place where I’ve always wanted to visit. It was hosted in Bergen, Norway by Salon member Inge Visnes. I’ve never traveled to Norway, let alone Scandinavia, and this would be my opportunity to immerse myself in the culture and customs of this beautiful place. After Salon, we were able to spend a few days in Stockholm, Sweden. My paternal grandfather’s parents are both Swedish and my great grandmother emigrated in the early 1900’s so this was a very special trip for me. To learn more about salon and my previous experiences, click here or here.

To me, studio play is when I get to experiment and discover new ways to use products and processes. I will usually collect inspiration images either from social media, magazines, different products I would like to try, wallpapers, fabrics, or even nature. Inspiration could really take the form of anything that triggers an idea.

It’s that time of year again! Time to set goals, make resolutions, and evaluate things in your life. For most of us, 2021 was much like 2020. We did have glimpses of normalcy with kids returning to school, some travel bans lifted, the vaccine being widely available, but not all has returned to the “before times.” And as we emerge from the holiday season, we have spikes in case numbers, and more uncertainty as we go back to work and school. I hope that all of us can find some positivity in our collective situation and joy in our lives.

There are some great memes out there that encapsulate the cycle of doubt for an artist. When starting a project, you have this feeling of “this is awesome, I am awesome!” As you get deeper in, the feeling changes to “why did I think this was a good idea? Why am I even attempting this? It sucks! I suck.”