I came across this lovely Flickr page and just had to share it with you all. I love this crafters style, and this photo in particular really spoke to me. Crafting, its a lifestyle.

Mondays are made much more bearable by playing along with Much Love Monday. I hate Mondays, like hate with the passion of a million really really pissed off bees. GARH. But I love pretty pictures, and I adore hearts and love. Suddenly Monday's are a little bit more bearable. Except I am hungover, so it still kind of sucks balls.

I love my camera. My super-awesome-totaly-fantastic-kick-ass Canon digital SLR. I take it everywhere with me, it is my biggest source of artistic inspiration right now. What do you just ADORE at the moment? What inspires you, gets your motor purring? Here are some pictures I found via WeHeartIt that make inspire me...

First off a big hello and thank you to all of my new readers! I love every single comment my little blog gets, it just makes my day and warms my heart! So thanks!

Now on to Monday's Muse, a list of things in the past week that have been inspiring me, my art, my thoughts and my life. Right now, its all about Vincent Van Gogh!

I have always loved the raw quality to his paintings and when I was in Amsterdamn I spent a lot of time at the Van Gogh museum. He led a FASCINATING life...his troubles with depression and mania have always fascinated me. I have always related to him and how he uses art to vent his frustrations, release his emotions and vision a happy future. I think that his raw, rough, thick layers of paint (what many criticized him for) are a part of his genius...his urgent desire to express a chaotic mind, to get it out on paper.

He was never one to follow authority as seen in this model study he did in art school...in his journals he recalls painting in that cigarette out of sheer boredom and to see his teachers reaction.

Despite his madness and restless spirit he longed for a healthy normal life as seen in the famous painting of his bedroom in his yellow house in Arles, France. Notice how there are two pillows, two chairs, and two portraits, yet he lived alone.

He painted this picture shortly before he died...the wheat fields about to be harvested and the crows descending on them

As most people know Van Gogh cut off his own ear in a fit of madness and presented it to a prostitute. She had a name though. Her name was Rachel, and they had a beautiful love affair. One of the theories as to why he committed such a brutal act was that he was influenced by the bull fighting in Arles commonly done around the same time that he cut off his ear. The matador would slice of the ear of the defeated bull and present it to his lady love. Many historians have remarked on the way that Van Gogh would often identify himself with prostitutes and vagrants, finding himself in some of the darker corners of France...perhaps by cutting off his own ear he was professing his love and identifying with the defeated bull?

And let's not forget it is"Much Love Monday" and my love moment for today is that my hubby is home! I have seen him for about 4 days the past month he has been traveling soooo much for work! I love that he is home, safe and sound with me!

I recently signed up for a 6 week online class called Tell Your Story. Its run by the awesome Red velvet Art gang, and its all about ART JOURNALING! My new obsession. It is wild expression for the creative soul, and honestly it is saving mine. Soul that is. The creative prompts we are given combined with the use of unique mediums like paint, fabric, photos, felt, buttons....you name it! Even old map's. I haven't had such creative juices flowing since I was a teenager. I don't know about you but I find writing in a journal boring, and I usualy start one and never finish it. I have like 6 unfinished journals. But an art journal? Totaly different. If you dot want to write you can draw, do a collage, cut and paste a photo...whatever express your thoughts/emotions. It is a cathartic release and has totaly inspired me to encorporate MORE ART into my life. Art, its good 4 u.

(image via We Hear It)

If you would like to see what I have done for this class so far you can view some of it on my Flickr page

Here is what is inspiring me, my art and my life right now....

FOXES! Yes weee lil fuzzy foxes, i think I have a new obsession and new item to collect. Foxes, I love them and their cute faces. love their colors, love how they hunt. Just <3

Neo-Victorian Fashion, Cameo's and vintage shadow portraits

And last but not least vintage cameras

I cant stop playing with felt! My newest series of brooches....stuffed hearts. "Be Still My Beating Heart"

Vintage store find! Some old school childrens books...they are already in pretty rough shape so i plan on using them as collage material for my Art journaling class!

I love vintage French art...this is full of sassy posters! Again, awesome find, greatmaterial for my art journaling!

And I recently had a special visitor to my krafty korner....Spikasoraus. He is pretty awesome.

I have been crafting and knitting until I can't see straight! I can't seem to stop honestly. Simply put, I think it is saving my mind. If you are ever feeling anxious, funny in the head, blue, or just plain old bored, I tell yah make some art. Anything! Draw a picture! Put up a random collage of inspiring images on your fridge! It doesn't have to be a huge project, but the act of making something when you feel like nothing is truly amazing! Here is what I have been up to:

Remember that hat on my needles last week? Well I finally finished it and Ryan loves it! He hasn't taken it off his head! I totally veered away from the pattern a bit, but it worked and now he has a comfy, slouchy beenie hat. But at first...when I tried it  on my own head, I was a lil devastated! But it fits his fat head! Woooot! (That's baby Kitty, our not so little tabby kat, playing with Ryan in the hallway). I got the pattern (that I messed with yes) from Stich n Bitch

I made some "Twitter" badges for Patti in the new Tile of Spain theme color MAGENTA! She is going to wear hers at Coverings this year and bring extras to give away as prizes to her Twitter followers! Representing La_Kamika Kraftz!

I also signed up for the "Tell Your Story" online Art Journaling class! It is so purrrfect for me because I love to journal but find simply writing borrrrrring! I love to express myself through images and I have a suitcase literally stuffed with pictures from magazines and such that I have collected over the years.

This is just the "About Me" section of the class, it kicks off into full gear on Monday with a journal cool theme and prompt every day for 6 weeks! They give you tonnes of ideas for inspiration. Everyone in the class shares their work in a private Flicker group, it is so cool seeing the art everyone creates and why! Do you see the button on the right over there...."Tell Your Story Student" if you click it you can get some more info.

I also found a polaroid camera on a thrifting hunt with Ryan the other day. It is still in mint condition and I plan on using it for some photo fun on my "dirty 30" bday this summer! So that was my crafty crazyness. What did you all get up to? Peace, pies and kitties!

Love letters written on the body

The importance of old fashioned girl talk

Magical cupcakes

Let your imagination soar....be child like

Less booze, more tea

(all images from www.weheartit.com)

It is said that if you can change your thoughts you can change your life...or something like that. Many of us, myself included, walk through life with a broken record playing in the background. I dont know about you but I could use a better soundtrack. It has been proven that negative thought patterns not only effect our bodies but also weave deep complicated negative trenches into our brains....making it hard to "get out of a funk". Our brains litteraly become hardwired to expect, almost look for, the worst. But by simply thinking something different, and believing it to be true, wanting it to be true, you can re-boot the stuborn hardrive that is your brain.

Its all about affirmations, but honestly not many of us can keep a straight face while they look in the mirror and tell themselves how fucking awesome they are, unless your Barney Stintson.

Just the word affirmations is bound to bring something like this to mind

Yet as much as we make fun of it, there is something to be said for the power of words. If you have ever been bullied you will know this to be true. If you call someone stupid for long enough, the sad fact is that eventually they will start to believe it.

So what if we take back that power and flip it on its head? What if we got over the giggles and silly feelings and told ourselves every morning how much we love ourselves? How awesome we were....

After all Masaru Emoto proved that words effect water....simple water crystals can be effected by the power of words!

Considering that well over 50% of our bodies are comprised of water, it kinda makes you think twice about the "fat talk" eh?

I dont have a healthy "script", and its been on repeat since I was 16 years old. SCREEEEEEEEECH! Time to yank that needle of the record and play a new fucking track!

How's about something like this?

In my last post I mentioned that I had a creative brain fart on the wall above my desk. Well it is slowly growing and expanding to create new ideas, and I love staring at it. I thought I'd share and encourage others to try this form of art therapy...mine is no where near done. Updates on changes and additions will follow.

Captions are:
The red lips Feminine Ideals...crossed out to read "feminist ideals"
The retro 1950's image "I enjoy being a slut"
and my fave "You can never re-create the past, but you can shape your own future and you can bake a cake"

As you can see I found odd things inspiring....mostly feminine culture, art, fashion and nature. I have a fair amount from Sophie Coppola's "Marie Antoinette" which is a visual feast for the eyes.