Blog : Creative Journaling

‘Eco Printed Journals’ and reflection on your year ahead

Preparing to make Eco Printed Journals and reflecting on year ahead.

Jacqui Grace from Beautiful Wasteland and I have come together to offer a culmination of Art Therapy, Book Binding and Eco Printing. We will offer this 2 day workshop this January and again in November as a way to reflect on the year and create your journal to companion you in the year ahead, using the process of eco printing, natural dying on fabric and water colour paper, using leaves and flowers and salvaged metal to make prints. 

Below is the inquiry process that we are offering to the participants of the workshop. We thought you may like to use this process, too. Thank you Jacqui for kindly putting together this inquiry. 

Warmth, Amanda

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My wish for you.

Dear incredible soul,

My wish for you this year you divine, courageous being is to be kind to yourself, daringly listen to the quiet voice within, and act on behalf of yourself, your values, your truth, your alignment in even the most challenging of situations.

To give yourself the space to really know what your heart wants, what fills you with joy, smiles, laughter and ecstatic abandon. To do what needs to be done to follow those things, be focussed on making these things happen in your life, really happen. Not just on a to-do list.

My wish for you this year is to be bold enough to be vulnerable with the special people in your life. Share your imperfections, your humanity, and i wish to see your heart, your compassion for yourself grow. There are so many beautiful people around you, who are just as imperfectly perfect as your are. When you open to them they open to you. We are never alone in our experiences. We are all in this together. Remember that you are reflected in those around you.

Take a look in the mirror, and see who you are beyond the physical, see the deep pools of your eyes that go beyond any limitation. You are limitless. Smile for the gift of being alive, being able to be here in this physical form to explore and learn.

My wish for you is to enjoy moving your body in a way that nurtures you, find your way of being connected with your body and feeding it with nurturing soulful food and company.

And for all years to come, please, please, Love and be loved, share, give to others, random acts of kindness, ESPECIALLY for yourself. There is a purpose just for you. Even if your mind doesn’t know what that is just yet, it’s all part of this ride called life. I am so blessed to be sharing this part of the journey with you, special one.

Love,
Amanda

xx

Above is my image for reflecting on 2014. It is a great way to really integrate before moving into 2015. I just started with some cutout words and images and paint and as I created it so many memories from the year came back to me. A year is a long time, and tends to get very full. It is pretty encouraging when you go over it all and remember how far you have come. Remember it doesn’t matter how big or small the things seem, put on everything that feels significant to you. It doesn’t need to make sense to anyone else!

The Creative Process

2014-08-12 21.45.01-1What is it about the creative process that is so incredibly helpful?

I know in my being that trusting the creative process is a sure way to move and shift my state, finding acceptance and curiosity.

I have worked with hundreds of people taking them through the creative process, often starting with resistance and judgement of what could be created, stopping them from even beginning.

It’s interesting to me how this critical voice and resistance plays a part in our ability to create. When we can use the energy of resistance, accept it and bring it along for the ride, then something new can emerge.

But how might this look?

Noticing

Well it begins with noticing what is present. You have a blank page or any other materials that you want to use to create in front of you, or just the idea in your head that you want to create. Maybe you haven’t even gotten to the point of sitting down with any art materials. If not, then you can just use a pen and paper to start with. Sit quietly and be present to your body.  Start with your breathe. Do a body scan of what you notice within you. If there is resistance, then stay with that. If there is anticipation, fear, excitement, tiredness, whatever it is, stay with that. It’s not about getting rid of it, but being with it. What do you notice about that sensation? Warm/cold/tight/loose/bright/dark/tangled/watery/floaty/solid/sounds/colours?

Representing

Represent this using whatever materials you have. It might even be putting your body into a position that represents that sensation. It is just about expanding on what you are sensing and giving it form. Spend some time in this creating phase without analysing. let yourself free fall into the creative process.

Reflecting

What do you notice about what you have created?

What colours? lines? forms? shapes? If you made sound of movement, what did you notice about these?

You could also explore the opposite of this, what would that be like?

Now, if it could speak what would it say? What does it want you to know? Often strong emotions point to values. What do you value? Is it staying safe? What does this part of you want to hear from you? I feel like there are many different selves, and they all sit at a round table. If one of them doesn’t feel loved/accepted/heard, then it acts out. If you can hear what that part of you wants, reassure it and bring it closer to you, then you remember that you are both on the same side. It means that that part doesn’t need to sabotage to be heard, and you can still make conscious choices about doing things even if they are scary, when they are in your highest good for your growth.

Post below your experience of the creative process.

What do you notice?
What is valuable about the creative process for you?

 

 

 

 

The Power of Connection

Connection: My heart medicine

Part of the reason I love running workshops and offering the space for people to connect with their creativity, is that connection gives me, and others, meaning and purpose in a world that can be full of content overload and confusion, which can lead to feeling out of place and lost.

Connection offers perspective, understanding, empathy, feeling that you are not alone in the world, and being reminded of things we may have forgotten.

Positive psychology has created 5 categories for understanding and measuring happiness and fulfilment. While I feel like there are so many different ways of looking at happiness, and that my perspective is that happiness is one of many human feelings that we experience and not necessarily on the top of the emotions hierarchy, I do find some value in the PERMA model. You can read more about this model in the link below, and is a very powerful way of looking at what will increase your wellbeing.

*Source: http://positivepsychologymelbourne.com.au/PERMA-model

Engagement and relationships to me relate to connection with others, which in term helps me find meaning in my life, drives me to follow my dreams and accomplish what I want, which increases my positive emotions.

Creative Arts Therapist Networking Group

Today I came together with 10 other arts therapists to connect and share what we are doing and share ideas, resources and encouragement.

We each made a series of ‘tags’ with inspiration or reminders and gifted them to one another at the end of the session, so we each left with a reminder that we are all in this together, and are not alone in bringing our creative visions out to the world, that we share many challenges, ideas, dreams and also have varied paths, interests and ideas.

Tag swap

CATs

Witnessing and being witnessed.

The group that I run for journaling offers strong connections too, which is partly why the groups are so fulfilling and meaningful. To see each person share part of their vulnerability, their soul, their unique expression in the world allows me to connect with so many parts of myself that relate to everything that is shared, and also allows me to see how varied our life experiences can be. It intrigues me how we all come to be together in one place, to share and learn form one another, and be brave enough to step outside our comfort zone, dare greatly and show parts of ourselves that no one may have seen before. Witnessing is a very powerful transformative process, and the simple practice of being present to another can move metaphorical mountains.


 

Questions for today:

What is connection for you?

Who or what do you feel most connected to?

How can you create more connection in your life? (action).

  • Write about these in your journal, create art/draw/paint
  • Comment below