Wishes, self-care, and a new year

Intention setting for the new year is a healthy practice. In my own life I am working to increase the amount of time I spend in a special kind of self-care. Making art is something that feeds the core of who I am and makes me a better person. Finding time to create something every day is the trick in a busy life and for the coming year it is at the top of my list of private intentions.

The short video below talks about setting intentions around tapestry weaving for the coming year. I am not going to tell you to put it on your calendar (though that might be helpful for some of you) or to beat yourself up if you don't touch your art supplies/weaving tools for a month. What I am going to tell you is to consider making an intention for the new year around taking care of yourself in this special way. As humans we are creative beings, so please make sure to make time as often as you can to let your creativity fly. 

Remember if you get the blog via email you'll need to go to your browser to see the video on my blog HERE or go to YouTube HERE.

In the video I mention a tapestry diary. This is certainly one option and it can become quite addictive if you make it a habit. I did a tapestry diary for a month as part of an artist residency and you can see that HERE. I also started a more informal diary late in 2017 and there are some photos of that below. For other tapestry diary ideas, visit Tommye Scanlin's blog. You can see her diaries from past years on her website HERE which might give you some ideas about how to start.

But I am by no means saying that a tapestry diary should be your practice. I am simply encouraging you to think about what activities draw you to create and to make time for them this year.

Here are a few images of my current tapestry diary. Maybe today is the day to get out a loom, throw on a warp, and try a little yarn play.

Rebecca Mezoff, start of a new tapestry diary, late 2017

Rebecca Mezoff, tapestry diary

Rebecca Mezoff, tapestry diary, Gray Skies

Rebecca Mezoff, Hokett loom, tapestry... the start of the sad snowman

Rebecca Mezoff, tapestry diary piece, Anger

Rebecca Mezoff, tapestry diary 2017-2018

Each of these little pieces had their own idea. For example, the purple one fourth from the left I wove on the day I got a mammogram, thus the pink breast cancer ribbon loop and the little ta-tas. Those were supposed to be sexier breasts, but the sock yarn I was using squished so much they became little bird wings. It is called "Save the ta-tas". The one to the right of that was about anger. Each piece has a tag attached to it right now with the date, the number of the entry, the title if it has one, and materials used. I also keep a little notebook with future ideas and cartoons of what I wove.

I don't know where this particular practice will go or if I will continue this project long term. For the moment, I have committed to continuing long enough to know whether it is helpful for my overall creativity. So far it has been a lot of fun and has brought ideas for larger pieces. If I continue, I will mount them in consecutive frames for a sort of linear look at my experiences over the course of the project. But at its most basic, it gets me weaving and that is enough.

So now tell us how you approach a new year. Do you have any creative intentions for yourself? 

Speaking them can help you make them a reality. Share below if you'd like.

Happy New Year!