Every once in a while I come across a blog or a person that inspires me and influences me in my life. Whether it is in my personal life, daily life, or blog life.
I just wanted to let everyone know that I am not missing, instead I have ventured into the wonderful world of my own website!
http://www.craftyartistkc.com is now live. Although it is not completed, I am slowly transitioning my posts over to the new site. Please please please go check it out and subscribe via email. I will be adding a lot more ways to follow me, but for now, please subscribe via email.
The creator of Mystery Blogger Award is Okoto Enigma… https://okotoenigmasblog.com/my-greatest-creation-yet/
The Mystery Blogger Award is an award for amazing bloggers with ingenious posts. Their blog not only captivates, it inspires and motivates. They are one of the best out there and deserve every recognition they get.
This award is also for bloggers who find fun and inspiration in blogging and they do it with so much love and passion.
RULES FOR AWARD
Put the award logo on your blog
List the rules
Thank whoever nominated you and provide link to their blog.
Tell your readers three things about yourself
Answer to the questions
You have to nominate some bloggers
Ask your nominees any five questions
THANKS TO BHAGYASHRI
I just want to send a special thank you to Bhagyashri for considering my blog as worthy enough for such a nomination. I am touched that someone chose my blog from the millions out there. One of my favorite tag lines of this blog is My Doodle World. It is definitely worth checking out and you can do it right here.
THREE FACTS ABOUT ME
MY ANSWERS:
1.What is your take on TV Series?
I do not have much time to watch tv at all. I find that it is much more enjoyable to actually create something or interact with friends and family. I think that these days people allow their lives to slip by sitting on a sofa. I do not want to be that, I want to strive to always be better. This is not to say that I don’t enjoy the occasional series or movie that may catch my attention, I just chose a different activity most of the time.
2. How do you react when your name is pronounced or written wrongly?
You would think a name like Charity would be fairly easy to keep straight, but I have found that it is most commonly mispronounced as Chasity or Chastity, and is most commonly misspelled as Chasity. I have only met a small number, that I could easily keep on one hand, of individuals that share my name. My take on this is, people no longer respect someone enough to learn how to pronounce and spell their names correctly. There is an entitled group of people that make it very clear they are above all others. I make a point to not only ask someone their name, but ask them about the origin if it is of rare quality.
3. Do you believe in life after death? If Yes, what you wish to be?
I do believe there is life after death but I think of it in a different way. I do not believe in reincarnation, I believe that the life after death is the life created from death. Let me explain. I believe that we are placed on this earth to make a difference and to push the next generation forward in education and questioning their surroundings. I believe that a person lives on in the inspiration they leave in the lives of those around him/her.
4. How many dreams came true? Can you share a major one.
I grew up in a small town in the south. The seasons never seemed to really change. It was warm and sunny almost year round. But there was this particular season, I hadn’t ever experienced. Winter. The coldest it would get in my hometown would still allow for just a light jacket to be comfortable. Since as long as I could remember, I had always dreamed of a white christmas. It wasn’t until after I had turned 19, that my husband at the time was stationed to Ft. Wainwright, Alaska. Even though I joined him in the middle of July, there was a chill in the air I had not experienced before. After getting used to the chill in July, I was able to experience my first snowfall of any significance. It was so magical. I was like a kid standing outside with my arms outstretched and my mouth wide open. It was snow, and in that moment, I felt amazing!
5. Introduce your extra hobby, which you have not mentioned here yet.
I love PC Gaming. I have been playing World of Warcraft since before the first expansion. I have found a guild that is made up of the most amazing people you’ll ever meet. From jugglers, artists, military and bodybuilders, to the kids of those previously mentioned starting a life of their own. This group of people have become like a second family to me. They are always there and we are all friends on facebook and share memories from years of playing this game. I have met the most amazing people and THAT is why I continue to play this beautiful escape.
MY NOMINEES:
https://groupexpo.wordpress.com/about/
https://gentlemancrafter.com/about/
http://personalogues.com/about/
MY QUESTIONS TO MY NOMINEES
I look forward to seeing all of your answers. Good Luck and God Bless!
What a milestone!! Thank you so much to my fans and followers. This wouldnt be possible without each and every one of you.
In celebration of this milestone, I would love to know what your favorite post so far has been and what would you like to see more of. Tell me in the comments below!!! I will respond to every comment!
For this week’s Showcase Sunday, I would like to introduce Shridevi from www.Personalogues.com I had the pleasure of being introduced to her when she followed my blog and sent me an email. After getting to know her a little more through email, I began following her blog. I love that she has so many interesting topics, including Zentangle, which is a recent find in my life as well.
I love how you can look at each blog and see the growth and learning from the previous experiences in her life. She has even taken steps, I was too afraid to take. One of them specifically being her “Tangle Thursday” which inspired me to also make a weekday themed post. Because we follow some of the same blogs, I am always interested to see her take and understanding of the challenges presented. You won’t be disappointed with her serene blog that takes relaxation to the max.
Below is the interview conducted with her, Enjoy!
What made you get into blogging?
>> A few years ago, I used to write product reviews for a leading Indian beauty blog. It was then that I realized how much I love the whole process of writing and connecting with people through posts. Gradually, the rules for posting on that blog got more and more stringent. I felt the need for freedom in writing. So I started my own blog. But I couldn’t stick to it for long. This happened with a couple of blogs before I finally stuck to Personalogues. You can read the whole story here
Have you ever had any formal training or education in your blog subject?
>> No I don’t have any formal training in blogging or the subjects that I blog about. Personalogues was started as a personal blog covering several topics including personal experiences,random thoughts and perspectives, book reviews, travel and mainly my journey of learning Zentangle Art. I did learn the basics of Zentangle art from a certified teacher a couple of years ago, but that was just one session and I took it further from there by myself.
What was your greatest failure and how did you learn from it?
>> I think my greatest failure has been been my inability to do certain things just out of fear of making mistakes. I had that fear even when I started this blog. After I purchased the domain, I was too scared to make the first post. No post seemed perfect enough. Good enough to be seen on my blog. It took me almost a year to get over this fear. I joined a 30 day blogging challenge and through that I gradually learnt that my best is good enough and obsessing over perfection will take me nowhere.
Who has influenced you the most with your blog?
>> I would like to give credit to Sarah Arrow of Sark eMedia for this. It was through her 30 day blogging challenge that I learnt so much about technicalities of blogging, gained confidence and grew my blog bit by bit.
Tell us more about the 30-day blogging challenge you mentioned.
>> Here is a link to the Facebook Page – https://www.facebook.com/groups/30DayBloggingChallenge/
and here is the link to the registration link – https://www.sarkemedia.com/blogging-challenges-traffic/ You get daily emails when you register on this email. Each email has something new to learn about blogging and at the end of each email there is a ‘To-Do’ activity for your blog. I also did a post on why one should take up this blogging challenge here http://personalogues.com/30-day-blogging-challenge-sarah-arrow/
How much time do you spend blogging in any given week?
>> On an average I spend about 5 hours a week on blogging. However, there are times when I have spent up to 5 hours a day as well on my blog.
How much time do you spend on the content of your blog, such as art pieces, reading or experiences shared?
>> I try to draw every single day, and spend about 30 minutes to an hour on my art pieces. It doesn’t necessarily have to be one continuous sitting. Sometimes I do it in bits and pieces. Like if I have about 10 minutes to spare, I complete whatever I can in those 10 minutes. Sometimes I just practice the patterns before actually implementing them on the main piece of art.
Similarly for reading, most of the time, I don’t read at a stretch. I read as and when I get time during the day. However, if the book is really good and I can’t put it down, I stay awake through the night to read.
Is blogging your profession or just a hobby?
>> As of now, blogging is just a hobby or rather a platform to showcase my hobbies – drawing (Zentangle Art), reading and travelling mainly.
What is your passion?
>> I am passionate about
Parenting – Most of my energies and thoughts go towards bringing up my daughter
Reading – I have always been called a bookworm
Zentangle Art – Since about a year or so. It is so very relaxing and calming
( If I make a pie chart of all the three above, parenting would take up about 85%)
Do you include a lot of personal experiences on your blog, such as pictures with your family or daughter? Why or why not?
>> I don’t include too many personal experiences on the blog, just the ones worth sharing. Like if I enjoyed an outing or a vacation or seen a movie that I really liked or hated I post about it. I refrain from posting a lot of details or pictures about my family. This holds true not only for my blog, but also social media. I barely post any personal pictures on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, because I am not comfortable doing so.
What is your ultimate goal in life?
>> I want to live my life to the fullest without any regrets.
Is there anything you want the readers to know about your blog we haven’t covered?
>>Not really. However, I would just like to mention that this is my first ever ‘interview’ by a blogger and I feel like a sort of celebrity. To the readers of this post – Do stop by my blog and say Hi, would love to hear from you!
Don’t just take my word for it, please visit her blog and let her know that you saw her here on “Sunday Showcase.”
As always, If you would like your blog to be featured on here, please do not hesitate to email me at craftyartistkc@gmail.com and I would love to feature you next sunday.
Showcase Sunday #1 – www.JennCoulbeck.com
For this first Showcase Sunday, I want to introduce Jenn Coulbeck. You can find her blog at www.Jenncoulbeck.com. The first thing I noticed about her blog is how unique her art is. I love how she organizes her blog into easy to search previews. Her art is something I admire. I feel like she has the touch to bring her drawings to life by adding color and faces to what may seem completely abstract.
I had an opportunity to ask her some questions about her blog in an email interview, shown below. Please enjoy and learn something from this amazing blogger and artist.
| What made you get into blogging?
I’ve had an on again, off again affair with blogging since around 2002. My first blog was called ‘The Tragedy of a Beautiful Night’ and was hosted on blogger. I’ve used several platforms including Livejournal, Deadjournal, My Trending Stories, Blogger and DeviantArt before finally settling down to WordPress, which is my favourite of the lot. I was originally inspired to blog by online friends after seeing their amazing blogs. Have you ever had any formal training or education in your blog subject? I do have a degree in Illustration from The University of Lincoln, but my work back then was nothing like what I am doing now, so… yes and no. I try to apply what I was taught during my degree to my work now, but they don’t relate all that much other than being art. What was your greatest failure and how did you learn from it? I once presented some work to a lecturer at university and was basically told, I can’t draw realism – their words – so I took my work in the direction it’s going now, working more of that abstract elements and different ways of mark making. Who has influenced you the most with your blog? It’s hard to say, actually. It’s a new blog in the grand scheme of things and it’s really just starting to take its own steps. Bloggers that inspire me are Leonie Dawson, while we’re not as ‘hippy-woo-woo’ as one another and nor am I selling anything, I admire her candid way of writing that reflects her personality. What is the best piece of advice you’ve received? I’ve never really been given any advice personally about blogs, but there are a plethora of people who will give it out freely if you go looking. There is one piece that has stuck in my mind recently, only because for a long time I was rather stubborn about implementing it! That’s stick to a single topic for your blog. For a long time I posted about anything and everything that popped into my head and was left scratching my noggin over why I wasn’t getting any followers. Since creating my dedicated art blog, I’ve not ran into this problem! How much time do you spend blogging in any given week? It really does vary depending on how much time my son sleeps a day! I tend to try to keep a decent schedule going on behind the scenes in case he decides to only sleep for 10 minutes. Is blogging your profession or just a hobby? Despite my background, it’s just a hobby. If I sell a print through my Society6 store or get someone subscribed to my Patreon account I’ll be over the moon, but it’s not what is driving me to create artwork and blog about it. What is your passion? I love easy walks with the dog (nothing too stressful like mountains) and I am an avid reader of books, but my real passion is art and creativity. I love seeing and reading about people’s art projects – especially if they bleed enthusiasm, which is why I love WordPress over other platforms, there’s this whole community of bloggers behind it to connect with. What is your ultimate goal in life? Happiness. What legacy would you like to leave behind? The biggest collection of marker pens and coloured pencils anyone has ever seen Is there anything you want the readers to know about your blog we haven’t covered? I am always looking for feedback on both my blog and the content of my posts. As well as new faces to network with. So don’t be shy, say hi! |
Don’t just take my word for it, please visit her blog and let her know that you saw her here on “Sunday Showcase.”
As always, If you would like your blog to be featured on here, please do not hesitate to email me at craftyartistkc@gmail.com and I would love to feature you next sunday.
I just want to send out a special Thank you to everyone who is following my blog. I got online today and noticed that I had reached 100! I know this may not be a big milestone for everyone, but this is HUGE for me and my blog that is less than a year old. This makes me so proud and it gives me a boost to continue what I am doing!
SO A HUGE THANK YOU!!!!
I know this guy that grew up in the same small town I did. He is a writer, and a good one at that. He started a website called the Holistic Story Teller. He responds quickly when you email him, and he really believes in his cause.
His website Holistic Story Teller is a wonderful place where you can get pointers on how to write better and he shares personal stories of triumph and woes as he goes through this journey. I’m a huge believer in supporting the little guys. The people that just want to help others. For this reason, I have no problem advertising on his behalf, even though he hasn’t asked me to.
He is starting his first 5 Day Challenge to help others become better writers. I’ve already learned so much from him. I wanted to shout out to my followers and fellow blogists the link so you can join his challenge as well. Its 5 days and its free.
Here is the link if you are interested.
So, here is what I would love to do for him. Please sign up for the challenge yourself. What do you have to lose? The best thing , besides all the amazing education you’ll gain, is that it is free. After you sign up for the challenge, leave a comment on this post to let me know you signed up.
I wanted to share this collaboration I did with Jeanne Burbage. She is an incredibly talented artist from Canada. She offered up this Valentines Day doodle for her fans on a Facebook group I belong to, Lines & Designs, to color. This is my coloring of her doodle, and although I rarely color my own doodles it was very fun coloring on hers. I used Staedtler Color Pencils found in the clearance section at Wal-mart of all places.
Please visit her website here and buy her coloring book. There is a wonderful flip through of her coloring book on YouTube, please check it out! She hopes to have a new book out in March. She also has a Facebook page here. Always remember to show your support for artists.
I have a dear friend who is in love with teal and blues. She is also an artist friend of mine and I knew that she would appreciate and one of a kind art piece for her home. I had so much fun drawing this and perfecting it. it was worth all the time and energy when I watched her reaction when she opened it.
I am so blessed to have people in my life that not only appreciate my artistic abilities but encourage them as well. This special lady is just one of those memtioned.
Here is a close up so you can see the detail and shimmer in the finished product.
I drew this for a dear friend of mine that has been through a lot, but always emerges on top. I am so blessed to call him my friend.
CraftyArtistKc 