Wednesday, February 22

GIRL CRUSH ~ seattle... having no doubts about it

for most of my life Mr Doubter has lived in the shadows. sometimes he casts his shadow in my direction and other times he leaves me be. the days he leaves me and my creativity alone, those are the days my creative soul gets to shine, the sky is the limit, it is just me, my imagination and my hands to make what we will. 
and the days he looks my way with his shadowy presence, well those are the days i tell myself, i am not alone, i tell myself all creative artistic souls have their own Mr Doubter and the shadow he brings. i have never asked if this is the case, for it is my comfort inside of my head, that on those doubting days, i am not alone and i do not wish to learn otherwise.





and so that is why today i am really rather happy to be introducing my friend Danielle to you. Danielle is the brilliantly creative brains behind The Jealous Curator, an extra ordinary presence in cyber land. just her tagline of  'damn, i wish i thought of that' really says it all. she curates and highlights creative souls from all over the world and she does it brilliantly as The Jealous Curator. however very few folks knew until recent times, Danielle is also an artist of mixed media collage work and like so many, it was not an easy thing to put her work out into the public eye. through talking with other artists and creatives, it became apparent she was not alone. with all the incredible works we see daily, it is indeed very easy for us to let our Mr Doubter slip from the shadows, take position upon our shoulders and question our creative worth.

Danielle's cogs turned and with it a wonderful idea was born. why not talk about this, but not in cyber land, but together in reality, in a creative environment, where we can discuss how we get past staring at a blank canvas, how we can believe what we create is worth something, where we can find confidence within a group of others and in time Mr Doubter can for once and for all slink back to his shadowy corner





GIRL CRUSH workshops & tea parties are in my books, the bees knees!


and i am more than a little chuffed to be collaborating with Danielle and the peachy Andie & Emily from Assemble Shop in Seattle to offer a day of talking, creating & eating fine food. at the end of which, we will have 'assembled' a collaborative, mixed media piece of artwork which will be displayed on the gallery wall for others to see!
you can see all the nitty gritty details here and also the list of fine and dandy artists Danielle has lined up throughout the USA. 



i know for me, this will be a defining moment, i have no doubt on this. it will be good to share with others the 'whys and wherefores' of my Mr Doubter and how i have come to terms with him in my life and how indeed perhaps his very shadowy existence is the very reason why i do what i do. for i love to create. apart from my family, friends and critters, it is the very thing that makes me want to get up out of bed everyday and live. there are no words i can find to describe how much it makes my world happy and therefore i cannot allow that shadow to take 'the fragile happiness' away from me. and so you see, in a way, his very presence makes me even more determined to continue listening to my creative soul, not be riddled by self doubt and to allow myself and my creative soul time to shine


Tif 


30 comments:

Melanie said...

Tif, I love this. I'm so excited that you're going to be hosting the workshop! It's going to be so great to be able to talk about our Mr. Doubters and support each other. xo

Unknown said...

Hello Tiff...you are so not alone, Mr doubter visits me often, and like with you, he comes and goes, and the best of times are when he is busy else where. I wish you every bit of luck in the world, for your new venture, it sounds wonderful :-) x
Sophie x

Helen@mypetittrianon said...

Mr Doubter, meet Harold. Harold, meet Mr Doubter! Fabulous post Tif. I'm sure there are so many who can relate to those moments of self-doubt - who pounce when you least expect it. Naughty little blighers! Love your words, love your work and love love love your empathy and support of others. Going to treat myself and by your book.
Have a great day
Hx

Wendy said...

Lovely Tif,
You can never know how much this post meant to me, for Mr. Doubter has very nearly made a home in my heart this past month, and I have felt my strength and spirit giving in to his taunts!

Thank you for reminding me that I'm not alone, and that my love for creating is stronger than any shadow lurking in the wings.

Warmest blessings...

naughty shorts! said...

I am so glad that you did share your creative self with us tif. You are an endless inspiration and I think you alraedy give creative peeps courage in seeing how well you are received in this world. I wish I could make it to the course. What a lovely idea. One day I hope you will run a dottie angel weekend in Australia?? Bec x

dottie angel said...

it is good to know one is not alone with Mr Doubter, thank you for sharing and for your lovely words about GIRL CRUSH workshops! as for visiting Australia, do you know, i have high hopes to make it to the shores of your exotic country, one day Bec... it would be a trip of a crafty lifetime that i know :)

the jealous curator said...

i love this post so much. so, so, so, so much! it is exactly why i started the 'girl crush' workshops in the first place.
thank you so much sweet tif - can't wait to see you at assemble in may! xo

Gozi and Pop said...

Hi Tiff

I love reading your blog and love your work. It's so great to know we are not suffering 'Mr Doubters' alone. I love the feeling when 'Mr Doubter' is not around and I can feel the creative juices flowing. And I agree with Bec, you must come down under to Australia-it's beautiful here and we would love to meet you. Sharon xox

Julie said...

A lovely post Tif and I think we all have a bit of an experience with nasty old Mr Doubter we can share!! And when you do make that creative trip to Australia one day, be sure and pop across the Tasman to New Zealand for some creative sharing also as I could easily soon gather up a bunch of likeminded souls for a Dottie Angel Workshop !!! We would make you MOST welcome :-) kind regards Julie :-)

Bree said...

Too bad you're too far away for me to be joining your workshop, as Mr Doubter seems a well-traveled fellow and visits Europe quite often as well. ;-) However, after your posting, I turned on the light at my little working desk and thought - hey, forget about the shadows where Mr Doubter can hide! At least for today... :-) lealu

caro said...

This is a FANtastic post! LOVED seeing your artwork - it's so gentle yet so powerful. Now Where did I leave my long lost friend, Bernina???

silvia said...

The composition is well balanced, the techniques are very nice, the colors used ... I love this job!
Silvia

Bamboo Bear said...

Thank you so much for this post. I have recently moved to New Zealand from the UK and left all my craft wares and crafty companions behind. I have yet to find my feet here and, without my creations, I feel a bit lost and unsure of myself. Hopefully Mr Doubter won't stick around too much longer!

Anonymous said...

Ah yes, Mr Doubter, I know him well. He often comes to visit with his friend Mr Downer. The two of them make it quite impossible to make anything at times.
I discovered The Jealous Curator following one of your links to your brother's feature (love his work too!). What a great site and what a find I thought!
How I wish I could come along with you all. A super idea :)

Planet Fur said...

Yes, Mr. Doubter visits my heart quite regularly lately, now I'm on my own, trying to start a creative business. It's sometimes difficult to not feel overwhelmed by all the beautiful work all around the internet! I wish Seattle was around the corner, it would be so wonderful to share doubts, insecurities ánd inspiration with other wonderful artists. Maybe we should start something like this in The Netherlands too, that would be really awesome! Thank you for reminding me I'm not alone in this, dear Tif!

Daisy said...

Mr Doubter has his own room in my house. I would much rather let my room out to Miss Creative or Mrs High Hopes but he will not leave. The workshop idea is a fabulous one and I wish I lived nearer so I could join in. Your work is wonderful Tif. You can show him the door with a good old flea in his ear!
Hugs
Daisy xxx

dottie angel said...

i do believe it really helps others to know we all have our own Mr Doubter... i think wrestling with inner doubts is part of being a creative folk, it is what makes us part of who we are and why we embrace the highs with so much passion and energy, cause we know how hard the lows can be. thank you so kindly for sharing with me your comments today :)

Vintage Sheet Addict said...

Tiff, just let your imagination run wild! Great stuff, :)

Peony and Thistle said...

If only I could come to Seattle.... I was so reassured to read this post! I had just been admiring all your fabulously creative work and Mr Doubter was right there on my shoulder saying 'You'll never create anything as amazingly individual and wonderful as this'.
And then I read this post saying that you too have your Mr Doubter... I wish you didn't but, at the same time, it reassures me that even someone as obviously gifted and talented as you has doubts. I guess it must just be a part of the creative process! So thank you for sharing this. I wish you and everyone else many, many, many happy days free of Mr Doubter!

Unknown said...

wow miss dottie i was surprised to read about you having mr doubter. i have suffered from my own big huge mr doubter my entire artistic life.

he is big. he is not so friendly and can definitely bring a girl down.

i find great peace and escape into another land when creating design, artwork, fun silly anything really.

i so wish i could be at this event.

i seriously would benefit greatly and i think mr big scary doubter dude would shrink.

thanks for sharing this with all of us.

merci'

Kaatje Catootje said...

Oh Tif, this is just so very very beautiful. It makes me smile, again and again. Thank you for sharing your work with us.
Love,
Karen

Hopelessly Romantic Art Studio said...

Been doing a little crushing of my own. Please stop by and see what has me all twitterpated. Love your collaberation, and tea is always a good idea!
Hugs, Gerri

tifanie said...

this is sooo amazing and inspiring! i wish oh wish i could be there to create with you. what a wonderful time you will have!! thank you for being such a light in this world :)
:::

wood & wool stool said...

love the post and everything about the girl crush project :) cool!

Barbara Neubeck said...

Hi Tiff,
Beautiful post....I love the pieces you have posted here. So delicate and feminine.
The workshop sounds a really good place to share.
God Bless
Barb from Australia

Anonymous said...

I really like your blog:) great pics and so much inspiration..I wish you a lovely weekend.
LOVE Maria at inredningsvis.se
(Sweden)

Marina said...

Lovely pics as always. Wish so much I could come.

xanthe said...

Dearest Tif, I haven't been here in too long really, shameful silly me... and when I do pop by, here you are talking about Mr doubter, who has been visiting too frequently to me (I will try and shoo him away) and this fabulous workshop you're involved in... well done missus, it will be delightful, just like you :) All the best xxxxx

Lucy Muraca said...

My goodness girl. I am always amazed and delightfully stunned at the art that comes out of your fingers!

dottie angel said...

hurrah for banishing Mr Doubter together... i think just knowing others have such moments of doubting really truly helps to know, it will be okay.
thank you kindly for taking the time to share with me :)