On Tuesday, April 9th, I went out and (finally!) started putting the second layer of gravel on my labyrinth path. I had hoped to do that last year, but my health didn't cooperate. I started at the heart (metal sunflower in the centre) and after an hour, I almost made it all the way around the horseshoe that circles the heart - the darker patch on the right is where I got to. Unfortunately, that seemed too much effort for my body as I was quite sick after, so fingers crossed I can finish the task this year, and that I have enough gravel in my pile to cover the whole path!
- My Easter header went live on the Wondercafe2 site on March 9th. I have three more new headers that will be used this year, and I received my commission payment the end of March.
- I published two more comic strips in the paper and posted them online.
- My niece was here on March 27th and we had lots of fun. We made a dozen carrot patties. I had a recipe for carrot bacon so we tried that too (not worth a repeat). We also made a coconut pie. Then we got lunch from Mae's Kitchen as my niece said there was no "edible" food in my house! (Say what?!) We watched "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" with Johnny Depp on TV as I hadn't seen that version and wanted to. We sorted jackets and jewellery. And more items went to my sister - including more UFO's!
- I participated in, and completed, Kyle Gray's 11-day (Kundalini Yoga) Prosperity Challenge the end of March/beginning of April. As part of the challenge, we were given 2.5 weeks free access to his membership site, and it was fun exploring the different yoga kriyas and mantras - most I was familiar with from my yoga teacher training. I am doing the challenge kriya on my own, and instead of the prosperity manta I have been doing (almost 100%) daily since the fall of 2022, as this new one is a wee bit more fun.
Recently Completed:
Since the last newsletter, I've completed...
(top L-R) Watercolour play (on 9x12 mixed media paper), second BODY painting (watercolour pencils, acrylics, Inktense pencils, Posca paint pens on 9x12 mixed media paper) inspired by a process by Whitney Freya
(bottom L-R) FLOW painting (watercolour pencils, acrylics, Inktense pencils, Posca paint pens on 9x12 mixed media paper) inspired by a process by Whitney Freya, Watercolour play (on 9x12 mixed media paper, experimented with a dip pen)
- I completed my 28th cartoon comic booklet https://www.facebook.com/beth.richardson.10/videos/350846447946051
- on March 19th I pulled a recipe from the internet and attempted to make dumplings for the first time as an adult. I love dumplings, but mom made them very rarely. This recipe - though it was an easy dumpling recipe - was more like a biscuit than a dumpling, so hopefully I will be able to get to mom's recipes soon so I can use hers (left). On March 26th, I tried a recipe (again from online) for warm berries and dumplings - I used raspberries as that's what I had on hand - again the dumplings were more of a biscuit than a cloud, and I ended up overcooking the dish (middle). On March 31st, I made a batch of almond flour chocolate chip cookies (right)
Jigsaw Puzzles:
In case I haven't mentioned it yet, I love to do jigsaw puzzles - actual physical puzzles. Both of my parents were avid jigsaw puzzlers and passed their love onto my sister and I. Dad usually received a puzzle for Christmas and Christmas afternoon was spent starting it. Then, depending on the complexity of the puzzles, and the number we had on hand. we'd work on puzzles till spring. That said, some puzzles didn't last long as Dad would stay up all night if he was close to completing one!
In 2017, I decided to complete a 4,000 piece puzzle that had been given to Dad, and he unfortunately never did because we didn't have a table surface large enough - I did it on the living room floor!
After that, I decided that because I loved doing puzzles so much, there was no point just doing puzzles during the winter, and now I always have a puzzle on the go. So far this year, I've completed 4 puzzles (I think they were all 1,000 pieces except for the Santa).
UFO (UnFinished Object) Update:
- I made it halfway through that large white binder I shared last time, and need to find some other resources before I can continue with it as I think I have duplicates, but am not totally sure. I went through a large binder of recipes - seems I had duplicates and even triplicates of the same recipes (!) so it was easy to get rid of the surplus ones to the recycling, as well as recipes that I know I'll never make.
- decided to eliminate more UFOs and am using the (everyday type) supplies from them for other uses.
- I have been getting emails from a particular email list since 2010, and I saved every one as they would work for filler for the paper (I did get permission from the author to use them as such), but I think I've only used 4 or 5 of the hundreds (if not thousands!) of emails so I decided that I could delete them all as I will keep getting the emails (I do enjoy reading them) and I have ample items to use for filler if needed. That was a HUGE relief.
Courses and Challenges (free and paid):
- Este MacLeod's free Four Seasons art class - I wanted to do this online class as Este has a very neat way of layering her watercolours when she paints. Also, she uses a dip pen with her watercolours (not the first I've heard to do that) so you can see my explorations with that above. I will have to do more practicing to achieve anything remotely close to her effect.
- Minette Riordan Mythical Makeovers - I just started this free course which looks at the characters of the Wizard of Oz as archetypes in our lives. I've only watched the intro videos. Next step will be creating a journal before I go further in the course.
- Amanda Sophia's free mini Divine Woman Awakening course on the Celtic Wheel of the Year - this has been an incredible course and I'm learning a LOT! Right now, we're still in the energy of the Spring Equinox which is a time for......spring cleaning!
- Whitney Freya's free Life Artist Masterclass - this is a class I've had for years and finally decided to just do!...it explores different symbols and shapes as themes for our lives.
- Laura Rose's Honey Pot (embodiment) practices - erotic dance (I've come to the realization that I am more of a playfully sexy gal than a seductive sexy gal), breath work, self-massage techniques, and sex magic manifesting.
- I'm practicing my drum playing daily, and haven't moved onto the next lesson yet.
- Recipes, Remedies, and Rituals Ayurveda course practices: eating only my personal portion size during each meal and doing abdominal rubbing throughout the day to help with digestion/elimination and overall relaxation of the body.
Works in progress:
Currently, I'm working on...
- a 9x12 page of watercolour play
- inspired by Whitney Freya classes, I'm working on another word painting
- an 8x10 acrylic painting (definitely a UFO)
- a 16x20 acrylic painting - I'm almost ready to move forward on this.
- In Inner Circle, we were challenged to pick a (daily) practice that would stretch ourselves on various levels. After Amber led us through a guided meditation, what popped into my mind for a practice was seated forward bends! Not sure why or where that came from, but I'm going with it. Despite doing yoga for years, and graduating last year from my yoga teacher training, seated forward bends have not been a pose that I could do, so this will be a stretch (pun intended).
Middle (L-R): Mar. 11, Mar. 18, Mar. 25
Bottom (L-R): Apr. 1, Apr. 8
Featured Items for Sale:
Books:
"The View from My Window" by (Peeping) Thomasina (2020) $10
"Exploring My Artist Voice: a journey without a map" (2022) $15
Planners and Journals:
"Creative Daily Planner: for the unconventional, non-conformists, creatives, rebels, and other out of the box personalities" (2022) $30 or from Amazon https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0BMJM1SD3
"Magical Moments in my Day Journal: for the extra special moments all around me" 6x9 lined journal (2022/2023) $15 or from Amazon https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CJLKZ3KB
Music Albums:
"Just Show Up" (fall 2022) https://linktr.ee/beth.richardson CDs $15
Please contact me at thechautauqua@gmail.com or phone 403-352-3837 to make an addition to your collection.
Upcoming Projects:
- I offer Pay-What-You-Can Distance Reiki/Energy Healing sessions. Energy healing works great from any distance and I've sent Reiki healing as far away as Queensland, Australia. Please, contact me to set up your healing session.
"I have been suffering with Long COVID for over a year and have tried every healing modality in the book to get my energy back. Beth has been gifting me with healing Reiki energy for quite some time now and I have, for the first time in over a year, started to feel like myself again. Much of my weakness has dissipated, and the dark cloud that I have been stewing under has lifted. Thank you Beth. ♥️" - Carla, Esthetician, Nova Scotia
Thanks for reading, and as always, feel free to share with anyone you think might enjoy it.
Beth
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Thank you so much for your support, and again, if you would like to receive this newsletter directly via email please email: thechautauqua@gmail.com and ask to be added to the mailing list. Thank you!
Back issues of this newsletter can be found here: https://thechautauquanewspaper.blogspot.com/ under the category "Artist Newsletter"
If you would like to support my artistic journey, please consider purchasing my artwork, items available in person at 4910-47 St, Mirror, AB
or by making a donation via
Mail a cheque or money order (made out to Beth Richardson – Chautauqua) to Box 261 Mirror, AB T0B 3C0
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Your support and kindness are always greatly appreciated, and I look forward to continuing to bring joy and inspiration! Thank you so much and have a marvellous day!
