Art will give you a way to talk about it without the need to find words (or perhaps your art is words) and creating a safe space for venting all those emotions will give your art a depth you probably didn’t have in mind when you started your art routine.
1. Making an art routine will boost your confidence in your skills and artistic voice.
If you ever felt ashamed of showing your work to someone else, or felt you weren’t as good as other artists and that was a solid reason to leave your hobby behind, remember that squeezing time for developing your voice will cast away all those feelings!
Image by @its_artsy_ella
Once you get so involved in creating you’ll suddenly find yourself not comparing or saying negative comments about your own creations – and instead fostering community, learning, experimenting.
Take a look at the Life of Colour blog to find ideas to start where you're at, whether you're a beginner or an advanced artist looking for new challenges!
2. You’ll have the time to explore, learn and improve a lot faster
When you look through your work from a month ago or a year ago, you’ll notice the difference. Making something weird for you, take the road less traveled won’t be a major decision because you’ll be back tomorrow with a fresh idea.
Rock art by Stacey Montford
Use that color, add that texture, find a new topic. Every single exploration will be a fun story to share! Rock painting and meditative art have become a place where most artists feel welcome and they get to explore freely!
3. Expressing your feelings and emotions through any hobby is healthy for you
Having the opportunity to make something beautiful out of any crisis will help you navigate it, rock painting has become a kind helper for many Australians during the times of hardship endured in the past year. But any form of art and creative expression will be a great asset for your mental healtht!
Art will give you a way to talk about it without the need to find words (or perhaps your art is words) and creating a safe space for venting all those emotions will give your art a depth you probably didn’t have in mind when you started your art routine.
4. Thinking about art while you do other tasks
Even when you don’t feel like doing anything artistic for the world to see, your hands will lead you back to your table and you’ll find yourself doing the thing you love: coloring, sculpting, painting, lettering, journaling…
Walking the dog or cooking you’ll find yourself thinking of a new idea and running to a piece of paper to scribble it down or make it in that very same moment.
Take the Fairy Gardens for example, gardening has been a proven stress relief for a number of years. You start taking care of your plants, having your outdoors space in nature... and you'll soon find yourself thinking about how cute your pot would look with a tiny decorative fairy door or gnome keeper!
One thing leads to another and it always circles back to BEING CREATIVE!
5. Your art space calls you and draws you in
Over a period of time you won’t even need to remind yourself of making time because you will be naturally drawn to your art space (no matter how big or small, or the kind of supplies you have).
It’s so comforting to know your art supplies are waiting for you. Everything is laid out and in your reach, you just need to be present.
6. Taking part of amazing challenges can be the starting point of your routine
Comething like a #30daychallenge or the 100 day project can help you set achievable goals and focus on doing instead of thinking!
If you feel like you have no idea where to begin, choose a small topic that guides you (drawing florals, embroidering words, lettering songs or writing lists), anything works!
Here are some fabulous examples and they all come with a nifty tutorial so you can go ahead and get started today:
7. Practice makes progress!
Some of the most common reasons for quitting an artistic hobby is that you feel discouraged because the image in your head is so vivid, and the reality you create is so… different…
The key is to include a daily time to just practice, without the pressure of crafting something amazing every single day, and instead with the goal to improve slow and steady. Be mindful that it won't look as good as you pictured in your mind when you first start, but if you stay in course, after a period of time you'll start noticing the wonderful effects of practice!
For example, take a few minutes to just "be artsy". It sounds vague, but just grab a supply you're not intimidated by and combine two colours. Easy, right? No pressure... just do it! Paint pens have been that tool for a lot of people who were intimidated by finding all the supplies to get started.
You don't even have to start with the next step on the very same day, you are free to explore in your own pace. When you're ready, use two colours to create an object:
When you feel confident enough, you can start bringing in more details - slowly - this is a long-haul process!!
8. Even 5 minutes a day is better than nothing
If you only paint, knit, letter or journal every once in a while it will come a time when you feel like it’s not a pleasurable hobby anymore (even worse if you do anything artistic for a living).
When you sit and try to create after weeks of not being active, it will feel like you're running up the hill... that's why a small chunk of your day being dedicated to keeping your art hobby alive means you'll keep it for life!
9. Get started!
There are no shortcuts and starting very small (and achievable) will be your strongest ally.
5 minutes, half an hour, an hour… whatever you choose to begin with is enough to get started and acquainted – and you probably won’t notice when 3 hours have gone by and you’re still having so much fun!
First, set a goal to sketch or trace a printable lineart you've acquired from an artist you love (you can get a few from us here: and here:).
Don't feel pressured to start colouring in now... but if you do feel the magical urge to grab your watercolour brush pens and start filling in the sketch, that's something you have to take advantage of!
Find this balloon tutorial here
10. Art has a huge role in healing and improving your quality of life
Finally, in these times where mental health is taking such an important place in the public conversation is the moment to acknowledge the huge role art has in healing and improving your quality of life.
So many artists share how turning to art was a pivot point in their lives. Expressing yourself is a very rewarding experience that will not only guide you to a more relaxed you, but will also give you a healthy way to course through the hardest times.
We have a fantastic Facebook Group with over 1000 members. A warm and friendly community that will make you want to show your work in progress pics or what your kids made using your supplies! Is not limited to just Life of Colour made crafts, you can share anything you create - the community is a safe space!
Rock art by Kala Chand of Newcastle Positive Pebbles
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