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 Living with young Kai has done wonders for my ability to appreciate the "little things". I admit that sometimes I suffer a certain kind of parenting guilt, especially common for working parents, where I feel like I need to provide him with amazing experiences on the weekends. Since he's in nursery school during the week, it's easy for me to fall into a trap of overcompensating on the weekend, as I try to plan fancy outings or create really elaborate adventures for us.
And yet, that old cliché about how babies and toddlers would rather play with the empty box than the toy that filled it is still very true for Kai. He finds so much joy in the "little things", and I'm constantly reminded that I don't have to do anything grand or epic to satisfy him. He is so grounded in the moment that he can find beauty in anything.
Observing this in him reminds me that I can also gift myself with the "little things", too. Taking good care of myself doesn't necessarily mean anything elaborate, expensive, or time-consuming. There are so many delicious little ways to bring joy, relaxation, balance and wellness. Similarly, serving others also isn't confined to big sweeping gestures. Often "the little things" mean the very most, when it comes to making a difference, and this is so very helpful to remember as we enter the holiday season.
The lens of simplicity can act as a magical magnifying glass: "the little things" become larger and larger as we allow their presence to swell in our hearts. This weekend, I took Kai out into the early holiday rush, thinking it would be a fun adventure. When we saw the size of the crowd, we actually found ourselves leaving the crammed store and opted instead to spend a long time looking at the flowers planted in front of the entryway: studying the shapes of their petals, describing their colors in funny made-up words, and imagining stories of the tiny fairies who might live inside. Those simple flowers were a little thing, but this "little thing" was so very, very big.
If you'd like to take an adventure through renewed appreciation of "the little things", there's one more day for our ARTpreciation Bonus Bundle celebrating our two new creative gratitude e-courses. You can keep reading to get all the details below.
The world of a flower is immense, if we allow ourselves to enter it. Happy blooming!
For those short on time, to simplify this week's Artellagram, here are some ”quick links” to the highlights in this edition. You can simply follow the links that you're interested in and go directly to that section.
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1. NEW! Free Teleclass for Creative Entrepreneurs – If your creative business or venture had a holiday wish list, what would it most want? If at the top of the list is a new, creative, heartfelt approach to marketing and promotion, then I invite you to a new free teleclass I'm presenting next week, on December 6, called "Magical Marketing ManiFestival: Heart-Centered Actions for Client/Customer Attraction". This class is a celebration of passionate, practical tools for creative and fun marketing and manifesting from the heart….a great way to prepare for attracting new clients and customers in the new year!
This new free class takes place next Tuesday, December 6, and is part of Artella's Business Bohemia ~ a fantastical world where work feels like play. Come see what all the excitement is about the free "Magical Marketing ManiFestival" class next week, and if you are not able to attend live, you can also sign up to receive a recording as well. You can get more information and sign up for Magical Marketing ManiFestival, here!
 2. One More Day for the Thanksgiving Bundle of Artella's New Courses! Our two sparklingly new mixed media e-courses are already changing lives through the magic of art! There's still one more day to get them both, plus a bunch of freebies including a free snail mail surprise, in Artella's Thanksgiving Bonus Bundle!
Through tomorrow, November 30, your Thanksgiving Bonus Bundle includes:
- Artella’s ARTpreciation Postage: A Mixed Media Art Workshop for Cultivating Gratitude for "The Little Things", which is our newest mixed media e-course, following in Artella's long tradition of innovative artsy gratitude programs. It guides you through a meaningful life-altering experience as you create artsy postage stamps, or ‘faux poste’, as a miniature art journal of your personal gratitude. Working in a very small art space is so invigorating, and it also provides a wonderful metaphor for reflecting on the "little things". Tara Douglas-Smith said, "This is a great course…maybe Marney's best one yet! And I just love all the brilliant ideas of things to do with my stamps after I've created them!
 - Artsy EnvelHopes 2012: Joyful Art Projects to Change Your Life, which has long been one of our most popular e-courses, and now we've redesigned it with a new version for 2012! Karen Karsten said, "I was curious about what the heck Artsy EnvelHopes was, because I love envelopes. But it isn’t really about envelopes, it’s about questions and answers -- pulling something from inside yourself and writing it down. All those words go in a beautiful/interesting envelope that you create from the templates. It makes a beautiful letter from yourself to yourself, with surprising messages.”
For one more day, when you buy either of these courses, you can get the other for just $19! Plus, when you buy both, you also get your free ARTpreciation Bonus Bundle, including:
- Two amazing Studio Collage Kits: "Postal Passion" and "Tickets, Tags, and Tidbits". ($20 value)
- Your own, personalized Petite Post: a delightful envelope overflowing with authentic postage stamps and other miniature bits of actual vintage ephemera, sent to you via postal mail, so you'll have it in your own hands, personalized with a delightful message just for you.
You can take both courses at the same time for extra inspiration (you can use your ARTpreciation Postage directly on your EnvelHopes), or take one 30-day course now and then begin the next whenever you like…You can even keep one course for yourself, and give another to a friend.
It's totally flexible, customizable, and up to you!
There’s only 1 day left to get your ARTpreciation Bonus Bundle -- Click here to find out more
 3. Join in Tomorrow Night's "Mastering the My-Name-Is-Mystery!" The inaugural teleclass series for Artella's Business Bohemia continues tomorrow night, and if you wanted to participate but thought you missed out, there's still time to join in! When you sign up for Mastering the My-Name-Is Mystery: Interactive Acrobatics for Inspiring Introductions, you'll instantly get the recording and guidebook from last week, and you'll be ready to pop right into the acrobatics! You can opt either to attend tomorrow night's class live if you're available, or you can listen to the recordings anytime you like.
This dynamic, power-packed series is all about articulating your vision in way that is captivating and intriguing for other people, and makes you feel absolutely awesome about yourself and your work at the same time. Here are a few of the comments we've heard after last week's class:
I have to say I find your exercises and creativity to be brilliant. I have loved the questions and the examples and somehow, magic occurs. I love the process and the way I am accessing myself.
- Liz Gow
Loved the class last night! That I somehow been so blessed to be drawn to find you and all that you have contributed to my life - I am totally overwhelmed and grateful.
- Mikell Worley
Join us for tomorrow's "Mastering the My-Name-Is Mystery" here!
 4. NEW! For those interested in the next ACT session! If you're thinking about applying for the next session of the ARTbundance Certification Training Program, please fill out this quick form to let us know your timing preferences, which will help us as we create Artella Land's 2012 schedule. In return, you not only help determine the dates that are right for you, you also get a free passion-packed booklet, "Pizazz Your Purpose: An Introduction to the ARTbundance Principles", as a li’l thank you.
 5. This month's ARTbundance™ Community Events for December! We've recently posted several new free teleclasses that are part of the ARTbundance™ Community Events Series in December, all presented by our talented ARTbundance™ Practitioners in training. In addition to the attending these events for free, you also get a wonderful pack of ARTbundant goodies to enjoy! See the descriptions of the new events and sign up here!
 6. Join the ARTfiliate Program! Join Artella's generous ARTfiliate Program and Enjoy all the new affiliate tools that we've recently added! You can get more info by clicking here.
 7. Interested in Becoming Part of Artella's Team? We are expanding our team for all the exciting things we're working on this year, so if you're interested in becoming part of the Artella Team, check out this page for details.
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For today's "In the Studio" Interview, I'm delighted to present a fascinating woman named Ginger Poole, with whom I've been working closely in my and SARK's "Intuit, Dare, and DO It!" program. Her new venture, CreativeSupportGroups.com, is an inspiring hub of new online communities that serve caregivers in very unique ways. I am deeply inspired by Ginger's work and I knew her interview would be a wonderful inspiration for us all as we launch into the holidays.
Artella: Tell us about your new venture that serves caregivers through creativity.
Ginger: CreativeSupportGroups.com is a group of small and intimate online communities that bring together people who want to express their common journey through poetry, art or photography. For example, currently three communities for 12 caregivers at any stage of the caregiving journey are starting December 5 and will run for 12 weeks. Caregivers will be inspired by weekly prompts and will create on their own time and schedule. When they are ready they will log in to a passcode protected site to post their art and discuss and support one another.
Artella: How has working with Marney made a difference to you?
Ginger: Marney has a unique blend of intuition, practicality and inspiration that is refreshing and immensely helpful. She has given me steps to take to move forward and inspired me to make my dreams come true. She walks her talk and lives what she teaches. She is a living example.
You can read the rest of Ginger's interview, here
 I'm now accepting applications for an intimate business-building group called Mapping and Mentoring with Marney whose focus is 21st Century Goal Achieving & Time Metamorphosis for Creative Professionals. If you already have a good sense of direction of where you are headed, but could use a gentle guiding hand to guide you, this innovative program provides the structure and support to help you reach your goals quicker, more efficiently, and with greater results than doing it on your own. Applications are being accepted through December 9, and you can get all the details about "Mapping and Mentoring with Marney", here.
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What are the small gifts -- the ones that don't cost any money or deplete time and energy -- that make a difference in your life?
Things like:
* The ability to laugh
* Observing a flower
* The calming feeling of a shower
* A juicy bite into a piece fruit
A very powerful way to acknowledge the "little things" is to create art in a little space.
Try creating a miniature piece of art, the size of a postage stamp, to illustrate the small gifts in your life that mean so much.
After you design your stamp, turn it into a small magnet by gluing it any magnetic surface (old promotional magnets you no longer want are a great option for recycling). Keep your magnet on your fridge, filing cabinet, or other magnetic surface to remind you of your blessings. This is a great way to "magnetize" even more wonderful little things" to come your way!
My own stamp illustration shown here consists of a tiny rose and tape measure. It is a reminder that it is actually the "little things" measure biggest of all, when it comes to gratitude.
Let yourself enter the rapture of simplicity through this miniature design.
This project is excerpted from Artella’s ARTpreciation Postage. Get details about ARTpreciation Postage and the Special Thanksgiving Bundle here. |
This Quotz Crystal is a high-resolution jpeg image, suitable for printing. I invite you to print it out as a fun reminder to appreciate "the little things".
~admiring's "stamp" on life,
 Marney
Artella Founder, Mango Lover, Hula Dancer
Artella Land ~ the creative isles of words, art, and spirit
Artella 9090 Skillman #182A-116 Dallas TX 75243 |
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