Posted 4/18/2007

April 2007

Dear Friends,

The blooms of spring marking this transition of seasons reminds me that I’ve changed along with the life around me. Conscious change is part of the artistic life. I love to create new recipes, like my Citrus Salad Dressing, paint colorful paintings and organize my home.

I know that organizing may not sound like a lot of fun, but it can be very freeing. And what frees me today gives me more opportunities tomorrow!  Because creativity and messiness go well together, cleaning and de-cluttering don’t come naturally to me. Nonetheless, eventually my mess will irritate me eough that I take some time out to organize. I trick myself into beginning by turning it into a creative challege.

I challege myself to include at least 5-10 minutes (or more) every half hour as creative “staging” time. Here are a few tips.
    1. Start with a bookshelf or drawer.
    2. Remove everything.
3. Now, pretend you’re getting ready for a magazine photo shoot. Whe you put things back return only what you need & like. Make it look like an arrangement you’d see in a magazine. Not only will the area look and function better, being organized keeps you aware of the resources you already own.

Whether you are making a meal, arranging flowers or making art, being aware of what you have to work with encourages your creativity.

encouraging positive creativity improves life for you and those around you. From the grass roots to the corporate, signs of a culture of conscious creativity is emerging. At the grass roots level, Maria Sanchez has created a website that offers wome of Hispanic heritage a place to share their work at her site, ArtByLatinaArtists.com. I’m honored to be included in her site sharing tips about color and art. On a corporate level, Josette Buisson and her team has put together the color program, Voice of Color for Pittsburgh Paints. I’m proud to be included as a Featured Designer on their site and have the opportunity to share my color consulting interior design tips and ideas.

Live Happy!

Cristina

P.S. Take a few pictures of your creative projects and send them to me, I’d love to see what you’re making.