Artful Living

A is for Artful Living

I start teaching preschool soon at a school that practices the Reggio Emilio philosophy, and I can hardly wait. This mode of teaching began in Northern Italy in a town called Reggio Emilio. Rather than teaching so much, we are adult facilitators of a child-lead program. I ‘m eager to delve in because I’m certain children have much to teach and at whatever age, there is much to learn.

Mother's Day Bouquet c. 2015, Stephanie Rose Bird

One of the hallmarks of Reggio Emilio is that the children’s environment needs to be beautiful. A beautiful environment is my suggestion today for cracking creative blocks. 

Here are some suggestions:

1.       Put Himalayan salt in the corners of your room. Himalayan salt is especially purifying and will draw bad energy from your space.

2.       Put white vinegar in a bowl in the center of your space to draw away bad odors.

3.       Clean your work space (office, studio or as in my case, both) using essential oils such as tea tree oil, lemon eucalyptus, tangerine or lemongrass oil. Add 3 - 4 drops to a cotton rag or a 7 - 8 drops to a small bucket of water. Use a natural sponge or mop to clean your floors.

4.  Organize your space; recycle unnecessary items and dispose of what you can’t..

5.  Hang inspirational images on your wall (your photography, clipped images from magazines, pretty postcards, posters, paintings or tiles perhaps purchased at a yard or rummage sale).

6.  Decorate, while elevating the spirit of the space using natural objects such as blooming plants, flowers, leaves, felled branches, seashells, driftwood, tall grasses in a vase, sun-dried bones (think of Georgia O’Keefe’s lovely paintings of bones and flowers) etc.,

When it comes to beautifying your creative space, let your imagination run wild! Having a clean, well-organized, sensually brightened, and accentuated space as a foundation is bound to make you feel more like creating.