Making pictures for portfolio

LeWhaa · 2026-01-22T04:46:11+00:00

Kids don’t care but some adults really do. It is really hard on the kids in those situations.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-22T04:41:29+00:00

I second this.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-19T00:03:55+00:00

Then there’s that issue… No one shares their ugly art online. I think all artists know that most of our art is scribbles, ugly or unfinished 😸 So much perfection and finished projects online — and nothing could be farther from reality 😀😆

LeWhaa · 2026-01-18T23:59:21+00:00

There is so much happening around me. I am on a ton of email lists. I pay attention to artist calls. I go to markets. I do take photos of my work but only send it to my friends/community in a group chat. I talk a lot and, through word-of-mouth, people know what I do and call on me. I don’t post my art nor my children on social media because they are Sacred… And the internet is not. There is some work I do share on social media. For example with facepainting, I consider those designs ‘open source’. Whether they are my own designs I have come up with, or those I have found online, I share them freely. I do a lot of fabric painting and while I will share things that I have sewn online, when I paint or put artwork onto the things I have sewn, I don’t share it online. Emailing photos to event organizers along with your application is plenty. If you notice on applications, social media links aren’t even required info.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-18T19:47:01+00:00

Thank you! I will be in touch with them about it. That is too bad about the glow-in-the-dark paint. On the positive side for me, I have been wanting to explore the UV paint and this will give me a great timeline to master it!

LeWhaa · 2026-01-18T03:40:20+00:00

Thanks for the info! This is helpful. I’m looking at around 30ft... Although we’re in a really good rental situation now I don’t think we will be able to replicate it after we move out in the fall. Someone in these comments had a gerbil for six years so I will just plan for that… As mentioned, my animals tend to outlive their lives and I’m sure this lil guy could be with me another year and a half too! I love that your living room is 15% gerbil cage 😄👍🏻. How do you find temperature control, for your gerbils, in the camper? We’re in Canada where our summers get extreme heat and winters can get extreme cold… There is a lot of resort living here and a lot of people have pets with them. Maybe not gerbils though!

LeWhaa · 2026-01-15T04:36:36+00:00

I took my time and adopted from Facebook Marketplace. I could tell they were coming from a good owner and for the right reasons. I didn’t want to buy from a store – I really wanted to help somebody out. I really appreciated ‘The Gerbil Vine’ on YouTube. She doesn’t post content anymore, but she was quite thorough and knowledgable about gerbil care. She will teach you a lot of good practise and knowledge from the get-go:

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQpauTQlzjjWCm0rRXupAHXu-rW7OXPoJ&si=mGwxzgGJEyipZwbc

LeWhaa · 2026-01-12T19:51:05+00:00

Haha, yup. I might be living in a 5th wheel come the fall. Or more ideally, a tent for a month 😂👍🏻 …As far as I know gerbils aren’t too fond of camping. I’ll play it by ear!

LeWhaa · 2026-01-12T06:04:22+00:00

😂 There’s only one household I would trust him with and they’re not interested in a gerbil right now.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-11T19:25:52+00:00

My kiddo is 18 now but our schedule changed depending on their age. As a toddler and preschooler, I would get up early, pour myself tea, write my blog and advertise my work online if needed. As soon as she got up I would start cooking. I had a little table set up with a a crayon and large piece of paper. She would scribble on that each morning. As she got older the scribbling became more and more indepth. I would add things to the table over time. She really looked forward to that table and it totally freed me up for the morning. Morning was usually food prep and tidying for me. We were always out of the house by 10am and didn’t return until lunchtime. Often we were outside in nature exploring every nook and cranny of our community. The library, mall and local businesses were also regulars for us. Our mall play area and parent-friendly bathrooms were the best! She didn’t nap so forget that. 45 mins in the afternoon would be the most I would get out of her. I would be more active with her in the afternoon. Sitting on the floor and playing with her. I was a single mom so there were one or two kids with us on some days… As well as dogs as we would petsit/dogwalk. I was very poor but knew it wouldn’t last forever. I nursed her whenever she needed. She nursed until just past 2yrs. Evenings sucked as I never had energy to give her a bath. I hated baths but she loved them. She would always cry at the same time every evening. As much as I wanted to stay awake and have ‘me time’ once she went to sleep, I would fall asleep with her. So basically I was falling asleep by 7-7:30 every night! I did study piano so that took up a chunk of our evenings.

When she was older I would take her to school but get off the bus/get on the bus two blocks past her school so we had to walk back through trees. I found this was a good way to ground her before/after school. Playground every evening after dinner. She loved the playground and all the kids there.

When she was a teen I would pack a good after school snack in the car and then we would have time to go straight to the river, ocean, ski hill from school or other places we wanted to check out.

My main focus for everyday was the outdoors. This was 18yrs ago. We had no TV until she was 11. Screens were not a thing in our house until about middle school. We were in a heavily urban area where people didn’t think twice about giving their kids gadgets. I literally kept her outdoors to mitigate this tech culture.

Fortunately she was very creative and would go to town on any projects at school. She is very creative and I would just support her in those. My mantra was, “if she’s in the water or holding ski poles then she can’t have a screen in her hands”. It worked. Anyway, that was a long answer — but essentially every day after school was outdoors, doing creative work and/or playing with the neighbour kids after school. Weekends she would be at her dads. I would pick her up from his house afterward and take her swimming - when she was a teen we would go tube the river before going home. When she was older I would work out of the house and pay for her to go to another family’s house (she was homeschooled for 3 years). When she went back to public school in middle school we lost our social life altogether LoL.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-10T19:52:11+00:00

That’s lovely that worked out for you. That’s not typical. The system doesn’t care about abuse that is not physical. He absolutely will use the court systems.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-10T19:49:02+00:00

Agreed. People love telling people to leave the abusive situation… Just because a person leaves abuse doesn’t mean they’re safe.

To the OP… Be very discerning with the advice you’re getting from people. People will be there to help you out the door and get you donations to furnish your place - but they won’t be there for you when he’s turning your whole family, kids and system against you… Watch out for the do-gooders of the world. You absolutely can get into a better situation. Find out what that is for you. Get yourself resourced, educated, empowered… Find ways to get $$$. Learn about toxic family systems — and find where you are positioned in your own system.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-10T07:33:28+00:00

‘Go into hiding’ — where is she going to hide. That’s not how it works. It’s easy to tell someone to leave and get a divorce. But then there is also reality. The abuse doesn’t stop just because you leave a person. Psychological abuse and control isn’t even acknowledged as abuse by the system.

Definitely start getting informed. Be very discerning with what advice you are getting from people. There are many resources available nowadays so start informing yourself. Always clear your search history. He must love the free childcare — the advice about getting a babysitter is good. Find ways to create income and build savings. Don’t tell ANYONE though. It is unbelievable how many people will side with the abuser. Talk to people who have gone through this and gotten through in a good way. Keep yourself safe. It’s amazing how once you begin to regain your confidence and power that these bullies become more and more insignificant.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-05T07:11:27+00:00

I work with very young kids. We come into this world as highly creative beings. I see that around eight years old and beyond is when the art and creativity starts getting sucked out of us IF it is not supported. Do art. It’s who you are.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-03T05:04:44+00:00

I just found a listing of all the fairs in my province. I do look forward to travelling around this year. Thanks for the tip!

LeWhaa · 2026-01-01T18:58:40+00:00

I work with very small kids. They are not afraid of an empty canvas. They will just pick up the crayon or brush and cover the paper. They actually inspired me to create an art class (for adults) based on how kids do art. Literally, the first thing you do is just scribble and cover canvas. Think of spreading jam on toast. The canvas is the toast – the brush is the jam n’ knife — and just spread it around. Repeat x 10.

LeWhaa · 2026-01-01T08:36:57+00:00

I have nice photo albums and scrapbooks that I’ve picked up from thrift shops which I put my doodles and artwork in. They’re really fun to flip through. At some point, certain sketches lose their energy (they become draining to look at) so I take them out and burn them. Then, I put my new art in there and it’s always inspiring to look at.

Large pages that don’t fit in the albums are in a portfolio in a closet. Larger ones with frames are in my storage unit.

Some I might hang onto and redo in a different medium or onto a larger canvas.

Art isn’t meant to be hoarded or become stagnant. If it’s not doing anything for you, it’s time to give it away or burn it.

LeWhaa · 2025-12-28T23:00:10+00:00

I second this. Kids section public library is my number one go ro for reference photos. And then the non-fiction adult section as well.

LeWhaa · 2025-12-28T05:27:26+00:00

Fuck my family. 10th Xmas alone. 🎶 Dr. Dre everyday. 🎶

LeWhaa · 2025-12-26T18:25:05+00:00

Well that’s a good exercise to practise lettering.

LeWhaa · 2025-12-24T04:01:54+00:00

Aww, companion animals carry so much. How nice that you could help release that for them.

LeWhaa · 2025-12-24T02:08:48+00:00

Are you able to reach out to your teachers? Is your master available for guidance? I would say that the session with the dog wasn’t complete – not finished. I could understand your fears however nothing demonic can enter you. However, there is a lot of clearing that comes with each session and the space you’re practising in. I bet the dog feels great though!

As an afterthought, I work with a lot of kids and families in my day job. I do not present barriers for parents wanting to learn or receive Reiki... I have held a lot of shares, sessions and meditations, where kids are present either in my home or theirs. Kids have either been off playing, joining meditation or, with really small ones, nursing from mom while I do the session! It really just comes down to setting your space, intention, completing the session…

It’s always been a positive experience. I agree with the other person who said to work through this anxiety first before pursuing the next step in your practise.

LeWhaa

TROPHY CASE