Allspice & Acrylics: Manifesting Visions

Woohoo here I come Saturday!

Work in progress from this morning - not posting the final image yet - 'till I finish it :)

Update Alert!

There are some new goodies over at amyoes.com - more images of my work, links to articles I've written, and stuff you can pin, and share in a plethora of ways - so check it out!!!

Anyway - hey! It's Spring and that makes me so happy I think I will mention it in every post for the next month!

A nest outside my window!

So today I have an assignment for you, now that the season of rebirth and new beginnings is here with a BAM. Make a vision board this weekend!

What do you see for yourself?

What is a vision board?

A vision board is just a visual manifestation of whatever you want for yourself. You can paint it, cut out pictures from magazines and just tape them together, draw it, make a cartoon, a collage - really anything goes. It's just supposed to help you keep in mind what you long for, what your goals are, and where you see yourself in the future. Sometimes it helps to have that image literally in front of you to look at, as a visual reminder - working from the outside in.

From Debt Free Living

On the internet there are tons of sites about "how to create a vision board" - like this one - but really these are just suggestions and extra insights - you need to make it based on what works for you. What do you visualize yourself doing in "x" amount of time? What do you want? Where do you see yourself and what are your goals. See it and create.

Simplify 101 also has a really wonderful tutorial you should read

It would be great for anyone that makes a vision board to follow my "Show Me Your heART" Pinterest board, I'll send you an invite, and you can post me a picture of what you made! Or even just find a picture on a website that represents something you want for yourself, and pin it there - I'd love to see!

This post from a great blog Your Super Awesome Life tells you how to make a vision board on Pinterest!

I've created many vision boards over the years in a variety of forms. It doesn't necesarily have to be a formal "board" and certainly not "art." They are just some visiual reminders for me - they also gave me hope for the future when ciricumstances were very shaky and uncertain. It was a picture I could hold onto and keep believing in.

From KLS Crafts

I started off doing a lot of vision boards by just cutting out pictures from magazines and taping them all together. That's a great way to start. This was one I put together years ago:

They are also really nice to look back on as years go by - it's so interesting to see how what you want changes over time and if you accomplished what you wanted to.

Sometimes I got a bit creative with my vision boards...

It really only has to make sense to you!

This was the first vision board I actually painted. It means a lot because some things happened, some didn't - but that's what makes life the adventure - you can't expect and you just never know - and most likely, things turn out for the better if you approach them that way.

I displayed this at my first art show in 2011, "Journey Into Daylight" - it was a very scary decision for me, because I felt very vulnerable sharing my deepest hopes.

In each of the boxes were: to be able to tap dance again, to go on vacation in California, to have a big group of friends, to be one with nature, to finally get rid of my colostomy bag, to be on stage, and to fall in love. I let one spot blank because I wanted to leave room for possibilities I couldn't even dream up. You always should leave room for that :)

I'm happy to say that...

I got my theatre...

I got my vacation

I got my friends...

I got my romance...

I got my nature...

I got my vacation

And everything else...

Being honored with Convatec's Great Comebacks Award for inspiring folks with ostomies

It's okay. It worked out anyway. And that blank space is always changing. Which is what makes life so wonderfully unpredictable and wild.

For 2013, I made another vision board - this one out of felt just 'cuz felt makes me happy :)

I've always been into cute little miniature things (I loved dollhouses growing up!) and creating fine little details an nuances, so I love working on a very small scale with tactile things

In this vision board, it was to be doing theatre, to have a cabaret act, to keep on painting, to compose songs on guitar, to read a few great books, to get my yoga teaching certification, to travel, and to commune more with nature. Funny how some yearnings just stay the same, but grow stronger. It's nice to evaluate how far you've come.

"My Vision for 2013"

The biggest felt rectangle was the center is to reverse my ostomy - again. And I did try. That caused me to go from this:

to this:

with three disastrous surgeries within eight days, four months in the hospital, and even more months unable to eat or drink...again. But once again, things turned out okay - differently, but wonderfully rich.

Did I mention I got my romance? :)

And eventually, I did do my one-woman show again!

But this time, a bit revised so I could poke some fun at that crazy decision of mine to get that terrible surgery! Hey - if you can't laugh, what good are you???

So give it a try yourself!

So go ahead and create some visions for yourself this weekend - here are a few guides:
Jack Canfield's guide HERE
These are great tips fro ESSENCE magazine
The Reason Vision Boards Work and How to Make One
How to Use a Vision Board to Activate the Law of Attraction

These are some wonderful examples... you can get as artsy as you want - I love these boards:

From Good Juju

This entire Artful Parent Tutorial is wonderful - definitely read this! And check out her blog at ArtfulParent.com

From Baxter's Mom Etsy Shop

So...this morning I got struck with my own inspiration...

My own wants, needs, longings, and visions...

And I had one image I wanted to keep in mind for now...

Just a reminder - because we should always be manifesting new visions as we experience every moment...

I will post the step by step tutorial for all the many many steps I took to make this - but it's not done yet (so I'll wait for that) - but is a vision ever really done?