Painting for fun

My art teacher was a grumpy old sod. Mr Gollidge was his name and he would terrify the kids by slamming a really long ruler down on their desks. He didn't scare me though, I thought he was great and I was happiest in the sixth form art rooms at school. the smell of the paints, the colours everywhere and the opportunity to just get stuck in and "create" something, it didn't matter what!

I could never paint as well as other people in my art class, I was always better at sketching but I REALLY wanted to be able to paint. I was too self-conscious to be able to paint well.

My husband is great at painting, he sees something in his mind and it just comes out on the canvas. Not me though, I have to plan it out, sketch it out and then transfer it to canvas and then paint. It becomes a little like painting by numbers I guess, but I love how they turn out.

This painting is a custom request on etsy for some artwork for a little girl's room. I love it and I'm thinking of painting a smaller one for myself.

I'm guessing that my school report from Mr Gollidge would say, A for effort. Jane is a nice girl who needs to let herself go and be confident with a brush lol

Create with Confidence

I am the world's worst at sabotaging myself. I think I have this great idea, I want to run full pelt with it ... and then it hits me ... nobody is going to like it, everyone can do it better than me, they'll think I'm stupid, that I have no taste ... and this list goes on. Before I even get my paint brush out, or I've knitted something, I'm already doomed! It's a self-fulfilling prophecy.

I've been this way for years, I knock myself back so many times that its suprising how much I've achieved in my life.

I worked in the media for years when I was younger and everyone thought I was confident, knew what I was doing. I once heard someone say "who is that girl, she walks in here like she owns the place". What happened to that confident person that I once was.

When I lived in the UK I taught karate to a very high level, I coached people of national and international standards, I even competed for the GB team in my day and entered European and World Championships. I was pretty good, even if I do say so myself. So why, when I'm doing something I love (i.e. creating something) do I second guess myself to the point of not wanting to show anyone what I've done.

My beautiful daughter, Bronte, is honest to a fault, she'll tell me when she doesn't like something and if she says she likes it then I know its pretty good. Megan, my darling youngest, on the other hand is a little cheerleader "Wow mama, that's great!" or "you're such a good artist mama.". Ha ha, she could make a career out of building people up and cheering them on.

What are your tips for building up your self confidence when you are creating? I'd love to hear them.