February’s theme is creativity, and in that spirit, we’re jumping head-first into this month’s challenge!

February Challenge

MAKE ART!

We’re going to make some art together this month! Some of us might be thinking, YES, I got this — I love making art. Some of us might be horrified, thinking, I came here for minimal planning and you want me to make art!?

Yes! This is meant to be a challenge, so if you’re all into the idea, I encourage you to try an art form or a style or technique you’re uncomfortable with. If you don’t consider yourself an artist at all, then I want you to just try something (and I’ve got a lot of ideas coming right up in a moment).

This challenge shouldn’t take too long! You can do it just once, or try it once a week if you like and see how the habit affects your mind. As long as you give it a shot, you get my gold star of approval!

Here are a few ideas:

• Try some stream-of-consciousness writing: don’t second guess yourself, just keep the words coming. You might try a nonfiction prompt (I love Lanvendaire’s journaling prompts) or work on something fictional.
• Doodle! I love the Different Doodles Challenge hosted by Mark (@menwhobullet) and Nicole (@plansthatblossom). They always come up with
• Mossery’s Inktober prompts are broad and lovely. It doesn’t matter that it’s not October — you can still make use of them! I think I might try these as drawing or artmaking prompts, but you can also use them as prompts for writing music or journaling.
• Try a Rock Your Handwriting challenge and do some creative lettering. I definitely believe lettering and calligraphy are an art form — these prompts can be as long or as short a response as you like.
• Make something for someone — maybe a card or a bookmark. Remember when we were kids and we used to make art for folks we loved? Tap back into that and make something for a loved one.

And here’s the final, super-important part of this challenge: no matter what you make, when you’re finished up or taking a break,, think about how your mind feels, and maybe even jot down some reflections after you create your art. Was it easy or challenging? Are you refreshed? How did you feel the next day, or in the following week: did you tackle an issue differently outside of making art?

Happy artmaking! I’m so excited to reflect on this challenge and theme at the end of the month with everyone.