Creativity at Play

Becoming an experienced baker myself over the course of two years I have learned a lot about baking and what it can teach any curious soul willing to try it out. Many of these lessons I've already written on in past posts but have decided to combine all those lessons in this one post to make it an easy one stop read through for any reassurances or tips fellow bakers may be interested in hearing or knowing about. From one baker to another- this is for you: The Rules of Bake Club: 1. Do it for yourself because it is something you enjoy and want to share (not for other's approval): This could probably be considered a common lesson in many of my recipes but especially those that I've tried out for the first time on family and most recently. I've always enjoyed the process of baking- it's very therapeutic to simply follow along and come out with something delicious after trying a new recipe but somethings it can be hard not to look for that confirmation/approval fr...

An Update into What I've Been Doing and Notes on a Fresh Start! (P.S. This is mainly for myself)  It feels good to be back after not posting in a while. There is lots to catch-up on and that I want to write about even for my own self that seems worth noting. First off I intentionally chose to take it easy in May as far as any new or big projects. There was a lot I had to deal with and survive during that time that putting the extra pressure on myself won't and just didn't make sense. It wasn't easy, with creativity always being a great outlet for myself and the ability to express or want to express my experiences having to say "you know what this isn't the time to worry about this" but it was the best thing for me to do at the time. Doing so allowed me to recuperate and get the added rest I needed after the month's rough start and made moving forward easier. Now occasionally I was able to do a bit of creating during that time, for instance I lear...

Lessons in Creativity and Gardening; and the Connection between the Two! I hadn't realized this until taking a good look at my struggling plants desperately in need of water and my squelched recent creativity that there is a connection between the two, and that is both need to be cultivated. I've learned through taking care of the greenery that by doing this it's not just one type of care for all plants- each has it's own type of care instructions and therefore needs to be tended to differently. For some plants- such as succulents, they don't take as much care or water- whereas others like flowering plants need a little more TLC and sunshine. Both in the end need these three things from you: love, a certain level of commitment to keep happy, and most importantly patience . I've learned through the years that being creative takes similar efforts and considerations to grow our gardens as it does to cultivate a creative life. When first starting out it can t...

Introducing Dabbing and Creating Clouds Well as intended I finally got the chance to learn a new technique for the month of learning pastels. This time it was experimenting making clouds and applying a dabbling technique to make them look light and fluffy (that same interesting term used in baking, now appears a part of clouds I wonder which came first...). Having it be a while since I first took a lesson in between experimenting on my own and learning techniques I was nervous about returning but decided that since growing as a pastel artist means being open to improving and taking on techniques it was time to learn more on how to expand on my own style. Feeling more comfortable using them on my own and less intimidated by the pastels it made sense to transition into another technique. My pastel hands were ready to take on another experience.  Morning sun, created March 22/2017, first attempt using dabbing effect to create clouds. An intimidating second-err-third step, ...

Exploration into Making and Baking Tarts: Recipe from The Messy Baker cookbook/baking book, pg. 138, look under the Sloppy Section of the book While I did it. Finally I began my foray from cakes and cookies to pastry making starting with tarts. Although for my first recipe -Raspberry Butter tarts- I went with store bought pastry shells being shore on time, and a little intimidated on the process. Next time though I'll try it out. Anyways, they were delicious and the recipe was surprisingly easy to follow.  I've already decided it's one I would make again! (More on my thoughts, and review of this in another post) There is however an important lesson I'll share out of this experience and that is in baking patience is a key ingredient/step to follow. No matter how delicious they are smelling or impatient we may be if you want successful tarts or anything else it's best to wait . Now this has never been my strong suit with anything- waiting for Christmas, f...

A More Comprehension Observation and Plan on How I'm Tackling It:  Well guys, earlier on I mentioned that I'd come up with a loose plan to make March successful and one part was continuing to be open during this process of learning and experimenting with a new medium, much like I've been for baking and knitting. Although this time around I'm more prepared, with two months behind me of this challenge and entering into a third everything has been turning out great- I haven't given up yet, all baking has turned out delicious, the knitting has come along (I continue to learn and learned so much from this experience) and have even embraced imperfection. I still try my best but don't get too discouraged if it doesn't always turn out perfectly, I'm happy just to finish it or learn from it. The Plan: Step 1 (paired with above):  Pre-entering February I've been testing out my pastel prowess, doing different shapes and sizes, concepts and techniques. J...