Paint Therapy

It's amazing to me how painting can be so therapeutic and so anxiety-packed at the same time. I try to not get caught up in the perfection, but sometimes I can't help but get frustrated when something doesn't turn out the way I want it.

Take tonight, for example.

Heather and I went to Masterpiece Mixers in Suwanee to paint Starry Night Atlanta. The hardest part for me is getting started, because I can see all of the imperfections. But they will be taken care of once the painting starts to form.

my painting background 

Heather's painting background

We met lots of really nice people throughout the evening. We all seemed to be in the same boat: wanting to paint but having trouble not being perfectionists.

we added our "Van Gogh swirls"

Heather's "Van Gogh swirls"

The instructors had a few rules, the most important being "No badmouthing your painting!"

we added the stars and the Atlanta skyline (to be filled in)

Heather's stars and skyline

They also had to remind us to breathe at certain times, specifically when doing the swirls and the roads.

my filled in skyline

Heather's filled in skyline

But in the end, they turned out wonderfully! It's amazing how different everyone's ended up, despite following the same instructions.

my finished painting

Heather's finished painting

There's a really cool one of the Fox that they're doing next month. I missed out on the Eiffel Tower one that I wanted to do, BUT you could buy their extras, so I ended up buying that one. It's gorgeous. Here's a blurry picture from their website. I'm in love with it.

I really like these classes. It's so much fun to go and paint with people that are generally on the same skill level as you. Can't wait to do another! I'm going to count this as part of one of my 26 Before 27 things: Go to three places that I've never been before. I've been to Masterpiece Mixers, but I went to a different location, so I'm counting it lol I need to get moving on my list.. only 7 more months to complete the majority of the things on the list!