A Fun and Full Week

I spent most of last week visiting Vancouver BC masterminding with Andrea J. Lee and my fabulous fellow participants of her Wealthy Thought Leader mentorship program. We spent all day Thursday and Friday brainstorming about our businesses, sharing ideas and resources, and challenging each other to stretch and be leaders in our field. It was fun getting to know everyone and all the amazing things they are up to.

On Friday, New World Library FedExed me a print out of my finalized book cover! Very exciting to see. Friday was also the day my book went to the printer. It was a treat to get to celebrate this milestone with my fellow Diamonds and a little bit of bubbly, thanks to the lovely Pamela!

On Tuesday I attended the TEDxYVR event and enjoyed watching past talks around the theme “Playing with Possibilities.” You can see a couple of my favorite videos from the night here.

I loved hanging out on Granville Island. It’s a funky, artsy area with lots of cool shops, an art and design school, and an amazing public market. I was obsessed by all of the cute stationary and notebooks at the store Paper-Ya.

And while we were holed up in the Executive Board Room of the hotel, Andrea and her team invited in play with these colorful pipecleaners. They’re such a fun and easy way to inspire creativity! You should’ve seen all of the great accessories people made.

I’m still digesting all that we covered during our intensive time together and I’m super excited about what’s in the works for next year. I’m very grateful to have the support and guidance of this mentoring group as I head into the exciting adventures that await in 2011!

Art Every Day Month – Days 29-30

It’s hard to believe that today is the last day of November and the last day of my fourth time doing my pal Leah Piken Kolidas’ Art Every Day Month challenge. I’ve had fun doodling in my mini sketch book for the second year in a row. And to celebrate making it to the end, I drew a little trophy! Congrats to all the AEDMer’s out there for committing to your creativity.

Last night Emmett went on a crazy barking spree. He’s lost a lot of his hearing so he barks especially loud now.

And here’s a close up of the warped pages in my itty bitty sketch book.

Art Every Day Month – Days 25-26

We enjoyed a great Thanksgiving meal at my aunt’s house last night. Stuffing and cranberry sauce are my favorite dishes. Yum.

Oh, and I also stuffed myself with these delicious sweet potato galette appetizers I made. Mmmmm.

And today’s doodle in my 3″x3″ sketch book is homage to my latest iPhone obsession, Instagram. Photo taken with Instagram of course! You can follow me on Instagram at jennlee.

Art Every Day Month – Days 21-24

Emmett’s antics make great fodder for funny AEDM doodles. It’s either that or stay fuming after cleaning up his mess! Last year his trash can escapades made for some other silly sketches.

On Sunday my dear friend from London, Fiona, stayed over. I was thrilled to get to see her a second time this year (we met up in Seattle earlier this year).

Fiona and me hanging out in Rockridge after enjoying some delicious hot cocoa at Bittersweet.

Just playing with fall colors.

I was thirsty when I sat down to do my doodle for today, so I whipped this up and then refilled my glass of water.

Can’t believe there’s less than a week left of Art Every Day Month!

Art Every Day Month – Days 19-20

Hard to believe I went swimming on Monday! It’s now cold and wet. Poo.

Here’s how I’m feeling today. Moody.

Yesterday I got to see my dear friend Kate for a bit. We met up at Heath Ceramics and then got to hang out at her cozy place in the woods.

More beautiful pieces from Heath Ceramics shot with the Instagram app. I loved the soft neutral colors and textures of these vases.

Art Every Day Month – Days 16-18

It’s hard to believe we’re more than half-way through November and Art Every Day Month! More of my quick sketches from my 3″x3″ journal. I loved the Gwenyth Glee episode this week. Fun!

Had an awesome and uplifting Nurture Huddle with my huddlers last night.

Today I played with color and my water soluble oil pastels (in colors I don’t normally use).

And a Hipstamatic of my little art journal and portable water color set. I love how the pages are warped and covered with markings. Reminds me of my Wreck This Journal days.

Art Every Day Month 2010 – Days 8-12

Anyone else guilty of doing the same thing I do before the housecleaner comes? How can they vacuum the floor or clean the sink if there’s crap in the way?! Okay, yes, I’m OCD. Many of my drawings from last year were related to organizing and tidying the house, too.

I was so tired and jet lagged after my trip to Canada over the weekend.

Fortunately on Tuesday I built in some recovery time including a much needed massage!

Had fun just playing with color.

And I tried to sneak in my Thursday drawing even though it was technically already Friday. 😉

Art Every Day Month 2010 – Days 5-7

I’m getting ready to head back home in just a bit. Yesterday was the ARTpreneur Conference in Cornwall Ontario Canada. We had a great group of creative entrepreneurs participating. There were photographers, musicians, filmmakers, writers, visual artists, designers, and a even super cool 16-year old boy who was a fabulous artist and quite wise beyond his years. Smart mom for bringing her son to expose him to resources like this! I was really impressed by how well the arts are supported here in this area. There was a whole panel on funding and how to apply for grants. And there was a $2000 grant prize awarded at the end of the conference.

I had a blast leading a Right-Brain Business Plan talk in the morning. Here’s a twitpic of me on stage from a cool guy named Joey that I met at the conference. It was inspiring to hear some of the big visions that the participants shared. And I hope I get to see some of their Right-Brain Business Plans.

Unfortunately my bag didn’t make it with me to Ottawa. I’ve been wearing pretty much the same outfit since Friday! Thanks to my lovely hosts here in Cornwall, though, I was able to replace some basics. I still have not gotten a straight answer about where my suitcase is. Fingers crossed that I get it back soon!

And since I don’t have a jacket, I’ve been mostly staying inside. But there are a few nice trees outside my window.

I’ve had a great time here and I’m looking forward to going back home. Gotta run!