Create a moment of calm and serenity in your busy day with this simple and calming swatching exercise that promotes relaxation and helps you overcome perfectionism as a mom.
As a mom, it’s easy to get caught up in the endless demands of daily life. From feeding the kids to cleaning the house to running errands, it can feel like there’s never a moment to breathe. But as we all know, taking care of ourselves is crucial for our mental and physical well-being. That’s why I want to encourage all stressed-out moms to find time for creative self-care.
Swatching your materials is a straightforward way to incorporate creativity into your life. This exercise is about experimenting with your materials while destressing at the same time. By swatching horizontally, you’ll end up with rectangle swatches, which can be a satisfying visual experience.
Drawing horizontal lines can have a calming effect on the mind because they are associated with stability, balance, and grounding. Horizontal lines are also common in nature and architecture, which can evoke feelings of safety and harmony. Additionally, drawing horizontal lines’ repetitive and meditative nature can help quiet the mind and reduce stress and anxiety.
Swatching is also a great way to get to know your supplies before creating. All in all, the perfect exercise to relieve some stress and experiment.
I hope you have some well-deserved creative me-time with this calming swatching exercise!
Please let me know if you’ve tried this one; I would love to see it.
You can find a small video of this exercise on my Instagram @thecreativecooldown
Supplies used:
Bristol paper (Winsor & Newton), Neocolor II wax crayons (Caran d’Ache), fineliner 0.1, 1.0 (ohuhu), brush pen (Ohuhu).
Alternative supply suggestions:
You can try this exercise with any supplies you have at home, your own, or borrow some of your kids’ supplies.
Colored pencils, markers, crayons, and paint, can all be used for this exercise.
Step 1
Before you start, slowly breathe in and out a few times to clear your head. Then, bring yourself to the present, away from all the day-to-day stress.
Grab your supplies and create a rectangle swatch by filling a small section of your page with a single color. Then, move down and fill in another area with a different color. Continue until you have filled a whole row with swatches. Take your time with each color, focusing on the process rather than the outcome. As you create each swatch, feel the stress melt away.
Step 2
If you still have colors that you have not swatched, create another row of swatches next to it. Make sure you leave enough space to add the names of the colors in step 3.
Step 3
After you’ve added your swatches to your page, take a moment to write the colors next to each one. This not only helps you remember the colors for future projects but also adds a satisfying finishing touch to your page.
Remember, creative self-care doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. It’s about taking a few moments to focus on yourself and let go of the stress and pressure of daily life. So the next time you feel overwhelmed, grab your materials and try swatching – you might be surprised at how much it helps.
If you liked this exercise, you might also like my comforting circle bundles exercise.
