In this mindful brick pattern exercise, we’ll get lost in the repetitive motion of creating this pattern.
Painting bricks might seem boring at first, but I can assure you that it’s a very relaxing exercise. It feels create to press your brush down on your paper to create these bricks. And you can make it as fun as you like. Use all the colors of the rainbow or give every brick a different color – let your feelings guide you.
Pay attention to all your senses when your painting; how does it feel, what do you hear, what do you smell, what do you see? This will help you to be in the moment and focus on the task at hand. Forget about all the things you still have to do and all the stress that comes with it.
Use this exercise to relax and get energized and claim some time for yourself. You deserve it!
Have fun with this mindful brick pattern 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:
Watercolor paper 300gr (Fabriano), watercolor (Kuretake Gansai Tambi), flat paintbrush (Prima Marketing), washi tape, and a paper towel.
Alternative supply suggestions:
It is also possible to use other kinds of paint, such as gouache or acrylic. Or just borrow some of your kids’ paints. You can even try it with crayons or markers.
If you only have regular paper, try to tape it down. Regular paper can’t handle that much water and will warp. Taping it down will help a bit.
Instructions:
Step 1
Before you start, slowly breathe in and out a few times to clear your head and get more relaxed. Put washi tape around the edges of your paper. This will create a nice border around your painting. It will also serve as a reference to keep your brick pattern in a straight line.
We’ll start by picking some colors. Choose ones you like or make you feel calm. I used different shades of the same colors. Use what feels good. If you want to create a rainbow pattern or you want to use a different color for every brick, go for it.
Start with the first color. Grab your paintbrush and keep it parallel to the edge of your paper or your washi tape. Press your brush to the paper, drag it a bit to the right and slowly lift your brush. Continue this until you’ve created a thick dotted line. This will be your first layer of bricks.
Step 2
Now, we’ll create our second layer of bricks. This next row of dotted lines should be slightly shifted to the right. The center of a brick should be below the joint of the 2 bricks above. If you like you can use another color for this row.
Step 3
Continue with this pattern until your entire page is filled with bricks. Enjoy the repetitive motions. There is no need to rush. It doesn’t matter if your rows aren’t perfectly straight or if your bricks are not all the same size. The purpose here is to be in the moment and forget about the stress of the day-to-day for a while.
When you’re done, slowly remove your washi tape. Keep the tape parallel to your paper when you remove it, this will prevent your paper from tearing.
Now you’re done with this mindful brick pattern exercise! I hope you had fun.
If you liked this exercise, you might like my mindful colors and lines exercise as well.