#tinyanddaily

It just occurred to me that my doodles are all just playgrounds for #doodlebot. 😊 🖍 This utterly delights me. . . . . #doodle #doodleart #doodlesofinstagram #doodles #dailydoodle #abstractart #originalart #tinyart #blackandwhite #dailycreative #creativesandboxway #fifteenminutes #tinyanddaily #doodlewithdinwiddie

Doodle from today’s Doodlecam (which you can watch on my IGTV channel) This one is all about handling the gremlins —you know, that inner critic voice that tells you “you suck!” and stuff like that. 🖍 In fact, from the very first mark, when I talk about dealing with the fear of the blank page, every Doodlecam talks about handling gremlins, but this one really focuses on them. 🖍 See, the goal is to get the gremlins OUT of the driver’s seat, because if it’s up to them, your bus will stay permanently parked! You’ll never go anywhere, try anything, or make anything! 🖍 Not acceptable! 🖍 Gremlins, bless their pesky little hearts, are just trying to keep us safe. Safely inside our comfort zones, where we can’t be hurt, humiliated, or shamed (they think). 🖍 But of course, paralysis is painful! So in the Creative Sandbox, we want to keep our gremlins OUT of the driver’s seat, and get our inner 4-year-olds IN the driver’s seat, so THEY’RE driving the bus! 🖍 That’s what today’s Doodlecam was all about. Check it out on my IGTV channel, and let me know your thoughts. . . . . #doodle #doodlebot #doodlesofinstagram #originalart #imperfectionism #blackandwhite #abstractart #tinyanddaily #creativesandboxway #doodlewithdinwiddie

Today I learned that Doodlebot has prehensile antennae! Who knew?! So talented, that Doodlebot! . . . . #doodlebot #doodlesofinstagram #dailydoodle #dailycreative #tinyanddaily #artistsofinstagram #pigmamicron #imperfectionism #improv #abstractart #originalart #blackandwhite

Thursday morning doodle-as-a-spiritual-practice, streamed live in Instagram Stories today. In which I share how to deal with fear of the blank page, how to deal with the gremlins who invariably pop up to say you have no business even having a pen in your hand, etc. etc. etc. 🖍 I’ve found my tiny-and-daily doodle practice to have a profound impact on my life. Surprising but true. Like meditation, even a few minutes on a consistent basis can change how you walk through the world. 🖍 Check it out, and try it for yourself for a month. See what shifts for you. . . . . #doodlingasaspiritualpractice #doodle #doodlesofinstagram #imperfectionism #artistsofinstagram #pigmamicron #improv #originalart #blackandwhite #abstractart #selfcompassion #intuitiveart #creativesandboxway #tinyanddaily

May 17 is Walnut Day, Cherry Cobbler Day, and Pack Rat Day. All things I learned thanks to the May monthly creative challenge inside the Creative Sandbox Community! 😊 🖍 I am not a photorealist, nor do I aspire to be. I like to figure out how to quickly communicate concepts through sketching. That’s what I use the monthly creative challenges for: to grow my visual vocabulary. Other members use it to work on strengthening their drawing muscles, or to have a writing prompt every day. It’s up to you. It’s a fun way to stretch and share, and be inspired by each other. 😊 🖍 Community is great for that. . . . . . #smalldailyacts #tinyanddaily #dailydoodle #doodlesofinstagram #originalart #visualcommunication #visualnotes #neulandmarkers #dailycreative #creativesandboxcommunity #creativesandboxchallenge

We had Mom & Pop over for dinner last night for Mother’s Day (Avocado Alfredo—yum!). I recently took delivery of a new flipchart easel, which I’d set up in the living room to try out, so instead of making Mom a card, I made her a flipchart. It was the first thing she saw when they walked in, and she LOVED it! She immediately wanted to snap a pic. 😊 🖍 Sometimes the tools of the trade come in handy for more than the trade. ❤️❤️❤️ . . . . . #mothersday #creativesandboxway #imperfectionism #justdoit #tinyanddaily #visualcommunication #doodlesofinstagram #flipchart #visualnotes #originalart #greetingcards

So here’s a confession: every time I post one of these, I think “Everyone is going to laugh at me, and think ‘that is SO LAME! She draws STICK FIGURES!’” Because it’s true. I draw stick figures. That is about the limit of my human illustration abilities, especially when said humans are engaged in any sort of activities (like carrying a tray with a glass of lemonade!) And right now it takes me several tries to get this even close to acceptable, and even then the proportions are ridiculous (I mean, who ever saw a lemonade glass that ginormous???) 🖍 But here’s the thing: I share these stick figures even though I’m embarrassed that they aren’t more masterful, precisely BECAUSE they aren’t masterful. Because I hope they get YOU to pick up a pen and draw, too! 🖍 I watched a couple of talks by @evalottchen on YouTube this morning, which were so inspiring, and a little bit of what she did in those talks was get people drawing. She demonstrated a few simple icons, and exactly how she draws them. And that’s the thing: drawing is not magic—it’s steps that you can learn. The kind of drawing I’m excited by right now is INTENTIONALLY simple, because it has to be done FAST, and the goal is not photorealism, or even artistic value, but to communicate IDEAS. So the more quickly and efficiently I can draw those concepts (i.e., stick figures!), the better! 🖍 Still, my gremlins are afraid you will laugh at me, shun me, think I’m unworthy of love and attention because what I create is so lame. But again, I share it DESPITE THE GREMLINS! Because I hope it will make YOU think, “Hey, if Melissa can share a stick figure, maybe I can draw, too.” 🖍 It’s fun. It’s empowering. Give it a try. . . . . . #visualnotes #visualthinking #creativesandboxchallenge #tinyanddaily #smalldailyacts #originalart #stickfigure #nursesday #lemonadeday

Happy National Cartoonists Day and Start Seeing Monarchs (as in butterflies) Day! It’s also Hoagie/Scrapbook/Homebrew/Silence the Shame Day, so if I were really ambitious I could have fit a few more in there for today’s Creative Sandbox Community creative challenge daily prompt! I felt rather pleased that I managed two in one, though. 🖍 Baby steps. We’re all about tiny and daily and small daily acts in the Creative Sandbox Community. 😉 After all, “Think tiny and daily” is Creative Sandbox Way Guidepost #4! . . . . . #creativesandboxchallenge #tinyanddaily #smalldailyacts #visualthinking #visualcommunication #cartoonist #butterfly #monarchday #monarch #originalart