shifts & wiggles
“she tapped her fingers and nothing happened & she thought she had lost her magic but it had only changed & it took her a while to figure it out” -Magic, Brian Andreas
Woweee the past few months of fully dedicating myself to building betterish as my own business has been more of a transition than I anticipated. Shifts—-big or small, happy or sad—have this funny way of handing over a slew of new challenges that force you to re-focus + grow like whoa.
I’ve learned a TON, and one of the greatest lessons in these first few months has just been in finding healthy working habits and developing a balanced rhythm and flow. Here are some things that I’ve realigned in a time of great shifts and wiggles:
• Prioritizing. I used to think I had poor time management skills. Turns out that I am actually good at managing the wide range of things on my plate. I’m just not always the greatest at prioritizing. In addition to my weekly to-do lists, I now make daily priority lists. I keep them short, realistic, & holy dang it feels goood to report that at the end of most days, everything is crossed off of those little lists.
• Workin’ it out to work it out. I very much neglected my body this past summer as l was pouring my energy into work, work & more work. Come September: I was having more migraines than ever, more anxiety than ever, & I would wake up feeling exhausted rather than refreshed. Our bodies remember everything. They hold onto so much, & I was not releasing some junk. I joined Class Pass in October & have been loving trying out so many different yoga, dance & barre classes here in Denver. Nothin’ like a good sweat to some good jams to let that ishhhh go!
• Finding softness. It can be my natural inclination to pinpoint all the things that I didn’t get done & let myself get overwhelmed/bummed out/hello here’s where the anxiety kicks in. a.k.a.—I can be hard on myself. I’ve been working to change that: taking breaks when I used to say “gotta power through,” honoring the little things I’ve accomplished, & truly acknowledging: there will ALWAYS be more to do/see/create/check off the list. I’m learning where to draw the line at the end of my days, & showing myself graciousness in the process.
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yay for wiggling through the shifts!
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Interested in the more tangible things that have come into fruition? Here’s what September-December looked like in review:
DESIGN MATCHBOX FESTIVAL. I had the opportunity to produce a double whammy for this festival: zines AND roll in The Meet Cart (note: Meet Cart version 1.0; 2.0 comes later in this post) for a day that featured talks from local creatives, interactive art and community projects on display.
POSSIBILITARIAN WORKSHOP. I’ve been identifying as a possibilitarian for several years now. It was an absolute delight to teach this concept of being open to opportunities and making them happen to my little friends over at Anythink Library.
CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN. I closed my crowdfunding campaign mid September with a grand total of $14,130— surpassing my 12k goal with 311 backers. For those who supported this process and campaign: I truly can’t thank you enough. Seriously. Every bit you’re reading here would not have been possible without your support. Thank you, thank you + a bazillion more thank you’s.
YOGA FOR ALL MOVEMENT ZINE. I was lucky enough to be there for Yoga For All Movement’s (YFAM) kick off two years ago and since, have been cheering + supporting their growth from afar. With a mission rooted in making yoga a more accessible practice, YFAM serves individuals experiencing incarceration, youth in alternative education, youth in elementary education, survivors of domestic violence, adults with reoccurring mental health difficulties and individuals in recovery from substance use.
Oh and their intended impact? EQUITY, JUSTICE and HEALING FOR ALL. I compiled this zine highlighting their work which was given out during the two year celebration at the end of September. Check out their awesomeness & support if you can: www.yogaforallmovement.org
DENVER START UP WEEK. It was amazing to be a part of this one-of-a-kind event celebrating everything entrepreneurial in here in the mile high. I spoke on two panels: Crowdfunding 101 + Do More Together: Make the Most of Your Business Friendships. Denver Start Up Week is the largest event of its kind in the world (yes, world!) built by community, for community. It was a really great opportunity to explore, speak to, learn more and connect with Denver's entrepreneurial ecosystem.
HORSESHOE MARKET. Horseshoe Market is Denver's premier handmade & vintage market. This year I was invited to create a participatory experience that emphasized the market’s motto around “lucky finds.” So, I created a whimsical installation inviting visitors to share the luckiest thing they’ve EVER found. Responses varied from a toilet seat to a cherished postcard pendant—but the most common thing folks shared were particular people in their lives.
“Albert”
“My children”
“A cute pilot at my grandparents dinner table. 28 years later, here we are...”
This all affirmed the power of human connection, and how we praise the people more than the things. As we should. How beautiful is that?
POP UP PRINTMAKING. I rolled out so many new prints this past Fall! Nearly every First Friday, I’ve been popping up at ReCreative and inviting visitors to print their own patch with one of these phrases. I’ll be at it again February 7th. Stay tuned for opportunities to purchase these in the online shop soon :)
THE MEET CART. I premiered The Meet Cart 2.0 at Denver Art Museum’s Meet Here program back in November! Created as a mobile structure where strangers meet, greet & play, The Meet Cart is where unfamiliar people become unexpected pals. It’s been to creative events, festivals, birthday parties, local parks, donut shops & bakeries. In a world of great disconnect & divide, it’s been so important to craft this space where I facilitate a series of games & activities that bring people together in fun, meaningful & engaging ways.
I can’t thank Jessica, Sarah and Larry Polzin of Star Gazer Creations enough for all of their hard work, time, patience, creative energy + all-around incredible skills that they graciously poured into this major revamp.
Learn more and book the Meet Cart today!
COOKING FROM THE GARDEN. I work with Slow Food Denver to as an instructor for their Cooking from the Garden Program which incorporates the school garden through planting, maintaining, harvesting and preparing food in seasonal cooking classes. The goal is to provide learning environments that transform children from passive food consumers to creators, and in doing so, increase their health awareness. This is my third season over at Marie L. Greenwood School, which runs in conjunction with their incredible Each One Teach One program. Snow came early this year (first week of October!) so we didn’t have as much time in the garden as we had hoped, but still cooked up some delicious dishes!
CROOKED PATH RETREAT. True life: I won an Instagram giveaway to stay at the lovey Camino Chueco cabin…and I turned into a creative retreat for my dear friend, Liz of The Curated Feast and I. We met in Rhododendron, OR and tucked ourselves away doing some heart work, some purpose-driven work, and all around some real intentional work to get more clear on topics, questions and things that have come up for us the past year. Looking forward to growing this into something bigger for the future. In the meantime, if you find yourself in Oregon, book yourself a night or two at Camino Chueco or just follow along here.
SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY AT STANLEY MARKETPLACE. I got to host a free & festive DIY card-making station at my favorite community hub of small businesses: Stanley Marketplace. People of all ages dropped by and made custom cards for not only loved ones, but strangers too (because giving someone a reason to smile is almost always a good idea).
COLOR STORIES: ANYTHINK LIBRARY. I just wrapped up running a five-part workshop series exploring a vast palette of colors via different textures, tones and mediums over at Anythink Library on Huron Street. We delved into everything from how we associate certain colors with particular experiences and feelings to experimenting with different materials such as yarn, paint, found objects and paper. The series culminated with the creation of these long paper chains that will remain hanging in the lobby so they can, “serve as a pop of warmth and delight on the long days that will often appear as chilly and white.”
WRIBBN. Wanna know what keeps my creativity, ideas, and visions flowing in a way that gives me structure and honestly just keeps me sane? LISTS. I’ve been working to promote the work of this awesome new app, Wribbn, which I love—mainly because I can hub an incredibly wide range of lists from books to read, podcasts to listen to, and more personal things like my playlists and recommendations of the places I’ve traveled to and appreciate most. You can make collaborative lists, too! If you love lists, give it a dl and start your virtual list making STAT.
BETTERISH HQ. Where’s all this work getting done? My studio, a.k.a. Betterish HQ! I’ve landed myself a little corner in the world over at ReCreative and couldn’t be more appreciative for this space. From finger paint to frames, post-its to pom-poms, this is where lots of brightly colored ideas & collaborations are being betterishly made with hand-crafted kindness and care (+I have an excellent snack station to boot—-so if you’re in Denver, stop by when you can).
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Overall in 2019: I hosted 24 workshops, 16 pop up experiences, co-created six participatory installations, was a part of three public speaking engagements, made 2,152 zines with a grand told of 6,285 people interacting with this betterish work in places ranging from libraries, museums, marketplaces, parks, gardens, after-school programs, festivals, a literacy based summer camp, various non-profits and really awesome creative spaces.
Coming 2020: work with History Colorado, The Real Dill, MCA Denver + much more …ONWARD!