Feeling Vulnerable

In 2016, I created this journal piece at the very start of my journey as an artist. I was completely out of my wheelhouse, navigating uncharted territory with equal parts excitement and apprehension. The excitement came from the thrill of pursuing something new and deeply personal, but the apprehension was rooted in the fear of failure and the unknown.

I’ve come to understand and accept that feeling vulnerable is part of the process when we reach beyond our expectations. Vulnerability often feels raw and uncomfortable, but I’ve learned it’s where growth and transformation begin.

What kept me moving forward was faith—faith that I was being guided toward what I was meant to do. It wasn’t easy to trust in something intangible, especially when doubt whispered that I might not succeed. But each brushstroke, each moment spent immersed in the creative process, felt like a step closer to something authentic and true.

Looking back, I see how important it was to lean into the discomfort.  Vulnerability wasn’t a sign of weakness; it was evidence that I was challenging myself and growing into the artist I am today. 

This piece is more than a journal entry—it’s a marker of a time when I said yes to the unknown and began to rise into the life I was meant to live.

Surrender

I'm inviting you to come check out my first "voice over" recording of me creating art.

Thanks for watching!

A little bit of a story behind Tea Bag Art.

Let's start at the beginning...

I drink Lipton iced tea and I  make a gallon of tea at a time.  The tea bags are  4 1/2" x 5 1/2".   

I empty out the tea from the used bags and I save them.  One day I got a bright idea💡to draw/paint a face on them.  It turned out so dang cute that I just started made a commitment to myself to draw/paint a tea bag art every Tuesday.  Thus Tea Bag Art Tuesday began.  My very first tea bag art was in June 2018.  

Whew that's a long time, over 6 years!   One of my strengths has been tenacity☺this would be a prime example.  Below is Tea Bag Art Tuesday #373!

In October, this year, I started pondering, asking myself tough questions, particularly from the artist perspective of my life.  I was feeling like there is much more for me to do.  It seems I  yearn to be more creatively adventurous.   I reckon it boils down to  I'm looking for a SpArK of some sort.   Anyway... it was during that time I made the decision to stop making Tea Bag Art Tuesday  My rationale was that perhaps doing this every week was in some way limiting me... keeping me small and preventing me from making bigger/funner art.  Here it is December, two months later, I can officially admit that kind of thinking is a bunch of bull!  I missed the whole experience of painting on the tea bag every Tuesday.  Being present consistently on a weekly basis is one of the best attributes of my growth as an artist.  It hasn't hindered my creativity at all.  It may have even enhanced it because I was consistent.!  

This issue was my "stinkin thinkin"!  That is what needed to change! Tea Bag Art Tuesday is back.  And it felt pretty darn good creating her.

↓ This is Tea Bag Art Tuesday #373 ↓

                                      WEBSITE:  http://www.teresacashart

                                      YOUTUBE:  https://www.youtube.com/teresacashart

                                      INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/teresacashart/

 

Eyes are mirrors...

This is the reason why, in my portraits, I tend to pay attention to and put more emphasis on the eyes.

Here's a challenge for you...

The nex time you're spekaing with someone in person take a moment to really look into their eyes.

NOTE:  Do it in a way that doesn't freak them out!   😄

    

                                      WEBSITE:  http://www.teresacashart.

                                      YOUTUBE:  https://www.youtube.com/teresacashart

                                      INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/teresacashart/

 

It was time to finish this piece.

            It was time to tackle/finish a piece that has been sitting on one of my easels since June.  

      I'm not sure why it had taken me so long to finish it and at this point the reason doesn't matter. 

 I finished it!  That's what matters the most.  Right? 

This is the background. how it all began.

   It's 11x14 in a Strathmore mixed media journal.  I prepped the page with one coat of gesso.

Next I randomly collaged on it with all sorts of scrap paper.

Then I made marks with watersoluable pens and ink.

I sketched this drawing using a charcoal pencil on the page.

This is the stage the piece has sat at since June.

I wanted her to stand out from the back ground which prompted me to only using  3 colors of acrylic paint.  White, black, and gray.  I wanted down the paint in areas I wanted it to be more transparent.

                         

                                      WEBSITE:  http://www.teresacashart.

                                      YOUTUBE:  https://www.youtube.com/teresacashart

                                      INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/teresacashart/

Stepping Out of my Comfort Zone (again)

When I first began my art journey in Feberuary 2011 I started  a blog http://www.asmilemaker.com.   I barely knew what a blog was but I knew it was the "in thing" to do, at that time.    The purpose was to document/write about my journey of becoming an artist.  Calling myself an artist was beyond my imagination and it felt a little strange.  Yet, I believed with every fiber in me I was being guided so I simply trusted the process.  I put one front of the other and followed the guidance.  I am so blessed to be able to go back and read about my thoughts, my struggles, my triumphs, every morsel from "the beginning" because I took the time to write about it.

I highly suggest journaling to everyone even if you don't think you have anything to say.   Say it anyway.  You never know how important it will be to your future self.

Lately,  I have been re-reading some of those posts and to be quite honest... I am feel  envy of the young artist I was becoming.  The courage I had to create whatever I felt like creating.  I trusted the guidance 100%.

It was common that if I felt I was suppose to do something out of my comfort zone.

Fear did not hold me back.  I just did it!  

I could go on and on........ but I won't.  I am learning from those earlier times.    

FAST FORWARD...

I am using those feelings to fuel me and move me onward.  Not letting fear stand in my way.

I painted the portrait below yesterday. (you can watch me on my YouTube channel, the link is below.  

My "comfort" style is not like this.  I want to become more free flowing, loose, and big.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XlZN7PunhE

Thank You for all that you do.

 

FROM PAST TO PRESENT

I had started this blog February 12, 2011 as a way/means to document my journey of becoming an artist.  I didn't even have an "official" artist name then, like I do now.

Below is a snippet of one of my first posts in February 2011 that explains what I was thinking then.

"I was recently asked what my purpose was in writing this blog?

The main  reason is to openly journal the experience of my creative self emerging.  I think it will also serve as a way of holding myself accountable.  It is totally out of my comfort zone to be open about my feelings.   I have always kept my deep feelings reserved.  I do know that opening my heart will allow my creative spirit to soar.  I am ready to " let it all go" and move forward toward expressing myself thru my art.   So bear with me as I slowly take this BIG leap of faith into unfamiliar territory. "

Recently I started going back to re-read these blog posts.  All of the wonderful memories/emotions of "those beginning days" flooded back.  They filled my heart with Joy!  They cemented into me the value of writing about my creative journey.  I knew with every fiber in me that I was being guided.  My responsiblity was to follow and trust the process.   

Years later... here I am... 

My intention is to revive writing about my art journey, sharing my art and what it means to me.

         Thank You for your continued support and encouragement.

INSTAGRAM:  Teresa Cash Art