The 100-day Project, Day 14 - Yes, They Are All Unique and Different!
And so, we have made it today 14 of the 100-day project! And that means I have completed two weeks of doing this creativity everyday gig.
It's funny to think that I've been painting on rocks like this for 15 years or more but I never really got into a serious routine with it. It was always a case of "whenever I felt like it", and "whenever I had time."
Today's finished stone. Larger and much more work than planned... should have been a 2-day project.
That's not to suggest that I didn't take my work seriously. After all I got myself a domain and a website and blogs and social media accounts and online shops and everything. But the actual creative process was always very happy-go-lucky.
Even though the fundamental technique and style of how I paint the stones is essentially unchanged in 15 years, I can say with a great deal of certainty that no two are ever alike. The sheer number of color combinations combined with the vast variety of sizes and shapes of rocks thanks such duplication for all intents and purposes impossible.
And so, I feel quite good about being able to say that every stone painted is unique and different.
My rather fat and round stone for the day. Let's see what happens.
Day 14 Stone Painting:
For today's painting endeavor, I picked the somewhat larger and thicker stone that was very rounded and soft and smooth. One side had a little bit of a crease/crack in it, so that becomes the back side and I am painting the "good" side.
As per usual, I don't really have a plan as I start although I've had a feeling I wanted to do something with blue, perhaps because when I looked outside earlier there were ice pellets falling from the sky and it seemed very wintry!
So yeah, snowflake-ish theme
Without a doubt, now that I'm two weeks into the project, it is true that "practice makes perfect."
It feels a little less daunting to get started on something when I sit down to it, and design ideas flow rather more freely because I'm getting used to the idea that I'm going to paint a rock everyday.
It shouldn't be too long before I start in on the previously mentioned commission for that ladies retreat in May.
Building the pattern with white
As I continue to work on this stone, I realized how much I have gotten into making only stones with very strong colors. I found myself repeatedly backing off from wanting to add either some bright red or maybe some vibrant purple here.
I refrained, and I'm glad I did!
A second double set of white; turning out to actually be quite striking!
In a way, this was another stone that came together at the very end, and I had actually felt somewhat "middling" about it for most of the painting process, in the end I actually love it! I just one of the better pieces I have done in a very long time.
Sometimes it is a wise thing not to overdo and over decorate something. The final painted stone is in the top photo on the page.
Now it heads off to the drying shelf for a while. I actually am building quite a nice little collection, there!
Day 14 Summary and Social Media Bits:
One stone painted: Whereas I am very happy with today's work, it was far more than I should have taken on for a day. Much smaller scale, tomorrow!
Daily Twitter/X post: Fail. Giving myself a hall pass on this, and the other social media bits because I spent so much time creating!
Daily Facebook Page post: Fail. Out of time.
Daily Instagram post: Fail. Out of time.
Other Stuff: As usual, this Hive post; otherwise nothing... too much time went to painting. Daily shoutout to @gillianpearce!
Day 14 completed; went fairly well, from a creative standpoint. However, I need to re-balance what I am doing here, as much of my original objective here was to focus on improving my social media game, and that's the part I repeatedly don't seem to get around to. Feeling some resistance there, and I need to sit with that, for a bit.
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If you enjoy painted rocks, do check out The Hive Rocks Project and help spread the word about Hive, while also being creative!
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2024.03.04 AS-TXT-211/179
Great to hear you're getting into the idea that you're going to paint a rock everyday.
Regardng the social media aspect . . . would it be an idea to just focus on one platform, whichever is easiest for you, and once you've gotten into the habit of posting to that one, then add another one? It might not seem so daunting.