Paints, Clay, Wine & Friends: A week of accidental art therapy

While I consider myself creative, I don’t consider myself to be artistic. That is unless you count the use of words to draw a picture, which I think I can do.  As a child I envied kids who could draw a house that consisted of more than a triangle over a rectangle, topped with a squiggly line to represent chimney smoke.

In 7th grade I took the only art class I would ever take, and only because it was required. One of the only assignments I didn’t totally suck at was one in which we were to sketch our shoes. My sketch, much to my surprise, actually looked like my shoe. I was so proud, that I still have the drawing somewhere in my archive of childhood memorabilia.  But even with the surprising success of that one project, my draw-envy remains.

As an adult, I’ve befriended several artists and am in constant awe at their talents and resigned myself to being a life of artmirer, simply an observer. But in the last week I got to be a participator, and you know what? Art not being a skill notwithstanding, painting and making clay pendants was the most relaxed I’d been in a long time.

Bottle & Botega – Paint & Wine
A few weeks ago, my friend Jen and I, in search for something different to do, booked ourselves into a painting and wine session at Bottle & Botega. A mere $35 covered a 1.5 hour class and materials. All we had to bring was our own bottle of wine.

The photo we were assigned seem simple enough, and the instructor and other staff were great, but my attention span and dislike of structure being what it is, I ventured on my own. Jen, a very meticulous and organized person, and not to mention talented artist even if she’ll deny it, went with the instructor’s flow to hone her skills. The difference in our personalities and skill levels were never more evident than in my impatience and refusal to follow instructions, and her attention to detail. Not to mention our results (the moon on mine is my addition).

Verde Wellness & Massage- Make your own pendant
My friend Cynthia and I planned a girls’ day and both having gone through a rough week with not feeling well and stress, thought this event would be a great way to relax on a Sunday afternoon. $15 provided the materials, snacks, sangria, as well as a complimentary hand scrub/massage. Having been in bed in pain most of Friday evening and practically all of Saturday, I appreciated the calm atmosphere and yet another chance to be creative.

With my days of clubbing and being up till all hours of the night being long over, a little therapy in the form of art, wine and good friends is just what the doctor ordered.