Thank you so much!!

Thank you so much 😀 Gotta stay persistent! 💕

That’s right! ❤

I'm so glad it resonated with you! I was shaking with anxiety my first night editing this and almost walked away from the video entirely. But really happy I didn't. The path away was a long and meandering one but really glad i found it! 💕

Thank you and welcome back!!! Glad you’re here and making once again!

Hell yeah! Soooo pumped for this. Can't wait to help people map out their Art Businesses and dream BIG next weekend.

Thank you so much 😊! So glad I could inspire you! :)

thank you! I'm challenging myself to prioritize them more. Mother Nature really is the best!

Thank you!

Yeah! Anxiety and perfectionism are two big ones but it’s amazing how that time being in nature can transform you to be in awe in a different way again! Good luck getting out there and blooming!

@@s.terris9537 aw thanks and Hello fellow Bay Area human! Watercolor is great isn’t it? Working in a book offers a lot of fun advantages to experiment with and I love the narrative that unintentionally comes from it!

Thank you!💕

Yeah! Knowing how to reach help in distress is so key. I hiked part of the PCT yesterday and had to help someone back flush their water filter because it failed. So many things can go wrong that overpreparing and carrying too much is always better than not enough!

at least you were able to help them tho 🙂 (but people shouldnt rely on someone randomly showing up that can help) if a person can carry it (or someone else in the hiking party can), its always better to have more supplies/rood/water etc on a hike (and extra socks can be a good idea, can always use them as hand warmers if needed 😝)

This this this! We always bring “too much” but it feels good to be prepared. I used my extra socks as mittens during a really cold hike earlier this year! Hilarious but super useful.

extra socks just make sense, and so many uses if a person is creative enough 😄

Thank you! It was super spooky but seriously worth the adventure!!

Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed! I love bringing my teaching spirit out here!

Thank you! I have been looking into print on demand book options for them! Stay tuned!

Hey Tina! Thanks for this comment! Hope you can get to California someday it’s pretty special. I’m glad that art is providing a safe refuge for you! It is truly transformative. 💕I’ll continue to share more about my LC and I’m glad you can relate, but also sad that you are dealing with something similar. Stay gentle with yourself! I’m glad you’re here!

Glad it was helpful!

You are so welcome! Enjoy adventuring!

Amazing! I'm so glad you've got a great recipient! Congrats on retirement and getting out to draw! Bad paintings are great teachers :) I love your attitude that youre working up towards your goals. Its all in meeting our bodies and minds where we are at and slowly (but surely) carving out what we need! :)

Hey, this is a great question and I'm happy to answer. The short: LOTS of time, training, self compassion, and steroids. I take a corticosteroid twice a day which helps manage my symptoms but sometimes, its just no match and I gotta bail. Electrolytes have REALLY helped me manage on longer stretches. When my sodium drops too low i end up with lots of swelling and pain. It really has come down to gradual and incremental steps and adding a tiny bit, little by little. Went from really short 2 mile hikes to the 10 milers I'm at now. I have switched doctors a bunch in the last year and have a better grasp on my symptoms. That being said, I still have very bad low spoon days. Strava has been a helpful app in managing because it gives you this "fitness score" to help you realize when training has been too dialed up and when to dial it back! Hope this helps and good luck in gradually moving towards more!

@@MelMitchJackArt Thank you so much for replying! I'm still in the middle of figuring out my symptoms and where they're coming from, and because I don't have a clear diagnosis (yet?) I find it hard to pace myself because I feel like I should be able to do [insert activity] without problems. But I'm learning to take smaller steps and also give myself some grace instead of pushing myself far beyond my limits. Thanks for your tips! Also, love your art btw! :)

@@puckvanrooij No worries! and thank you for the compliment! So much of having Long Covid has been totally rewiring my brain around those "i should" statements. It's so hard. I was training for a 100 mile bike ride right before i got hit with covid, i dont know if ill ever actually do one of those but the fact that i can ride and hike again AT ALL feels like an achievement. Each time that i slow down and just meet my body where it is every day has helped me slowly start to bounce back. Its been 2.5 years since my initial infection. Hopefully you get some guidance soon but just remember those short moments of outside time are so so so valuable even if they are small!

Thank you! These rocks are super amazing and I can’t wait to go back! 😊

Thanks Sarah! I love this question! I actually know quite a bit about Mount Diablo, as its spring waterfalls are one of my favorite Bay Area hikes, well worth the trek and elevation climb to see them. :) Most of California was colonized by the Spanish in the 1800s and they gave it the name after being spooked by shadowy figures they witnessed haunting them in a willow thicket. Some stories say they were "witches" others have different interpretations. The Bay Miwok people living on the land call it Oo'-yum- bel'-le. It has some of the most fascinating geology too! I appreciate your concern for my safety! I do always keep a locator of some sort on me. My phone has one built in now (thank goodness) but it surely makes me braver to do more challenging trails far from cell service. As far as your question about everything being in the same sketchbook, I say no way! That rule totally wouldn't work for me and I would want to draw different shiny beautiful things. There sure have to be artists disciplined to only fill a sketchbook with houses, but I'm not one of them. Play > rigid structures any day!

Thanks Robbie! Hope you find this helpful with your art adventures! Prompts and questions you ask yourself are such awesome reminders for what we are doing and why we're doing it when showing up to practice feels tough! Hello from California!

Thank you for this generous comment, Robbie!! So happy to hear that you're returning to art and planning to pack a backpack of gear to bring out with you 💕 Let me know if you have specific questions about life drawing, its one of my favorite things to teach and happy to share tips in an upcoming video! Happy Adventuring!

Thank You for replying Mel, appreciate the feedback 💜

oh for sure! That palette is a custom one I created from Case for Making! They are handmade watercolors that are such a treat to use. I primarily use my gouache palette in the sketchbook and I'm happy to share that palette too! For that gorgeous neon palette you see here though, Here are the colors: CfM Coral, CfM Fuchsia, Fluorescent Magenta, CfM Lupine, Mineral Violet, Ultramarine Pink, Silver, Ultramarine Blue Light, Cerulean, CfM Lime, CfM Meadow, CfM Cypress Green, Blue Ridge Violet Hematite (my favorite brown of all time!), and CfM Paynes Grey. I got this set when I was feeling super uninspired and wanted to paint again. Soooo glad i did!

Thank you, Mel, for taking the trouble to specify everything! Completely agree about the brown (I’ve always loved the egg-planty ones best). And some of the other colours are superb, as well. As I’ve only just started out, it seems a bit eccentric 💃🏻 to have handmade watercolours shipped from the US to Germany but if I’m still at it in six months I’ll reconsider - and let you know. Promise!

PS: best of luck for your business. May you find happiness in it AND be able to make a living from it!

@@MentalHealthMatters_1st oh! awesome. If you are just starting out i would recommend Daniel Smith watercolors OR since you are in Germany, Kremer! They are based in Germany and that's the supplier Case for Making sources for their pigments. One of their small primary sets would be a wonderful place to start. Best thing you can buy as a beginner is a set of 3 primaries with some white gouache. I'm working on some videos about this concept at the moment but James Gurney has quite a bit on them as well. So much is possible with Azo Yellow, Ultramarine Blue, and Pyrrole Red!

hey thanks for this! I'll get it fixed. Redesigned my whole site at the start of June so need to work out some of the wacky edges Edit: fixed!

Aw thank you! It's been a fun journey so far and I can't wait to continue. Artist Markets/Makers Markets like that are exactly my favorite things to do. I love to bring my sketchbook to my booth and work while people shop.

Yes! Thank you! so glad i rescued it!

thanks! i love a good mid-mod but can also spend hours obsessing over the tiny details on a victorian! Homes are gorgeous portraits of how we choose to exist as humans! Enjoy drawing houses and glad i could inspire!

aw thanks! and yes, i always have one with me! the newer iPhones have a satellite locator beacon built in and it gives me sooooo much peace of mind!

i totally feel this! there are always SO many, BUT which are the favorites! :) i always focus on those first. good luck filling your sketchbook!

rocks ARE tricky and I think thats why I'm so into them. maybe i need to do a little rock painting tutorial sometime 🤔 For this is used the CMYK Primary set of Holbien Acrylagouache I actually think its the best gouache set for beginners because the acrylic polymer makes layering so easy!

Aw thank you and welcome! My sister is a science teacher so she rubs off on me a lot! I’m glad you appreciate me geeking out! As far as how long it takes me depends mostly on the day and how often I’ve been practicing with my materials. Rough estimate is between 40-90 mins on a single painting. Sometimes I paint a bit faster when using brush pens or simplifying forms! The first few pieces in this book were done as plein air paintings! I love that process and think it’s super magic. Thanks again!

Thank you! I want to do more nerdy videos on color charts! The palette I got it as a gift but I asked the gifter, came in a two pack on Amazon!

Oh wow! I never thought to use a water brush to try to blend them! Thanks for this!!!

Thank you for the kind words! That ability to surprise yourself with what you can accomplish through the simple things you have is so magic! When you say you find this to be too much as in, you feel like you still brought too much stuff? I super understand how challenging health problems and chronic illnesses can be for making time for your work. I have long covid! Stay gentle on yourself and cherish those moments you do have to make art.

thanks for watching! Inspiring others is the goal so this means a lot! 🥹 Good luck with your channel and dont give up!

Thanks so much! Text is super fun to use more! I’ve always loved text focused artists like Jenny Holzer and need to just let myself lean into it. What’s your favorite way to use text in your sketchbook?

Thanks so much Kris!! I gotta just keep going with those! 🙂

The self criticism is hard! I relate to that. Used to be an art critic until that started turning in on myself too much. Case for making is responsible for so many gratuitous paint and supply purchases! Their paper and paint are awesome.

@@MelMitchJackArt I love CfM so much - rivaled only by Arch for art supplies (but I’m biased because I work there). Have you ever been there?

@@JoyDiPaola Ah!!! You work there?! Incredible. I haven't been in person because it seems so dangerous... but next time I'm in the Richmond I'll have to stop by to say hi!

@@MelMitchJackArt Arch isn’t in the Richmond district. It’s in lower Potrero Hill in SF, 17th and Arkansas, close to the CCA campus. Not very dangerous at all. Yes, come say hi. It’s a great store. I swear I’m not biased. 😉

@@JoyDiPaola Hehe, dangerous for my wallet! I thought you meant you worked at CFM for a min (which i think is in the Richmond?!) But now im super excited to checkout Arch. I need to do part of the crosstown trail in SF soon so Arch will be on my list!

Thanks!

thank you!

Thank you so much 😊

thanks! pro tip, write down which brush you use on one of them as a hidden layer so you can keep it consistent design wise as your gallery grows! <3

@@MelMitchJackArt OMG that’s also genius!!

thank you so much! : ) teaching has always been my passion💕

Thank you so much! Putting tons of energy into making it great so this means a lot!!