Live By The Sun, Love By The Moon

I'm excited to finally finish this new painting! It began as a project for Mary Kate McDevitt's Skillshare class back in November. Things were too crazy over the holidays, so I was happy to finally have some time to work on it these past few weeks.

Watercolor & Ink © Rachel Beyer 2014

Prints are available in my Etsy shop!

Life Lately

It's been a while since I shared some of my day-to-day happenings here. If you follow my Instagram, then you have an idea :)

January has been a very reflective month for me. I've realized how much I love the New Year and spending time reflecting, resting and making new plans. 2013 was a very hard year for me and I am ready to give up the parts of my life that aren't working and try new things. The main issue has been battling my poor health. I've suffered from severe neck and back pain since last March (almost a year ago). There is no injury or specific trauma related to the pain. I've tried chiropractic and physical therapy and am still unable to heal completely. The smallest thing will cause a flair up and I will be stuck in bed with crippling pain for a week. (I'm in the midst of this now- all because I vacuumed my living room last Monday! ugh!)

Dealing with chronic pain for so long as really begun to take it's toll on me mentally. I've become less social, more emotional, highly sensitive and self critical. For the New Year I decided to be very intentional about the healing methods I choose from now on. To really listen to what my body is telling me and give it what it needs. To not look for outside solutions (which don't work for me anyway) but to look inward.

One of the things I've done is to start a tarot journal. I've always loved tarot cards but have never really studied tarot itself. At Christmas I treated myself to a beautiful new tarot deck by The Wild Unknown. Using the cards as visual prompts for journaling has been a lot of fun and very eye-opening.

James and I are starting Stephanie Perkinson's Deeply Rooted Winter Cleanse on Monday and I've signed up for a special Yoga for Back Care class on February 2nd. I'm hoping that paying more attention to my own body and being more in-tune with it's needs will help me find true healing this year.

Love & Cuteness Is In The Air!

There's So Mushroom In My Heart For You - 5x7 Card

I've been busy making these ADORABLE new cards for Valentine's Day. There were so fun to draw and paint and I'm excited to finally share them with you all today! These four hippie critters are sure to bring giggles and love to all your special someones this Valentine's Day. Available for sale in my Etsy shop now...

You Make Me So Hoppy - 5x7 Card

Hey Valentine, You're Foxy - 5x7 Card

This Kitten Loves You - 5x7 Card

If those didn't make you squeal, the mini Classroom Valentine versions will! The pink envelopes are SO tiny and cute! Each set includes 12 flat cards (3 of each design), 12 mini pink envelopes, and 12 matching stickers. Your kids will love handing out these unique cards to their school mates. Plus, if you're like me and are a kid at heart, you'll want to hand them out to your friends and coworkers too!

Available for sale in my Etsy shop >>

Classroom Valentines are handmade by me and are only available in a limited quantity, so be sure to snatch up your set soon from my Etsy shop! The last day to order in time for Valentine's Day is February 6.

Vintage Smartypants

Happy New Year! One of the many things on my to-do list for 2014 is to start a digital archive of my obsession with vintage paper. My collection of vintage gift wrap, in particular, has grown quite large over the past few years and since I refuse to stop buying it whenever I'm out thrifting, I thought starting a new blog to share them with the world would give the collection a purpose. So I give you my new blog, Vintage Smartypants!

I'm going to try to add new things to it every week (and not just gift wrap, but also my vintage craft magazines, greeting cards, stationery and more!) so be sure to follow me and reblog :)