Lesley Riley | Artist Success

Down Under: Part Deux

Lesley Riley — Tue, 01 May 2012 12:42:00 +0000

My Time in Australia

With Trish Seggebruch in front of the Melbourne Museum

‘Ello Mate. I was down under just long enough to adopt a few of the words and customs into my everyday vocabulary. There’s the rubbish bin instead of trash can – something required in every class room. The reminder to offer the class a tea break. Breaky = breakfast, Capsicums = red peppers, chemist for drugstore, lolly is candy, and tomato sauce, not ketchup. I love the self-serve water at the cafes and the fact that no one tries to rush you out or brings you the check.

First order of business was to meet up with my artist Success client and friend, Trish Seggebruch. What are the odds the two of us would be in the same town at the same time? Pretty slim, so we couldn’t let that pass us by. The museum was located on the same plaza as the Royal Exhibition Building where the AQC show took place, which was 2 blocks form our hotel – such an ideal setting, and as you can see, ideal weather.

AQC Entrance Display

The first thing I saw when I walked into the exhibition building was the huge show entrance panel graced by my art. I was blown away. I was a total surprise and made me feel very welcome.

I had 2 days of classroom teaching and 2 days of demos on the show floor for Cecile Whatman of Unique Stitching. Cecile is a moving force behind mixed media fiber art in Australia and I am deeply grateful to her for the opportunity to come and share it with the Aussies, not once, but twice!

Yes, it really was a blur

I was TAP, TAP, TAPPING all weekend mixed with a little Lutradur for added fun. I love to see people’s faces light up with the possibilities of TAP. When one woman found out she could watercolor paint on it and transfer her paintings to fabric she hugged me and said I had changed her life. Only another artist can understand that feeling of finding out how to bring a an art idea or vision to life.

You can make time too! FREE lecture transcript at LesleyRiley.com

After class on Friday I gave my wildly popular lecture on finding time for making quilts/art – this time it came with a gorgeous slide presentation made on my new MAC.

Another highlight was having people come up to me the rest of the weekend saying how some of the things I shared really hit home with them. The bottom line is, if I can find time for art, then anyone can, because lord knows I’ve got a very full plate.

I have a very bad habit of being too caught up in my classes to take any photos of the beautiful and often inventive work of my students. I think they were upset by that from the looks of what happened at the end of class on Sunday.

Enraged students?

Next up – a post on our last day in Australia.

The beautiful Royal Exhibition Building where it all took place.

Bragging Rights

Lesley Riley — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:40:16 +0000

Reese McCeney Crawford

I warned you about this…Grandma photos and gushing. So here she is, Reese McCeney Crawford. She arrived at 4:38 PM on April 24, 2012, at lightening speed in less than two hours after Mom got to the hospital. Am I ever glad we had that conversation at 1 PM when I said you better go. She showered and they left around 2. Samantha was determined to have an all natural birth and yes, she did it! Lucky for her that it was such a speedy delivery.

I am off in a few to go see her again today. Adding one more granddaughter to my brood of 6 is a blessing. Makes me think of the movie 7 Brides for 7 Brothers. Let me see, that brings my little Riley clan to 18. And next September 2013 it’ll be 19 when Chris gets married to his fiance, Jena, his middle school sweetheart. All good, all good. I am definitely living the Life of Riley.

Big sister Riley & Reese

My daughter with daughter

Down Under Days

Lesley Riley — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 14:55:41 +0000

Walk with me into the land Down Under where fall is in the air.

A scenic stop in New Zealand

In case you haven’t heard, I was in New Zealand, and then Australia for the 1st half of April. 1/2 business, 1/2 pleasure. But it was all a pleasure because I was traveling with the one I love. In fact we flew home on our anniversary, slid into our very own bed at 1 AM and slept a deep and sound 12 hours. In the last leg of the flight across the US, I asked Buddy if he would do it again, knowing now how hard the travel is. He said “No.” And then a couple of days later he said he had spoken too soon. He learned what I have known since my first trip in 2007 – it’s worth every air mile. I liken it to having a baby. During labor and delivery you think it’s the last time you’ll ever do this again. But then the reward is so great you forget the pain and only remember the good thing and the gift you have received for your efforts. Traveling Down Under is just like that. And speaking of babies, granddaughter #7 is just 2 days away. She’s a week late so my daughter will be induced for a Wednesday delivery. Warning! There will soon be a new grandma post with lots of photos and gushing.

Our first destination with to visit my NZ sister, Wendy Cooper. Wendy graciously opened her home to Nina Bagley & I on our first trip to NZ. Whenever we see each other we pick up right where we left off, whether it’s a year or 2. Wendy & Graeme are excellent hosts. I consider my time there my home away from home.

Then & Now

Our time there was way to short, but we were able to take a return trip to one of my favorite places, The Mount, (Mount Maunganui, a town in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand). It’s a lovely mountain peak along the coast with an encircling walking path. It was Easter Sunday and quite busy. I stopped for a photo op in the same gnarled tree root alcove where Nina took a photo of me in 2007. (I think I am improving with age, lol.)

Come to think of it, this whole visit to NZ was a revisit to places I love. I wanted Buddy to see what I fell in love with. I visited The Millhouse in 2007. It belongs to another NZ friend, Lea Chapmanand was constructed by her husband from recycled materials – just what Buddy loves. So off we went.

Casting a long shadow with Buddy, Graeme and the harbour in the distance

From there we went to the Auckland Harbour and the quaint, historic seaside village of Devonport. The shadows were long and the views outstanding. We enjoyed afternoon tea in the New Zealand Naval Museum cafe. Yes, we did “guy stuff.” He even got to play dress-up at the museum.

My very own officer & a gentleman

It was early to bed for us Monday night because we had a 6 AM flight to Australia the next day. The lovely airport smack-dab across the street from the Auckland airport was state-of-the-art new but their restaurant had over an hour wait for dinner so we crossed the street and ate our last meal in NZ at the only option available – McDonalds. A very anti-climatic way to end such a wonderful experience in a country I love so much. I’ll just have to come back another time!

And I hope you will come back too, for Part 2 of my down under adventure – Australia. See you soon!

Who Do You Think You Are?

Lesley Riley — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 13:26:45 +0000

Remember when kids would say that any time you tried to strike out on your own or march to the beat of a different drummer? And what did you do, carry on or retreat? If you were one to carry on, I commend you! Me, I retreated back to the pack. I was certainly not the leader of the pack, but neither was I a loyal follower. I did want to stand out, to be different. But more importantly, I want to be liked. I lived in fear of being labeled an act-so-greater and losing all my friends.

What’s in a name after all? Thankfully we all grow up and outgrow such childish fears and behaviors, the fear of standing out or being labeled. Or are you an artist who’s afraid to call yourself an artist. Those same childhood fears rear their ugly heads when it’s time to tell people that you are an artist. Uh oh, I’m going to be judged, people will want me to prove it, I’ll have to gulp, show them my work!

The thing is, those childhood fears are as far from the truth as your playground days. People are fascinated by artists. They don’t want to put you in your place, they want to be in your place. The conversation goes something like this:

Them – “You’re so talented. I could never do anything like that.”

You – “Oh, no, I’m not really that good, I just like to make things.”

Them – “Oh, yes you are! I wish I could do what you do.”

You – “No, it’s nothing, really.”

Why are you reluctant to call yourself an artist? I think you fear that people will automatically assume you are really good at what you do when you call yourself an artist, actor, singer etc. Calling yourself an artist, especially when you have no piece of paper (i.e. a degree) to back it up, leaves you vunerable. It sounds like you think you are really good at what you do, and deep down you don’t believe that.

If you remember my last post, Your Most Important Art Supply, we artists rarely feel confident about the art we make. Calling yourself an artist is inviting people to take a look. It’s a courageous act that not everyone has the guts to do – to share your dreams, your inner passions, be nakedly exposed.

Throw caution to the wind and wear the ARTIST label proudly. Why? You are what you do, not how well you do it. The first chef to leave Top Chef is no less a chef. The teacher who graduated last in her class is no less a teacher. Art comes in all shapes, sizes, materials and yes, quality. And it’s true, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Armed with the desire and courage to create, you are already a success.

By calling yourself an artist, you are also stepping in to your destiny. You are becoming what you desire. You’re owning it, baby. There’s a saying, act as if. Act as if you already are what you want to be, and in doing so, you will become the person/artist you want to be. When you believe in yourself, others will believe in you as well.

So I ask you, who do you think you are?

Forty-One

Lesley Riley — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:01:01 +0000

41 years ago today I stood on the altar of Blessed Sacrament church with my soulmate and exchanged vows. Today, right now we are on an airplane returning home from a most wonderful and serendipitous 12-day trip to Australia and New Zealand. Serendipitous because without my art, my teaching, this trip never would have happened.

41 years, 6 children, 7 granddaughters, 3 apartments, 3 homes and 29 years of self-employment. Dare I say, “We breed SUCCESS.”

High-school sweethearts who just couldn’t wait, the summer of 70, between high-school and college, we did what Tara & Phil did that summer on All My Children – we married ourselves and exchanged vows. A prelude to our official ceremony.

Unlike Tara and Phil, (“They were meant to be together. They longed to be together! But in All My Children’s first major love story, a labyrinth of complications threatened to keep teenage sweethearts, Phillip Brent and Tara Martin far apart,” ) nothing has kept us apart. Sure, they all said it wouldn’t last. Young marriages seldom do. But we knew…we KNEW. And I think it is safe to say now, we were right. Happily ever after….

That young girl/woman in the picture never dreamed she could be an artist. Wife and mother were her goals. But wife & mother didn’t quite fulfill that longing to be an artist. That girl/woman needed to create something that was hers and hers alone. It simmered and stewed until shortly before child #6, it birthed itself. And just as children do, it grew and blossomed and flourished.

My art career, my travels, my success – none of it would have happened without the support and love of this boy/man that I fell in love at first sight with 44 years ago. When I was offered the opportunity to return to Australia to teach for a 4th time, my first question was, “Can I bring my husband?” I figured it was about time he shared the fruits of my success. (Although he did go to Italy with me.)

So here we are. somewhere over the Pacific ocean, or perhaps already back in the US winging our way across the country to home. We left Australia yesterday, April 17, 2012 and return home 30 hours later on April 17, 2012. A double day. How many people get a double 41st anniversary? Just our luck. I told you we breed success. Lucky in love. Living the Life of Riley.

I’m shootin’ for another 41 years. I love you, Buddy.

Charmed in Charm City

Lesley Riley — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 17:45:01 +0000

A post from from April 2007 in anticipation of our anniversary

Inspired by Rodin’s ”The Thinker”, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking this week. Well trying to at least. That’s one of the reasons I am taking next year off from teaching. Right now the life I lead leaves me no time to think. And I used to love doing it. You know, the quiet, deep-thoughts, planning time, musing on what you’ve read, day-dreaming, contemplating life kind of thinking.

Of course I do think ~ all the time in fact. But it’s always thinking about class prep, travel, which thing to do when to increase my multi-tasking productivity. Thinking, with a capital T cannot be done while multi-tasking. Speaking of thinking, my husband dreamed up the ideal day for us to celebrate our 36th wedding anniversary. He has recently been doing a lot of appraisals in Baltimore, about an hours drive north. In between appointments he noses around and then comes home and tells me about his day. My remark is often, “I’d love to do that.” So last weekend while I was teaching in Chicago, he told me he had the day all planned out for us.

Now this was really a first, he planned the day, not me. The planning was the best gift, whether we ended up going or not. Knowing that he planned this day for me, for us, made my heart sing. After doing 2 appraisals, we went to lunch at Gertrude’s, a fabulous restaurant in the Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA). Just looking at the menu gave me chills of delight. Lunch was followed by a quick stroll through the museum because I was eager to move on to the highlight of the day

As I sit writing this today, it is warm and sunny here in DC. Wednesday was a cold, windy and very cloudy day in Charm City. I always thought Baltimore’s nickname went waaaay back, but the phrase “Charm City” first appeared in 1975 in a series of advertisements in the Baltimore Evening Sun. The ads were designed to inspire Baltimore residents to visit attractions normally frequented by tourists. Advertising executives may have thought the nickname up, but it has stuck. And on this day, the city (and a certain someone) was certainly charming me.

Don’t Just Think – Do!

Lesley Riley — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:22:18 +0000

If you went to Catholic school in the 50s will remember this book. For those that did not have the pleasure let me fill you in. It was a workbook to accompany our basic readers, the Dick & Jane books. But wait; let me back up a bit. On the first day of first grade when I saw the word LOOK on the flip chart, I honestly felt like I had been given the keys to the kingdom. I thought reading was pure magic and the fact that I was actually going to learn how to do it – well, let’s just say, I didn’t feel that level of joy again until I had my babies.

Back then, God forbid (and really, God forbid, according to the nuns) we should write in our books. But the Think-and-Do Book, that was mine and mine alone to make marks, color and delight in. It was only my fear of the nuns stopped me from running home to complete all 77 pages that first day. That whole concept, THINK and DO has stuck with me ever sense and I still feel the same thrill I did 50-some years ago each time I pull it off the shelf.

It’s a blessing really, to be able to think and do. But sadly, so many of us just spend all our time thinking. The doing has gone by the wayside. You are so full of grand ideas, a plethora of what-ifs and an unending supply of “wouldn’t it be cools…..” Ideas abound but taking action, well, maybe tomorrow. You’re stuck in THINK and you need to DO.

Amelia Earhart said, “The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the procedure, the process is its own reward.”

We worry so much about being wrong, making the wrong decision, gluing something in the wrong spot, that we do nothing. Bottling up all your creativity along with all your unfulfilled desire can actually make you sick. So what’s the remedy? DO.

What would happen if you DO?
What would happen if you don’t?

What could you create if you DO?
What could you create if you don’t?

What do you have to show the world if you THINK?
What do you have to show the world if you DO?

Thinking is lovely, don’t get me wrong. One of the pleasures in life is to just sit and think.

Warning: A certain inertia sets in when you sit and think too long.

Even the great thinkers in history did the DO – they wrote their thoughts down to share with the world. To live, to create is to both THINK and most importantly, DO.

I know I’m not saying anything new here, but for some reason it’s a message, not only worth repeating, but one that needs repeating – over and over. Nike’s “Just do it” is part of our culture. It’s the simplest yet hardest thing to DO. Look at just a few might people who have shared their wisdom on the power of DO:

Determine never to be idle. No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing. Thomas Jefferson

Things won are done, joy’s soul lies in the doing. William Shakespeare

I have been absolutely terrified every moment of my life and I’ve never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do. Georgia O’Keefe

Do not be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Action is the foundational key to all success. Picasso

Your life will be no better than the plans you make and the action you take.

You are the architect and builder of your own life, fortune, destiny. Alfred A. Montapert

Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit. Conrad Hilton

Knowledge is not power. Knowledge is only potential power. Action is power.
Anthony Robbins

The most effective way to do it, is to do it. Amelia Earhart

Why so many quotes? I am trying to make a point here. But more importantly, I put them here for you. Print them. Cut them out and post everywhere as reminders to DO. Will you DO that for me? I guarantee it will change your life.

Falling/Flowing

Lesley Riley — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 14:02:33 +0000

A post from FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2007 which seems appropriate because where I am right now (Down Under) we are heading into fall.

It is finally fall here.After weeks of 80-90 degree days, the rain and cool temps have descended. Red, russet and golden leaves carpet my walk. Sweaters have come out of the closet and the cool, damp air is breathed deep into my lungs. I have always loved the fall. I associate it with of one of my favorite memories throughout grade school….the day they handed out the textbooks at school. No matter how much I ended up dreading those boring textbooks and the assignments they produced when the school year was in full throttle, on that first day, first week even, they were magical tomes full of knowledge and mystery. Their heft, their smell, whether new, old or used, I viewed them as keys to the mystery. Within their pages were things that grown-ups knew. The knowledge was being handed out piecemeal, year after year, page by page, to my eager little mind.

I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED learning – still do. My all time favorite was the Think and Do workbook series. I wanted to rush home and complete the whole book that first day, yet being a good Catholic student, I followed the rules and only did one assignment at a time. Imagine - think and then do. How simple, how true. We do it every day. At least we should – think before doing, that it.

I felt the same way when I stepped into the Bethesda library – a building full of books that I expected I would eventually read, yes, each and every one of them. To my young eyes it looked doable. The library opened in November 1952, the month and year I was born. As I grew, it grew. Soon they began to fill the study tables with books, then they moved the Children’s book section to a smaller area (we were small people), then they announced they were building a new library. Then the new library was remodeled to enclosed more space for more books. In other words, the number of books increased exponentially. As I grew, I understood that I would never get to them all. Ha! I can barely get to any of them right now. Another reason I am taking time off.

So back to fall. Last weekend I flew home from St. Louis on a route that took me over the mountains of West Virginia. I don’t know why, but it was the first time I had seen the fall leaves from this vantage point. A gorgeous carpet of russet and gold hues woven together in a tapestry. The further north I got, the greener it became. I followed the Potomac River as it wound its way, ribbon-like through the mountains and down to our Nation’s Capitol. Crossing the river yesterday on my way home from visiting my parents in Virginia, I realized just how close I live to the river. Just shy of 3 miles. The very same river my ancestors sailed and traded on back in the 1600s. Back in the day, I stepped into this river at Colonial Beach, even swam in its waters. Now, sadly, it is too polluted to swim in.

You could not step twice into the same rivers; for other waters are ever flowing on to you. ~ Heraclitus. Do I want to step into the same river? I do want those fall feelings again. I want to be that wide-eyed girl again, with dreams of reading all the books, gaining all the knowledge. I do so enjoy thinking. But the other half of the equation is to DO. Now that I have grown, I realize that it is no good to only think, one must do. Learning, living life comes from the doing. And I have learned that there is as much knowledge to acquire by doing is there is by thinking. More perhaps.

Of course I still plan to curl up by the fire with a good book. One cannot always be doing. Life must balance out. I think the key is to always be eager and open to the ebbs and flows of life, the winding of the river. To be that eager child desiring to one day know it all. To be as a child, to be a beginner. One can always be a beginner.

If the angel deigns to come it will be because you have convinced her, not by tears but by your humble resolve to be always beginning; to be a beginner. ~ Rilke

Eggs Everywhere

Lesley Riley — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 18:20:42 +0000

Everything old is new again. Orginally published WEDNESDAY, MAY 24, 2006

I am seeing eggs everywhere. They keep reminding me that today is a beginning. And so is tomorrow, and the next day, and the one after that. I just finished watching a great movie last night, one I had never heard of –

The Prize Winner of Definace, Ohio. It’s a true story based on a book her daughter wrote. Check it out – or read the book. But Julianne Moore does an excellent job in the movie. It just hit the right chord with me – it’s about being creative, being optimistic. It’s about the lack of opportunities our mothers endured. That is, if you are a baby-boomer, of course. Well, it’s time for me to get into the studio.

This Bird has Flown

Lesley Riley — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 13:55:49 +0000

I chose to repost this May, 2006 blog entry today as I am now flying off to Australia. This bird has indeed flown!

MONDAY, MAY 22, 2006

This Bird has Flown

This weekend I drove to Philly. While I was there I learned to fly.

My weekend with the Oiseaux Sisters, Susan Andrews and Carolyn Fellman, was exactly what this weary traveler needed – a chance to explore, to renew, to discover and to refill. The Sisters are strong, yet gentle, powerful yet unassuming – the perfect women to teach you how to fly. I walked in the door of Ellen Carver’s Crafts for Living Gallery, and shed the Lesley Riley we all know in order to rediscover the Lesley Riley that has gotten buried over the last few years. Don’t get me wrong – I love what I do and the opportunities that it has afforded me….but I had not stopped to take any discovery time for myself in such a long time. The time to explore without an agenda, a deadline, a committment.

I arrived late on Friday because of the rush hour traffic, so everyone was waiting for me and it was hard to slip in quietly. (I never like to draw attention to myself.) I wanted to be incognito this weekend, to step away from fabric and play with other media, ideas and inspiration.

There was a series of exercises to help us hone in on what we needed to be focusing on in our art lives. It was so exciting to experience how abstract play led me to focused work….something I know and teach/preach, but rarely do. (I know – practice what I preach).What emerged was this egg shape. I have always been drawn to it; I think it is a universal symbol and part of our collective consciousness, but I have never explored it. And I truly stumbled upon it through the series of exercises we were doing. Over the weekend, I worked from the abstract to the realistic, using this shape as a metaphor for what I was experiencing – both breaking out of my shell and beginnings. It wasn’t until the very end when we did our sharing and walk-through that I also made the connection of oiseaux (french for bird) and egg.

I was also able to draw energy and inspiration from the wonderful and VERY talented workshop participants. Philadelphia is a hotbed of artistic and fun women. We made plans for me to return and explore their scene. I also had wonderful talks with Ellen about her plans for the gallery and future workshops and exhibits. The fact that some women stayed until 11:30 pm on Saturday night and others (including me) showed up extra early on Sunday, made Ellen’s heart take flight. Her vision was becoming a reality. I hope she will soon get a website and expand her workshop offerings. Then others can share in the magic of taking flight. And if you cannot make it to Philly, or a workshop with the Sisters, just arrange for your own flight lessons…go into your studio and play. Play until you feel your wings flutter, unfold and lift you up into the sky. I’ll see you up here.

It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad.
~ C.S. Lewis