I've been noodling.
That's the technical term for what's been happening in the studio this week. And honestly? After the past few months, noodling is exactly what the doctor ordered.
Here's what just happened:
I launched the Woodland Creatures collection, completed over 160 lessons in my art course in a matter of weeks, and — in what I can only describe as a completely unhinged decision I made calmly and on purpose — redid my entire website.
All while keeping a small human alive, a household running, and some semblance of a 9-5 work schedule intact.
So yes. We are noodling now. Joyfully. Without apology.
No brief, no deadline, no collection I'm racing toward. Just me and the paint and a loose, happy sense of what if.
What if I did something food-related?
- Tablescapes, maybe.
- Summer produce, yes, love.
- Champagne and oysters/clams which, yes, absolutely counts as a food group in this house.
I have something forming in the back of my mind but I need to stretch my practice a little to see how I can actually make it happen.
Stay tuned. This is me telling you there's something coming while also committing to absolutely nothing.
A little summer studio intensive, if you will.
Inside My Studio
I've been thinking a lot about this reel I came across this week. When a storm rolls in, buffalo don't run away from it. They face it or walk straight into it. Same storm as every other animal in the field. But they get through it faster and spend less time in the rain.
Same circumstances. Different outlook.
And then I saw a version where one buffalo was just standing there enduring, while the other one was... prancing. Happy. Moving through the same storm everyone else was dreading. That video has been living in my head rent-free.
I always try to take the happy buffalo approach.
Internet went out halfway through a work day? Oh no, too bad, I've got to read my book uninterrupted for a while? Darn.
Building a side business in the spare hours? It means that if this grows, I'll know how to run a business in very minimal hours, which honestly is the goal.
So if you're going through something hard or in a season of monotony, lean into it. You might find a different perspective on the other side.
What I'm Cooking
I made Molly Yeh's salmon salad.
Kind of.
I made the dressing exactly per her instructions (genuinely delicious), did all the toppings, and quietly skipped the cream cheese balls rolled in everything bagel seasoning. Sorry, Nathan, if you're reading this and didn't notice they were missing.
We came back from the pool at 5pm on a Sunday, which meant dinner mode immediately.
Bonnie went for a bath with her new fizzies, I popped some trout (excellent salmon substitute) into the toaster oven at 280 degrees wrapped in parchment paper with salt and pepper. Showered quickly while it cooked, chopped the toppings, and it somehow came together. Bonnie ate an adult-sized portion of fish. We all felt good about our greens.
Next time, if there's time, I'll do the fancy cream cheese balls. We can't do all the things. Not right now.
On the make-ahead docket this week: broccoli cheese soup, hot dish, tahini chicken salad from my favorite cookbook.
What I’m Reading
I just finished Rites of the Starling — I thought I had the twist figured out from the beginning, and then the real shift hit me two-thirds of the way through, and then the final pages had me in actual tears. Cannot wait for the third book.
Up next in the reading department: making the ultimate shift from a book where the couples would do anything for one another, to Strangers, where the husband just up and leaves and announces an affair out of the blue. Whiplash? Possibly. Curious? Absolutely.
What Inspiring Me
Here's what I realized while I was reading: every single one of these stories I’ve loved is about a woman who looks around at the way things are and decides, quietly or loudly, that she's done going along with it. She bucks the system. She does the incredibly hard thing.
Bonus points when she also knocks a broody, hulking man on his ass along the way.
That mindset? That's exactly how this business started.
I went to the Masters and didn't like any of the artwork, so I made some myself. Can't bring a camera? Fine. There's nothing in the rulebook about a sketchbook and watercolors.
I wanted colorful, playful, happy prints for a nursery that weren't babyish. Couldn't find them, so I painted them.
Had a 9-to-5 with almost no creative time, so I built something on the side.
Be the happy, prancing buffalo.
If there's something you've been wanting that doesn't exist yet — a color, an animal, a scene you keep picturing on your wall — hit reply and tell me. I design with you in mind. Always have.
Coming up
I'm adding a shop by color section to the shop. Because I know we all start with a color story when we're designing a room — the mood, the feeling, the palette — and shopping should feel that way too. Select a color and everything shifts. All the pinks together, all the blues, the greens, the neutrals.
If there's a color you've been dying to see added, hit reply. Seriously.
Oh, and if you've been poking around and noticed things look a little different over at katiesinclairart.com, you're not imagining it. Fresh coat of paint around here. Come browse.
— Katie
P.S. I also reread Shield of Sparrows before diving into Rites of the Starling. Zero regrets, still a 5-star book the second time around. The bar for the third book is now extremely high and I am completely fine with that.
One more thing before I go — thank you. Truly.
The Woodland Creatures launch was everything I hoped it would be, and that's because of you.
I had grand plans to celebrate: a bottle of rosé bubbles, a proper bubble bath, a little toast to the squirrel who almost didn't make it into the painting.
Instead we all caught a cold, and the celebration was rest, zero bubbles, and we discovered GoodPops with electrolytes (10/10 will be consuming even not on sick days). But even from the couch, I felt it. Thank you for showing up for this one.
0 comments