Hi, I’m Odessa!

and i want to encourage you to use art to reduce stress, have fun and to heal.

I want to encourage people to creatively express themselves and give voice to feelings through art.
I know firsthand that taking time to check in with ourselves and our feelings can get neglected when life becomes too busy and stressful. We all feel daily stressors that come from raising children, work, financial stress, health issues, finding the time to nurture our relationships, and more recently, all while navigating a global pandemic. And if we as adults are feeling these stressors, how are our children doing?

Feeling too much stress at home

I also know what it’s like to feel stress in the home as a child. While I did not have to contend with a pandemic, I did feel the repercussions of my parents’ stress and anxiety and, unfortunately, soaked it up like a sponge. And since my parents didn’t handle stress all that well, I found it challenging to express my feelings in constructive and positive ways as a child.

Discovering Art and Creativity at My Grandparent’s House

Somewhere within that stress at home as a child, I discovered art and creativity, and my whole world opened up. My greatest influence came from spending time with my grandparents, Frank and Marilee. Their home completely inspired me! It was filled with art, beautiful interior decor, fresh flowers, good music, and a variety of creative projects going at all times. My grandpa Frank’s colorful palette knife paintings adorned every wall in their home, from landscapes and architectural scenes to hand-made frames that perfectly complemented each piece. If my grandfather wanted something that didn’t exist, he’d make it, from bookshelves to a custom turntable cabinet to my dollhouse with furniture. This, for me, demonstrated the power of inspiration and creativity.

My grandma, Marilee, was equally creative. She had a unique and superior eye for interior design, creating beauty through her choice of furniture and decor. In addition, she was an amazing seamstress, needleworker, and knitter. She would always be engaged in a creative project, and she inspired my creativity as a result. I found refuge from the stresses of my home life at my grandparents’ house. While I had trouble finding an outlet to express myself at home, I became inspired by the art and creativity I felt in my grandparents’ home.

Inspired by Art and Creativity

I loved my art classes in school. I also enjoyed working on various counted cross stitch needlework projects. I was so excited when my mother taught me to sew sometime around 7th grade. I made clothing, pillows, curtains and began decorating my room. I remember one failed project, building a piece of furniture out of sticks, following a plan from a book I found in the local library. It didn’t work out so well, but it was an exciting project to try. Building my own furniture is still on my “Bucket List!” 🙂

I felt empowered by creativity, and when I left home for college, I studied interior design which I really enjoyed. After working in the field for a while in both residential and commercial interior design, I stayed home to raise my children. I loved volunteering in their art classes at school as they were growing up! I was part of the Art Volunteer In the Classroom program (AVIC) and loved introducing the children to different famous artists and art techniques when I’d come in to teach an art class. Nothing made me happier than encouraging their creative self-expression. As my own children grew, I decided to go back to school for elementary art education. I finished my art requirements, but then a lot of “life” got in the way.

Using Art to relax, reduce stress and have fun

The stress and overwhelm in my life began to grow as I faced several difficult life circumstances at once. In addition, I was dealing with resurfacing negative emotions from my past. I started therapy and decided I needed to take more time for myself to get in touch with and express my feelings about the things going on in my life on a regular basis. Talking things out was incredibly helpful, but I found talking about my stress wasn’t always enough for me, so I turned to using art and creativity to help. I started to paint, sew, make art collages and journal. It was all helping me relax, reduce stress and have fun. Then things really shifted for me when I found these incredible Art4Healing® therapeutic art classes. Taking the classes was a very healing process for me.

Using the Art4Healing® method to reduce stress and deal with difficult emotions

I had previously learned of the organization called Art & Creativity for Healing, founded by Artist Laurie Zagon, who created therapeutic art courses that would help people suffering from pain, grief, stress, and loss. These classes sounded like something I would really enjoy. I was excited to create the regular time and space for myself to express the feelings inside that I sometimes felt too busy or overwhelmed to deal with. Taking these classes would force me to carve out some much-needed time for myself, time to destress, and get in touch with my feelings. I took many classes that helped me with both my present and past stressors. The classes helped me express, process, and let go of many challenging and stressful emotions that I was holding in my mind, body, and spirit. I always felt transformed after taking a class. I felt more in touch with myself and better able to express my feelings about the things that had happened in my past and the things going on in my life. I felt more clear about the positive things I wanted in my life. I felt happier and freer from the burdens that these negative emotions were causing. Taking the time to do regular Art4Healing® classes has been a very therapeutic and healing practice for me.

I want you to experience Art4Healing® classes for yourself!

Because I loved this process so much, I knew I had to get certified to teach Art4Healing® classes to others. In addition to encouraging others to use art and creativity for their own enjoyment, I want to help others therapeutically use art and creativity to promote healthy and constructive ways to deal with life’s many stresses and find outlets for self-expression. I offer Art4Healing® therapeutic art classes for all ages, and because I know how much art and creativity helped me as a child, I also offer art classes for kids for fun and enrichment.