Detail of an embroidered piece: several small hands or paws outlined in stitching on cloth.

Jim and I were in the kitchen talking about the song "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" by Bachman-Turner Overdrive. Jim was telling me that no one was ever supposed to hear that song because the band recorded it as a joke. But when their producer heard it, he knew it would be a hit.

This anecdote struck me because when I think about my work as an artist and the times I try to make something happen on purpose, it falls flat. When I goof around and play with paint or fabric or whatever medium I'm using, it usually clicks.

I try to remember this lesson whenever I'm staring at a blank page to start something new. Just start, have fun, be curious, and see where things go. It's the best way (for me) to get into the flow and make art.

- Michelle

What I'm Working On

Don't Eat Lily — watercolor painting of a lily bulb on green-gold ground

I am working on a series of poisonous flowers in watercolor. Lily is an experiment with watercolor ground on canvas. I'm loving the looseness and luminosity. There are a few more flowers in the works and I'll share them with you in a future email, or you can see them, and other things I'm doing, over at Instagram.