Join me: painting in France!

If you’re reading this, then you’ve just eyeballed the first phase of my blog’s new look. I’m going for a life makeover too…

For starters, I’m off to my dream vacation: painting in Claude Monet’s garden. Yes, yes, yes! I am indeed talking about Giverny, the setting for his breathtaking water lilly murals.

The 10-day adventure also includes a few days in Honfleur, which is gorgeous too. This is a trip organized by the Art Students League of New York. I’m going because the marvelous Frank O’Cain is taking us there. Having done some abstract painting workshops with Frank, I know he’ll show me fresh ways of seeing and expressing myself.

Blogging from France is another odyssey. Since I’m hauling a portable easel, paints, brushes, paper and more crap than I ever knew existed, the last thing I need is the added weight of a laptop.

So I plan to file via iPhone6. To make sure this idea can work, this blog post is a test drive from the comfort of my kitchen. Fingers crossed…

Let’s see what happens. I’ll bet breaking out of conventional laptop mode will trigger new ways of interacting with my blog, my mobile device and maybe even my very own brain.

Here’s an example of what I mean…to prepare for this trip, I installed some art apps on my iPhone. Check out this doodle, which I did on an app called Sketches. This is the first time I’ve ever drawn with my index finger:

Isn’t this crazy???

While I love my cozy life, I’m so excited about breaking free of daily routines. Once again, my trusty blog is taking me by the hand and telling me to have fun. Go for it.

Just seeing my blog as a white canvas is already helping me breathe easier. Bye-bye orange overkill. Hello, open, undefined space.

I fly to Paris tomorrow (Friday, June 5th), where we’ll catch a bus to Giverny. My return date is June 15th. In between, I’m hoping to blog EVERY SINGLE DAY.

But first, we have to see if this first post from New York goes through. If it works, hope you’ll stop by and drop a comment below on what you’re up to over the next few weeks. Any dreams taking shape or coming true?

Okay, time to hit the send button. :)

Here we go.

One…two…three…send!