Kelly Rae Roberts's Blog, page 41

You Are Not Broken

(Signed prints available here. )
I've broken open many times. But I am not broken. I'm just alive. 
The same is true for you, too.
I believe our hearts have to break open. The cracks, with all their letting in the lightness/darkness/awareness/lessons, eventually require us to rebuild/repair/heal so that we grow and expand our hearts' very capacity to feel and experience the full breath of life. Later, once they've reached capacity again, our hearts will break open again, ready for the next round of evolution and growth. That's how I think of it, anyway. Sometimes the cracks are subtle, tiny. And sometimes they're big.
Either way, without the cracks it would be impossible to allow either the flood of joy or the flood of grief  (or both!) into our life during meaningful transitions. Falling in love, falling out of love, losing a loved one, giving birth, divorce, aging, losing ourselves, finding ourselves - all moments when our hearts crack open to receive. Maybe it's receiving love, the full experience of it. Maybe it's receiving grief, the full experience of it. Either way, the purpose of the cracks is to allow our hearts to receive the full expression of life. And then to rebuild with a new, evolved, deeper, more meaningful way of seeing, believing, loving. 
There is a difference between being broken and being broken open.
Last year, I DEVOURED Elizabeth Lesser's book, Breaking Open . More than any other book it gave me insight that helped, comforted, and nurtured not only my older, especially frail cracks that never got healed, but also my fresh cracks that came from breaking open to the deepening experience of becoming a new mom. The first crack was simply because my heart broke its capacity to receive the magnitude of love that came with delivering new life into being.  It was a beautiful crack - nothing but love came through. Then, slowly over time, the cracks kept coming, almost like a shattered web, as the lessons/grief/love kept pouring in. Two years in, it feels like I've been rebuilding, healing, nurturing a whole new heart. I've never learned so much in all of my life from tending to those cracks. I'm happy to report that my heart has never felt more beautiful, huge, healed and with a bigger capacity to feel than ever before. Breaking open made it possible. Thank you, cracks.

We're not broken. We're just alive. 
Here's to cracking and building and healing and breathing and growing into our heart's maximum capacity. And here's to having lots of gratitude for our cracks. They are the evidence, like well deserved wrinkles on our faces, of a well lived life. 

You guys. Loving that you are introducing yourselves as one of The Possibilitarian Tribe. I have been blown away by your courage, your possibility-fueled lives. You have inspired me to cook something up, just for you. Stay tuned. In the meantime, keep building and connecting with one another. Love that you are finding one another!  
XO,Kelly Rae

Nourish Your Soul New: 6x6 wall canvases! Cuffs deal + my fave clock

Each week, I shine a spotlight on a few creations that I'm particularly proud of.  May you be inspired - and perhaps find a little something to nourish your soul.  Click here to see all the posts in this series. 
PS: All of the products featured below (and more) are sold online via Garden Gallery Works (a local shop here in the Portland area), but if you're looking for signed/matted prints and/or originals, you can get these in my online shop. 

PPS: International customers, Garden Gallery is HAPPY to ship worldwide. Please email them  at gardengalleryorders@gmail.com to get started.  


These are our latest 6x6 wall canvases. Super affordable and great size for clustering on the wall, sitting on a desk or hanging solo. Find them all (including our previous releases in this size) right here. 


I'm a big fan of radiating. Radiating possibility, that is. You, too? Awesome. This little diddy is available here and it promises to be a beautiful reminder to keep on radiating :)

You guys! Garden Gallery is offering a free Dreamer Cuff with the purchase of any two Cuff Bracelets on March 2, 3, and 4. There's no need to put it in your cart as every order that has two Cuff Bracelets will automatically get one! Big treat! See all available cuffs here!

Winged clocks? Yes, please! This clock is one of my all time favorite products we've ever done. It's unique, has a vintage vibe, and makes the old saying "time flies" feel/look beautiful. Gorgeous, gorgeous.

Thanks, friends. Our mission is to continue to create products that blend creativity with meaning, beauty with function. I so love what I do.


Warmly,
Kelly Rae

The Possibilitarian Tribe

You guys, this post is for you. Are you ready? I'm excited. 

All the talk this week about tribes and my being a connectress got me thinking......

Vegetarians choose to live on vegetables. Pescatarians choose to live on fish. If you’re a Possibilitarian, you choose to live on possibility — it fuels you, nourishes you, and sustains you.

Being a Possibilitarian isn’t always easy — especially in a world that can feel judgmental, critical & closed-minded. And just like running, swimming, singing or painting, being a Possibilitarian takes practice.

I practice being a Possibilitarian every day — it’s my guiding worldview, and a practical approach to making my dreams real. But over the past couple years, I’ve not only craved deep connections & community with my fellow Possibilitarians but I've often dreamed of creating a space for them to find one another. 

Because here's the truth. You guys are a huge tribe for me. Huge. You are my people and my sense tells me that you are each others people, too. I want you to find one another, online and otherwise. 


Let's make a tribe. Let's call ourselves The Possibilitarian Tribe.
If you ...

: Believe in practicing courage, every single day.: Believe that kindness changes everything & love always wins.: Believe that we are all part of something beautiful, something bigger than ourselves, something deeply, profoundly, surprisingly ... good.: Believe that success has everything to do with who you are, not what you do.
And you also ...
: Want to live from the center of your life outward -- a place where from which you can radiate and live a whole life, not a half-life.: Understand that our dreams don't necessarily belong to us, but serve as important tools, belonging to the world.: Have overcome the odds — big odds, small odds, private odds or public odds — and still have a full heart. And hope.
Then you are most certainly A Possibilitarian. (Side effects may include honesty, creativity, tenderness & inspired action.)

Calling all Possibilitarians: Introduce your gorgeous selves
Here's what I'm thinking. Introduce yourselves right here in the comments. I want to meet you all. I want you to meet each other. I want us to build a hope-filled, possibibilty-fueled tribe. Tell us your name, where we can find you online. Tell us what's calling you, what your soul mission is, what you're dreams are, what you're working on. 
This isn't about selling anything. This is truly about connecting and building a tribe. So please, no links and comments that are overly promotional. We want to see and meet YOU (not your products). 
The goal? A sort of roll-call if you will - where we can all find each other in the comments of this post and follow the trail of links out into each other's worlds where we can reach out to you, support you, and encourage you as you continue along in your hopeful journeys. Not just today, or this week, but for always. I'll put a link up to to this post on my sidebar so it will always be easy to find one another.
I have a feeling this will be the most hope-filled tribe EVER. 
Here’s to believing — and belonging.
XO

on confidence

(me, 2006)
I learned how to be fearless through the process of learning how to paint in 2006 and 2007. I was 30 years old and feeling anything but fearless, yet that was the year I fell deeply in love with mixed media painting. Like a crush. An obsession. And I desperately wanted to learn how to make those beautiful messes on canvas - the ones with all the textures and drippy paints and collaged layers of papers. I bought books & took workshops & experimented & painted & crafted & shredded & stenciled & smudged & smeared like my heart depended on it. Turns out all of that creative abandon of spilling layer upon layer on a canvas FREED me up. And my confidence grew. In art and in life.

Becoming fearless felt exhilarating, like an exhale, like I could finally be who I was.

Very quickly, my portfolio bloomed. I launched my online shop. I got a book deal. I wrote the book. Magazines came knocking. My art found new eyes. Big deals came a’calling. Contracts were signed. My art became licensed — landing in home decor stores & gift shops all over the world (dream. come. true.)  I launched an e-course — then ebooks. Through it all, I wanted to share what I’d learned by crafting a creative life — how full my heart had become. People listened. The kindness kept building and my confidence grew. Life was good. My friends would often comment on how fearless I seemed. They were right. Painting, and growing into the creative life, taught me to believe in myself and I will carry that gift with me, always.
(me, 2011)
And then, somewhere around 2011, I lost my confidence. I suppose new parenthood and a particularly traumatic birth were my cracking open moments, the portals in which I lost a little bit of my spark. Last year, in 2012, I began to dive deep into healing the parts of myself that didn't get tended to during the last several years of living with confidence as well as the parts that got cracked open when I became a mama to a most adorable little boy named True.

All good. All beautiful in those messy, important ways.



And then I found myself gathered a couple of weeks ago with nine other women. We called our gathering The Radiate Sessions because we spent a lot of time radiating possibilities with one another when it came to our businesses, and our business' soul missions. During the weekend the word confidence kept coming up for me over and over. I could feel it coming around again, like a long lost friend that you haven't seen in ages yet there they are, just as you remembered them to be, yet older, wiser, softer.

Over and over again, I am learning the power of being with our people, our tribes. I hadn't realized how deeply I missed this part of myself until this gathering had me feeling alive, free, and unearthing pieces pieces of lost confidence.


There was a beautiful hour during the weekend when the women gifted me with an unexpected palm circling ceremony. It will be something I remember, always. I cried (hard) as these friends reflected back to me my significance in their lives, and in the work I'm doing in the world. There were gifts, and notes, and beautiful words. I remember thinking to myself remember this, be present for this, take it in, allow yourself to receive. I felt incredibly seen, celebrated, adored, loved. Without a doubt, this circling ushered my confidence back into my life. A humbler, softer, cleaner confidence. I was even given a little sea monster during this circling with a secret message hidden inside. The secret message? Confidence. Seriously friends, I am not making it up. Sea monster = message from the universe = awe. How did that little sea monster know what I most needed to hear? There are no mistakes. 
(Photo by Andrea Scher)
Later in the day we painted words on our bodies. Have you ever done this? I've done lots of variations of this exercise at other gatherings, and it's a powerful, soul healing declaration. This time around, I choose, of course, to invite confidence. It seemed to insist I acknowledge it with a celebratory YES! And so I did. It's not lost on me that taking the leap into painting and the creative life all of those years ago is what gifted me a beautiful, fearless confidence. And now, all of these years later,  paint is being used again to welcome confidence back into my skin, into my life, into my heart. What a gorgeous full circle moment for me. 
What do you most need to here? Write it down. On a piece of paper. On your body. In your journal. What I've learned is that these declarations are little hope notes we gift to ourselves. They help us get clear, manifest, celebrate, and nurture the pieces of ourselves that need nurturing.

What a gift. Thank you, confidence. I'm so glad you're back. Thank you Radiate Sessions for....everything.

On tribes. And being a Connectress.

(My high school tribe. That's me on the left.)
Twenty four years ago, when I was in high school, I had breakfast every single Thursday morning with the same three friends at the local waffle diner. Every Thursday. For four years. Those friendships became my lifeline through high school. They carried me through. They were my guides. And in some ways, they still are.

They were my first tribe.

I will never forget what I learned from them. About community, meaningful conversation, true friendship, showing up, not showing up, and creating connections that last a lifetime. I realize now, all of these years later, that it was grace that gifted me this tribe. And it would be this kind of grace that would dance into my life over and over again.

(My college tribe. That's me 3rd from the left. Love how we're all holding hands)
I had another tribe in college - more friends from high school, roommates, classmates - all friends who were intimately acquainted with the same path I was on - that well travelled path of college and homework and boyfriends and first jobs and finding ourselves in our early 20s.

They were my second tribe.

Like my high school tribe, my college tribe carried me through some pretty tumultuous years. I love them dearly, still. I didn't know it at the time, but grace was continuing to work its beautiful magic in my life, giving me a foundation for what community should feel like.
(that's me, five years ago)
Then, about five years ago I experienced a big life transition. It was summer 2008 and I was still working in my social work job, yet I was close to phasing out of that life and into my full time creative job/life. I was on the cusp of two worlds, really. Not quite settled into my new creative skin, and definitely not yet empowered inside my current Possibilitarian Spirit. I was in between.

I was in between when my book was about to release that year, and while I was having great success on Etsy. I was in between when I began to teach some workshops, and started meeting all sorts of amazing people. I was in between while signing my first licensing contracts, taking over a spare bedroom as a studio/office, and building my online audience. All the while, I slowly inched myself toward a whole new creative life. It was a tricky time (in all, about 2 years of in betweenness) of straddling two worlds: One that no longer suited me and one that was calling me home.

Although I could feel my confidence and spirit soaring, I began to yearn for a specific community of people who could help me transition from in between to firmly embedded - a community who had the capacity to usher me into the big possibilities that were waiting for me because they too had experienced similar transition in their lives. It takes a lot of courage to put your art out into the world and step into the expansiveness of what could be, and I longed for a community of women who could not only completely understand that specific journey, but who could also help root and ground me inside my own personal transition.


I believe I manifested this exact community that summer, the summer of in between, when a dear online friend and I decided to gather several women - most of whom we had never met - for a weekend of togetherness. My instincts were that I needed to create that community I was longing for and it turns out, my instincts were right. That gathering of women in the summer of 2008 changed my life in extraordinary ways. I felt an intense sense of belonging with these women. And an incredible, huge, life changing sense of possibility and expansiveness as we each reflected back to the each other that what we were doing in our creative work/lives MATTERED and that we had full permission to play big. 
They were my third tribe.

We called ourselves the Lovebombers because we beautifully bombed one another with love and encouragement throughout the year, again reflecting and confirming that it's worth it to courageously show up and offer our work to the world. Most of the Lovebombers still gather each year and continue to be a beautiful network of support. I am crazy in love with them, still. They were my first creative tribe to really see me. And having them in my life has been another testament to how grace has woven its gorgeous threads, connecting me yet again to a beautiful group of strong women. Everyone deserves this kind of community.

(Me + my spirit sister guide, Flora)
Fast forward to last year, and I have a sort of epiphany. I am caught off guard when someone tells me I am a master Connectress - someone who connects people in powerful and beautiful ways. Having never considered it before, I began to realize that it's true, I am a Connectress! I do, afterall, have a constant, steady and uncanny knack for connecting just the right people. Whether it's introducing two soul sisters, or two brilliant women in business, or connecting thousands of kindreds inside my ecourses (hundreds who have gone on to create incredible tribes for themselves), or inviting just the right people to a soul-filled gathering, I seem to have an odd, humbling superpower for bringing just the right people together.  I don't have much to do with the magic that happens once the women are together but I'm learning that I might have something to do with putting the perfect constellation of women in a room together and creating the environment in which connections get ignited.

And then it hits me. This has been the grace of tribes in my life. I've always, since I was 14 years old, had a tribe of strong, grounded women in my life. I've learned that tribes, families of intention, friendships, support networks - whatever you want to call them - MATTER. Sometimes acting as surrogate mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, and more, these tribes help define our paths, encourage our growth, and celebrate our small moments. I deeply believe everyone deserves this kind of connection and sense of belonging, and I'm realizing more and more that I want this Connectress part of myself to come out a bit more and play. I think she might be a leader. And she deeply wants to help build tribes for women.


And so, a couple of weeks ago my inner Connectress invited nine other women to join me for a long weekend of togetherness inside a cozy cabin on the OR coast. Some of them knew each other, but most of them didn't, but all of them are doing powerful work in the world. The intention was to create a weekend that would inspire the inspirers, nurture the nurturers, and create a time and space where we could radiate possibilities with one another when it came to our work, and our lives. And that's exactly what happened. We dubbed the weekend The Radiate Sessions - a beautiful weekend of collaborative sessions that indeed sent me home feeling properly radiated in bright, bring lights.

Stay tuned for more of our gathering in upcoming posts. I learned so, so much, and I can't wait to share it with you.

PS: For those of you who are feeling called to create community, I can't encourage you enough to go for it. I've found that it's those kinds of longings that we must listen to - they're whispers inviting us to create the experiences we most need. We all deserve to be loved, seen, and celebrated. I wrote a post back in 2009 with some tips on how to create a gathering similar to the gatherings I've been a part of. May you be encouraged to fill your well with possibility and community. XXOO.

Happy Announcements

*** HAPPY ANNOUNCEMENTS ***



You guys. I have so much to tell you, so much to share. I'm about to get super cozy in my pajamas and write my little heart out about where I've been these last couple of weeks (my heart is full), but before I do, I wanted to let you know about a couple of super speedy happy announcements...



An invitation to become a sponsor!
I am getting ready to relaunch a brand new sponsorship program. The old sponsorship program has been on hiatus these last several months - a bit of a sabbatical, if you will - while I got more clarity about how I wanted to soulfully run it (in a nutshell, it was starting to get too big). The clarity has arrived, friends, and the new program is going be GOOD (think monthly giveaways). I'd love for you to be a part of it.
Here's what I know to be true.
I’m an artist & writer today, but I’m pretty sure I was a professional matchmaker, in another life. I LOVE connecting my readers with uplifting & inspiring businesses that share my Possibilitarian mission.

If you . . .
: Believe that kindness changes everything
: Have a business, a product, a tool or an offering to share
: Would love to reach 150K monthly readers & 20K mailing list + Facebook subscribers with your message

. . . then you’re beautifully suited for a sponsorship spot, on my site. Yes!

If you're interested in learning more, please email us at sponsorships@kellyraeroberts.com and Lacy and/or I will get you started. The new program launches March 1st, so get in touch soon! 




I'm so excited to be included in the upcoming Right-Brainers in Business Video Summit which starts TODAY(!) and runs through March 8th.

Jennifer Lee, author of the best-selling book The Right-Brain Business Plan , has gathered an inspiring panel of thought leaders and go-getters who’ll show you the path to more productivity and profit. I’m excited to share that I’ll be one of the speakers along with my Hello Soul Hello Business partner, Beth Nicholls. Join us live in the chat room on February 27th – Beth and I will both be there and we can’t wait to interact with you. Here's a quick sneak peek of our interview with Jennifer.

Grab your F*ree pass right here!



Thanks, friends. I'll be back super soon with stories galore of how I got my soul filled these last couple of weeks.XO,Kelly Rae

Nourish Your Soul NEW: wall art, keychains and tray!

Each week, I shine a spotlight on a few creations that I'm particularly proud of.  May you be inspired - and perhaps find a little something to nourish your soul.  Click here to see all the posts in this series. 
PS: All of the products featured below (and more) are sold online via Garden Gallery Works (a local shop here in the Portland area), but if you're looking for signed/matted prints and/or originals, you can get these in my online shop. 

PPS: International customers, Garden Gallery is HAPPY to ship worldwide. Please email them  at gardengalleryorders@gmail.com to get started.  

Loving these NEW 8x24 wall art canvases - a fun size for long/narrow spaces. 
The one on the left reads, Come Alive: Jump in puddles, Surrender your seriousness,  Celebrate your quirkiness, Do something spontaneous, Be radically kind, Make a new friend, Take a risk, Share your heart, Tell the world your dreams (out loud), Say you're sorry, Wear red shoes, Trust your heart whispers. It's available here
The one on the right reads, Gentle Thoughts: discovering peace, slowing down, pausing, listening, being gentle on ourselves, finding sacred in the ordinary. This is where the peace lives, where it breathes. It's available here

Can I just say how highly delightful these key chains are! Loving the double-sided medallions. Loving the mix of ribbons. Loving how they look clipped onto tote bags, purses, and backpacks - the tiniest bit of artful love. Collect all six, friends (perfect gifts).


One of my favorite of the newest releases is this tray. I've been using it daily to hold my cup of tea and candles while I work, and I also used it last weekend while gathered with some girlfriends. I love the idea of using it everyday, not just on celebratory occasions, because when you think about it, everyday is a celebration, no? It's available here.

Thanks, friends. Our mission is to continue to create products that blend creativity with meaning, beauty with function. I so love what I do.


Warmly,
Kelly Rae

Nourish Your Soul: NEW canvas, bracelets, and memo board

Each week, I shine a spotlight on a few creations that I'm particularly proud of.  May you be inspired - and perhaps find a little something to nourish your soul.  Click here to see all the posts in this series. 
PS: All of the products featured below (and more) are sold online via Garden Gallery Works (a local shop here in the Portland area), but if you're looking for signed/matted prints and/or originals, you can get these in my online shop. 

PPS: International customers, Garden Gallery is HAPPY to ship worldwide. Please email them  at gardengalleryorders@gmail.com to get started.  


This is one of my favorite canvases. Because it's true. Because when we slow down you can take it all in and trust. Because you can step into your power. Because connection is so powerful . This lovely canvas is available here. 

You guys, this magnetic pedestal chalkboard lives in our home and travels around from the office, to the kitchen (menu board!), to our guest room (a welcome board) and I'm in love. Available here.

NEW chunky artisan bracelets! Each features 6 different signature images, adding just the right amount of artful soul to you accessory collection.  Love these. They're a stretchy 8" long and slip on easily for maximum style and comfort. Collect them all, friends. Awesome gifts, too. Of course, our original chunky cuff bracelets are available too! 

Thanks, friends. Our mission is to continue to create products that blend creativity with meaning, beauty with function. I so love what I do.
Warmly,
Kelly Rae

Dear Quiet

Signed/Matted prints, available here

I've been in a private, quiet place the last many weeks. Feels good, grounding, and important. Lately, I've been thinking about all the ways I soldier through - even when there isn't any reason, even if in the most subtle of ways. Soldiering through a project, only to bookend it with another project - definitely not good for creative health. Soldiering through deadlines (alivelines), though chores, through the muck.

There is an underlying tone of suffering that comes with soldering through.

I'm doing the work to release that piece. Which means I've been getting quiet. Ohhhh, the peace that lives inside the stillness, the new journal, the glass of wine with John in the evening, the inspiration dates alone, the books,  the being present. You simply cannot soldier through and be present and quiet all at once. So this is the gift of my days lately. Thank you, quiet and stillness. You're healing my heart with your gentle ways....


Friends, I'm so excited to announce that Alexandra Franzen is stopping by my studio for a weekend of teaching for her incredible WRITE YOURSELF INTO MOTION tour. Having had the pleasure of working with her many times, I can tell you that she is a genius - a soul-stirring, brilliant light who is in the very center of her life's work, her soul's mission, her creative expansiveness. I adore her, respect her, highly recommend her, and I can hardly believe she's coming to my studio (YES!) to teach a two day workshop. I will be there as one of her students, and as one of her greatest fans. There are just a couple spots left. All of the details here! 

Nourish Your Soul:: The Valentine Edition

Each week, I shine a spotlight on a few creations that I'm particularly proud of.  May you be inspired - and perhaps find a little something to nourish your soul.  Click here to see all the posts in this series. 
PS: All of the products featured below (and more) are sold online via Garden Gallery Works (a local shop here in the Portland area), but if you're looking for signed/matted prints and/or originals, you can get these in my online shop. 

PPS: International customers, Garden Gallery is HAPPY to ship worldwide. Please email them  at gardengalleryorders@gmail.com to get started.  

Friends, the mix of industrial metal with pretty art is making me swoon. It's doubled sided for twice the sweetness. Did I mention these babies are super sturdy, substantial little gifts? You gotta trust me on this one. They. Are. Awesome. Available here. Or you can collect all twelve! 


My new vintage-inspired jewelry collection is so lovely and is off to an amazing start after making its debut last month. Love the combination of art with vintage feel. Makes my heart happy.

I am so pleased with how this little shine charm necklace turned out and I especially love how all the charm necklaces can be easily layered with other favorites. Like my paintings, I love to dress in layers, where jewelry in layers, and on and on. Hello, layers!Shine is available here. Or you can collect them all!

This canvas makes me smile every time I see it. Our best seller from the new release it is bound to inspire kindness. Available here

This photo is from this month's Sundance catalog! Getting that phone call was super fun. It went something like this Her: "Hey! Kelly Rae, you're in Sundance!" Me: "NO WAY!"  Her: "WAY!" Me: "Squeeeeeeel!" As a long time fan of the Sundance catalog it is such an honor to be featured! Thanks, Sundance!  Large Heart, Medium Heart, Small Heart

Thanks, friends. As always, our mission is to continue to create soulful products that blend creativity with meaning, beauty with function. All ideas welcome!

Warmly,
Kelly Rae