Tag: art

2019 Art Retreats

Posted on by Melissa

I’ve been teaching painting lessons for 7 years.
I’m now taking my teaching on the road with ART RETREATS!
I will be hosting several throughout the year in various places so
stay tuned to the blog and all social media sites for upcoming retreats.
All will be sure to allow plenty of relaxation and creativity.

South Lake Tahoe – photo from Google images

Summer 2019! South Lake Tahoe, California.
Join me in South Lake Tahoe, CA for a 5 night/ 6 day art retreat.

We’re going to be in South Lake Tahoe with in July for a family reunion on Micah’s side. I’d love to extend this trip for another few days and do another art retreat! Here are some details:

We would be doing acrylic paintings, plein air, as well as art journaling and a couple of abstract pieces. The trip would be July 16-21. (All paintings would be done on the 17th-20th, leaving the other two days for travel.)

Each person will complete 5 Acrylic paintings which will be a variety of seascapes, floral and landscapes. (1 per day, about 2-3 hours each) 2 Abstracts which will be paint pouring and resin. (Each will be worked on a little each day. About 30 minutes/day)

Each person will also receive a wonderful art journal and some journaling supplies too, so we can continue being creative outside of the classes as well as back home. You can choose to journal with me each day to learn some techniques and/or journal in your own time, anytime!

The cost of the art portion of the trip would be $350/person and includes all art supplies, standing easel (to use during trip only) and instruction from me. Travel arrangements can be made individually but I will offer suggestions for places to stay.

Nearest airports are Reno, NV and Sacramento, CA.
Plane tickets for that week to Reno are around $400 (from IND) right now. Sacramento prices are about $50 Higher at the moment, but I always check prices for both before booking. (Check out Kiwi.com, Skyscanner.com and Southwest.com for great deals!)

I love to rent via AirBnb, VRBO and HomeAway instead of booking hotels. Check out this 2 BDRM Cabin for $153/night! All in all, you could easily do this trip for around $1500 per person. Which is a great price for some R&R in the sun with plenty of creative juices flowing…surrounded by beautiful scenery!

$50 Deposit Due by April 20, 2019 to reserve your spot.

Click here to register.

Cardiff By The Sea
Cardiff By The Sea

September 2019! Southern California.
Join me in Oceanside, CA for week long art retreat.

My art was accepted for an art show in Newport Beach on September 21 so I will be out there for the weekend. Why not extend the trip for the entire week and do another art retreat! This time we would be doing paintings on four days (Tuesday-Friday) Sept 24-27.

We will be doing acrylic paintings, plein air, as well as art journaling and a couple of abstract pieces.

Each person will complete 4 Acrylic paintings which will be a variety of landscapes, plein air. (1 per day, about 2-3 hours each) 2 Abstracts which will be paint pouring and resin. (Each can be worked on a little each day. About 30 minutes/day, until you decide it’s finished.)

Everyone will also receive an art journal and some journaling supplies so we can continue being creative outside of the classes as well as back home. (If you don’t need a new journal, let me know and I can hook you up with some extra supplies instead!) You can choose to journal with me each day to learn some techniques and/or journal in your own time, anytime! Outside of these designated class times, the rest of the time is yours to relax and explore the beauty of So Cal!

Outside of these designated class times, the rest of the time is yours to relax and explore the beauty of Southern California! The cost of the art portion of the trip would be $300/person and includes all art supplies, standing easel (to use during trip only) and instruction from me.

Travel arrangements can be made individually but I will offer suggestions for places to stay. My first choice of location would be Oceanside/Carlsbad because I’ve been there a few times and have friends there who’d possibly like to join in on some classes.

Nearest airports are San Diego and Orange County/Santa Ana. Plane tickets for that week to San Diego are $250-300 (from IND) right now. (Check out Skyscanner and Kiwi for low prices! Or Southwest because bags fly free!) I predict they will stay around that price or maybe a bit lower as long as they are purchased by end of February. Orange County/Santa Ana which is about the same distance as San Diego, prices are about $50 Higher at the moment, but I always check prices for both when I go.

Check out VRBO, HomeAway and airbnb as well as hotels. Sometimes you’ll find much better deals on vacation rentals and they are more unique than hotels. There are plenty of 1 BR rentals for around $100/night or grab some friends and find some 3-4 BR for $200-250 per night. All in all, you could easily do this trip for around $1500 per person. Which is a great price for some R&R in the sun with plenty of creative juices flowing…AT THE BEACH!

$50 deposit due by July 20 to reserve your spot.
Click here to make your deposit.

Upcoming: Fall 2019! TBD

I’m likely going to do a weekend retreat in Brown County, IN sometime in October, also considering a 4-5 day retreat in Colorado. When do you think the best time to travel to these places and enjoy the Fall colors?

Comment below with feedback on other places you’d like to art in.

Have you been on an art retreat before? If so, where did you go?

Rock Stacking

Posted on by Melissa

My family LOVES rock stacking! It’s so fun and relaxing to create these beautiful sculptures while we are traveling and exploring. To us, it’s a way to take a moment to relax, express ourselves, and take some cool pics.

https://www.facebook.com/2247232375491740/photos/a.2257729337775377/2257730037775307/?type=3&theater
Stack by Melissa in North Carolina

“Rock balancing or stone balancing (stone or rock stacking) is an art, discipline, or hobby in which rocks are naturally balanced on top of one another in various positions without the use of adhesives, wires, supports, rings or any other contraptions which would help maintain the construction’s balance.” (source: Wikipedia)

https://www.facebook.com/2247232375491740/photos/a.2257729337775377/2257730144441963/?type=3&theater
Stack by Micah in North Carolina

My goal for this post is to inspire others to create rock stacks when you can, but also, make sure you are knowledgeable about stacking and find out the rules of your location first, especially in National Parks and Forests.

https://www.facebook.com/2247232375491740/photos/a.2257729337775377/2257729307775380/?type=3&theater
Stacks by Macy & Max at the 4 corners – USA

While it’s considered an art to some,
it’s a definite NO NO to others!
Did you know it could be hazardous to wildlife and the environment?

Also called a “Cairn”, stacks of rocks have many purposes, including shrines, burial markers and trail markers. So erecting one in a National Park,
for example, could potentially confuse future hikers, as they may
think it’s a trail marker and go off course.

When stacking rocks on a beach, it could be a danger to wildlife.
A crab, for example, seeks refuge in rocks. He might confuse your masterpiece with a safe place to hide. It’s not a sound structure, so it could crush him!

https://www.facebook.com/2247232375491740/photos/a.2257729337775377/2257729241108720/?type=3&theater

Some National Parks have even banned the activity and actively go around dismantling rock stacks because their rules state you should leave everything in nature as you found it.

Our rock stacks have always been created with rocks that were within
an arms reach from the spot we were stacking in. Although we have
left them before, in hopes of inspiring others to create their own, we now stack, take pics and then enjoy knocking them down before we move on!

https://www.facebook.com/2247232375491740/photos/a.2257729337775377/2257730331108611/?type=3&theater
Stack by Max – Greeneville, NC

https://www.facebook.com/2247232375491740/photos/a.2257729337775377/2257730097775301/?type=3&theater
Stacks by Makensie (back) and Melissa (front) – Greeneville, NC

Please feel free to leave comments! Do you stack? If so, we’d love to see your pics! Did you know the dangers of stacking?

Welcome to our blog!

Posted on by Melissa
Family fun at Bryce Canyon! October 2017

Welcome to Happy Place Creatives! We are the Cain family. We currently live in Avon, Indiana, but have hopes of someday moving to a place that’s warm year round and has a beach nearby!

Let me introduce you to my family and our blog
so you can get to know us a little better.

I’m Melissa. The mom of Happy Place Creatives. I grew up in Indiana, in the small town of Monrovia. I went to Monrovia schools from k-12 (with the exception of a couple of months in 5th grade, where we lived in Lake Saint Louis, MO.) I come from a long line of Monrovians…My parents went to Monrovia, and so did my Dad’s parents!

Micah, the dad, grew up moving around the west coast. He was born in Seattle, WA, then moved around WA, OR & CA throughout his childhood. He went to 9 different schools. We had quite the difference in upbringing!

You are probably wondering how Micah ended up in Indiana, huh? Well, it’s a funny story! He moved to Florida after graduating high school, in Oregon, to attend Florida College. There he met a girl…named Melissa! But wait! It wasn’t who you think it was. That’s right! It was a “different Melissa”. (We are both Melissa Jean, too! NO JOKE!) Anyhooooo, After only one semester at that college, he moved back home, to Oregon, for a brief time, then headed to L.A. to help with disaster clean up after the ’94 earthquakes. He did that for a while, but he soon ended up here in Indiana, to continue his relationship with “the other Melissa”.

Fast forward four years, they broke up, and I started working at Kinko’s (Now FedEx Office, but it will always be Kinko’s to us!). Micah was a manager there. For him, he says it was “love at first site”. (It took some work before I came around. lol) That was spring 1998. We were officially dating by summer. We married in October 2000.

We now have three amazing children, Makensie (18), Macy (16), & Max (14). We also have an adorable, 4 year old fur baby, named Milo. He’s a Shih Tzu/poodle. (Does that make him a Shih Poo? Or a Tzoodle?)

Grand Canyon photo opp
Makensie, Macy, Max & Milo at Bryce Canyon, UT

In this family, we are all about having fun! Sarcasm runs deep here, and if we aren’t picking on you in some way, we either don’t know you well enough, or don’t like you well enough! LOL We love to joke around and laugh together.

Hilarious roller coaster pic
Macy’s face is so hilarious!
Dollywood ~ Tennessee

We enjoy spending time together. We especially enjoy amusement parks, camping, bonfires, and hiking in the summer. And puzzles, ping pong and board games during winter.

We love to have family dinners together. With our kids being teens and having their own schedules, we only get to do this a couple times per week now, but we’ve always done it, so we all still cherish those times when it does happen. We have always had a strict “NO PHONES at the table” policy when it comes to family dinners too, so it’s always been US, truly spending time together, talking about our day. By the end of dinner, we are usually laughing and getting out of control. We’ve made many memories at the dinner table, for sure!

Macy taking it all in at the Grand Canyon
Macy taking it all in at Bryce Canyon, UT

We love to travel too. We haven’t always been able to do this a lot, not near as much as we’d like to. But the trips we’ve taken have been amazing! We have more planned and hope to continue traveling with our children, even after they’re adults and on their own.

I’m an artist, and I’ve always done arts and crafts with my children and encouraged them to be creative. They are all artistic and very creative in many ways and I LOVE it!

Creativity is contagious… pass it on! ~ Albert Einstein

In this blog we will discuss all things creative. From Creative projects to creative travel ideas, creative ways to save money, ways to spend quality time as a family, and more! It is my hope to inspire everyone to add creativity to their lives and to figure out what makes you happy and make it a goal to create that happy place!

Feel free to leave comments on topics you’d like us to write about or creative projects you’d like us to try!