Invigorate your art practice by joining designer and Faber-Castell creative Mou Saha for a month of mixed media exploration. Each day, Mou shares her favorite techniques for adding textures, creating layers, playing with color, and transforming trash into treasure. This series is a skill-building powerhouse that will enhance your mixed media work and open your eyes to new possibilities in your art journal. With enthusiasm and ingenuity, Mou makes it fun and exciting to use familiar materials in new ways and introduces you to a whole host of materials you may have never considered.

So many of us are on a quest to incorporate creativity into our lives, but short on time and resources, we’re not sure how to begin. For inspiration and sage advice, we turn to artist and explorer, Courtney Cerruti, who incorporates art into everything she does and finds beauty in even the most mundane moments. This series is perfect for aspiring artists, crafters who are in a rut, and anyone who suspects that a creative habit would be good for their soul - your eyes will be opened to new creative possibilities that are easy to practice every day. No matter your skill level, we hope you’ll show up, bring a playful attitude and a willingness to try new things.

Are you ready to take the leap into becoming a professional artist? In this four-hour long course, author, artist and educator, Lisa Solomon, teaches you how to present yourself as an artist in the world. Commonly referred to as a “Professional Practices” college-level course, Lisa shares her decades of practical know-how in 15 bite-sized lessons. These classes will help you learn how to create your portfolio, make connections, exhibit, apply for shows, attend residencies, copyright your work, market yourself and so much more. Lisa tells it like is it with cautionary tales from the art and gallery world as well as inspiring stories from her own experience. The accompanying 80-page downloadable PDF is full of rich resources to set you on your path, including helpful samples and web references.

This class is not only a starting point for anyone who is ready to call themselves an artist, but also for working artists who could use some structure and guidance in growing their practice. By the end of this series, you will learn how to take yourself more seriously and see your business dreams come to life.

Master embroiderer and fine artist, Rebecca Ringuist, shares 31 days of stitches in our first ever Daily Embroidery Challenge. Using her “Drawing Stitches” sampler as a basis, Rebecca’s embroidery style is vibrant, original, and simple enough for all skill levels to follow along. You’ll start with basic stitches, then move on to groups of stitches that create textural effects, like confetti, fancy chains, zigzags, flowers, and filling stitches. Each day, you’ll expand your knowledge of embroidery and build on techniques to combine elements that look complex but are easy to execute. Best of all, at the end of the month not only will you have learned loads of new techniques, but you’ll also have a finished sampler!

Whether you’re a casual artist or a seasoned painter, everyone can benefit from a daily painting practice. Artist extraordinaire Courtney Cerruti takes you on a 28-day journey of painting the world around you – from fruits, vegetables, and objects, to complex portraits – all using acrylic craft paints and basic brushes. Learn fundamental skills for working with this versatile medium, including how to add shadows, depth and dimension. No matter your skill level, Courtney’s gentle instruction and daily guidance will invigorate your practice.

Jennifer Orkin Lewis (also known as August Wren on Instagram) is a champion of daily painting practice, devoting half an hour each day to creating the loose and colorful paintings for which she’s known. In this month-long series, Jennifer applies her signature style to one of her favorite subjects: animals! Working from photo references (included in a PDF with the class), Jennifer shows how to simplify and stylize your animal paintings to make them your own. Each day, Jennifer shows her approach to painting critters of all shapes and sizes – from farm animals to deep sea creatures – providing opportunity for all skill levels to practice.

Join us for a month-long creative journey with artist and illustrator, Lisa Congdon. In this 31-day painting challenge, Lisa shares her love of designing colorful patterns and painting with gouache. Each day you will learn how to paint a new pattern, including traditional designs, botanicals, geometric shapes and motifs made from everyday objects. Challenge yourself to draw inspiration from the world around you, working alongside Lisa as you hone your daily painting practice. Be sure to share your paintings in the student gallery and post them on Instagram #cbpatternaday.

Living a More Thankful Life is about much more than saying thanks. In this 30-day creativity series, the staff at Creativebug shares favorite ways of expressing gratitude, helping our community, loving our neighbors, and honoring past, present and future family traditions – all through crafting! Each day, we’ll provide you with a new project idea or exercise that is easy, fast, fun, and will leave those around you feeling warm and fuzzy. Leave inspiring messages on Post-It notes for strangers to find, knit afghan squares for the homeless, stitch cozy beds for shelter animals, and so much more. These are our favorite ways to use creativity to shine a positive light in the world – we hope these ideas inspire you to make something for the power of good and shine your own light.

 

Take your lettering to the next level in this super-creative daily lettering challenge, taught by artist and art journaler Pam Garrison. Every day for 31 days, you’ll learn a new way to fearlessly approach lettering. From doodled monograms to a Sumi ink alphabet, Pam will guide you through each prompt with easy-to-follow instruction and inspiring ideas for further exploration. Great for card making, journaling, and illustration, this class will help you grow your lettering skills and stretch your idea of what words can look like.

What is book art? It is a way to merge art and bookbinding techniques to make a one-of a-kind handmade book. With a Master’s degree in book art and creative writing, Creativebug staffer Faith Hale shares her passion by demonstrating a technique, structure, or prompt every day for an entire month. Working alongside Faith, you will create a totally unique book page by page, building skills and techniques as you go. You’ll learn how to cut flaps, create pop ups and moving pieces, discover inspiration, cull language from found sources, and use text in new and inspiring ways. These pages come together to create a sampler of techniques, and at the end of the month, you will learn how to create a text block, add hard board covers, and bind your book.
 

Want to learn how to letter like a pro? Hone your skills by starting a daily practice with Michaela Yee of Sakura. Michaela is a lettering artist and pen guru, and in this inventive daily challenge, she expertly demonstrates how to use a variety of Sakura pens and paints – including favorites like Microns, Koi Brush Pens and Gelly Rolls. Throughout the month, Michaela shares several styles of brush-lettered and block alphabets, perfect for making custom cards, frame-worthy quotes, and more. You’ll also learn which pens are best to use on glass, metal, wood and other unconventional surfaces. Each day, you’ll gradually build your skills, inspiring you to keep lettering even when the month is over. 

Jumpstart your creative practice with a 31-day drawing challenge, taught by artist and professional doodler Pam Garrison. In this draw-along, Pam shares her playful, encouraging style, providing prompts and colorful demonstrations every single day for a month. Not only will you learn how to draw ordinary objects and add splashes of color, but you’ll also learn how to strengthen your creative muscles and develop a new habit. You’ll be amazed at how much your skills will grow in just one month. Be sure to post your drawings on Instagram using #cbdrawaday 
 

For this month-long daily drawing challenge, we’ve added a twist. Artist and educator Lisa Solomon shows how to use overhead light and everyday objects to cast interesting shadows onto paper, then draw around the shadows to create outlines. What you do within the outlines is where the real fun begins. Each day, Lisa shares a new idea filling outlined shapes with color and texture, using everything from pens and graphite to watercolors and highlighters. This technique is a great way to experiment with composition and keep your drawing practice loose. Simply start with a shadow and allow yourself to play within the lines. 
 

Due to popular demand, we are thrilled to present another Daily Drawing Challenge. For 29 days, we will release bite-sized drawing classes taken from the Creativebug archives. Taught by expert drawing instructors Molly Hatch and Heather Ross, you'll learn classic techniques for rendering everyday objects as well as opportunities to practice your blind contour skills.

To see the full classes from which our Daily February Challenge originated, check out Heather Ross's Drawing and Illustration course and Molly Hatch's Introduction to Drawing course--both are a great place for beginners to start and offer excellent guidance. 

Be sure to share what you draw on Instagram #cbdrawaday! 

 

The team at Creativebug is surrounded by inspiration every day, but even the most prolific amongst us needs a jumpstart now and then. We asked members of our staff to share their go-to tips for finding creativity when the well has run dry. Their answers are as versatile as the artists themselves. Each day this month, members of our staff will be sharing their favorite ways to stoke the creative fires. Join us for a month of painting, drawing, journaling, organizing, upcycling, beautifying, and so much more.
 

Go beyond drawing individual objects with our daily pattern motif drawing challenge. In this 31-part class, Courtney Cerruti shares easy ideas for approaching surface design, opening new avenues of imagination and creativity. To keep things simple, Courtney works exclusively on index cards using brush markers. From foods to animals to abstract geometric shapes, you’ll explore fun, loose variations on a different pattern motif every day for a month. When you’re all done, the index cards are the perfect size to mail to friends (or us!).

Join professional doodler, Dawn DeVries Sokol, for a month of art journaling inspiration. Every day for 31 days, Dawn provides prompts to get you making art that is fun, intuitive and totally you. Learn how to create backgrounds, respond to prompts, and add embellishments, lettering and collage along the way. Stay loose and respond to whatever strikes you in the moment without the pressure of having to create a “finished” piece of art.

There’s nothing like giving yourself a big creative challenge, and boy do we have one for you: Every single day for a month, we challenge you to draw along with Lisa Congdon. Lisa has hand-picked 31 objects to draw, and demonstrates several ways to render each object using just your imagination. This creative exercise is designed to help you embrace wonkiness and imperfections, all while learning to see everything around you—be it bird or bikini—as artistic fodder.
 

Learn how to paint a new flower every day with help from acclaimed watercolor artist, Yao Cheng. Known for her flowing, elegant style, Yao shares her technique for capturing the feeling of flowers rather than trying to paint them realistically. In each part of this 31-day challenge, she explores the ideal brush strokes needed to paint the petals and leaves of popular flowers like dahlias, poppies, peonies and hydrangeas. Through these daily lessons, you will hone your brush skills, discover new color combinations, and learn how to capture light, energy, and movement in your own floral interpretations. Be sure to share your paintings in the class gallery and on Instagram with #cbdrawaday !

Master of package presentation, Courtney Cerruti, leads you through 25 days of gift wrap ideas and techniques. Beginning with more complex projects and ending with quick fixes to common wrapping dilemmas, you’ll use simple craft materials to wrap, adorn and decorate your holiday gifts. Whether you’re getting ready for the holiday season or preparing for a special gift-giving occasion, this class will give you ideas you'll use year round.

This holiday season, join us for a month of merry making (literally!). Every day for a whole month, Courtney Cerruti shows you how to make handmade cards, gift tags, and creatively wrap gifts. This challenge is both practical and fun, giving you a reason to gather up your paper crafting supplies and find holiday inspiration every day. 

In this 30-day painting challenge, Jennifer Orkin Lewis (known as @Augustwren on Instagram) draws inspiration from objects found in real life and imagination. Using gouache and watercolor, she demonstrates her approach to painting without fear and reminds us that it’s never too late to start painting. Jennifer started her daily painting practice three years ago, painting for just thirty minutes every day. In that time, she has cultivated the loose, colorful style that she’s known for, inspiring thousands of people along the way.

Become endlessly inspired with avid art journaler, painter, and artistic explorer, Pam Garrison. On this month-long journey into botanicals, Pam dances from one medium to another via daily prompts that will keep you on your toes. Working at different scales on a wide variety of surfaces, Pam explores the many technique one can use to express a flower. Along the way, Pam shares her passion for painting and drawing flowers, encouraging you to play with pens, markers, watercolor, acrylics and whatever you have on hand to create and capture magnificent blooms.

Be sure to share what you make in our class gallery and on Instagram #cbdrawaday
 

Join artist and illustrator, Charlotte Hamilton, in a month of exploring portraiture. Starting with quick sketches, you’ll learn the proportions of the face and create portraits in just a few minutes. As you move through the month, you’ll build observational skills while working from photos and discover how to use markers and colored pencils to create fun layers of color. Charlotte dives deeper into painted portraits later in the month, using colorful inks and paints to bring faces to life. By the end of this comprehensive series, you’ll understand how combine all of your skills to create master portraits of friends and family.