Drawing As Meditation: 10 Days Of Patterns Inspired By Objects

1. Introduction: Meditation takes you on a journey from external chaos to inner silence. It takes you to a place where you can rest, release old beliefs, and just be in the present moment. While some access this space by sitting still, I have been accessing it through pen, paper, and patterns. Hi. I'm Neha Modi, an artist, educator and a top teacher here on Skillshare. My work is an intersection of mindfulness and creativity, and I've been fortunate enough to share it with thousands of people through my online classes, workshops, and social media since the last few years. As I started making sense of the world inside me, during my art meditation sessions, I began to see the world around me differently. My pace got slower. I paused more often and I stopped not only to smell the roses, but also to observe and appreciate the everyday objects around me. This habit of mindful observation open doors to many more creative explorations and has become the foundation of this class. This class is a 10-day challenge that's designed to unlock your creativity and restore your inherent state of balance. Together, we will create patterns inspired by everyday objects without worrying too much about realistic results. I will show you how to reduce objects to basic lines and shapes, get past the intimidation of drawing from real life, and eventually develop a never-ending source of inspiration. Each lesson will focus not only on different elements of mindfulness, but it will also cover techniques and tips to create different styles of patterns. For example, on Day 9, along with learning how to brush off judgment, we will also understand the way we can spice up a regular block repeat pattern. By the end of this class, you will be on your way to find your own answers for what to draw, how to draw, and most importantly, why to draw. Whether you are looking for an outlet to slow down and tame your inner critic, or you want to dip your toes into the world of patterns, or you want to rekindle your relationship with pen and paper, then join me in this class 2. Class Project & Material : Welcome to the class. I'm so glad to see you all. This class is not just about creating patterns, it's about diving deep into yourself and making a sense of the world inside of you, as well as the world around you. I hope that as you move along with me in this journey, you're able to turn drawing into an act of slowing down and connecting deeply with your surroundings. Now over the course of the next 10 days, I'll guide you through a variety of pattern prompts that will help you observe and depict objects around you in various ways. Your class project is to create artworks based on each of these prompts. Simple, right? You can upload one pattern each day or you can upload all of them together at the end of this class. Now the intention of the class is to capture the essence of objects, understand the basics of creating patterns, and get immersed in the present moment. The goal is not to make perfect representation, so feel free to do what I'm doing or look at the objects around you and do your own version or do multiple versions. There is no right or wrong here, though no matter what you create please do share it in the project gallery. It's always a delight to see your interpretations. If you're comfortable, then please do share your thoughts about the process too. I would love to see all the snippets from your journey. Now, just like the project the material you need for this class is quite simple. All you need is some fine liners, pencil, paper, and a ruler. I'll be using 0.6 and 0.8 fine liners from Uniball, and 0.3 from Staedtler. Depending on the detailing or the space I have, I will switch between the pen sizes, but you don't need to have the exact same size of fine liners or even the same brands. Use what you have, though, having two different sized fine liners, one for thick line work and the other for detailing always helps. You can also use a totally different medium, like crayons, colored pencils, or even paint. There is no right or wrong here. Because honestly, when you draw to meditate the mindset is way more important than the material. If you feel like starting off right away, then don't hold yourself back because you don't have the exact material. Listen to your creative impulse, use whatever you have or whatever you like. Now for paper I'm using a 200 GSM paper, though you can use any sketchbook, any kind of paper that you have. Just make sure that the surface is smooth and the size of the paper is something you find easy to fill in. I personally feel that when it comes to mindful drawing practice, the size of the paper shouldn't be intimidating and should be something that is based on the time that you have and your mental capacity. There are some days when I use big size sketchbooks, and then I keep going back to the pattern and finish it over the course of time. But then on most days I either use an A5 or even a smaller size sketchbook. You know the things that you'll finalize beforehand, like the size of the paper, the material, time of the day, or even the place where you're going to sit and draw may seem like small things but they actually set the ground for your practice, they help you ease into the process. Do spend some time to figure out the basics and then get ready to embark on this journey. I hope that this daily practice will fill up your day with calm, joy, and beauty. Let's get started. 3. Day 1 - Pencil Shavings: Keep It Simple: It's Day 1, the beginning of our daily practice. We're going to start it by drawing an object, which is a reminder of simpler times. Times when we looked at things with a big-nose attitude and the fear of blank pages wasn't a thing. The thing that I'm talking about is not the pencil or the crayon, but the byproduct of creative times; the pencil shavings. Let's begin. Now. This is going to be a random pattern, which as the name suggests, is a pattern that the motif is arranged randomly to create a very organic, non-linear design. Generally, a lot of floral patterns are made this way. I'm going to start from the center. You can start from wherever you feel comfortable. Now the pencil shaving when it comes out perfectly, is almost like a round shape with the rough scalloped edges. But I don't want to draw it in its perfect form. I'm going to break the shape and draw it apart. I'm starting by making small lines very close to each other, some even overlapping to give that rough jagged look. Once that's done, the next step is to make lines from both ends and then connect those lines through scallops. I'm making slightly rough, irregular scallops here. Quite simple. Yes, we will add the details like the pink-colored part on the top and the lines later. For now, the first step is to just fill up the page with the base shape. Now the interesting thing about a pattern like this is that even though it is inspired from an object, the shape has a very imperfect feel to it. I mean, anytime you sharpen a pencil, unless and until you're very conscious and slow, you will not get the perfect coil. You will have pencil shavings of different widths. That is why when you draw them here, keep changing the width. Even if the two sides of an individual pencil shaving is not same, it is absolutely okay. I mean, if it's imperfect, it's actually better. It will give the pattern more organic feel. We are starting a 10-day journey with this imperfect object. We are starting our journey by embracing imperfection, and that I feel is a wonderful start. For now. Just keep your focus on drawing the basic shape; the jagged start and the scalloped end. That's it. Other than that, the other element that you can focus on is the distance between each motif. Like I have decided that I want to make a tight pattern, which means I want to place everything close to each other. This condition helps me to decide where to place the next mark. Now, again, this is a personal choice. If you like tight patterns, follow this approach. If you want to make a loose one, then keep more gaps between each shape. But whatever you decide, try to stick with it. Keep the distance between the motifs consistent. Again, all of these conditions are not there to make a perfect pattern. Rather, these guidelines will reduce the decision-making process and will make it easier for us to get into the flow state. Now when it comes to random patterns, one of the ways to make it interesting is to keep changing the direction of the motifs. That is why throughout this pattern, I'm making sure to flip and rotate the motif. I don't want them all facing the same direction. Another thing to keep in mind while doing a random style pattern, not just this, but any pattern, is to stagger the placement of your motifs. Make sure that when you arrange them, they don't form a line or a stripe. That is why even if the shape is simple, be mindful of the placement. Take care of the things like the direction of the motif, the spacing between them, and their placement. Not just to make a well-balanced pattern, but to give yourself some. These limitations will give you a structure, will help you shift smoothly from one movement to another, and most importantly, will help you settle and relax with the repetitive movement. Now that the page is filled, it's time to move on to the next step. In this step, I will add the strip of color in each pencil shaving. It's a very easy and fun thing to do. The shape is already there. All we have to do is add some color to it. I'm just mimicking the scallop shape and then coloring in the blank space. Now I know that in real-life pencil shaving, the colored strip is quite thin. But as this is a stylized version, I have decided to make it slightly thicker. I like the way it looks. But again, you can decide how you want to approach this step. When I draw for meditation, I tap into every opportunity to bring slowness into my practice. That is why, instead of using a bigger size pen to thicken this colored part in one go, I'm drawing first and then filling it in. It takes more time, but then it helps me to relax. Also, before the step, even if the shape was simple and it was relaxing, my mind was equally active. I could not completely shift into the silent, calm, meditative state because I was thinking where to make the next mark and etc. That is why this step and the step after this gives us the perfect opportunity to go inward for a little while and relish the silence. Once you're done making the colored strip, the next thing you can do is to add in some lines. Now we're doing this to relax further and add some personality to the pencil shavings. You can add as many lines as you want in each of them. Now to draw the lines, you can use a thin nib pen or the same one that you have been using until now. You can also use a pencil to give a different look. I'm using the same Size 6 pen, but I'm holding the pen very lightly so that I can get thin lines. In this step, my focus is to start and end the line properly. What that means is that each time I will try to start the line from the jagged point and end it by merging it with the ticker part. It's a little thing, but it helps a lot in maintaining the focus. We're almost at the end, and it might happen that you might start feeling distracted towards like, this pattern hasn't turned out well or I should have changed the direction of the pencil shavings here and there; can come up. To make a shift from those judgmental thoughts, keep paying attention to these little lines. It's a small movement, but a continuous one. And if you get distracted, which is absolutely okay, it will reflect on the lines. When that happens, you can take that as a sign and come back to the pattern; come back to the act of starting and ending the line properly. Once the lines are done, this is how my pattern looks. This was quite fun. I liked that the pencil shavings can be broken down into so many imperfect small shapes. You can change the proportions and still have them work. That just opens up so many possibilities to use this very basic thing, obvious thing, as a part of our mindful pattern practice. As kids, we did not think about perfection. We drew because we wanted to. We colored because it was fun. It is this attitude of drawing, just for the sake of drawing, is the starting point of an art meditation practice. I hope you enjoyed this nostalgic start and are ready to explore more. 4. Day 2 - Grater: Be Gentle: Welcome to Day 2. Yesterday, we did a random pattern, so that's why for today, let's switch things up and bring a little bit of structure to our pattern. The object that I have today is very interesting. It's none other than the very useful kitchen essential, the grater. It's something that I've been using for years, but never actually observed it enough to see the detailing it has. That's why I'm very excited for today. Graters come in all shapes and sizes from the box grater to the flat one or the micro plane one. Each one has different design and blade size, and each one can become a part of our pattern practice. But for today, I'm going to show you my way of doing the box grater. The aim of this class is not to make an exact representation of the object, but more of a simplified version. That's why I'm just going to make a flat version of the box grater. The shape of a box grater is like a trapezium. It's a flat shape with four sides, with two of the sides a pattern. I'm also adding a small handle on top to complete the loop. I'm doing this free hand, but you can use a ruler if you want. Now this is going to be a full bleed pattern, which means there will be no background and everything in the pattern will be connected to each other. That's why I started from the center, and then accordingly, I placed all other graters around it. Eventually, each grater will be connected to the other for that cohesive and tight look. Now to keep things interesting, I want to make sure that none of the grater handles are parallel to each other. That's why the starting point of each grater is different. Also, this is going to be a directional pattern, which means that this pattern can make sense when viewed from only one direction. Once the base is done, I'm going to outline the whole thing with a 0.8 fine liner. If you're not happy with any line, you can overwrite it with pen at this stage. You don't have to follow the exact thing that you have drawn. Feel free to make the changes. Though, as this is just a base structure, don't spend a lot of time perfecting it. Rather, get ready to move on to the next stage, which will help us to be mindful and actually get into the flow state. Now that we have our base sketch ready, it's time to fill it in. Just like there are various blades size, and styles in graters, there are various ways to fill up your base shape. I'm going to draw the smallest style of blade, which looks like a teardrop shape. I have switched to a 0.3 size spin because I want to make small size blades. You can decide the size and the shape of the blade that you want to make, and then try to draw the same size and style throughout the pattern. I'm making sure that the teardrops are evenly spaced in each row. Other than that, I'm also alternating the starting point in every row. In the pattern design world, this is called offsetting. This creates a zigzag or staggered effect in the pattern, which can add visual interest and variety. In this case, I'm doing this not just for visual interests, but this is how the blades are placed in almost every kind of grater. Now because this is all free hand, your rues might not come out to be perfect, but it is absolutely fine. It is not the important thing here. We are doing this pattern to practice mindfulness. To do that, it's important to focus on closing the shape, because every time you leave the shape open, it will indicate that you rushed through the drawing process or you weren't completely there. Strive for completing and closing the shape and not making them all look perfect and in the same line. If you get perfect blades, it's great. But if it doesn't happen, then also it's great. The flow state that you will experience is not dependent on the level of perfection in the pattern, it is dependent on intention, repetition, and the attention. So make these elements your priority. When you approach drawing with a meditative mindset, it's not always necessary to create intricate or time consuming patterns. You have the freedom to decide what you want to create based on the time and resources available to you. Even if you work on large scale or draw only one grater, it will be a meditative experience. Follow the basics like drawing directly from pen, paying attention to the shapes, the repetition, and I can assure you that the rest will all fall into place. Not just for this pattern, but for other patterns too, take the inspiration from what I'm making, but also observe the object. Take some time to reflect on the object you're drawing, your creativity, your sense of balance and shape, and your own unique perspective are the elements that will make the pattern yours. Use this practice as an opportunity to first reflect, observe the object, look around the variations online or offline, and then pick a route that works for you. Now, the blades on their own looks quite fine, but I want to take it one step further. That's why I will go ahead and fill up the top part of each blade. That not only gives it more depth, but it is also an opportunity for me to slow down further. I'm making these tiny circles in a really small space. If I want them to come out well, I have to bring all my attention to what I'm doing. The amazing thing here is that what I'm making isn't complicated. It's not about my skill, rather, it's all about focus. Any mistake that happens on the page doesn't upset me, rather, it indicates to me that I wasn't fully aware of what I was doing. Instead of being critical of a mark that didn't go well, I actually acknowledge it with grace and take it as a sign to bring my attention towards the pattern. That's why in the beginning, it's important to practice art meditation with simple repetitive movements. That way, you will be able to see the flaws on the people as feedback, something that tells you about your attention level and not your skill level. Because of this, you will be able to quieten the critical inner voice and focus more on the process. Achieving a flow state of mind is something widely spoken about, and sometimes it can seem like a super complex thing to achieve, but it doesn't have to be that way. Any activity when done with utmost attention, can shift you into the flow state. When you let your pen move across the page and you start seeing what is happening without any criticism, you will find yourself in the flow state. Now once the blades are done, the last step is to fill in the handle part and finish off the pattern. This is how the end result looks. Even though we drew an everyday object, at its core, it's a page filled with teardrops. That just shows that there are so many ways we can fill up our sketch books. Sometimes all we need is a little bit of mix and match, and we can have some really interesting pattern combinations. I hope as you do this pattern, you remember to be gentle with yourself. This is your me time, your time to take care of your mind. Don't lose yourself into how a drawing should be or why I can't draw a certain way. Rather, lose yourself in the process of making repetitive marks because that takes you into a silent and comforting space. 5. Day 3 - String Lights: Lighten Up: String lights, globe lights, fairy lights, no matter what you call them, they have the power to make any space look magical and cozy. They can accentuate the beauty of anything around them. And mindfulness as a practice, is the same. Any moments spent in the present state has the power to lighten up your inner world and eventually your outer world too. For today, let's draw one of my favorite objects, the string lights. Now, I want to draw the version of string lights, which is at first a cause of frustration, and that is the tangled, messy form. And even though the dangling string lights is not fun, drawing the jumbled version is quite fun. So to begin with, take a deep breath and start drawing from any corner of the paper. There is no need to think too much about it, let your pen move freely and let it create tangled and overlapping lines. Just draw it the way a child would with complete freedom and without any inhibition. Now that the base is done, it's time to add the little bulbs and transform these tangled lines into a more recognizable form. Now there are countless ways to create bulbs for a string light, but for this tutorial, I will stick with the circular or the oval style kind of a bulb. I'm starting by drawing a small rectangle and then adding a circle on top. This is the basic style of bulb, but you can experiment with different shapes and styles of your choice. There are so many varieties of string lights out there, you can make something you have at home or something you've seen in the shops, or create something from your own imagination, any kind of object or shape can be used too. There are so many possibilities, and I feel that's the beauty of this object. Try it from the way you can draw the strings to the style of the bulbs, you can experiment and come up with as many variations as you want. Now when it comes to the direction of the bulbs, there are of different ways you can go about it, you can alternate the direction of each bulb or change the direction, as in when you feel like. As you can see, I'm not following a fixed sequence when it comes to the direction of the bulbs. I am intentionally doing this to maintain a sense of randomness and add a playful element to the pattern. Additionally, there may be areas where I don't have enough space to draw the bulbs, so I adjust the direction of the bulbs accordingly. Essentially, I'm giving myself the freedom to change the direction of the bulbs wherever I feel like it. Sometimes it's fun to play with the size, but in some patterns, the rhythm comes from the relative uniformity of the motive. That's why, for this particular pattern, where the base is jumbled and tangled. I'm sticking with consistency and making sure that the size of the bulbs is the same throughout the pattern. When you start the pattern, decide on the bulb size at the beginning and maintain it throughout the drawing process. Personally, I enjoy creating smaller-size models, and that's why for this particular pattern, I decided to go with small-size bulbs. However, feel free to experiment with different sizes and see what works best for you. With regular practice, you'll start to develop a preference for certain shapes, sizes, and styles, and then all those elements can eventually become a part of your daily art meditation practice. This is going to be a non-directional pattern, which means there's no right or wrong way of looking at it. Since the string lights are tangled and twisted, the pattern can be viewed from any angle or direction and still maintain its overall appearance. Generally, non-directional patterns can be very useful in design because they are versatile and adaptable to different context. They can be used on fabrics, wallpapers and other surfaces where the ability to look good from any direction is beneficial. Additionally, non-directional patterns can help to create a sense of balance and harmony in a design, as they're not skewed or bias towards any particular direction. Just like the wedge, string lights can make any space cozy. The repetitive movement of drawing one shape can lighten up your mood. Each time your mind drifts into the past mistakes or future worries, you can bring your attention back to the present moment by focusing on the pen movement. The repetitive movement of the pen helps ankle you into the present moment. The slow act of repetition helps you release stress and create a sense of peace, even if the world outside is tangled. So continue filling in your pattern all the way down, and eventually you will have something that looks like this. Because the string light consists of two elements, the wires, which are fluid in nature, and the bulbs, which are more structured, you can have a lot of fun with this object. De-dangling the string lights is a tedious process, but once it is done and the lights are switched on, it's worth it. Well, the similar sense of lightness and joy comes when you let your stress out through art meditation practice. I hope you do your version of string lights today and I'll see you tomorrow. 6. Day 4 - Hanger: Hang In There: We are on Day 4 and today we are going to draw some hangers. I wanted to pick an object from the wardrobe and hanger seemed like a good option; they are very basic. They don't come across as something that would strike as inspiring and that is why I'm very curious to see as to how this will turn out. This is going to be a diagonal pattern and that's why I'm starting with a basic grid. I have kept it two centimeter distance between each line. You can create diagonal lines at an angle that you like. Though, I would recommend not to make them too close to each other. Now the basic hanger motif can be broken down into two shapes, a question mark and a triangle, and that is what I'm going to do here, like this. Now for the next hanger, I'm going to invert the shape. This time I'm drawing the triangle first and then the question mark. Now, after inverting the hanger shape, let's add one more interest in this pattern. For the third hanger in this row, I want to play around with the question mark, shape of the hanger. That's why I'm starting this new hanger from the one before it. The starting point of this question mark is connected to the ending of the previous one to give it an interlocking effect. This little interlocking that we will be doing throughout the pattern will create a sense of connection and flow between the hangers. Now, I will follow the same sequence throughout the page. I'll keep playing by inverting and interlocking the hangers and we will see what happens. Now, just like the way hangers are quite close to each other in a cupboard, I want to keep the gap minimal between the hangers in this pattern too, that is why every time that I will invert the hanger, I will make sure that I draw them very close to each other. Now this is just one of the ways I thought of using this motif. You can follow the same route or you can change the direction or the size of the hanger, or even change the space between the hangers. Every variation will give some different results and it will be interesting to explore that. Now that the first row is done, let's move on to the next. I will follow the same format here too. Though, this time the drawing process becomes easier. I don't have to think where to draw the next hanger. I just need to connect the triangle part of each hanger with the one parallel to it. Eventually the pattern becomes interconnected both horizontally as well as vertically. It's like a broken chain of hangers where each one is connected to the other in a continuous and flowing pattern. Mindful drawing isn't just about repeating a shape, it's about the intent with which you repeat the shape and that is why the mindful drawing process actually starts before you even draw on the paper. It all starts with our intention, so before you start your pattern for the day, think about the reason you are doing it. Remind yourself that you are doing it to practice meditation and mindfulness and not to create a masterpiece or to prove something. When your intention ranges from drawing for relaxation, to slowing down, to having fun, or to just do something which doesn't involve screen, then you will find it easier to detach yourself from the final outcome even if the pattern doesn't turn out as expected. Because of your intention, you will be able to find meaning and joy in the process. One of the things that I love about creating patterns like this is the sense of exploration and creativity that it allows for. Once I have established the basic motif and layout, I can experiment with different variations by adding details. So that is why in this last step, I have decided to add a little weight, a slight curve on the sides of each hanger. By doing that, I'm transforming it from the basic metal hanger to a plastic or a wooden hanger. I'm not doing an exact representation, I'm just adding some more details based on what I felt like doing. You can decide the look that you want to give to your hangers. You know one of the best parts of drawing stylized version of objects is that once you take the basic inspiration, once you know what to draw, you can take it in any direction you want. You can add details based on what you are seeing or you can tweak the details as per your own preference, there is no fixed format. Along with practicing meditation, this is also the time to explore your creativity. Experiment with the objects as well as the pattern layouts. The use of negative space is also an important part of any design. In this pattern, by leaving space between the hangers, we created a sense of balance and allowed the eyes to rest. However, too much negative space can make the design feel empty and unbalanced. That is why, by adding little line weight to each and every hanger, we have been able to reduce some of the negative space and create a more cohesive design. I keep adding the details and once it is finished, it looks like this. The interesting thing here is, that when we started the pattern, it was flowing from one direction, but now it is flowing from the other direction. It is still a diagonal repeat but the direction has changed and that is quite a fun revelation, isn't it? I feel that this pattern is a great reminder that when we view mundane objects with curiosity and draw them without any expectation, interesting things can happen. Do keep an eye on boring everyday objects, you might not know what creative route they might take. Keep exploring, keep drawing just for the sake of drawing, just because you want to do. 7. Day 5 - Keyboard: Find The Rhythm: One of the ways I like to make a pattern is to make a shape and then to keep building onto the same shape so that it creates a pattern of its own. So to do that, the object that I have picked up today is a keyboard. Now I know it's not a very common household object, even, we got it recently when my son started his keyboard lessons. But then even if you don't have it at your place, at some point or the other, you must have been drawn towards the rhythm created by this beautiful musical instrument. So why not create some rhythm in to our daily practice by creating a pattern inspired by the black and white keys of the keyboard? Let's get started. Now we're going to start this pattern by creating some concentric circles. I'm using a compass to draw the circles. But if you don't have one, don't worry. You can use cups and plates of different sizes or even draw the so-called freehand. It doesn't matter if they end up a little wonky. It will still work. Once the grid is done, we are going to fill up the space between each of the circles with lines. As you can see, I'm not making the lines very close to each other. I'm keeping it a little loose as I want to have some space between the lines to create the black keys. I'm trying to keep equal distance between the lines. Though, if you misjudge the space at any point, like the way I have done at certain places, then it's okay. This is hand-drawn art. It's okay if some lines end up coming close to each other. You can try for equal spacing from the next one. The goal here is not perfection, the main intention is to make lines that start and end properly. As you can see, each of my lines touches both the ends of the circles and that's what makes it a proper line or a complete line. Along with making an intentional line, another thing that will help you focus on the simple process is to make sure that you draw an odd number of lines. We need to do this so that when we draw the black keys, there is a possibility of alternating between two and three keys. So keep filling up each layer with lines. Lines are one of the most basic marks. Making repetitive lines is very therapeutic. Especially in this case, as the lines we are making a really small, there is no pressure to draw the perfect long straight lines. Without that pressure, it becomes easier to go with the flow. Once the lines are done, you can go ahead and outline the circles. Now at this stage, this looks like a concentric circle pattern filled with lines. So it's time to transform it into a recognizable keyboard pattern. Now, doing that is very simple and fun. All we have to do is create the black keys. I'm making a rectangle around the line and then slowly filling it in. You can do it this way or you can use a thicker nib pen and just draw a thicker line to create the black key look. The thing that you have to pay attention to at this stage is to maintain the black and white keys pattern. I'm going to draw two black keys first and then I will skip one space and then create three black keys. Then again skip one more line and then add two more black keys. I'm going to keep repeating this till I reach the endpoint. Quite simple. Now, as you reach the end of the circle, depending on the number of lines you have, it might happen that in the end, a set of two black keys or a set of three black keys are next to each other. The way it has happened in my pattern. I have to set up black keys next to each other. But you know what, it is okay. The goal is to maintain the alternate rhythm and not to have the perfect set of keys. The interesting part about this pattern is that, even though it is quite simple and you have counted the lines, you won't know how it will unfold till the very end. That is a little element of uncertainty with regard to how the two and the three black rhythms of the keys will play out in each round. There will also be times when you might have space issues and will find it difficult to draw the black keys. But if you still keep moving forward with each circle, in spite of the little imperfections and along with making art, you're also practicing acceptance towards uncertainty, acceptance towards the mistakes that might happen during the process. The more you accept, the more you let things unfold without trying to control each and every move, the more relaxed you start feeling while creating. The marks the pen meets both good and bad shapes our pattern. And the more accept and honor this process, the more flow and peace we can invite into our art meditation practice. And to be clear, acceptance doesn't mean that you succumb and fall victim to your circumstances. It means that we shift the energy you bring into a situation. That shift actually helps you find the next move, helps you navigate hardships with ease. At the end of the day, learning, evolving, and creating the life we desire is a process. Even if we can't always see the bigger picture, it's important to trust that we are being guided. So keep enjoying the process and once done, this is how the pattern looks. This style of pattern where you keep repeating the base design and growth with each round is a very easy style to create a meditative pattern. I feel it looks great too. Just like the way the repeating pattern of black and white keys helps someone find notes on a piano or a keyboard, the process of making repeat pattern helps us tune into our inner world and create a beautiful calm melody. So I hope you enjoyed the rhythm that we created today, and I look forward to seeing your creations. 8. Day 6 - Keyhole: Widen Your Gaze: All the objects that we have drawn till today have some details in them, but that doesn't mean that you have to restrict yourself to such objects. You can draw patterns inspired from an interesting shape too, and that is what we are going to do today. The object that we're going to draw is very tiny, but nevertheless, very important, the keyhole. First thing that we are going to do is to divide the paper into several rows. I've already done that here. These rows are two centimeter each. Now, before starting the drawing, I'm going to first approximately mark the start and end point of each keyhole. I'm doing this so that there is enough space to draw the keyholes right till the end. Now, the keyhole is a fairly simple shape. I'm making the lines first and then joining it with the curve. You can do it this way or the other way round. Do what feels comfortable to you. Now, as I move ahead, I'm making sure to connect each keyhole with the other, and I'm trying to ensure that they all are fairly same size. Now, I could have divided the paper into vertical columns, I need a much more detailed grid for more uniform shapes, but I went ahead with just the basic row because I want it to retain the freehand field. But yes, if you want you can make a detailed grid and that way, all the key holes that you draw will be exactly the same in height as well as width. Now, I understand the drawing directly from open hand is challenging. There are times when you end up making some mistakes or misplacing the marks. But then when the intention is to relax, the whole attitude towards the mistakes changes. Rather than thinking that drawing directly from pen is challenging, you start looking it as a way to bring yourself into the present moment. Every time I draw with pen, I automatically end up drawing slowly. I try not to rush through the process, and that just helps me in being more mindful of each and every mark that I'm making. Now this is going to be an all over pattern with a two way layout, which means that all the motifs will be distributed in an even and somewhat dense layout, and the pattern can be viewed best from two directions. That is why now for the next row, I'm going to invert the shape. The shape fits really well when inverted, and it also gives more interest to a regular block repeat pattern. Another advantage of inverting the shape is that it gets easier to place the motif. I just have to follow the cues from the shape above and create the keyhole. That is why in this step, instead of focusing on where to draw, I'm able to focus more on how I'm moving the pen on paper. I start to feel more relaxed and I slowly settle into the rhythm of repeating the motif one after the other. I tried to be very gentle and compassionate with myself when I draw to meditate. I don't always like the way each drawing comes out, and it might happen with you too. But do remember that mindful drawings you make are for you and your progress. It is not something that you have to always share with others. I mean, you can if you want to, but that's not the point. At the end of the day, it's a safe place for you to connect to yourself, to your art, and practice mindfulness, and even build your skills as an artist if that's what you want. Challenge yourself to finish the whole page. Even if you don't like where it is going, you will always learn something, it's part of the process. The more you practice making different kinds of marks, the more you will find what works for you and what doesn't. Keep alternating the shape, move slowly and after a while, you will have a page filled with interconnected keyholes. Now, in this next step, we are going to reap the benefits of the first step. What that means is that after the drawing part, it's time to relax even further, and we will do that by filling in the motif. It's like coloring, and coloring is always fun and relaxing, isn't it? Now, I'm using the same pen as before because I want this to be a slow process, but you can use a bigger-sized pen, something like a sharpie if you want to fill your shapes faster. My first row is done. Now when it comes to filling the shapes, there are two directions that you can take. The first one is that you can keep filling in each shape as it is, or the other one is to alternate the coloring part, and that's what I'm going to do here. In the second row, instead of filling in the keyhole, I will fill in the background. As I said before, this is just one of the ways to play around with this pattern. I wanted to create some unpredictability in this pattern. By inverting the shape and alternating the coloring space, I feel I have been able to do that. In most artwork, the subject or focus of a picture is called the positive space, while the areas surrounding the main subject are known as the negative space. In this pattern, the keyhole is the positive shape. But then, I went ahead and filled in the negative space in every alternate row to create some optical illusion. This is just one of the ways to play with positive and negative space. Now, spaces both positive and negative ties your design together. The intelligent use of space can tell a harmonious, coherent, or a complete story. Now, just like the way understanding of positive and negative spaces are essential for a harmonious composition, and understanding of certainty and uncertainty is essential for a harmonious life. It is important to realize that we don't have the keys to solve each and every problem that we face. A lot of things are out of our control, and that is why it is important to learn to distinguish between the solvable and unsolvable worries, and meditation is one of the ways to become more at ease with uncertainty. When we let go of what we can't control, we can focus on what's actually in front of us. Life can flow with a little more ease this way. The doors which can be opened and which can't be opened can co-exist together without adding onto the stress. Continue filling in your pattern. Keep alternating the color, and eventually you will have something that looks like this. I really like the play of positive and negative space in this pattern. It's interesting to see the way the negative space has acquired a shape of its own in this pattern. Meditation isn't the key to unlock all the answers. Rather, it is a slow and long-term process that helps you widen your gaze and gives you a clearer perspective. It helps you see the doors that can be opened and eases you into accepting the unknown so that you can take care of your mental and emotional well-being. Art meditation is one of the ways to do that. I hope that as we move ahead on this journey, you keep discovering ease and peace. That's it for Day 6. See you tomorrow. 9. Day 7 - Yarn Ball: Let Go Of Limitations: Once you start practicing art meditation on a daily basis, limiting beliefs like, I'm not creative, I cannot draw, I'm not good at it, start loosening that hold on you. The more you draw, the less intimidating the inner critic becomes. Gradually with time, the voice of the inner critic starts fading away and you are able to replace that space with positive and uplifting parts. To capture the gradual fading away of the inner critic, today we are going to draw a gradient style pattern. The object that we're going to draw today is a very fun, yarn ball. The basic idea here is that I want to gradually decrease the size of the yarn ball. I'm going to sketch everything first with a pencil. I'm doing so because in this pattern, the size of the yarn balls is really important. Each row should have similar size circles because only then we can achieve the size gradient effect. The circles don't have to be perfect. After all, even a yarn ball is not a perfect circle. All we're looking for in this pattern is consistency. This first row has four circuits, and this is going to be the row for the biggest circles. Based on the size of your paper, you can decide the number of circles you can please in the first row. After the first set of circles are done, the most important thing we have to keep in mind is to decrease the size of the motif with every row. Now with regards to placement, you can follow two directions. Option 1 is to please the circles in a line. If the first line has four circles, then the rest will have four too. Just that the size will decrease with every row. Now option 2 is to offset the placement of the circles. That's what I'm doing here. I'm placing the circles in the gaps, and that is why I keep alternating between four and three circles. I'm going to keep doing this till I reach the top of the page. This is how it looks once done. As I moved ahead, the space between the motifs increased and thus from a type pattern, it has gradually become a loose pattern. I will now finalize everything by going over with a fine liner. Once that is done, I will start transforming these circles into yarn balls. I'm going to start by drawing curved lines in pairs to indicate the yarn wrapped around the ball. Some set of lines will overlap, some will go under. It's a fun and low pressure process. The only thing I'm paying attention here, is the direction of the lines. I want to get that yarn ball effect, and to do that, I keep changing the direction of the lines variable possible. Even in the species where I didn't make the pair of lines first, I'm randomly filling in the lines along with being conscious about their direction. It's a very little thing, but that's what will make the pattern interesting, and will also keep me engaged in the process. Good. The first yarn ball is done. Now let's move on to the second one. I'm going to follow the same approach here too. But for this one, I'm intentionally making sure that my basic set of lines flow in a different direction compared to the first one. That is why for this circle, I'm starting from the other side. The concept is same, but I'm just playing around with the direction to bring some variations in the yarn balls. Now I'm making the lines quite close to each other because I like this tight look. You do what you enjoy doing. You can keep more distance between the lines, or you can even make heavier lines. Either way, it will look like a ball of yarn. The interesting thing about this pattern is that even if some lines are crammed up or a are wonky or the distance between them values at certain places, it absolutely works. After all, that's how the yarn ball is. There were so many things that we used to do as kids that would fill us with joy and excitement. But very few of us carry these practices on into adulthood. One such practice is drawing, for drawing sake. Just letting the pencil glide across the page without the need to create something exceptional. We stop these things because as we grow old, we go from knowing ourselves as a field of infinite possibilities to limited identities. We begin to internalize our outdoor experiences and start creating stories about ourselves around these limitations. We shift from thinking anything is possible to, I'm not good enough. Now when we meditate, these limiting beliefs don't go away instantly. But with regular practice, we learn to create a distance between ourselves and these thoughts. We understand that the limiting beliefs don't own us. Just like any other thoughts or sensation, it arises, persist for a time and then fades away. Just like the way the yarn balls have started feeding away in this pattern. As you make this pattern, anytime a thought pops up be it related to the drawing that you are making or something else, don't resist the thought. Let it come, just don't engage with it. Get back to your drawing, look at the marks that you are making. Remind yourself about the task in front of you. It will not be easy and will take time to get into this habit. But with regular practice, you will start getting better at these thoughts will come and go. It's a continuous cycle, but you will learn to witness them rather than react to them. That can make a whole lot of difference to your creativity, to your well-being. I'm working on the smaller yarns now, and these don't require a lot of detailing. Just few curved lines and you can get the yarn ball look. Here's how the finished piece looks. I think this pattern is a good example of how a simple object can be used to make patterns by just changing the skill.. Next time, when you sit to draw patterns, think about how you can play around with the scale and create some variations. The beauty of meditation is that it helps us loosen our grip over labels and judgments that we have about ourselves as well as others. That's why let's keep moving on this journey. Let's keep filling up our page with patterns so that we can keep seeing things the way they are rather than the way we think they are. 10. Day 8 - Shuttlecock: Embrace Play: The object that we have under spotlight today is a shuttlecock. Now, I'm not into sports, but the only sport that I ever enjoyed playing, or I play even sometimes now is badminton. The badminton racket has lot of interesting details and I think it will be quite a fun object to draw. But I wanted to draw a different shape and that is why the shuttlecock seemed quite a good idea. Let's begin the game. This is going to be an all over random pattern. I'm going to play around with the direction as well as the size of the shuttlecocks. Also, we are not making a full bleed pattern, which means we are going to leave a tiny border all the way around the edge of the paper. I'm going to start by sketching. At this stage, I'm only drawing the basic shape of a shuttlecock. I'm focusing on drawing the skirt, as well as the coke part and I will add all the details later. I'm starting from one corner and then we'll keep building the motif around the first one. You can start from anywhere you feel like and then as you go you can figure out where to fit the next object. You just have to ensure that you place the motif the way it is pleasing to your eyes. Now, there are two things that you can keep in mind while making a well-balanced random pattern. The first one is to ensure that you have equal white space between each motif. You can place them close to each other or far, that's absolutely up to you. What's important is that you maintain that distance throughout the pattern. The next thing that you can do is to ensure that the motif doesn't form a line. There should be some variation in the starting point or the size or the direction, otherwise, it will not look like a random pattern. This is a little tricky shape and I'm also drawing it quite big. That is why fitting it all together does get challenging. But then I treat it like a puzzle and that shifts this basic composition step into a fun process instead of a challenging one. If at anytime you are confused as to where to draw next, simply take a pause. Look at the paper from all the angles, rotate the pitch to get a better sense of which space you need to fill in first. See which spaces are more blank than the other, and then decide where to draw next. Now that the basic layout is done, it's time to add the details. I'm starting with the small triangles. The curved line we made in the beginning comes very handy here. From this step on-wards, you can decide the level of details you want to add in the shuttlecock. I'm taking inspiration from the plastic shuttlecock I have at home. That's why I'm adding two steps of curved lines in the skirt part and one in the **** part. As always, I'm not aiming for exact representation and that's why I have increased the width of the curved lines. I'm going to fill in all of them in the later stages, for now, I'm just drawing the shapes and building the motif. Planning and thinking part is over and now it's time for my favorite part, which is to add the tiny details. I'm going to first draw vertical lines and then horizontal lines to create the shuttle skirt. The first set of vertical lines are done, now I need to add more lines in the skirt part to create tiny squares. For this step, I'm going to change the pen. I'm using a 0.3 pen to do this. I'm going to first add vertical lines in-between the existing lines and then horizontal ones. I'm drawing the lines very close to each other to get those tiny squares. I think this has come out quite well. The size of the squares may not exactly be the same, but it doesn't matter. I think I've captured the feel of the shuttlecock and that's what is important. Now this part is going to be very relaxing, so don't rush through it, take your time to draw the lines. You don't have to draw them as close as I am drawing, you can decide the parameters that you are comfortable working with. You can get as creative as you want and bring as many variations in the shuttlecock. I understand that creating something without any expectations is not an easy task. Throughout much of our lives, we relate to actions with outcomes. But meditation added score is an activity that is non-striving. The only aim is to be in the present moment. There is no other goal. Now, of course, with regular art meditation practice, you start experiencing lower stress level, better understanding of emotions, better sleep, improvement in your drawing practice, and so on. But all of these other good side-effects, the practice itself is all about letting go of any need to try and get somewhere or achieve something. Once you accept that, once you realize that there is no pressure to perform, it is a very liberating feeling and here's a secret. When you create from that expectation free zone, your creativity flows without any obstacles, it becomes play. The pattern is almost done. I just have one more thing to do. I need to fill in the curved lines to complete the motif. Because this is coloring, this is one of the most simplest and relaxing things to do. Once done, this is how the pattern looks. I like the way we broke down the shuttlecock motif in several small steps and designed this pattern. Also the fun part about this one is that we have got these big motifs with tiny details in them and this contrast makes it a really interesting pattern. I hope you enjoyed this pattern. For me, it was absolutely fun. Not only did I enjoy making the shape, but I also enjoy making random patterns so it was quite a win-win. Do remember that when you embrace experimentation, when you embrace play, you start making the shift from, I can't do this to let me try this. Just the simple act of making marks, exploring different objects, doing your own interpretations without thinking about the good or the bad becomes a joyful experience. Keep sharing your experiences in the project gallery and let's move on to Day 9. 11. Day 9 - Comb: Brush Off Judgement: Hair brushes have been around for thousands of years. But then no matter the shape of style, one thing that has remained consistent is the tooth and that in drawing themes means lines. Now, any shape or object that gives us the opportunity to draw many lines should be drawn. Now, just like the way that our various varieties of combs and hair brushes, there are various ways you can do this pattern. Let me show you one of the ways to do it. Then based on that, you can decide how to use your favorite hairbrush as part of your daily pattern design. This one is going to be a non-directional block repeat pattern. But instead of drawing the exact motif in each block, I will invert the direction in the next row. Let me show you what I mean. I've already made the basic grid. I have divided the paper into 20 columns. They are around 2.5-centimeter width-wise. I have kept a small border on each side, and I've also kept a little distance between each column. You can decide the size of your column based on the size of your paper. Now the next step here is to draw the basic comb structure in each of these columns. The comb that I'm taking inspiration from is called the rat-tail. It's a very fine-toothed comb with a very thin handle. Now the first column will have the tooth part of the comb and the column below it will have the handle part. In the upper column, I've added lines on all the three sides of the rectangle to indicate the shaft part. The vertical line is slightly thicker as that's how it is in a comb. Now when it comes to the handle part of the comb, I'm drawing a slight curve from the endpoint of the rectangle and then merging it with the straight line of the next column. This whole drawing part very much depends on the hair brush or comb you are taking inspiration from. You can just add a straight line or a slightly thicker line to indicate the handle part. You can have combs with bigger width and a heavy handle and thus bigger columns to draw them. Or you can follow something from my patterns, few elements based on what you like to draw and then just mix and match. Now I want to invert the comb and fit two combs together. That is why in the second row, I'm making the rectangle on the other side. I'm keeping a small distance between each of the rectangles as that space will differentiate the two combs. It might seem a little confusing now, but as we move ahead in the pattern, you will get to see how everything comes out. I'm repeating the same process in the next column 2, I'm following an alternate rhythm. First row has rectangle on the left side and the second row has rectangles on the right side. The third row and forth row will also follow the same sequence. The process of making this grid may feel a little labor-intensive. But once you are done and start adding the lines, I can assure you it will all be worth it. My grid is done and in this step, I will finish the base structure of the comb. I'm just filling in the three sides of the comb, which will become the shaft, the part of the comb that holds the teeth. Because of all the detailing, we did in the previous step, this step becomes quite simple. I just need to go over all the columns and pay attention on coloring it. If I'm not happy with the line width at certain areas, I make sure to change it at this stage. Even though there is a fair amount of refining in this step, it is all very relaxing too, because of the coloring part. I'm also adding a little weight to the handle. Now this is a stylized version of a rat-tail comb. I have drawn some things as it is, while some I have changed. Instead of a heavier handle, I have added only a slight curve. I've done that because I want both the combs to fit together. I'm going to continue doing this in all the columns. The basic structure is ready and now it's time to add a lot of lines and make this into a comb. Drawing-wise, this part is super easy. All I have to do is make small lines. The grid that I made, in the beginning, is helping me to maintain the end point of the lines. Instead of thinking what to draw and where to draw, I just have to focus on the lines. Now, anytime while drawing a line touches with another one or the distance between the lines changes. I instantly realized that I wasn't fully aware. I gently bring myself back to the paper, to the pen and start creating again. What I love about combs and hair brushes is that it allows us to play with lines and density. You can make really thin lines like the way I'm doing here. Or you can draw really thick lines. You can play around with the distance between them and come with different variations. You can even draw different types of lines, maybe a zigzag or a dotted line or something else. It's your pattern, it's your interpretation. Take a route that you find fun and interesting. Now that you have been doing art meditation for a while, you might be tempted to judge each odd meditation practice as good or bad, you might have liked some end results more than the other, which is absolutely okay. But then try not to judge the patterns solely on the basis of how the end result looks. Instead, if you want to analyze your progress, then take a stock of how the process makes you feel. Have you noticed any changes in your mood? Have you noticed new things about your drawing style? Do you feel more relaxed when you approach the blank page? How do you react when you make mistakes? Honestly, there is no right or wrong answer for all of these questions. The more you draw, the more you will experience and what you feel is your answer. This is how our ninth-day pattern looks. I absolutely loved the way it turned out. I feel because of the numerous varieties of combs out there, this is just one of the many ways that this object can be used. Do experiment with this motif and I'm sure it will lead to some really interesting results. The art of mindful drawing is a wonderful journey to embark on. Cherish every moment and be proud of every drawing that you made, regardless of how technically good it may be. When you look at the end result. Instead of looking at the mistakes, see the effort that you took, and notice how the process made you feel. If you want, you can also share your experiences and your process in the project section. 12. Day 10 - Nails: Beauty In Mundane: Meditation or any other mental well-being practices may seem small, but when done regularly, they help us hold our lives together. Similarly, the object that we're going to draw today is very small. It's mostly hidden, but it is the one that actually holds our pieces together. And it's none other than the humble nail. I'm very excited to draw this. Let's start. In most of the patterns we did till now, we draw the object from only one perspective. For this pattern, I'm going to incorporate the nail in two ways. I want to draw the nail part as well as showcase the flattened head part of the nail. That's why in each of these circles in the center, I'm going to draw the flattened head of the nail. Then several needs radiating out from that. I'm going for a floral look. We'll see how it turns out. For now, I'm dividing each circle in several parts. Each of these lines will later help and placing the needs. Before starting the pattern, I recommend making some grids on a rough paper to figure out the layout and the number of circles you want to draw. You can also make one big circle and do only one set of nail arrangement. The choice is yours. Now that we have the guidelines ready, it's time to bring out our fine liners and draw some nails. A basic shape of a nail is very simple. I'm starting with the small triangle to represent the tip of the nail. To start, I'm making two diagonal lines to show the body of the nail. Then I'm ending the lines by making two small slanting lines and then joining them together with a curve to showcase the head part of the nail. I've made the glove slightly thicker to highlight the flattened part. This nail is called the drywall nail. It's not an exact representation, but it's close to one. Like so many other objects we have drawn in this class, there are several varieties of nails out there. In this first step, I'm making the slightly thicker version of nails. But you can follow what I am doing or checkout the nails you have at home or online and draw them however you like. While doing research, I found that there are at least 30 different varieties of nails. That just means that you can do so much with this tiny object. You can pick up the V-shaped from one pair of nail and the details from the other and create your own version. Now the guidelines that we made in the first step are a big help here. They helped me decide the start and end point of the nail. That just reduces the decision-making part. I can focus more on the lines and how everything is connecting to each other, rather than thinking where to make the next to nail. In this first step, my goal is to just draw the body of the nail. I will add the details in each of these needs later. Now, I do it this way because I don't like to switch between the actions. The more I repeat a particular movement, the more the brain gets familiar with it, and I end up feeling at ease. This first step is done. But as you can see, there's lots of empty space here. My plan is to draw some more nails between these needs. But this time I will not draw the thick nails. Rather, I will meet the common nail, which is nothing but a thin basic nail. This one will just have a nail tip two parallel lines, and a thin horizontal line in the end. I'm going to fill it up. I'm doing this because I feel it looks more realistic that way. Also, the black thin nails will provide a good contrast in the pattern. Some of my meals aren't coming out the way I wanted. I wanted to make purely thin nails. But you know what? It's okay. I'm doing this free hand and I'm enjoying the process of drawing these nails and then coloring them. Perfection is not exactly my aim here. If I wanted that perfect look, I would have first sketched out each nail and then draw over it. With time, I've learned to detach myself with how a pattern should look. Rather, I focus on how the pattern made me feel. I think adding these nails has been a good idea. Each of the circles look complete now. I just realized that if you draw a lot of common nails clustered together in a circle, it will give the look of a wild dandelion flower. You can try that too. I think it would be quite an interesting pattern exploration. Now in this stage, I'm going to do my favorite thing, which is to add details. Now some varieties of meals have rings similar to the rings that screws have around them. That's what I'm going to do now. I'm going to make lines and then join them with a curve. Now, instead of making just landing lines, I'm starting with a glove from outside of the nail and then doing the line and then again ending with a small curve. It's a very little thing. But then it helps in bringing out the texture of the nail. This is just one of the ways to draw the rings on the nail. You can add slanting lines or maybe curved lines or anything else that strikes your imagination. Either way, it will resemble a nail. It is such a recognizable shape that once you are done with the base shape, you can get as realistic or as creative with the details. In the end, it will still look like a nail. You can try out some options on a rough paper first and then decide the ones that you are most comfortable with or excited to draw. Play around with the space between the rings or the width or the angle of the curve to come up with different loops. As you move ahead in your daily drawing practice, you will start noticing the marks that you like, as well as the marks that you don't like. If you slow down enough and often than you will start noticing and listening to your intuition. First, it will be related to drawing, and later it will lead to other areas. That just one more benefit of using art as a medium to meditate. It's a safe and personal way to let go of the surface thoughts and lean into your intuition. When you active thinking mind has something simple and repetitive to focus its attention on, it starts becoming quiet. The thoughts I never turned off because that's not possible. But then their volume starts lowering down. That's where the sound of the intuitive inner voice starts becoming clearer. Many times when I feel lost and cannot come up with a solution. I don't do art meditation at the end of the process I either come up with a solution or I realize that I don't have a solution. Either way I feel relaxed and get a grip on what's happening around me rather than feeling lost. Don't shy away from repetition and simple movements. They might look simple, and even test your patients in the beginning, but then slowly they will lead you to some more interesting discoveries. The rings are done and now I'm going to draw the head part of the nail in the center of each circle. Again, there are various ways to draw this. I'm going to make a rectangle and then fill up the rest of the space around it. I will play with the direction of this rectangle in each of the circle to bring out a little variation. I also think that there is some negative space between all the circles. I'm planning to add some more nail heads, just like the way I'm doing right now in the empty space. This is how the pattern looks after adding all the elements. I think this pattern was quite different from the ones we did before. Even if the inspiration was one. We used it in three different ways. That just opens up new possibilities of making patterns from everyday objects. Well, I never thought that I would ever make a pattern inspired from nails. But I'm so glad that this tiny simple object became a part of this drawing series. Every time I look at the pattern, it reminds me that when we slow down, inspiration can be found even when it's hidden. That's pretty much one of the biggest takeaways from this class. 13. Final Thoughts: We have made it. Thank you so much for spending this time with me and taking this class. I hope this experience has helped you break through any creative blocks, caused by overthinking, and that you're feeling inspired to keep observing the world around you through the medium of mindful pattern design. You know what? This is just the beginning. I'm very excited to tell you that this class is the first part of a three part series. Consider this as Season 1, and get ready for more inspiration, more creativity, and more fun. With every class in this series, we will continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in the world of mindful pattern design and keep finding new ways to fill up our sketchbooks. Stay tuned for Season 2 by following me here on Skillshare. Do remember, to upload at least some of the patterns that you created during this daily exploration, so that we all can see them and be inspired by them. If you have any questions or suggestions, then please leave them in the discussion section. Your feedback means the world to me, and it also helps others to discover this class. Please do consider leaving a review. If you'd like to stay connected on a regular basis, then you can follow me on YouTube as well as Instagram. Once again, thank you so much for taking this class. I hope you keep finding joy and relaxation in this mindful drawing practice. Take care and I'll see you soon.