My Word of the year, 2019 project review and 2020 Intentions

I have the habit of choosing a word of the year. The approach I like best is Susannah Conway's FREE offering. Find the link for that HERE. If you've been here a while, you'll know my word since 2017 has been SHINE, but last year I tweaked it to focus on Ease, and this year I'm going to SHINE with INTENTION.
This year I didn't need Susannah's class, the word just came. It started in October when I shared a post from Roben-Marie Smith that really struck a chord :  

That word has stuck in my mind - I want to be intentional and really examine why I'm doing things. Is my Inner Work journal practice still serving me in its current form? Am I doing things in a particular way out of habit or because I think I should? I want to be present - to be active in moving towards my dreams and goals. Are there things I do that don't serve my present desires? I focus on a word for each letter of Shine. 
In 2020 I will SHINE with INTENTION

S = Self-care 
Stitch, make Art, read, listen to music - do what recharges me
Develop relationships - support others and accept support 
Believe in myself
Share - I'm an extrovert so this also recharges me
H = Healthy
Good eating + Gym habit = Energised
Be mindful
Rest
Nurture body and Soul
I = Intentional
Regularly spend time doing what I love
Reflection = improvements to habits
Be present
Align my actions with my dreams
Using Oracle/Tarot to strengthen my Intuition and Intention
N = Notice
Embrace joy - seek it out - sit with it
Practice gratitude and love
Be mindful
E = Ease
A gentle approach - self-compassion
Following the path that feels good for me
Letting go of the unrealistic expectations I wouldn't hold for others

Making space for silence 

Rest

I had another creatively busy year in 2019. If you are interested in a broad overview of everything I did, check out my monthly reviews. 
See my 2019 art journal pages in my altered book in this Flickr set (includes links to my blog posts). I'm loving that I'm seeing my own unique creative voice emerging

and will continue to work in this journal and share as it blooms. 

Another very rewarding thing last year was teaching both art journaling and quilting. I led a neonatal quilt project at school which resulted in these wonderful donations in November.  

I am hopeful I will be able to continue with more teaching opportunities in the coming year. 
I managed 2 other quilt projects : my poppy quilt at the end of my school holidays in January

and a baby quilt for a friend in July 

While quilting is no longer one of my top joys, I do have a couple of projects in mind for the year ahead. We will see if they come to fruition....

My most enjoyable mixed media project was Klimt in the garden with Rumi

I definitely want to find another mixed media fibre art monthly project and I enjoyed the Rumi quotes so much I would like to do all the prompts again following the lessons more closely in my art journal in 2020.
And I was thrilled to include stitch in My 2019 December Daily

This journal format was so enjoyable, creating loose pages and then binding them together, and I was so inspired by this project that I am already thinking this would be fun to recreate in June - following the same prompts but with the focus on Winter and my birthday month. 
My other creative intentions for 2020 are not fully formed yet, but I've only enrolled in one online class (although I'm not ruling out others that might spark my interest later in the year) 

I'm not sure that I want to continue with my inner work journal in its current format, and I love the idea of a daily/weekly journal...still percolating ideas about that. 
And of course I've got a couple of treats for these January holidays that I purchased in the Black Friday Sales 

That's already quite a list of Intentions isn't it? It's good to dream big! I look forward to continued sharing of creative joy.

P.S. I will not be updating my Flickr account with 2020 art. You can look at past projects there including those mentioned above. I continue to be very present with current art on Instagram and my FB artist page - links in my sidebar.