Hi there! I'm Agnes de Bezenac, an artist and author from France.

I'm so enthusiastic about self-care, and I’m passionate about art, and that's why I love mixing the two together in some way.

In this course I’d like to share with you a few of my self-care techniques and habits, expressed through art, more specifically through putting art together in some mindful, inspired way to create beautiful craft pages. Self-care is such a broad topic, so I find it helpful to separate them into different categories, so I can practice new little routines and habits in each area, at my own pace. Here are the specific topics we will cover in this course, some of the more intangable aspects of self-care:

• Emotional Self-care

• Mental Self-care

• Spiritual Self-care

Combining my love for creativity and at the same time growing in self-care has been such a satisfying experience in my life, and it’s even been a wonderful bonding experience to do together with my teen daughter, a time to connect, to reflect and improve our communication skills as well as encourage and motivate us towards progress.

It also helps to clarify sometimes vague concepts into pictures. And we both end up with an amazing mindfulness toolkit to help us for days to come.

There is so much to self-care that it can be a bit overwhelming, but creating a page for each topic that we want to focus on, has made it a joyful experience, doable and possible for us to attain in tiny baby steps towards building good and long-lasting habits, that benefit us, our health and well-being.

I find that art is that special place for me, where I can connect with myself, letting it be a gentle reminder of what I can do for my well-being, through some picture or art piece, or as a way to express what I don’t know how to put into words, thus the reason behind these craft pages.

I’m inviting you today to follow along and personalize your creative expressions in accordance with your own feelings and what you know your heart needs.

I’m looking forward to exploring this artistic journey together as we grow in our self-care.

Here are some of the things we will cover in this course, specific to creating these beautiful craft pages:

• Benefits of combining art with self-care

• Find inspiration for choosing your pictures

• Notice on what is personal and right for you

• Create cut-out letter titles

• Include lots of space for journal prompts

• Add beautiful final touches

• Questions for personal reflection time

• Examples of activities, habits or rituals related to self-care

• How to grow and practice in your self-care

• Learn to question yourself, for your well-being

• How to use and refer back to these pages

Materials needed:

• craft book

• white paper

• letter cut-outs

• lined paper

• cut out magazines

• craft decors (if you want)

• stickers (if you want)

• glue

• scissors

• paper fastener

• black pen or marker

• white gel pen

• tape

• cutter and metal ruler

• attached print-outs (if you want)

Some of the benefits to using art and a creative project like this for our self-care:

• For me, art and creativity makes me happy. It's my joy and passion. I get a sort of high from it.

• It uses that side of the brain that is more attuned and sensitive.

• I’m paying attention to my physical needs and my emotional needs at the same time

• I use my creativity to facilitate soul searching and bring to light unconscious thoughts.

• Any sort of art form allows me to express what I have a difficult time putting into words.

• It works as a memory builder. Whatever I take time to do and create, it has a greater effect and meaning for me.

• Becomes like a concrete manifestation of my imagination and thoughts. Subconsciously works towards my good.

• I have a beautiful work of art that I feel proud of and can refer back to it as often as I need.

• Helps grow my confidence as I see all what I'm doing to better my self care.

• Encourages me to take time for me with no other distractions. I can't very well multitask at the same time. It’s concentrated “me” time.

• It helps me realize that I’m important, I’m of value and I deserve this time.

• I’m able to reflect and ask myself about so many questions that I never took the time for before.

• I feel I’m learning more about myself as I do these pages.

• I realize that creative is not so much about the end result but about the listening during the process.

• It feels like play, but at the same time I’m equipping myself with an amazing gift, not just for now but to use and be reminded of for as long as I need it.

• When I feel a low of inspiration, when I need a little pause to reflect, when I feel like I could use a boost of joy, peace or calm, I go to my craft book. I open a random page and I reflect and focus on it.

• The more detail, the more sensory play, the more I love it and the more it helps me connect within.

• It brings up memories of how I made it past a stressful situation or difficult moment and it just suddenly builds me up in confidence and courage for what I’m going through today.

• I feel proud and satisfied with beautiful creative artsy work.

• I allow it to bring me so much depth and wisdom as I relate it to my situation now.

• I can continue to add little notes to personalize it to what I'm going through right now, today.

• There's room for evolving with how I'm changing and growing and what I need at the moment.

• What I love most about these craft pages is that I have a way to connect with my teen daughter.

• This is an outlet that we both can enjoy and have fun with together as we grow and progress in our self-care.

• It’s a wonderful, meaningful experience you can share simultaneously.

• You’re equipping her with a self-care tool kit she can continue to use for life.

• An outlet for the pains, fears, humiliations, challenges, or disappointments.

• It helps us to check within, for the strength, wisdom, grace and joy to journey on.

Why do I feel that self-care so important?

Well, I didn’t do too good with it in younger years, sad to say. I had some big issues to deal with in my personal life, as a kid, a teen and a grown adult. And most of my growing up years, I didn't know how to express any of it. When I tried, it didn't come out right and I got shut down, which closed me up even more. Thus came some sad results in the form of an eating disorder that lasted for many difficult years, which has affected my health in many ways. Only now do I see the pain and heartbreak that it cost me, when I only needed some outlet, some way to get out my emotions.

Holding on to painful emotions has held be back in many ways. I needed to learn how to let out these feelings, yes, even the painful negative ones. At the same time, I didn’t know how to take care of myself, didn't even know what self-care was about. That resulted into a depression and a burn-out. Being a busy mom and wife, working hard at my business, but forgetting to take time for myself... Everything suffered because I wasn't paying attention to my emotional state, which of course by now affected my physical health.

I was working professionally and giving the rest to my family, my home, friends, my town and community… So there was nothing left for me. Until I finally sought help. I saw an amazing therapist and did some much needed inner work, getting over things from the past, so many negative emotions and griefs… And today I continue to do my own grief work, mentally and emotionally in a way that suits me, using my art as a way to check within and tap into my own treasure chest of wisdom, that has been my life-savor. It’s helped me feeling so liberated and free and I’ve made this a habit.

I've also learned how important self-care ties in with all this which is why I've created these pages, because it combines the two, the expressing of feelings and emotions and the paying attention to every aspect of self-care, starting with making time to do something that I love, art! and I'm so happy to say that I've found healing and renewed joy, energy and inspiration in every aspect of my life. I’ve never been happier or more at peace. I encourage you too, to find that thing that sparks JOY and that helps you come alive, like this has for me! That’s so key to following along this course, to personalize it YOU and what you feel you need a the moment. You can go as deep as you want or be as detailed and creative and artsy as you want, or maybe just keep it real simple and check with with the journal prompts instead… for you to decide.

Taking your daughter along on this journey…

In recent years, as I've watched my little girl grow up to be a preteen and now a teen.... I've recognized the need for simple messages of some abstract concepts especially on the topics of taking care of our bodies and the physical, and just as important, topics like self-love, compassion, emotional well being, and mental health... Some of which are not so easy to teach… but I wondered if there was some way to make it easier, to somehow put some of these key life lessons down on paper in a fun creative, artsy way. As well as to somehow keep a record of those things I’ve learned and experienced that have shaped me into who I am today. So many life lessons and experiences, wisdom that I want to pass on to my daughter, that I also don’t want to forget myself when life gets so busy… Is there some way to keep them as little solid rock reminders or gentle motivators? This is why I have decided to create these artsy craft pages, because both my daughter and I love to create; it’s a chance to bond on something we both enjoy. Not only as a way to have fun and to let our creativity run freely, but even greater that than that, we’re putting some of these life lessons or concepts into clear images, so they can be better understood and more concrete in our minds and can begin to grow on us. It's helped me to delve so deep into my own self-care habits and rituals as well.

I believe that our kids (and teens) need an outlet on their journey too. They need help to begin to check in about their self-care now, today, as they're figuring things out, who they are, where they belong in this great big world. If not they'll be tossed around by every whim of social media or from peers and all that goes on around them. I want a confident, beautiful daughter who knows where she stands because she knows herself and she has learned to tune into her own heart, and follow her passions and what she loves, figure out what her personal goals are and how to express her emotions.

Today is a great day to start to build a little habit/ritual to connect with yourself and with your daughter. You'll be giving the both of you an amazing gift for life! And yes, it’s a journey. They don’t start sharing or opening up right away. It starts by getting excited about little creative ideas, noticing what brings her inspiration, recognizing how we’re both different and have our own unique art style... I'm amazed at what she comes up with, it’s beautiful. And then it continues in the little thought processes or asking her why she chose that picture or that drawing or sticker, how she feels after she creates a page, etc. She started out by copying my texts and my ideas, and that's okay. Later on she took what she learned and created her very own craft pages, to help her deal with issues she was facing, or to help release her own emotions and then move forward. She personalized it to herself when she was ready. Today, she still enjoys creating these craft pages about herself, what she loves and enjoys, how she feels about certain things, her plans for future studies, her hobbies, friends, morning routine, gratitudes, health habits… The list is endless.