Another new painting. What do you think? This one will be going to the Enormous Tiny Art Show in a few weeks.

I've been painting at night lately. I'm noticing that I can focus well once it gets dark, especially when I have some great music playing. I lose my sense of time more than I do working during the day and can fall into the simple joy of painting. I've also been waking up a little bit later than usual in the mornings. It's funny, because there's a part of me that thinks "Wait! But I've always been a morning person! I'm not supposed to be working at night, and I need to get up as early as possible!" and then another part of me that just realizes that it feels right right now. If I'm getting my work done, then what does it matter, right?

Have you ever had an experience like this, where your schedule shifts dramatically and you're working differently than you did before? Does your schedule change with the seasons? I wonder if the summertime has something to do with my shift.... once fall rolls around, will I be back to my normal routine? I wonder!

Last week I bought a whole bunch of cradled wood painting panels. Normally I get the wood cut myself, I sand and paint the edges, and I generally prep/create everything myself. As I continue to get busier in my art career, I'm discovering that I need to streamline some things. And I decided that all this sanding and prepping was going to be the first thing to go! So 3 big boxes arrived on my doorstep on Thursday, full of the painting panels I'd ordered, and I tore them open like a little kid on Christmas. I was so excited!

Let me tell you, this was one of the best decisions I've made in a long time. While I spent more money per panel than I would've if I'd gotten the wood cut and prepped them myself, the fact that I could open the box, unwrap the panels, and they were ready to paint on was beyond worth the extra money I spent. I've been thinking about how to most wisely use my time lately-- is it used most wisely by prepping painting panels or by actually painting? If I have more time to paint, I'll create more stuff that I can then sell and show. When I realized this, the decision was simple!  Normally I try to keep my costs as low as possible, but I'm discovering that this is not always the best way to run my business. 

The other thing about it is that I never really enjoy prepping the wood for painting either-- the sanding is messy, and I'm always relieved when it's finished. Why would I spend my time doing something that I really don't like?? That's crazy!

Have you made any decisions like this recently, where spending just a little more money made your life a heck of a lot easier? I'd love to know!

Oh, and the image above is the first painting I finished on one of the new panels. I'm in love! It's called "King of the Mountain." More to come, soon.