I recently announced that I'm taking a break from my hand-painted succulents on pallet wood.
Shortly after sharing that I won't be creating any more succulents, we were expecting my mom for a visit. In preparation, we cleaned our little cottage like one cleans only when ones mother comes to visit... Heavy furniture was moved. Forgotten spaces were aired. Dodgy little corners were excavated.
To my great surprise and dismay, we stumbled across eight beautifully prepared pallet wood blocks, only missing the hand-painted succulents! I couldn't very well waste poor Alex's time and expert effort by not using them! So, I had to gather myself towards myself, and paint eight more succulents. Eight.
At first, I felt pretty annoyed (I bet you could tell, judging by the repetition of eight). After all, it felt like I was back-tracking on a decision that was already difficult to start off with. I was ready to move on, and yet now I was forced to revisit something that I really needed a break from.
But, I decided to commit to these last eight. Eight!
After all my trepidation, it was actually not that bad. In fact, I enjoyed painting these bright and characterful beauties again, especially in the stunning setting of the Spier Craft Market. What's more, it felt like coming full circle: I was about to finish my last ever succulent, and it dawned on me that the design I was painting was the same as the first succulent I had ever painted about five years ago!
So, the parting ended on a bitter-sweet note... I feel like I've gained so much wisdom over the past five years. The most important lesson that I've learned?
Don't clean your house. Eight!!!
Me with my last succulent at the Spier Craft Market. Number eight in all its glory!