Psst…have you heard about the latest trend in wellness culture? To sum it up in one word it’s creativity! Over the last year I’ve been sharing all kinds of posts on my Facebook page about the healing power of art and your creative spirit. In fact just today I shared a wonderful piece from Spirituality & Health magazine entitled ‘Color Your Way to Peace’. It might seem a little childish at first, but using art to heal and soothe our spirits has been used for hundreds of years. Below is a bit from the article mentioned, and as you can see drawing and coloring is ‘serious’ therapy!
Coloring Books for adults are the hottest selling items in wellness culture right now. The one artist that really put ‘coloring books’ on the map is Johanna Basford, a young woman from the UK who has gone viral internationally with her beautifully illustrated coloring books. I also shared her story back in March on WWB Facebook from Bored Panda a great digital site I just love that will surely get your creative juices flowing.
Since we are on the subject of art therapy, I also shared a WWB ‘Ideal Find’ on this very blog last Christmas which is called the ‘ Buddha Board‘. You have probably seen this special gadget in a Barnes & Noble store here in the states, but you can also easily find it on Amazon. When I interview founders of mission oriented companies for my ‘Ideal Finds’ department, I always ask them to define their ‘authentic dedication’. Below is the Buddha Board’s dedication and I just love their mission and concept. It’s a different kind of therapy from the coloring book, because it helps us practice the stress reducing art of ‘letting go’, which is the basis of ‘Zen’ philosophy. Zen essentially means experiencing fully the present, and delighting in the basic miracle of life itself. We can all use more Zen moments!
Original Buddha Board
Authentic Dedication: Buddha Board is dedicated to the Zen concept of living-in-the-moment, we believe in the importance of doodling, creating, and having fun. Enjoy! You simply paint on the surface with water and your creation will come to life in bold design. Then as the water slowly evaporates, your art will magically disappear leaving you with a clean slate and a clear mind, ready to create a whole new masterpiece. Buddha Board is environmentally friendly as it only uses water – no ink, no paint, no chemicals – and it will last for years with proper care.
Mona Lisa Smile Poster
Besides all the fantastic things creative endeavors do for stress management, there is also a lot of research that shows art and nature ( we chatted about nature in last weeks wrap) can truly be a healing power and boost your immune system. It does this by lowering levels of chemicals that cause inflammation that can trigger diabetes, heart attacks and other illnesses. It gets better because what they are finding, is you don’t actually have to be creating art yourself, you can also just experience it! The study came from the California University of Berkeley and it’s another ‘report post’ I shared on Facebook. Follow WWB on Facebook as well as this blog because you will truly be up to date on all things beauty, health and wellness!
I hope you enjoyed my romp across the highly contagious ‘creativity’ movement in wellness culture. There is so much to explore when it comes to art & creativity and so many ways to incorporate them into our wellness lifestyle. To quote the wise genius Albert Einstein again, “Creativity is Contagious…Pass it On.” To honor his wisdom, below is a printable coloring book page I am passing on to you, to help you get you started on coloring. Right click on image, save image, and select PRINT. Hope your weekend is filled with fun, play and healthy creativity…
P.S If coloring is not your thing…Pass It On!
