Enjoy Life

When life overwhelms, art soothes the soul. Sometimes I need distractions from the difficulties of life, and hooking patterns of my own design helps to refocus my mind. I’m often surprised by what inspires me. It happened one day while eating in a coffee shop. As I browsed the art on the wall, I noticed one print, in various shades of neutral, that contained a person’s face and shapes of things you could purchase at the shop, such as coffee, bread, soup, and doughnuts. The elements of the design were overlapping, and I found the design interesting.

Why not design a rug with some of my favorite things? Instead of focusing on the worrisome things in my life, I decided to fill a piece of linen with things that make me smile.

And so I began. I started by drawing a bicycle. Each January, my husband and I make the trek south to escape the cold. I’m always amazed at how alive I become as soon as we arrive. My chilled, sad northern person becomes active and happy in the warmth. I don’t ride a bike much the rest of the year, but I love riding it in Florida each day. I drew one in the middle of my pattern and wondered if I would be able to make it actually look like a bicycle.

Janine Broscious is a self-taught artist who has been sharing her art with others through her business, GentleSpiritCreations.com, since 2003. She now offers rug patterns and 3D printed rug hooking name tags along with her one-of-a-kind jewelry. She resides in Maryland but is often on the road with her husband, exploring new places. Her blog, JoyfulWonder.com, features her art and travels. 

This article is from the January/February 2017 issue. For more information on our issues, check out our issues page.