ISSUE 14 ◦ by Heidi Horchler

Giving Thanks| 11.15.20

Long time no see!

I admit, I took a break in October. No excuses, I just honestly needed a break. I appreciate your patience & understanding.

So, what’s up with you guys? (honestly, HMU) (Ok so I know my parents read this and are going, “What the heck is an HMU?” My answer is the same one my son uses on me: GOOGLE IT.)

But I guess if I had Google 20 years ago, I wouldn’t have a had a reason to call my grandma for her pot roast recipe, or to ask my dad just when you put the tomato paste in the sauce. Which of course led to so many great conversations and time spent talking. Ok ok, the guilt is getting to me - HMU stands for hit me up. Hit me up stands for (in this context) reply to this email. And - young people, next time you need to know how to do something, ask an elder. They’re the OG Google. (Pssst, Dad; OG stands for Original Gangster).

Things that I’m grateful for this month:

My family

My friends

Thanks to a lifelong friend of mine, I’ve started teaching again. She is a 6th grade teacher in Los Angeles. Her class is entirely online. This is her first year teaching 6th grade; her last few years have been 2nd grade. She has 37 students. Entirely online. She teaches from her laptop at her kitchen table while her husband works his job from the bedroom. Their dog, Hermione waits patiently for a walk.

Did I mention she teaches 37 11-year olds entirely online???

She is a rock star.

This is the type of person - not too many others - that, when they call and ask if you would be their art enrichment teacher for 30 minutes on Fridays, you say, “Heck yeah!”

I also told her; completely the opposite of the rule I set for myself this year, (“I will do no more work for free”) - that I would not charge her. Because what kind of A-hole is gonna charge this God’s Gift to Teaching? Not this one.

But she paid me anyways. Because, did I mention she’s a badass?

So, most Fridays for the past several weeks, I have been hanging out with Ms. A’s class. We meet up on Zoom, Ms. A introduces me and the lesson, and away we go! I have my laptop camera facing me so I can talk to them, and my iPad camera pointing down at my desk so they can follow along with my hands while I paint and draw. I also show them my art materials so they can get a sense of how an artist uses them.

Our lessons are modified because their only art supplies are a sketchbook and a set of 12 Crayola colored pencils and a graphite pencil - all sourced by Ms. A., with a helpful hand from some generous donors.

So far, our lessons have focused on the art principle of value; the lightness or darkness of a color. Next we will venture into my favorite principle: color! I can’t wait. The kids have been so enthusiastic and are gobbling up every minute we have together. I’m loving it just as much as they are.

Your project of the month is the lesson we did in preparation for Thanksgiving (link below in Project of the Month).

Another foray into teaching happened just today when I was able to visit family members, my brother’s in-laws. They are in town but a good 45 minutes away so I don’t get to see them too often, and when I do I try to be able to spend some time without rushing to leave.

The past few visits, Penny has accompanied me, so by now she has earned a special place in their hearts and they love to see her. She is all-in for it as well, but I’m hoping to train her to bring her tennis ball to their hand or lap rather than dropping it on the floor. (Ball throwing is required!) Bob and Sara have been very patient with her, and happy to oblige.

Today I brought along some art supplies and we all had fun getting lost in color. Bob is faced with the challenges that come with Parkinson’s Disease, and I wanted to give them a therapeutic creative outlet with no expectations. We just played with paint. (Which is kind of my favorite thing to do!) I was pleased to see how much they enjoyed it - and now they have some art for the fridge! (of course, Penny came along to supervise.)

I’m also thankful for a learning experience. I’ve been wanting to try vendor fairs again, and had the opportunity this weekend to participate in a holiday boutique. It was a small show, and traffic was light, but I broke even, met some cool people, got a free pizza, and was shown what great friends I have.

My mother-in-law was the first to come and show her support. She helped me finish setting up and watched my booth while I stepped away for a moment. She visited the other vendors and narrowly escaped walking away with a rescue puppy! (they were a big hit)

Both of my good-as-gold BFFs showed up, one dragging her husband along and the other brought her son. They all stayed and visited with me, and supported the other vendors as well. One wouldn’t let me give her anything for free and literally shoved cash into my pocket as she walked away. And another dear friend who is another one of my most true-blue cheerleaders, brought home some of my goodies as well. I was overwhelmed by all of their support and appreciative more than I could say.

The fact that they all showed up for me turned a day that would have been kind of a bummer otherwise, into a positive experience. They lifted my spirits and boosted my confidence. If you have a creative person in your life, sometimes all it takes is a little pat on the back to make a world of difference.

Worth watching:

You know I love a good movie or series. Gotta have my cinematic escapes :) Feel free to tell me your recommendations, too! I’m always looking for something good to watch.

Announcements

New Work!

Holiday themed art, and new small paintings will be up in the store soon. If you’ve seen anything on my social feeds that you’d like to claim, just let me know and I can make sure it has your name on it! I’ll be sending out a Black Friday release reminder so you can be first!

Also check here for gift ideas, and if you have requests, I will be happy to offer customized work to my mailing list readers for a limited time. (Holiday gifts??) Just send me an email.

- IN PERSON WORKSHOPS! -

If you’re in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area I’d love to have you join me for an in-person workshop. These will be planned for this month & next (safety precautions observed). Please email me if you’re interested, or share this newsletter with someone you know!

The Monthly Project

This is all about Giving Thanks, and a beginner’s introduction to watercolor. (watercolors not required - you can use crayons, colored pencil, or markers)

I’m on Ko-fi!

Ko-fi is “The friendly and free way for fans to support your work for the price of a coffee.”

In other words, if you’d like to support an artist, but aren’t quite ready to purchase a piece of artwork, you can buy them a cup of coffee! The coffee is virtual, and the funds usually go to support their bottom line, but, you get the idea.

Visit my Ko-fi page here, and make sure to check out some other artists while you’re there. My Ko-fi page will have content similar to this newsletter - the story behind the process.

Thanks to my mom for being my first supporter!! Thanks, Mom! ☕️

Thank you — as always — for your support, and a big thanks to those of you who’ve reached out via email or social media. This little project of mine is getting some legs and I have you to thank for it! I’m still going through my reply list so if you haven’t heard back yet, you will :)

xo, Heidi

P.S. Feel free to ask questions. Reach out through any of the social links on my website (below) or email me at heidhorch@gmail.com.