Twizted Mind Designz

01/23/2025

How am I posting on Tik Tok if I deactivated the account?

10/30/2024

Moment of transparency: so I was diagnosed with closed spina bifida at age 13. I spent years in PT, back braces and swallowing massive amounts of Naproxen daily. At 19, I got pregnant with my first child and experienced my first bout of intermittent partial paralysis. I was told then that I could never weigh more than 140lbs or the weight shift could cause permanent paralysis. I was told not to have any more children and that I needed to get my spine fused. I asked what my chances of paralysis without surgery were and was told that I would most likely be in a wheelchair by age 35. I asked what my chances were with surgery and at that time I had a 50/50 chance on walking in but not being able to walk out. So I told them I would take my chances with GOD since they were going to give me until at least 35. Well I’m 51 now and I had been doing pretty good until recently. Yes, I have had chronic pain and days where I couldn’t walk well. But it wasn’t anything I wasn’t used to. Over the years I also got a sciatica diagnosis to go along with the spina bifida. So that was new layer to get used to. A couple of years back I had a couple of nasty falls that I took full bore on my tailbone. One was me getting #8 out of his car seat and I stumbled so had to make a choice as to who was hitting the ground. Of course, I chose me. I never totally healed before I fell again while roller skating; trying to spin. I never healed right. Then I was rear ended in a hit and run accident last year that led to an ER visit for neck and back pain that they diagnosed as pinched nerves. Now, I also have arthritis in my spine according to the most recent doctor I have visited. I went because I am starting to have trouble with my left leg. I don’t think that I have much walking left in me but it’s okay because I wasn’t even supposed to have this much. I could be angry and talking about how unfair life is because I’ve experienced so much in the past 13 months. But I still think that my life is actually kind of cool. I got a bunch of kids that I love. I have two beautiful granddaughters. I make and create all sorts of arts and crafts. I can sit in my backyard and shoot bolts and arrows into a variety of targets. I have amazing siblings. But most of all, I get to wake up every morning and see a new day. I get to experience new possibilities. I get to have new thoughts. I get to love folks. I get to smile and laugh even, or maybe especially, in the darkness. And that is exactly what life is all about; Pushing forward and finding your strength while cultivating your tribe. Go out there and live your best life! (Hugs)

09/18/2024

Inspiration for the other set of kids’ canvases.

09/18/2024

Some inspiration pieces for some larger canvases that I am going to paint for two sets of my children.

09/13/2024

Making some syrups to make sodas. I started with apple. Then I did a citrus mix. Then I did a ginger syrup that smells delicious already. I got to thinking of an herbal syrup using ginger so I ran and got some lemon grass from my garden. And then I made a ginger lemon grass syrup. I think I want to add lemon balm to it so that it will mix with the lemon and citrus syrups that I already have.

09/10/2024

These were made as a set. These are two more base colors that I was uncomfortable with using. I discovered that I can play nicely with primary yellow and primary magenta too. I haven’t hung these yet because I gotta figure out how to use gold foil to tease the dragon out. You can see the head in the magenta canvas and part of the body in the yellow canvas.

09/10/2024

Gotta get better pics next time I photograph my artwork, but this is another purple set that can be stand alone pieces. These were also the ones who made me decide that I am an artist and not just a “crafter”.

09/10/2024

This goes to show that even with the directions and tools you can end up in different places depending on how you work with them. Opportunities come to everyone; it’s all in how we choose to utilize them that determines the outcome. # pourpainting

09/10/2024

I didn’t think that I was a fan of the color orange. It made me uncomfortable to think about coordinating other colors with it. This past year of my life has been super uncomfortable so I leaned into discomfort. I started adding orange items to my wardrobe and getting comfortable wearing it against my dark brown skin. I started looking at orange fruits and vegetables to learn to appreciate the natural beauty of orange. After developing some comfort with the color orange I decided to do a set of paintings with an orange base coat to lean even more into that discomfort. I ended up loving these paintings. I have started planning for another orange set. From my discomfort, I was able to grow into a new version of myself. Yes, it took some work to lean in to that feeling but I received some great rewards. I have some new clothes that I love. I have some new paintings that I am proud to have created. I learned that discomfort is there to show me where I need to work on growth and healing. I learned that I more mental stamina than I give myself credit for. And I learned that orange is actually a beautifully vibrant color that looks good on me. Take time to step into your discomfort today and start to change your life.

09/10/2024

09/09/2024

This is what they look like after foiling.

09/09/2024

This is what these paintings looked like before I put gold foil on them.