Dear Reader,

I have a confession to make …

I am an addicted- to creating !

I feel I  have something I shall call “CHD “.

Creativity  Hyperactivity Disorder .

This , I realise, has been the case always , always, ALWAYS for me  …Since I could get my hands on anything that could possibly be turned into something else , I’ve been making stuff.

Aged 5 , having been inspired by the classic Australian Children’s preschool TV show , Playschool , which was filled with stories and songs and MAKING STUFF , I was continually sticking tissue boxes to aluminium milk bottle lids to pipe cleaners to any other piece of junk to make a something , like a car, or a dolls house or a boat or , anything that would logically (not) come from sticky tape, tissues boxes and milk bottle lids .And when my family moved out of the home I lived in until I was 8, my poor mother discovered  cardboard creations and other treasures for future craft creations ,  that I had squirrelled away in my bedroom cupboard  . ( She and dad had probably wondered at how little garbage actually made it to the garbage bin each week . It was all in my bedroom cupboard )

Years later , a plumber apparently found paint brushes that I’d stuffed down the laundry sink in a paint brush cleaning epic fail of mine . You can join the dots there .

Between the ages 9-11 , I was seriously addicted to papier-mâché . My poor mother patiently brewed litres and litres of  home made glue on the kitchen stove top, out of flour and water lovingly for me ,so I could paste thousands of tiny pieces of shredded newspaper to balloons ( to make heads OF COURSE). I made a pretty fabulous  “Captain Spork” head from the Muppet show . Pure genius .

In my teens I  painted , drew cartoons and created and choreographed  incredibley  fascinating  dances to my favourite pop songs that I had recorded from the “Top 40 Australia “  on my uber high tech double cassette tape player /radio and consequently performed to an audience of ..no one ( thankfully ) in my bedroom .

Late teens , I was creating my own clothes on my mother’s  old Singer sewing machine ( I was too impatient though to get the clothes finished and many of theses clothes fell to pieces very quickly ) . Again, my long suffering mother had to help me resurrect inummerable sewing disasters AND  comfort a cranky despairing budding seamstress who would be sobbing in a mess over the sewing machine .

And through all of these early years , a pencil, or a paintbrush were never too far away , as I dreamed of becoming an illustrator or cartoonist …

In my 20’s, the drawing and painting was pushed aside as I became heavily into song  writing . I even recorded a CD . A few loyal friends and family supported me and bought a few , which I believe now make brilliant drink coasters .

My 30s – well they don’t count as I was up to my neck in nappies , bottles , working part time . Just to find a moment to create a space for myself to slap on some makeup to cover up the sleep deprivation induced bags under my eyes was about all the creating I could manage .

But NOW , now , I’m in my 40s .And loving it ! My CHD has become wonderfully full blown. It’s  now  my beautiful husband  instead of my parents who is suffering patiently through my creative messes. BUT , the  fulfilment , happiness and basic  pure joy I get from making stuff is just , well , something I’m so thankful for !

I’m happy !!

I’m me !

I’m MAKIN’ STUFF

Drawings , paintings , portraits , writing cartoons , illustrating books , designing web pages…

And now ,

my You tube channel – Kids Art School

And I’m so excited  that my Kids Art School Youtube Channel has already reached across the globe as I would love other kids to draw  painting and just make huge  creative messes , just like me !

So welcome creative kids from….

…my home country , Australia , as well    Zimbabwe , and Poland , and Romania and Canada  and New Zealand and Turkey  and who know where else ?? I’d love it to reach the UK , and Singapore and South Africa and all across the world .

Having CHD is AWESOME !!

I hope you catch it too !

love to all

Xxoo

Sandy