
Last year I took a class called
Flying Lessons from the amazing artist, Kelly Rae Roberts. There were around 350 women who took the e-course along with me. Together we have spent the last year pursuing our artistic endeavors, building our galleries of finished work, creating websites and stores, and sharing the journey with each other. I have gained so much from these fellow "Flyers".
Several of my classmates have crossed the line from classmates to on-line friends, and some have gone from e-buddies to real live friendships. Whatever the status, this amazing group of women has grown together over the last year to wonderful new personal and professional artistic heights.
One of the reasons that I feel so closely connected to them is the spirit of giving that surrounds this group. We help eachother every single day. We ask questions and someone knows the answer - from art technique, to blog or website questions, to selling work, to setting up art booths. I am so proud of our latest endeavor - banding together to celebrate our own success by creating a scholarship for the next generation of
Flying Lessons students! Our little tribe of artists have raised enough money to sponsor 8 students in Kelly Rae's next (and last!) run of Flying Lessons. And to top it all off - she is going to match our donation with 8 spots donated of her own!!
If you are an artist wanting to take flight,
click here to find the link where Future Flyers can submit a letter explaining your wish to Take Flight!! The winners will be chosen at random, and will be announced on 8/29/12 both by our group and on Kelly Rae's blog! I hope you win and begin a wonderful artistic journey of your own! You can also
read all about the journeys of other flyers on this page.
If you are not quite ready for her whole course - check out her Flying Lessons e-book (see the right hand side of my blog for a link to click)!
My flight in the last year has taken me on quite a journey - here are some of the highlights!!
*I created a blog and website - Just Mary Designs was born!

*I developed an
art line called Body Fab-YOU-lous - marrying my love of mixed media art with a message close to my heart - dedicated to helping women find peace and end their struggle with weight loss and body image challenges.
*I have sold 4 original paintings and around 25 prints! I just picked up a paintbrush for the first time 2 years ago...so selling my work is an amazing accomplishment!
*I was asked to create a piece that will be featured in a new magazine launch issue next month! Soon I will be published - holy cow!!
* I have taken many e-courses to develop my skills and in the process learned wordpress, photoshop, how to design patterns, how to paint large canvases, art journaling and more!
*I have connected into groups where each day I am in contact with several thousand artists - learning and sharing!
*I launched the daily email
Body Fab-YOU-lous Love Notes - a little reminder that peace and love are available in your body right now. I received a letter of feedback telling me that one of them made the reader weep with recognition. That tells me these are important. They are making a difference in peoples lives. I'm also promoting inspirational art from my network of e-buddies - another way to give back to my artistic community!
May your own year be one of amazing accomplishment, and your flight take you soaring to new heights!!
Here is a list of my Flyer Sisters and their posts about their own flight!
Janet Forrest
http://www.tatterednworn.wordpress.com
Cat Athena Louise
http://www.catathenalouise.com
Stacey Bockness Curry
http://starhitchedwagon.blogspot.com/
Kris Lanae Binsfeld
http://cherishdesigns.wordpress.com/
Renee Burke
http://happilyeverafterbyreneeburke.wordpress.com
Michelle Reynolds
http://www.shellsinthebush.com
Constance Rawlins
http://livingwithinyourharvest.com/2012/08/19/fly-tribe-anniversary/
Kelly Hoernig
http://www.kellyhoernig.blogspot.com
Cindy Jones Lantier
http://www.lantier.org
Kathleen Conard
http://newfromoldcreations.blogspot.com/2012/08/giving-back.html
Claudia Dow
http://www.claudiadow.blogspot.com
Susan M. Walls-Beverly
http://susanscharmingtrinkets.blogspot.com/2012/08/flying-lessons-and-art-of-giving-back.html
Linda Barutha
http://baruthadesigns.com
Linda Kinnaman
http://lindakaysart.com/blog/2012/08/19/my-dream-journey-one-year-now/
Cheryl Dossey
http://www.cheryldossey.com/
Sofia Dabalsa
http://sofiadabalsa.blogspot.com
Jill Lambert
http://jill-lambert.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-spirit-of-giving.html
Sally Rose
http://sallyhow2.blogspot.com/
Ursula Smith
http://EasyScraps.com/blog
Deborah Eaton
http://www.deborahgeaton.com/blog/
Lori Leissner
http://www.leissnerart.com/2012/08/giving-thanks-giving-back-giving-flight.html
Creative Clearinghouse
http://creativeclearinghouse.com/Online-Class-Reviews/blog/Ursula-Creative-Clearinghouse
Lenore Angela
http://www.lenoreangela.blogspot.ca/
Katharina Star
http://www.blog.katharinastar.com
Rachél Payne
http://wp.me/pWRyw-10P
Sherry Richert Belul
http://www.simplycelebrate.net/cherry-blossom-soup/gifts
Deborah Velasquez
http://deborahvelasquez.blogspot.com/
Shannon Etnyre
http://www.livingwithumami.com
Live Laugh Love Retreats
http://livelaughloveretreats.com
Kelley Miller Artworks
http://kelleymillerartworks.blogspot.com/
Wini Dougall
http://artloveandjoy.blogspot.com
Carol Bray
http://theredpaintedcottage.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-spirit-of-giving-back-by-giving-flight.html
Tracy Yarbrough
http://chickpeastudio.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-spirit-of-giving.html
Diane Enright
http://dianeenrightphotography.wordpress.com/
Jamie Burch
http://www.dancingdownserendipitystreet.blogspot.com/
Mary Cottingham
http://www.barnbugstudio.blogspot.com
Susan Dietz
http://flutterbeforeyou.blogspot.com
Lori Moon Studio
http://lorimoonstudio.blogspot.com/2012/08/fly-tribe-blog-hop-giving-back.html
Kim Hyer
http://www.apaperaddict.com
Tina Carlborg
http://www.tinachicky.blogspot.com
Catherine Pistone
http://catherinepistone.blogspot.com/
Mary MacIlvain
http://maryart.macilvain.com/
Carolyn Chenault
http://carolynchenault.wordpress.com/2012/08/20/the-big-giveaway