The Artful Year // Author Interview with Jean Van't Hul
Today I am interviewing the talented, prolific, and cute female parent/blogger/author Jean Van't Hul. Her web log The Artful Parent is one of my get-to blogs for fine art, creativity, parenting and merely…reading! I love everything she writes nigh. The babyhood wonder and connections that she creates for her girls and so shares with united states is really quite magical. This week she released her second volume called The Artful Year
The book celebrates the four seasons with art, crafts and cooking. There are so many wonderful and simple projects to do with your kids. I wish I wish I had this volume when mine were picayune! But fifty-fifty now, I made her chicken soup recipe on the twenty-four hours I received the book, and this weekend we are going to make some coffee filter snowflakes (coolest tutorial in the book). So it's not that it'due south just for picayune kids…it's more than that now that mine are older, they are never home!
I love this quote from another blogger well-nigh the book:
"This volume is like having your best friend show you all of the best crafts that *actually* worked with her kids, then telling you how to get in work in your family unit" — Alissa, Creative with Kids
Ok, so let's get to the interview and learn a little flake more about Jean and her daily life. I'll also be showing y'all some of my favorite pages in her book, along with photos from her blog.
BAR: Jean, I have admired yous from afar for quite some time. I have your start volume, The Artful Parent
JEAN – I'm the kind of person who feels claustrophobic in a schedule and much prefer to practice things on a whim, but for all that, I have structured my days so that I work when I'1000 at my all-time.
I'grand a morn person times ten. I'll get up to write and think in the peace and quiet earlier everyone else is up. And I similar to write longhand—information technology helps me to think and write better—which means that I essentially write everything downwardly twice. Outset when I write it out in my notebook and later on when I type information technology up on my reckoner. I do this with blog posts, newsletters, articles, and I did it with my books.
Equally for how I notice time to write a book, the reply is not easily! Writing a book is such a big undertaking! It'south hard for me to allow get of the urgent daily responsibilities (of blogging, housekeeping, etc) for the longer term goal of writing a book.
I wrote much of my first book sitting in my car in diverse parking lots with Daphne (who was an infant at the time) asleep in the backseat. And I also write and think surprisingly well in noisy coffee shops.
BAR: You have and then many delicious and healthy recipes in this volume! Do you cook dinner every night? Getting a meal prepped and on the table is definitely my biggest challenge.
JEAN:Ha! Well the short answer is I don't. I am definitely dinner challenged. And, if y'all expect closer, you lot'll notice that many of the recipes in The Artful Year are actually (insert embarrassed cough hither) baked goods and snacks. I'd rather bake (and eat) reddish pie than dinner any day of the calendar week.
BAR: There is so much creativity going on at home with your girls. Did you lot practise fine art with your mom growing up? What are your all-time memories of childhood?
JEAN: My mom let u.s. be kids which I appreciate so much now.
Our childhood was very unstructured—lots of fourth dimension for gratis play, kid-led creative activities, making things, etc. Nosotros lived in the state when I was little and in a small western town when a bit older and in both places we had the freedom to roam.
I think that'south what I retrieve most fondly from childhood. When we were fiddling we'd explore the woods effectually the states as a pack (my brother, sister, and I besides every bit sometimes visiting friends) and when I was in Jr. Loftier and Loftier Schoolhouse, I'd bike 5 miles out of town to a local reservoir and read surrounded by the quiet busyness of nature.
Equally for art, my sister and I were ever making things—cartoon, painting, crafting, sewing clothes for our dolls and ourselves. My mom had her easily full raising three kids on her own but she gave us the materials, encouragement, and classes to practice what we wanted to do.
BAR: I know from my own experience that my kids don't always desire to do art with me. In fact, it's why I started pedagogy in my business firm. Their interests are not the same every bit mine! Exercise your girls ever not desire to do fine art? How practice you draw them in when (or if) they are not interested? Do y'all do art every day?
JEAN:Oh sure! There are plenty of times when they would rather play than do fine art! And (in general) that'southward fine with me. I like to see them doing what they bask.
Maia, my 9 year onetime, is into gymnastics, pianoforte, animals, baking, and science experiments.
Daphne, my 5 year old, nonetheless says she wants to be an artist when she grows up (something Maia used to say) just I don't necessarily expect her to concord on to that. She too loves pretend play and all things princesses.
If my daughters ever decide they don't like fine art, though, I may need to start education kids' fine art classes myself! 🙂
For now, both like art and creating things in general, but might not exist in the mood for information technology when I am. And that'due south okay. We don't take to create at the same fourth dimension or practise the same thing!
They will usually join me at the tabular array if I set up a projection. And if they occasionally don't, I've been known to thoroughly enjoy creating something on my own.
Nosotros don't do art together every day but there is some level of creativity and creating going on in our house every twenty-four hour period.
We certainly do do quite a bit of fine art in our home, between the activities we do together, the child-led art that happens in the studio (or chalkboard, sketchbook, table, fridge…), and my own new daily sketchbook habit.
In addition, there's creativity in many other forms—all kinds of pretend play and creative construction, cooking, making costumes, making up and playing games, singing, dancing, making cards, decorating packages, etc.
If I desire to entice the kids to create art, I might try strewing, playdates (their friends almost always want to create art and my kids desire to be doing what their friends are doing), new fine art materials, new art techniques, and using their interests as starting points.
BAR: Equally a mom with two daughters (and a son at the end who sometimes acts like a daughter) in that location is a lot of fighting. Do your girls fight? If yes, what is your elevation strategy for dealing with sibling rivalry and fighting? If no, lucky yous!! Please tell usa your hush-hush.
JEAN:Of form! My daughters dearest each other and have so much fun together but they know how to button each other's buttons as only siblings do. I tin can't aid yous with strategies though! Sorry. I'll take any yous accept to offer! Siblings Without Rivalry
BAR: Nosotros are in the eye of winter right now in Connecticut (and lots of snowfall). What is winter like where you live in North Carolina?
JEAN:I know firsthand what winter is similar upward in that location! I lived in New England for a several years during and after college. The winters are long!
Winter is still winter here in the mountains of Northward Carolina but non equally harsh or long. I like that we get all 4 seasons, only they are moderated by our latitude and altitude.
BAR: Your book is about celebrating the seasons as a family through art and creativity and cooking. What is your favorite flavour and why?
JEAN:Spring! For certain. I dear the return of warmth, the longer, lighter days, the rebirth of the world around the states. All the new dark-green leaves, the flowers, the birds, everything, makes me high on life.
Plus, I'thousand an April baby, so information technology always feels like my flavor. Oh, and Easter processed is my favorite and I think half my good memories of spring are infused with a pocketful of little chocolate Cadbury eggs. To me, leap is about long walks, oh-then-welcome sunshine, Banana Yoshimoto books, the world in full bloom, and hours spent barefoot in the garden.
Wow! I just learned so much, Jean. I beloved that you don't have a strict daily schedule and that you grab free time to write when you can. Information technology's sort of how I do things, likewise. Having that early morning time is such a gift. I tin can't say I have that myself, but I can see how it would be a lovely way to set the tone for the solar day. I also love what you wrote about your childhood. Free and unstructured time to play is the way all of our childhoods should be! It makes me rethink our own hectic after-schoolhouse pace. Cheers for your many doses of wisdom!
And now for the giveaway! Simply leave a comment hither and your proper name volition exist entered to receive i gratis copy of The Artful Year
Also, if you want to meet more of The Artful Parent'south creative globe then follow Jean on Instagram and Facebook, too! (Not needed to enter, but merely worth the visit and follow!)
Detect The Artful Twelvemonth
xo, Bar
UPDATE: This giveaway is now airtight! Congratulations to the winner!!
Source: https://www.artbarblog.com/artful-year-author-interview/
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