Colour Me Happy! - By Brandi Hofer Studios

Not everything that feels urgent is important, and not everything on your to-do list deserves your energy.

-Brandi 

This week on Colour Me Happy Podcast! Episode DescriptionWe’re talking about the must-dos, should-dos and could-dos with Alison Weaver! It’s so easy to get caught up in the endless list of things that need our attention, the anxieties of everyday life and all the expectations we put on ourselves. But when do we stop and ask what actually fills our cup?

We chat about making space for ourselves, prioritizing what matters, and recognizing that taking care of our own happiness and well-being makes us better in all the other areas of our lives, too. 

Alison also shares a little about her Navigate planner, where you can find it locally in Lloydminster and how it can help bring a little more intention to your everyday. A little reminder that you don’t have to do it all, all the time. 

Takeaway Tips:

1. Learn to separate the must-dos from the should-dos. Not everything on your list is equally important. Take a moment to recognize what genuinely needs your attention and give yourself permission to let some of the other things wait.

2. Make filling your own cup a priority. Don’t wait until everything else is done to take care of yourself. Make room for the things that bring you joy, calm your mind and help you feel like YOU again.

How many people and tables can we squeeze into my home…? Only a few spots left: Reserve your spot at our Collage Party before it's too late! Join us for an evening of creativity and laughter. 

Be conscious of developing a routine that works for you, because someone else’s schedule doesn’t have to be your schedule.-Brandi 

This week on Colour Me Happy Podcast! This week I’m chatting with Canadian artist Courtney Caroline about her vibrant, colourful still life paintings, getting geeky about our favourite art supplies and my newfound love for R&F Oil Sticks!We also talk about showing up for your art, even when your routine doesn’t look like everyone else’s. Social media can make it feel like everyone is creating more, accomplishing more and somehow finding more hours in the day.

But the truth is, we all have different seasons, schedules and lives. Your creative practice doesn’t need to look like someone else’s to be meaningful.Courtney shares how she’s become more conscious of where she puts her time and energy, while finding boundaries that allow her to stay inspired without getting pulled into comparison. We talk about creating a routine that actually works for you and giving yourself permission to build your creative life at your own pace.And of course, we get wonderfully nerdy about pencils, R&F Drawing Oil Sticks and how changing up your materials can help you loosen up, let go of perfection and play again.

2 Takeaway Tips

1. Show up anyway.
Your schedule might not look like the artist beside you, and that’s okay. Keep showing up in whatever way fits your life right now. Small, consistent steps still count.

2. Build a routine around YOUR life.
Instead of trying to copy someone else’s creative routine, pay attention to when you feel most inspired and what you can realistically sustain. Your art practice should fit into your life, not make you feel like you’re failing at someone else’s.

When things feel overwhelming, just take the next step. Small, manageable things done every day can add up to something really big. -Brandi

This week I’m chatting with Courtney Florence, one of my mural class students who took what she learned in the class and jumped into a summer full of mural projects!

We talk about what mural work is really like behind the scenes, from giant walls and unpredictable weather to uneven surfaces, tight timelines, physical exhaustion and those moments when you’re wondering, “What did I get myself into?” Courtney even shares the story of working on a mural in Coleman until 4 a.m. while battling freezing temperatures and rain!

But underneath all of that is such a good reminder that trying something new doesn’t have to mean figuring everything out at once. You can learn, take one step, solve the next problem and keep going. And before you know it, those little steps have turned into something much bigger than you imagined.

Courtney is such a great example of what can happen when you give yourself permission to try something new, learn as you go and just keep showing up.

And if mural painting is something you’ve been curious about, you can learn more about my Mural Class HERE. Courtney is one of our students and it was so fun to hear how the class helped prepare her for the real-world experience of putting murals on walls!

2 TAKEAWAY TIPS:

1. Break the big thing into the next small thing. You don’t have to know how you’re going to finish the whole project. Just figure out what needs to happen next.
2. Trying something new gets easier once you start. You may not feel ready, but learning as you go is part of the process. Small steps, repeated consistently, can turn into something surprisingly big.

Creativity is better when you have someone to share the messy middle with. - Brandi 

This week on Colour Me Happy Podcast!  Creative friendships can be such a gift. In this episode, we talk about finding the people you can lean on, bounce ideas off, and talk to when you’re stuck because chances are, they’ve been through something similar too. Alli shares how moving from working solo to collaborating on team-based murals changed the way she worked, while we chat about the balance between making art for yourself and navigating the demands of client work.

Sometimes the best way out of a creative rut is simple: take yourself on an art date with a creative friend, try a new class, pick up a different medium, or just make something with no expectations attached.

Takeaway Tips:

1. Find your creative people. Have someone you can talk to about the highs, lows, weird ideas and hard seasons of making art. You don’t have to figure everything out alone.
2. Make creativity social again. Take a class together, go on an art date, visit a gallery, or spend an afternoon making something just for fun. Sometimes getting out of your own head is exactly what you need. To get inspired: Listen HERE

Come Home to Your Creativity! And speaking of making art together, I’m hosting a cozy Collage & Art Sale at my house! We’ll have warm apple cider, lots of creative goodness, and a chance to sit around and make something together. It’s the perfect excuse to bring a creative friend, get out of your own head and spend a little time making art just for the fun of it.Come get creative with us: $20 a Ticket

Success doesn’t have to look the same in every season of your life. Sometimes the most creative thing you can do is listen to yourself and redefine what success means to you. - Brandi

What if making art could be therapeutic, but sustaining a creative life meant learning when to push forward and when to step back?

In this episode, I sit down with Canadian artist Alexandra McLaughlin for a conversation about the messy, beautiful reality of sustaining creativity long term. We talk about how art can become a place to process life, anxiety and stress, but also why we can’t always force ourselves to create when our bodies and minds are asking for something different.

Alex shares her journey from working as a Toronto paramedic to building a full-time art practice from her home studio in Midland, Ontario.

We also get very Canadian in this episode as Alex tells me about making maple syrup straight from the trees in her own backyard.

We talk about redefining success, why a solo gallery show doesn’t have to be the ultimate goal, how our definitions of success can change through different seasons of life, and the importance of finding creative side projects that keep you curious and excited.

And Alex’s current exhibition, Close to the Water is currently on at Quest Art School + Gallery, inspired by her lifelong relationship with Georgian Bay and the way water can help us slow down, reconnect and come home to ourselves.  

2 Takeaway Tips

1. Redefine success for the season you’re in.
Success doesn’t always have to mean the biggest show, the most sales or the next major milestone. Ask yourself what a successful creative life looks like right now, and give yourself permission to let that answer change.

2. Listen when your body says slow down.
Creativity thrives when we have the capacity for it. If you’re exhausted, anxious or physically carrying the stress of your work, stepping away isn’t failure. Sometimes rest, play and a completely different creative project are exactly what allow you to come back to your art with more energy.

Sometimes it takes a moment that shakes you awake to realize you don’t want to sleepwalk through your life.-Brandi
We don’t often have writers on the podcast, so this conversation with poet and author Madalyn Hughes was such a treat. We talk about how writing and art can beautifully go hand in hand, and how creativity doesn’t always need hours of uninterrupted time to exist. Sometimes it starts with a walk, a voice note, a notebook, or simply paying attention to what is happening around you. Madalyn shares how she and her family stepped outside of the traditional path and began travelling the world full-time, and the near-death experience involving her son that became a huge wake-up call for their family.

We talk about motherhood, routine, inspiration, and why breaking a creative practice down into tiny, manageable pieces can actually help us create more.

 Let's explore together: the power of morning routines, mindset work, journaling, meditation, and the small shifts that can create meaningful change over time. If this inspires you to dream a little bigger, and do something just for you Portugal. Join us on the Algarve coast ⁠in June 2027 for our Portraits Without Fear retreat. ⁠ 

Takeaway Tips:

1. Make it ridiculously small. You don’t need an entire afternoon to create. Fifteen minutes, one page, a voice note, or a morning walk can keep the creative spark alive.

2. Let life wake you up. Inspiration is everywhere when we pay attention. Sometimes the biggest creative shift comes from stepping outside our routine and asking ourselves if the life we’re living is actually the one we want. Only a few spots left: Get back to YOU again!   

Burnout...Sometimes the routine that saves you isn’t about getting more done. It’s about finally creating space to come back to yourself.

-Brandi

What happens when you realize you can’t keep living the way you’ve been living?

In this episode, art therapist Leah Guzman joins Brandi to talk about overcoming burnout, breaking free from people-pleasing, and creating routines that help you feel grounded rather than overwhelmed. Leah shares her experience of navigating a difficult season while raising young children and how seeking support, establishing boundaries, and changing her daily habits helped her begin to reconnect with herself.

Together, they explore the power of morning routines, mindset work, journaling, meditation, and the small shifts that can create meaningful change over time. They also dive into the books and ideas that have influenced their personal growth—and why sometimes a difficult season can become the beginning of something entirely new.

2 Takeaway Tips:

1. Create a routine that grounds you before the world gets your attention. Your morning routine doesn’t need to be complicated. A few intentional moments of journaling, meditation, reflection, or simply enjoying a quiet cup of coffee can help you reconnect with yourself before stepping into the demands of the day.

2. Your difficult season may be asking you to change something. Burnout, setbacks, and unexpected challenges can become opportunities to reassess your boundaries, mindset, and the life you’re building. Instead of seeing every difficult moment as a failure, ask yourself what it might be teaching you.

If this is speaking to your heart, and you're loving these chats, you should definitely think about joining us in Portugal in June 2027 in a private villa on the coast. Learn more HERE

Can you decide to change your life? The answer is yes. You just have to take the big dream and break it into small steps.

- Brandi

What happens when you decide the life you’re living doesn’t have to be the life you stay in? Lauren Springer shares the brave journey of moving her family from Seattle to Lisbon and the lessons she learned about taking big, overwhelming dreams and turning them into small, manageable steps.

We talk motherhood, starting over in a new country, creative habits, sketchbooks, and giving yourself permission to experiment without needing everything to be perfect. Lauren’s story is a beautiful reminder that sometimes the biggest changes in our lives begin with one small decision.

1. Make the big dream smaller. Big life changes can feel completely overwhelming when you look at the whole picture. Instead, focus on the next small step that moves you in the direction you want to go.

2. Give yourself a playground, not another expectation. Lauren’s approach to sketchbooks is a great reminder that creativity doesn’t always need to produce something “good.” Use the space to experiment, play with colour and composition, and let the ideas develop.

If Lauren’s brave leap from Seattle to Lisbon inspires you to dream a little bigger, come make your own brave leap with us in Portugal. Join us and Uptrek on the Algarve coast in June 2027 for our Portraits Without Fear retreat: a week to step away from the everyday, reconnect with your creativity, and give yourself permission to imagine what’s next.

And here’s the amazing part: Lauren and her partner actually did a spreadsheet of the top places in the world, they landed on Portugal! And now we are going there Learn more about our Art Retreat HERE

Your past doesn’t have to stay in the past. It can become part of the art, the stories and the spaces you create.

This episode is a very special West Coast artist visit with Samantha Agar and Rose Currie. We had the honour of stepping inside Samantha’s stunning studio and home on Vancouver Island, a space so inspiring you’ll want to go home and make art all day.

Samantha shares how her upbringing and family history have shaped her creative life. We also explore the incredible story of her grandfather, who was part of the Great Escape and documented his experiences through his artwork.

It got us thinking: How does our past influence our creative futures? And how can we bring those stories, objects and pieces of our history into our creative spaces? Samantha does this beautifully throughout her home and studio.

Rose Currie is also back on the podcast, sharing her honest thoughts on being an artist with ADHD (we all relate) and the creative challenges many of us experience, including the familiar emotional crash and dysphoria that can follow a conversation or social interaction. If you missed Rose’s first episode, be sure to go back and listen.

And this is one episode you really want to watch. Throughout the video, Samantha takes us through her collections and shares footage of her grandfather’s artwork from New York and WWII. Seeing these pieces in the space where her own creativity is unfolding makes this conversation even more special.

If this conversation inspires you to take that next brave step, I’d love to invite you to join me in Portugal for ⁠Portraits Without Fear⁠, an intimate creative retreat on the breathtaking Algarve coast. Don't hesitate, or this will pass you by...We’ll paint, explore, build confidence, and reconnect with the joy of creating alongside an incredible community of artists. Learn more about how you can be a part this transformational experience HERE

2 Takeaway Tips:

1. Look backwards to move forwards. Explore your family stories, upbringing, places and experiences and ask how they might be influencing the artist you are becoming.
2. Make your space tell your story. Surround yourself with the objects, artwork, memories and collections that inspire you. Your creative environment can become part of your creative practice.

Not all our best ideas come in the studio. Sometimes they find us on a walk, while reading, or sitting with a cup of tea. - Brandi

Jane Chipp Art shares how ordinary objects, memories and everyday moments can become the starting point for meaningful art. From discovering a stranger’s photographs and handwriting to creating a 100 Day Project that led to the book Artful Memories, Jane talks about storytelling, consistency and paying attention to the world around us. 

We talk about showing up even when you don't feel ready, creating work consistently, and giving yourself permission to step away from the studio so ideas have room to find you. 2 Tip: 1. Show up before you feel ready.  You don't have to have the answers before you begin. Put out the materials, start making and let the process lead you. This is your cue to be inspired, put yourself out there, be afraid and then do it anyway! If this conversation inspires you to take that next brave step, I’d love to invite you to join us in Portugal for ⁠Portraits Without Fear⁠, an intimate creative retreat on the breathtaking Algarve coast.

Don't hesitate, there are only a few spots left!

We’ll paint, explore, build confidence, and reconnect with the joy of creating alongside an incredible community of artists. Learn more about how you can be a part this transformational experience HERE