Calling ‘Bullshirt’ on the over-curated life

This year I have decided to join in the fun of March Meet The Maker (over there on Instaspace it’s found using #marchmeetthemaker).

Basically, if you’re a creating type with a social media account, March is the month for you to tell the world about yourself, what you do, what inspires you, what your beautiful creative space looks like, etc, etc, etc. I’ve never joined in as a) I don’t have the time to set up pretty scenes that show my life as wonderful, photogenic, sticky-free (what food was that from?!), ideal, as if I have a team of cleaners/bakers/scented candle makers following my daisy strewn path. And b)… there is no b. Just a.

Yesterday’s prompt was to show our work space. Cue dozens of photos of workspaces worthy of page space in Elle Decor. No stray toy in place or unwashed mug. After seeing all of these, I heaved a heavy sigh and blurted out “What a bunch of Bullshirt.” (I thank The Good Life for that one). Because it is. And this is when I decided to get involved.

Photo above: Not my work space. My workspace goes up near the window where all the natural light streams in, then gets packed away in the evening when other parts of my life take over. The above is my daughter’s messy art table.

Today’s prompt: Routine

I had to laugh my silly little head off at this. My routine is that it changes every few weeks. I divide my work time between my own art hustle and planning and delivering art lessons for primary schools. All of this is woven around my four year old and taking her here, there and everywhere. I do secretly love it that my weeks are a mix of activities and would probably find it boring to live another way. I seem to thrive in the land of mild chaos.

I get that March Meet The Maker is about seeing the faces and spaces behind all that lovely artwork, clothing, jewellery, cards we see in shops and online. The idea is a good one. What I’m tired of seeing, though, is the lack of reality in these overly-curated feeds. It’s nice to see pretty but it’s also good for the soul to see the mess behind the scenes. I want to meet the REAL maker behind all that creativity. Without seeing that real part of the story, everything turns into a blur of the same.