^What I learned to make in my animation class this week!
Floor Time
/flôr tīm/
noun
the 15-60 minute time period spent laying on the floor in the middle of the work day, typically as a relief from the soul-sucking reality of corporate America.
There is undeniably a feral female energy in the air these days.1 The Barbie release, the Women’s World Cup, the ongoing Eras tour, Renaissance tour, the impending release of “Heartstopper” season 2, “Red, White, & Royal Blue,” and so on. I’m feeling this girl power-ness that I haven’t felt since middle school, and I love it! Nature is healing!!
With this return-to-childhood vibe manifesting, I’ve been reconnecting with my childlike wonder and enrolling in a number of classes. I started with a virtual animation class, where I experimented with bringing my lettering skills to the next level. Then I took a 3D letterform class (trippy and confusing for my pea brain)—and finally, topped off the week with a cake decorating class that was undeniably the highlight.
A few months ago, I realized that I was at a creative standstill. My job as a graphic designer and artist is so challenging in many ways, and yet for a while, I have not felt challenged. I blame myself—I’ve been sticking to what I know / what I’m good at rather than pushing myself into situations where I can try something I’m bad at. Hence, this week of classes and new challenges!
The cake decorating class in particular was really helpful in getting me out of my funk. Don’t get me wrong I love taking lettering classes and working on refining that craft. That said, it’s nice to have other outlets now that my hobby is also my work. Enter: Cake decorating. I chose it because I love making cakes for’ birthdays and other occasions, so learning basic piping felt like it would have a practical use case of bringing my cakes to the next level. It was such a delight to use different tools, different materials, and different techniques to do something that still requires tons of artistry. And I have to say I really caught the bug—now I just want to practice and pipe all the cakes. But not only that, I’ve felt that this creative exploration reinvigorated my excitement for my own work. Sometimes it just takes switching things up and learning something new to get you re-jazzed about the stuff that’s in front of you. Have you ever felt this way, too?
Something Pretty
Shoutout back to last week’s NYC summer activity Floor Time—I stand by the beach being a 5-star activity. Baby waves for the win :)
Something To Laugh About
For all I care it’s still Barbenheimer szn. Here are this week’s gems (no spoilers):
The way my crew and I DEEP DOVE into the Internet to find it. Glad we weren’t the only ones who had this experience.
I can feel my brain atrophying and this is why I play Spelling Bee every day.
IYKYK. Where my second gens at—we get this.
This. Ironman knows!!!
JFC do we all live the same lives?! How do you know that I do this too!?!
Ok but why did this actually make my weep 🥺
Sigh. Time to crawl back into my annual Regina Spektor hole—thanks for this.
Ya’ll. It is a [expletive] scorcher this weekend. Wear sunscreen, drink tons of water, see Barbie for the nth time, and stay cool in this heatwave.
Til’ next time, hotties. Your friend,
Clarice
By the way…I’m reading this.
First an update from last week: Assembly by Natasha Brown was freaking phenomenal. Truly an iconic debut novel where she channeled the discomfort, confusion, and frustration that comes from being in a relationship with someone from a different race/class/social standing—then feeling the pressure of trying to bridge that gap. It’s only 100 pages long and the type is HUGE so I did indeed read it during my Sunday beach day.
In the spirit of the feral female summer I am (we are?) having, I am midway through Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton, a book that TikTok kept beating into me like a dead horse2 and therefore made me inherently skeptical. But! I am actually loving it and bloody hell has this woman lived a life—all before turning 30!
I am told by friends that it is Leo Season, the season of fun and not tears. Whatever that means, I’m here for it!!
I’m giggling at how incorrectly I’ve used this idiom in my uncaffeinated state and you know what—leave it in!