Creative Connection with Nature - by Artist Louise Gale Podcast

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Join me on this creative journey here on Substack to slow down, spend time in nature and be creatively inspired by the beauty that surrounds us in the natural world. This podcast page will include audio versions of my posts, poems and more! Thanks for listening and joining me. Lots of love Louise xx louisegale.substack.com

  1. JAN 1

    A Slow, Calm New Year + The First Twelve Days. (Podcast #17)

    Well hello January, hello 2026 and hello to you dear listener and reader! This podcast is Episode #17 on the listening list and it includes a link to your FREE Big Dreams, Small Wonders Planner download and ways I approach the first 12 days of the year for a calmer start to 2026. I hope this episode inspires you to slowly enter into the new year and connect more deeply to yourself. If you would like to take part in some calm coloring for the month, you can also download a FREE January Coloring page here. Welcome to A Creative Connection with Nature and this little corner of mine in the online world with me, Louise Gale. I am a Mixed Media Artist and most of my time here will be spent sharing the little creative ways I weave nature into my art practice. I will also be exploring and sharing little snippets of inspiration for you to explore your own. Read the full blog post at louisegale.substack.com So, it’s been a few months since my last podcast and I am thinking that I may change my schedule up in 2026 to publish the audios every quarter. I’ll still be sending out studio update emails and inspiration your way every month, but the actual podcasts will be once every few months with a bigger, chattier update! I thought this approach may be a lovely way for me to keep you in the loop if you prefer my audios and for me to introduce a slower schedule as the audio versions do take up more time on the computer for me. So for 2026, I will offer the podcasts in January, April, July and October. Of course, I may change my mind, but for now, that is what I am thinking. So what will January and 2026 bring for you? I spent the second half of the December holidays in Spain this year. It was quieter and calmer than previous years and we had some wonderfully sunny days so we could get out for beach walks and time in nature which was wonderful and refreshing! Mornings, looking to the sea and walks with the winter sun. Above: A beautiful sunrise view from my art studio in Spain As the new year sinks in, I plan to return to my morning ritual of going down to the beach at sunrise and easing back into a regular yoga practice. I have been thinking about how I can invite a more simple living approach to my days with less time on the computer and more time in nature and creativity. I have felt an overwhelming desire to give myself permission for more quiet, tranquil time in nature and not rush into a new year with long ‘to do lists’ and things I feel I ‘have to do’ and already I feel a calmness in my day. I am a typical creative person, where I tend to take on far too many projects at once and want to experience everything! So like last year, I really want to try and focus on 1-2 arty projects for the year and slow things down. Above: Many of my Gilded Letters laid out (available on Etsy here). I just have a few to design for the complete alphabet. Studio News and Updates! One ´to do´ I do have on my list is to start a rather radical decluttering of my Spanish home and art studio. January is perfect for this and I also like to approach it like giving my life a Spring Clean - My Spring Clean Your Life class here is on sale this month, so if you want to dive into Spring Cleaning your Home and Life to invite abundance in for 2026, this class is a game changer! It is also creative as we create a journal for the journey, so below are just a few of the worksheets I offer in class. My Spanish place is teeny tiny and has hardly any storage, so it can start to feel overwhelming after a while! I am here for 3 weeks this month, so this will be my focus. I always feel much better after a good declutter! I do have several ´stuffed´ cupboards of art supplies, so I want to go through these and look at what I can use or re-purpose AND… I know I have some reference materials I want to find for some creative projects for this year. I am also getting ready to return back to Thailand for the month of February and most of March. This is time I gift myself to just be and also a magical time where I really go inward to discover where I want to be creatively in the year ahead. Above: Inspiration I gathered from my time in Thailand Last year, I captured some of the natural beauty you find in Thailand, drawing and creating with the gorgeous Frangipani flower (one of my favorites) and this year, I would love to work on something whilst I am away. I have been longing to return back to some embroidery, so I am going to be combining my love of nature with the love of stitching intuitively to create this year…. I am just thinking on a project I can focus on! I know I want to work on something that takes some time, is mobile so I can work on it here, in my UK studio and in Thailand! So… I am thinking about making small stitched pieces inspired by my 100 day project (from a few years ago) to eventually create a throw for my bed here in Spain. Above: Some samples of embroidery inspired by nature from my Embroidery class HERE Below are just a few of the drawings/paintings from my 100 day project where I focused on botanical Motifs, so I am inspired to go back to some of these and turn them into embroidered pieces. A lovely project by the pool, in my studio garden in the UK and to take with me on my walks or transport to work on as and when. I may even join the 100 Day project again this year once I know when it is starting which I hope is Feb! If not, I will begin myself. Maybe you have an idea for a 100 day project this year? Here is a link to a post & video about some tips, following the 2018 project where I created my Botanical Motifs. Below is a piccie of me from my EP10: Embroidered Botanical Motifs and Mandalas class HERE Where I created some of my motifs and mandalas with embroidery silk, so I am going to build upon that for sure! I also used to sell hand made books/journals on Etsy (over 10 years ago!), so I may even revisit this too. Below is a little peek into one I sold. So, I think this is going to be my way of forging a deeper connection with nature and creativity in 2026! Grab Your FREE Big Dreams, Small Wonders Workbook and Planner Do you know its over 15 years since I’ve been offering this FREE pdf to you all! Amazing to think about that! I will be spending some time over the coming days, reflecting on all the good experiences I had in 2025 and working through the ‘Reflect and Celebrate’ module of my Big Dreams, Small Wonders Program. All of my Dream Life classes (and more) are on sale at the moment HERE These `Reflect and Celebrate’ worksheets are also included in my *FREE Big Dreams, Small Wonders 2026 Workbook and Planner HERE. A peek below. * if you would like to offer something….. * The pdf is FREE, but you can also add your own price if you’d like to offer something small or a tip. :-) * If you enjoy my freebies and offerings, I also accept a little tip to buy a cup of coffee HERE. I love a Cafe Americano and an Almond Croissant (for a naughty treat!) I’ll be focusing on scoping those out as I work through my ‘Big Dreams, Small Wonders‘ online class this month. There is still time to join us in class HERE for the special ‘Your Amazing Year’ discount and enroll in class with 30% off! Or get all 3 of my Dream Life Classes with 50% off in the Bundle here. What are your Intentions for the year ahead? Your New Year’s intention may be as straightforward as spending an hour doing something you love every day, to get more creative, or maybe to change some aspects of your lifestyle. You might want to think of your New Year’s intention as a type of New Year’s resolution, but from a place of self-care and gratitude, rather than a thing you feel you must do. When I started working through my ‘Big Dreams, Small Wonders’ process over 15 years ago, one of my favorite books was ‘The Joy of Ritual” by Barbara Biziou. I was also fortunate to attend a workshop with Barbara in New York, so the following has stayed with me ever since.....Barbara says that the first twelve days of January are the most important for the year ahead, each day representing the months of the year. So the 1st is January, 2nd is February and so on… “By practicing loving kindness, openness and generosity, while giving thoughtful attention to the significance of each day, you will consecrate the coming year.” How are you spending these first twelve days? My Word of the Year: One of my journal pages from my Big Dreams, Small Wonders class. I think that sometimes, we rush into the first week or so of January, enthusiastic for the new year and I have found that taking this time to go slow, reflect, notice and acknowledge is one of the greatest things to do to set ourselves up for an amazing year ahead.Other practices I also like to take part in during this time are: * Closing off the previous year, which means being thankful for what has passed and celebrate accomplishments. * Creating a Clearing which means clearing physical and mental clutter, creating space for new opportunities. * Choosing a ‘Word for the Year’ which sets an overall intention for how I want to feel for the year ahead. * Doodling my dreams in my journal. * Creating a Visionboard or Visioncards to help manifest my dreams and goals for the next year. (more on this in a post after the January New Moon on the 18th) * Focusing on a Gratitude Practice every morning and evening. We work on the above and much more in my Dream Life Classes, so I hope this all inspires you to approach your year in a way that feels great to you. In addition to the Dream Life activities, another practice I love to perform at the beginning of the year is to use my Chakra Color Card Deck to pull cards for a yearly theme and also one for each month of the year. (You get a FREE copy of the card deck in my Chakra Color course HERE)Wishing you all a Happy and Healthy start to 2026. If you’ve read this far, I want to let you know how grateful I am that you make space inside your inbox

    33 min

  2. 10/01/2025

    October Studio News and Inktober time! (Podcast #16)

    Image above: Autumn Leaves Collection Hello dear friend! How are you? We are well and truly into Autumn here in the UK and as I am getting ready to head back to Spain for 6 weeks, I have been sorting out the veggie garden and trying to finish up more of my Botanical Alphabet project! With that aside, I wanted to dedicate this episode to talking about taking part in a daily art challenge and specifically Inktober which kicks off today! This podcast is Episode #16 on the listening list. If you are listening to this on Substack, you can simply scroll down to see the images and videos included in this post. If you are listening elsewhere, please pop on over to louisegale.substack.com to see the full post there. If you are reading this via email, it is a long one, so it might get cut off at the bottom. Please pop on over to louisegale.substack.com to see the full post there. Welcome to A Creative Connection with Nature and this little corner of mine in the online world with me, Louise Gale. I am a Mixed Media Artist and most of my time here will be spent sharing the little creative ways I weave nature into my art practice. I will also be exploring and sharing little snippets of inspiration for you to explore your own. Read the full blog post at louisegale.substack.com Download your FREE October Coloring page here. I am sharing the same printable as last October. Studio Update So, before we dive into the 31 day art challenge info, here is a little studio update for the month of September! I have been enjoying time out in the garden and I am still harvesting tomatoes, can you believe it! So plenty more sauce being made for the freezer and I am watching my butternut squash daily, which alas will not be ready before I head back to Spain next week, so will see how that goes over the coming month. I also have some new shelving and a brand new door on my garden art studio. YAY! So I’ve been slowly making some upgrades to improve my little sanctuary in the garden. We also put curtain rails, but I am yet to make the curtains to hang on there which I plan to do once back in the UK in mid-November time! Below is a photo of the before and after of my studio door. It is a saloon style door we found in a skip on a walk! For my US friends here (realising you may not know what a skip is after telling my US client the other day!) this is a like a giant dumpster that you have in your front yard when you are doing renovations on the house and passers by have permission to look in the open skip/dumpster and take anything they might be able to use or upcycle! I love my new door as I can open the top section only if I wish and it has windows in also, so it lets lots of light into that corner of my studio! Above Image: Before and after on the studio door! Botanical Alphabet Update! I am pleased to announce that I have finished up to letter T now. I am going to be sharing these on my social media once I have taken photos and they will be in my Etsy shop ready for the holidays! You can see all of the current gilded letters that are available here. I have also been taking custom orders to use the flowers on different letters, so I am also able to mix and match letters with the flowers I have already drawn too! And yes! There is a sale on my Etsy Shop with 20% off. Here is just a peek below I will also be changing the processing times for my Etsy shop when I am in Spain as I am only able to process and fulfill the orders when in the UK. So current orders are closing this Friday, October 3rd and I wont be back in the UK until the 18th November when I will be ready to create new gilded letters for Christmas and the Festive Holidays! If you have any questions, comments or feedback, please feel free to comment below (on my Substack post) I’m Still Thinking about Embroidery! Also as a little side note, last month I mentioned an urge to return to embroidery! I got my mum all set up and she is diving in, so I hope to carve out some time when I am in Spain (the next 6 weeks) to have a go at returning to slow hand sewing again. Below is a piccie of me with my finished rose mandala design. Above image: Me and my finished Rose Mandala design from class. I absolutely loved this creative endeavour a few years back and really loved creating my Embroidered botanical class here as part of the Botanical Mandalas Masterclass series, so I may be revisiting some of those little projects too. I also thought this would be a perfect creative project to take with me as I travel about this holiday season and for Thailand in February too! More on some embroidery thoughts in my November studio I think! How about you? Do you embroider at all? Online course platform change! As many of you know, I’ve been hosting my classes on Teachable since 2020. Then in July of this year, Teachable very suddenly announced a change in their pricing structure which means a huge price increase for me. This update from Teachable would have forced me to raise the price of my classes, which is something I am not happy doing. I believe in keeping art classes affordable and accessible, so this new update made me think very deeply about the future of these classes! After lots of reflecting on this and researching other solutions, I have made the big decision to move everything over to a new platform. Your learning experience inside the platform and classes seems almost identical to Teachable and I hope this move means I can continue to host my art classes for years to come. So, if you are current accessing my courses at artclasses.louisegale.com I will be writing to you this week about this migration which I will be performing over the coming weeks. I hope to have everything moved by November 10. If you have questions, feel free to comment below (on my Substack) or email me. Inktober! So, here we are in a new month and October is the month where many creatives from around the world join the #Inktober challenge. I may dip in and out this year due to other commitments, but for those of you who would LOVE to play, here are my own prompts that are more Botanically Inspired! Many of the flowers on the list are also tutorials in my book - ‘Drawing Botanical Blooms’, so if you already have the book, this is a fabulous way to practice what you learn inside and explore some other flowers too! The Book Club (free when you purchase my book) has videos included, so you can draw along with me too as we work through the flowers in the book! The book includes tutorials for the following flowers:🌸 Hydrangea (day 3 of inktober)🌸 Anemone (day 5 of inktober)🌸 Wild Rose (day 8 of inktober)🌸 Trillium (day 9 of inktober)🌸 Pansy (day 12 of inktober)🌸 Peruvian Lily (day 15 of inktober)🌸 Gerbera (day 17 of inktober)🌸 Stargazer Lily (day 20 of inktober)🌸 Passion Flower (day 26 of inktober)🌸 African Daisy (day 27 of inktober)🌸 Sunflower (day 31 of inktober)Find out more about my books here: https://louisegale.com/booksThese daily challenges are a great way for us to get back into a lovely habit of showing up at the art table and creating something. I also use them when I am working on a new book or series of art to keep me going! I have created most of my books kick started by daily projects such as this! Below is an image from a previous Botanical Blooms Inktober where I drew out some coloring pages for my Botanical Blooms Coloring Book. My invitation to YOU! How to play along:- You can join for a few days, a week or the whole month, up to you!- Use the prompts to draw (or inky paint) your own Botanical Blooms as a single drawing or a page in your sketchbook. You can also color, collage and paint if you wish... why not! 😆- Post your art or photos on Instagram and tag me so I can see your art and comment.- Also use the hashtags #botanicalinktober #inktoberwithlouise so everyone can find each other! Tips as you work on Inktober or a daily project such as this! I hope you feel inspired to use these prompts to create a little every day! Or like myself, to dip in and out as you wish. No rules at all! It’s such a rewarding way to slow down, notice the natural world, and sharpen your inking skills whether you use simply a pen or us colored inks. AND… if you want to use other materials, of course, that is okay too! To help you along the way, here are some tips to make the most of your daily drawing practice: 1. Study your prompt before drawingTake a moment to look up the flower. Notice its main features—shapes, petals, leaves, or textures. 2. Start with a quick thumbnailA tiny, rough sketch helps you test composition and proportion before committing to ink. 3. Focus on strong shapesCapture the silhouette first. Plants can be intricate, but their essence often lies in their outline. 4. Play with line variationThick lines can shape your drawing, while finer lines bring delicate details like veins, shading or textures to life. 5. Suggest rather than overloadYou don’t need to ink every tiny vein or dot. A few well-placed marks are often enough and keep the drawing simple and fresh. 6. Keep it consistent, not perfectEven 15–20 minutes a day is enough. Progress comes from showing up, not from flawless results. 7. Gather a variety of referencesMix real-life observation with photos or even botanical art for your flower. This keeps your interpretations unique and is a great way to get inspired! 8. Experiment with compositionClose-ups, patterns, and creative framing all add interest beyond simply drawing the entire plant. Have fun changing things up if you fancy too! 9. Embrace happy accidentsInk smudge? Wandering line? Turn it into a shadow, texture, or new branch. Plants are organic—perfection isn’t the goal. 10. Share your journeyPosting your work (or sharing with a friend) creates accountability and inspires others to join in. Please do use the hashtags if you are on Instagram and I will pop on over and take a look! Above all, let the

    32 min

  3. 09/01/2025

    Studio News & 10 Creative Ways to Reconnect to Nature this Autumn (Podcast #15)

    Above: A Harvest Heart at the Verve Festival in Wiltshire, UK. Hello dear friend! Today, as summer here in the northern hemisphere starts to turn to autumn, I wanted to take some time to pause and share some ways we can creatively connect back to nature as the seasons start to change. And of course I am sharing a little studio update first. So welcome to studio news and 10 Creative Ways to Reconnect to Nature this Autumn This podcast is Episode #15 on the listening list. If you are listening to this on Substack, you can simply scroll down to see the images and videos included in this post. If you are listening elsewhere, please pop on over to louisegale.substack.com to see the full post there. Welcome to A Creative Connection with Nature and this little corner of mine in the online world with me, Louise Gale. I am a Mixed Media Artist and most of my time here will be spent sharing the little creative ways I weave nature into my art practice. I will also be exploring and sharing little snippets of inspiration for you to explore your own. Read the full blog post at louisegale.substack.com Download your FREE September Coloring page here. I am sharing the same printable as last September. Studio Update for September So, hello September! I think many will agree that Autumn is a favourite season for lots of us. It has such a fresh feeling about it as the joys of the summer come to a close and all that we experienced and harvested over the summer months, we are guided by nature once again to reflect on what it means for a new season to begin. Call it that “back to school” feeling, but I always feel a sense of a new beginning on its way this time of year. I start to sort things out, re-evaluate finances or projects I started over the summer and look at clearing a path to allow new things to come in. Step by step, focusing on carving out a more simpler, quieter life as each year unfolds. When I think back to this time last year, the studio garden was just a twinkle in my eye and I am already excited for how it might look this time next year. I have been harvesting an abundance of tomatoes for two months now! Roasting and making up batches of pasta sauce for the freezer and enjoying the fresh produce when having your own veggie garden… and there is nothing so delicious than roasted cherry tomatoes with garlic and herbs on a hot toasted ciabatta! Yum…. I started small this year, so I have tomatoes (so many of them!) sweet peppers which are just starting to turn now, butternut squash which are balancing on the trellis, then kale, peas, figs, apples, blackberries, sunflowers and more to come next year. I did plant cauliflower and beets, but maybe a little late…we will see. Below is a little video of Sunday morning sunshine picking. End of Summer Sale is Ending! Oh! yes! If you are also listening to this on September the first, then today is the last day to grab all of my online art classes with up to 50% off in the End of Summer Sale! I will likely leave the specials on the site for a few more days this week…. Botanical Alphabet Project In other studio news, I am still working on my Botanical Alphabet and as I record this, I am up to letter P! Very exciting (Although I still need to do the letters N and O). I did start to get that feeling many of us get when working on a daily project which makes us question what we are doing and why! So I took a couple of days away from the studio, in the garden and then I returned, refreshed to continue on. I am still unsure as to where this particular project will take me, but I have been enjoying the process of drawing and designing the flowers around each letter and have now started to make the designs alot more detailed, so I am definitely going to return to the earlier letters to redo some of them! Above image: Just a little glimpse into some of the finished letters. I also received a wonderful commission (via my Etsy Shop) for three letters from a lovely lady in the US. Luckily I was able to get them all designed, printed, gilded and mailed off before the new tariff that is currently being introduced for all goods going into the USA. A challenge for so many small businesses that sell into America, but I am confident the mailing systems will get a process into place so we can see this being a smooth transition in the run up to the holiday season. Below is a little video of the 3 lovely letters that were sent. These are also in my Etsy shop here. So I have a choice of Pansy, Petunia and Passionflower for the letter P. So if you are enjoying the series of letters and think this may be the perfect gift for someone, please do let me know as I am taking orders now until October 1 for an early start on the festive season. You can email me, leave a comment below or request through my Etsy Store here. I am heading back to Spain early October until mid November time and will open orders up again then, but will only have a limited amount of slots. A selection of these gilded letters will also be left at the Gallery in Spain for their run up to the holiday events. I think many of my friends and family will receive a handmade personal gift this year. So… lots of fun was had this summer, in the garden and in the garden studio. I did not get out much I have to admit, but I was so perfectly happy in my own little creative sanctuary in nature and each morning was such a joy, being spent in the garden with my coffee tending to the plants and enjoying the quiet morning sunshine before heading into the studio. Connecting with Nature - some ideas for the new season ahead. As we begin to experience the cooling of the sun, the nights drawing in and that crisp feeling that autumn is on its way, I wanted to share some ideas on ways we can creatively connect back to nature for the new season ahead. I for one, will be enjoying more walks out in nature and I cannot wait to explore the beginnings of autumn which is a favourite for sure! The turning of the leaves, the slight chill in the mornings, the harvest of my veggie garden… spending time with friends and family, so many things to be grateful for. I also have this overwhelming desire to pick up my embroidery again as this new season arrives. Something that keeps whispering at me….especially the idea of embroidering these Botanical Letters I have been designing… so yes, I will see how that unfolds and keep you updated! I had a vision of me, snuggled up over the Autumn months, going into winter quietly and contently sewing. 🌿 10 creative activities to connect back to nature So lets dive into some suggestions for connecting with nature to inspire our creativity this coming season. There are so many ways we can creatively forge our connection back to nature and here are just a few which I hope inspire you. Above image: Sketching leaves before they turn in autumn. * 1. 🍂 Nature journaling — sketch or write about changes in light, leaves, and your surroundings. This is such a wonderful way to get back into a creative practice. Journaling thoughts about the new season, but also capturing some of the beauties of nature along with way. Maybe sketching leaves or little seedpods you find or some of the flowers that are still in bloom, late in the season. I do have my Nature Trail class here which includes 30 prompts for drawing, painting and getting out into nature. Its an older class of mine, so is priced at only $29 * 2. 📸 Seasonal photography walk — capture textures, shadows, and colors of the season. This kind of creative activity is a wonderful way to record the changing of the seasons. You can even make a collage of photos for each season to enjoy and really start to notice the main differences as the wheel of the year turns. * 3. 🥾 Walking haikus and poetry — compose poems inspired by what you notice on a walk. Do you prefer to write than create visual art? How about writing a series of short poems about your time spent in nature. When we connect deeply with the world around us, it inspires feelings and a connection to place. You may find that words find you as you explore in silence through woodlands or the countryside. * 4. 🧩 Land art — arrange leaves, stones, and branches into temporary temples and sculptures. Something that sparked my creativity after I moved to Spain with no art materials or ideas! I used to collect shells and other objects on the beach to create little nature mandalas along my walks. If you feel inspired, why not create your own with what you find on your walks and leave them behind for others to find and enjoy. Above image: A nature mandala from seaweed, stones and fallen hibiscus. * 5. 🧘 Seasonal meditation outdoors — notice scents, sounds, and temperature shifts. If you just want to get out and enjoy the season without any purpose of creating, taking a journey through your senses is just like a meditation. A beautiful way to be in the present moment and reconnect back to yourself and to nature. The smell of the par after the rain, the shadows of sunset, the silence or call of birds. When you take time to walk in silence and notice, it is amazing what presents itself to you. * 6. 🧺 Nature-inspired weaving — use twigs, grasses, or vines for small creative projects. I have not taken part in this myself, but I recently found a video where a lady was weaving her lavender stalks into a tiny basket. So inspiring to watch and realise that nature really can spark so many creative ideas, but also provide us with items we can use. I know there is a whole movement out there for weaving using natural materials, so if this is something that inspires you, you are sure to discover some amazing resources. * 7. 📚 Seasonal reading nook outdoors — read in a natural setting and let the atmosphere influence you. Take a book on your nature walks along with your nature journal. You can find a beautiful spot to sit in nature to read and also little items that you may li

    32 min

  4. 08/01/2025

    Studio Update: Botanical Alphabet Art Series (Podcast #14)

    Hello dear friend! Today, I am sharing a little update on my Botanical Alphabet project I am working on this summer and a little general studio update too! This podcast is Episode #14 on the listening list. If you are listening to this on Substack, you can simply scroll down to see the images and videos included in this post. If you are listening elsewhere, please pop on over to louisegale.substack.com to see the full post there. Welcome to A Creative Connection with Nature and this little corner of mine in the online world with me, Louise Gale. I am a Mixed Media Artist and most of my time here will be spent sharing the little creative ways I weave nature into my art practice. I will also be exploring and sharing little snippets of inspiration for you to explore your own. Read the full blog post at louisegale.substack.com Download your FREE August Coloring page here This is from last August. So how was your July? I have been back in the UK for almost a month and I am lovely and settled into my garden art studio at the bottom of my mums garden on the outskirts of south east London. It really is like a little oasis here. Although we are situated in a thriving area, we are so fortunate to enjoy a peaceful garden space at the back of the house with no houses overlooking us or tall buildings. A road that is quiet with very little traffic. It really does feel like I am in the country a little when I am in the studio. My studio garden is flourishing with wild flowers, huge sunflowers and the startup veggie garden is doing so well. We have an abundance of tomatoes and kale, with some other veggies such as peppers, chilies, squash and peas on their way! This weekend, my boyfriend is here and we have plans to build the rest of the raised beds and get the winter veggies in such as carrots, cauliflowers, beets and some Chinese vegetables that I am going to give a try! If you missed my garden studio update, I posted 2 parts on my ‘From the Studio updates’ Playlist here: Part 1 Part 2 My days are quiet and contemplative and I am loving every moment. Morning coffee out in the garden, observing and picking blackberries and tomatoes. Sunny mornings in the studio planning the day of creativity and working on my current project - which is a Botanical Alphabet. A lovely way to keep showing up to my art table but also a wonderful way to deepen my connection with nature as I work on each letter of the alphabet and thinking of which flower to use! If you have been following me on socials, you will have seen some progress on the letters and I am almost half way! Below are two little updates I posted on Youtube in the last 2 weeks, so if you missed those and would like to see, click play below. Working on a daily project such as this has huge benefits, but also its challenges too! I have always used daily projects to kick start my own creativity and often, they have morphed into bigger projects that become amazing offerings such as books, a new series of paintings or…. this time, its motivating me to re-open my online art shop to offer prints and gifts! Something I have been thinking about now I have my studio in the UK (as the postal system in England is ALOT easier to navigate than the one in Spain!) I used to have an online shop when I lived in the US. I also sold paintings, cards and prints at art markets in those days too. But when I left the States to live in Spain, it was a whole different terrain, so I closed the online shop for many years. I am so happy to be opening one again and my Botanical Hand Gilded Letters will be the first items listed over the coming months as I create them. This series is a happy combination of letters, botanicals and gold! I was experimenting with gold leaf when I was in my studio in Spain in June (I found a stash when tidying up my art cupboards!) so this got my thinking about adding real gold leaf to my art work. So after finding out about application tools and the process from a calligraphy course on Domestika and a few youtube videos, I went all in to learn the art of applying the gold leaf. I started off by drawing out the flowers or using the references from my Drawing Botanical Blooms book and other drawings I had, then working out how I would place them with the letters. The flowers are hand painted and I have been scanning them into my computer to place onto the letters and tidy them up a little once painted and some elements erased as I wrap them or help them fit onto the font itself. Some of the flowers are so small, that the watercolour spilled over the lines on some occasions! Like the F for Forget me not below! You can see how small they are and getting to the details was a challenge! This project is definitely the driving force for getting my act together as so to speak and I am absolutely loving creating these letters and working through the alphabet. At first, I thought they would just be another additional offering in my shop, but I am now going in a direction to offer more personalised art and gifts. Another example of how new opportunities can arise when working on a daily project such as this! I have always loved monogram gifts and over the last few years, I have sought after handmade offerings that have monograms on to gift to friends and family. Example of a Monogram mandala. Gilding the alphabet so a letter can be chosen to monogram a piece of art or botanical mandala. Then as I was planning birthday gifts for two friends this year, I had the idea of creating my own monogram presents somehow using my botanical art and the monogram. I didn’t quite get my ducks in a row for my first friend, so I gifted her an original piece of art instead. For my friend who is 50 this weekend, I have created a gilded letter for her with her favourite flower! I will share this on socials next week as I don’t want to spoil the surprise for her! So going through this process of creating a personalised gift for my friend, it really made me think about how lovely it is to offer personalised art for others to gift themselves or a loved one. So this is what I am going to be working towards for my online shop. THEN! I received a request to create a gilded gift for someone’s special birthday and this time I added the name below. So this is definitely something I would love to offer too. Below is the finished print that was framed, ready for gifting. Getting the lettering added was tricky, but I used a new ink pen to write, which you can see me drawing with in this video here (image below). I am going to practice with this more! So… the big news is that I have quietly opened the shop HERE, adding one listing a day as I move through the alphabet and this creative project. I plan on sharing the news next week on socials once there is more there to see! You are the first to officially know the shop is opening and to celebrate I have 20% off all the new items I am listing. So if you think these may be something you would be interested in to gift to a friend or family member, I am so happy to start offering these! I decided to go back to Etsy as a starting point, so I will see how that goes. I am also going to be offering more personalisation on my artworks and Botanical Letters, so adding a name, birth date, anniversary and so on. These will be available in a few weeks, but I am taking requests so please let me know if you are in need of a special gift for a birthday, anniversary or wedding! I am also offering non gilded prints of the letters too. These are all archival prints so Giclee quality that last for over 100 years! Here is an example of the colored version of the letter I will be offering. So there we are! A new era begins and it feels like those early days, almost 20 years ago when I started to think about offering prints and small artworks for sale. I loved creating for my online shop then and am excited to be back offering more custom handmade items for sale. I will slowly adding artwork to the shop also. I hope to have the full series completed by the end of August. I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on the Botanical Alphabet project and which letter do you love so far? Or… are you eagerly awaiting a letter to be created for YOUR name? I would also love to hear what you think about re-opening an online shop again. Do you sell your art or handmade items online also? I would love to know. If you’ve read or listened this far, I want to let you know how grateful I am that you make space inside your inbox and day for my newsletters. Thank you again for being a subscriber. Wishing you so much love and feel free to ask me any creative questions at all! Thank you for supporting the work I do by subscribing. I hope I can continue to inspire. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit louisegale.substack.com

    34 min

  5. 07/21/2025

    Fancy 78 Art Classes? This Fabulous Early Bird Special Ends Today.

    Hi everyone! Popping in to remind you that the wonderful Early Bird Pricing for Make Create Express 2025/2026 ends TODAY! If you missed my previous post, I added all the deets below for you and here is a preview image of the 3 lessons I have created especially for this program. There is also a full description of all lessons included here. In other news, I have been working through my Botanical Alphabet Project and am excited to give you an update on August 1 in the next episode of my Creative Connection with Nature Podcast. Join us for the year-long program. What is Make Create Express? Make Create Express is a year long offering - 26 artists from around the world, 78 lessons, community, inspiration and more. * The FULL One Year Make Create Express began on July 14. (Early bird price is only $120 here!) so you can still jump in with this special pricing - ENDS TODAY! A Peek into my Lessons! As a bonus intro lesson, join me to sketch and create motifs from a single flower. This is a perfect intro to my creative practice and will warm you up for lesson 1, which is drawing the beautiful frangipani (using my grid system for drawing flowers), creating gorgeous mixed media cards and then creating a Botanical Mandala in lesson 2 inspired by this gorgeous flower. Here is a little peak into the bonus intro lesson: Then a little peek into the 2 main lessons that are included in the full program that runs for one year with 78 lessons in total. One of the reoccurring themes of the Make Create Express workshop is how important creativity is to our well being, how our creativity is a way that we show up for ourselves, how we listen to ourselves, express ourselves, take care of ourselves. I strongly believe in the healing energy of nature and I am answering that call to return to this work, so this creative program is a perfect way to connect back to this beautiful practice. So if you are looking to reinvigorate or kick start your creative practice be sure to join us to nurture and connect to creativity, community and inspiration. This is the 4th year I have offered brand new full lessons for the main online program. I love taking part in this online retreat. I look forward to seeing you there. Please let me know if you have any questions or comments by adding your comment below. P.S. If you prefer books to online classes, I am happy to share my collection with you! Please click here if you would like to learn more about those. Thank you again for being a subscriber. Wishing you so much love and feel free to ask me any creative questions at all! Thank you for supporting the work I do by subscribing. I hope I can continue to inspire. Thanks for reading Creative Connection with Nature - by Artist Louise Gale! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit louisegale.substack.com

    1 min

  6. 07/11/2025

    THIS WEEKEND! Join me to Create with Nature as our Guide.

    Hi everyone! Popping in to remind you that the wonderful FREE Creative Weekend of classes begins TOMORROW and runs all weekend. I am excited to be 1 of the 26 artists offering a free class for the Tasters Lessons to be broadcast on the weekend of 12 & 13th of July. I will be sharing my beautiful practice of gathering, observing and capturing nature's beauty through line drawing, capturing colors and pulling everything together into a journal page. This is a FREE showcase of all the fabulous artists that are part of Make Create Express 2025/2026! I have added a little sneak peek of my intro video of the FREE session I am offering and if you are new to me, this is also a lovely way to introduce myself to you! What is Make Create Express? Make Create Express is a year long offering - 26 artists from around the world (you can see their lovely faces below), 78 lessons, community, inspiration and more. * The FREE Taster Retreat Weekend runs July 12 & 13. * The FULL One Year Make Create Express begins July 14. (Early bird price is only $120 here!) It all starts with the FREE Creative Retreat Weekend Tempter Sessions (a lesson from each artist available in a jam packed weekend of Inspiration) and then another 2 lessons from each artist over the year when you sign up to the full Make Create Express 2025.Even if you just want to join for the FREE weekend, it will be FABULOUS! A Peek into my Lessons! As part of the FREE Weekend, I am offering a lovely lesson on sketching and creating motifs from a single flower. The in the full program, we will be drawing the beautiful frangipani (using my grid system for drawing flowers), creating gorgeous mixed media cards and then creating a Botanical Mandala inspired by this gorgeous flower. 🌸 FREE: Join me to be inspired by a single flower where we will sketch motifs, capture color palettes and add these to our journal. 🌸 Inside the main paid program: My 2 lessons are all about the beautiful frangipani flower, inspired by my trip to Thailand. You will learn to draw this flower from many different perspectives (using my grid frameworks), create inspiration cards and then create your very own Botanical Mandala. Here is a little peak into the free lesson: Then a little peek into the 2 lessons that are included in the full program that runs for one year with 78 lessons in total. One of the reoccurring themes of the Make Create Express workshop is how important creativity is to our well being, how our creativity is a way that we show up for ourselves, how we listen to ourselves, express ourselves, take care of ourselves. I strongly believe in the healing energy of nature and I am answering that call to return to this work, so this creative weekend and program is a perfect way to connect back to this beautiful practice. So if you are looking to reinvigorate or kick start your creative practice be sure to join us for the jam packed weekend of creativity, community and inspiration. This is the 4th year I have offered FREE lessons on the Creative Weekend and brand new full lessons for the main online program. I love taking part in this online retreat. I look forward to seeing you there. Please let me know if you have any questions or comments by adding your comment below. P.S. In the video I mention my books, so click below if you would like to learn more about those. Thank you again for being a subscriber. Wishing you so much love and feel free to ask me any creative questions at all! Thank you for supporting the work I do by subscribing. I hope I can continue to inspire. Thanks for reading Creative Connection with Nature - by Artist Louise Gale! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit louisegale.substack.com

    5 min

  7. 07/01/2025

    Studio News & This Summer: A New Daily Creative Project! (Podcast #13)

    Hello dear friend! Today, I am sharing news about a new daily project I am embarking on! This podcast is Episode #13 on the listening list. If you are listening to this on Substack, you can simply scroll down to see the images and videos included in this post. If you are listening elsewhere, please pop on over to louisegale.substack.com to see the full post there. Welcome to A Creative Connection with Nature and this little corner of mine in the online world with me, Louise Gale. I am a Mixed Media Artist and most of my time here will be spent sharing the little creative ways I weave nature into my art practice. I will also be exploring and sharing little snippets of inspiration for you to explore your own. Read the full blog post at louisegale.substack.com Download your FREE July Coloring page here So here we are in July! It is super hot here in Spain as I record this and I am tidying up, packing things away as I get ready to head back to the UK in a few days. Last month I had my art show at the gallery in Estepona, Spain and happy to report I sold one of my paintings with interest in many others! I just took the paintings down and the gallery will continue to represent me along with my books, prints and cards. At the moment, this is the only place to purchase cards and prints, but of course, all of my books can be purchased via my website at louisegale.com/books Thank you to everyone who has purchased my books, I have seen a flurry in sales and so grateful. Remember if you buy my Botanical Mandalas book and the Botanical Blooms Drawing book, you get videos for free as part of the book club. The Drawing Botanical Blooms book comes with a more extended membership with many art lessons inside and downloadable pdfs, so its like a whole masterclass when you purchase the book! Image: Photo of me holding a Botanical Mandala infront of my artshow wall. Photo by Tomoyuki Hotta It was so lovely to see my work exhibited on the walls of this beautiful gallery and I am also in conversation with another gallery to exhibit more of my work later on in the year. I will keep you updated on that one! What was so good about putting together this show, was that it got me back into my creative flow again. It was also fun to explore new varnishes and framing some of my art which I had not done before. Below is the painting I sold with its new frame! Once my show was up in June, I embarked on clearing some of my studio cupboards which were full of boxes with my art inside and lots of art materials! I discovered some of my little botanical painting cards and motifs from my 100 days project and once I got them all out, it was amazing to see them all. 100s of them! Below is a little video I posted on my Youtube channel! I then found some gold leaf and decided to play with a couple of the botanical mini cards and gold leaf…. below is the video I posted so you can see. I loved playing with the gold leaf, although it is a little messy! I love using gold in my paintings, so I thought this could be a lovely way to add something shimmery to some smaller works. I then went onto try the gold with some lettering.. and that was when I had a spark of inspiration to revisit something I have been thinking of doing for a while, but never actually started it properly! Onto my daily project news…… A New Daily Art Project: Botanical Lettering Play! So, let’s get into my brand new project I will be embarking on over the rest of the summer. If you have been following me on socials, you may have seen me play with some gold leaf (the fake kind) watercolor and lettering this past week or so! I have longed to create a Botanical Alphabet, primarily in black and white pen to create a coloring book, but I am actually going to dive into creating with mixed media to see where it takes me. Maybe I will create a coloring book too, but this is what is calling me and being a mixed media artist, it is definitely what brings me joy! I am heading back to my UK Garden Art Studio this month, so my plan is to settle in there, get all my supplies out and simply spend the rest of my summer playing with letters, mixed media backgrounds, watercolor botanicals and gold leaf with a view of actually using real gold leaf at some point. I saw an online class all about creating illuminated letters from medieval times and it gave me a little idea to put my own spin on gold lettering with botanicals. I have used gold paint and gold leaf in my paintings for many years, in a more abstract way, but now I am feeling a call to create small artworks to showcase each letter of the alphabet including botanicals and maybe other natural elements too, I will see how it all unfolds! Here are a couple of videos I have posted on Youtube so you can see! They are very rough as I am just getting the hang of some basic glue and faux gold! So I have ordered some better supplies in England to play with also. I am definitely going to begin with a Botanical Alphabet, so I will start with the letter A of course and then move through each letter. Referencing some of the Botanical paintings and motifs I already have (many I recently found in my cupboard!) and then expanding on those to see what inspiration finds me. The idea also popped into my mind when I was thinking about a gift idea for a friend and I wanted to paint something more personal. I love monogram gifts and have been giving them for a few years and then thought ¨Why don’t I create my own!¨ So that is what I will be working on over the coming months. First a little play with mixed media as I work through the alphabet with view of creating little artworks that can be gifted and recreating prints to sell. I have long been thinking about re-opening my online shop, so this may just be the motivation to do so. If you would like to follow along, I will be posted daily or every other day over on my socials which are Instagram, Facebook, Youtube and Tiktok, so depending on where you like to hang out, you can see my progress as I work along. I will also update you here on my Substack and Podcast next month! I am excited to get started and share with you as I embark on this new creative journey! The FREE Creative Weekend Starts Soon! As I dive into my Botanical Lettering project, I will also be taking part in the wonderful FREE weekend of creative classes. I am excited to be 1 of the 26 artists offering a free class for the Tasters Lessons to be broadcast on the weekend of 12 & 13th of July. I will be sharing my beautiful practice of gathering, observing and capturing nature's beauty through line drawing, capturing colors and pulling everything together into a journal page. This is a FREE showcase of all the fabulous artists that are part of Make Create Express 2025/2026! What is Make Create Express? Make Create Express is a year long offering - 26 artists from around the world (you can see their lovely faces below), 78 lessons, community, inspiration and more. * The FREE Taster Retreat Weekend runs July 12 & 13. * The FULL One Year Make Create Express begins July 14. (Early bird price is only $120 here!) It all starts with the FREE Creative Retreat Weekend Tempter Sessions (a lesson from each artist available in a jam packed weekend of Inspiration) and then another 2 lessons from each artist over the year when you sign up to the full Make Create Express 2025.Even if you just want to join for the FREE weekend, it will be FABULOUS! I may even use the idea of the little cards I created for this program to inspire my mixed media backgrounds for my Botanical Lettering project! If you’ve read this far, I want to let you know how grateful I am that you make space inside your inbox and day for my newsletters. Thank you again for being a subscriber. Wishing you so much love and feel free to ask me any creative questions at all! Thank you for supporting the work I do by subscribing. I hope I can continue to inspire. Thanks for reading Creative Connection with Nature - by Artist Louise Gale! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit louisegale.substack.com

    21 min

  8. 06/01/2025

    Your Free Ticket to a Creative Weekend! (Podcast #12)

    Hello dear friend! Welcome to this episode and apologies that I had to miss the May podcast. My throat is better so I am back! Today, I am sharing news about my new art show in Spain, an invite to a free online creative weekend and of course, your free printable coloring page for this month. This podcast is Episode #12 on the listening list. If you are listening to this on Substack, you can simply scroll down to see the images and videos included in this post. If you are listening elsewhere, please pop on over to louisegale.substack.com to see the full post there. Welcome to A Creative Connection with Nature and this little corner of mine in the online world with me, Louise Gale. I am a Mixed Media Artist and most of my time here will be spent sharing the little creative ways I weave nature into my art practice. I will also be exploring and sharing little snippets of inspiration for you to explore your own. Read the full blog post at louisegale.substack.com Download your FREE June Coloring page here I am currently in Spain and just had a lovely opening evening showcasing some of my paintings at a Gallery here in Estepona on Friday. I arrived back to my studio by the sea to finish off some paintings and also gather a lovely collection of artwork for the gallery that represents me as I am their featured Art of the Month for June. (so more on that and some piccies from the opening in another episode later this month!). It has been so wonderful to dive back into painting and I am really focused on carving out dedicated creative time for myself from now to ensure that I can paint and also start some new projects that I have been longing to work on! On the audio track, I also mention some new book projects brewing! If you follow me over on Instagram, you will see some of my posts, videos of art and some latest snippets from my studio. I took a little break from social media, so I am pleased to be back, posting about some of the lovely art projects. I have my creative energy back and excited to dive into some new creative projects over the summer months also. I’ll also have some process videos to share with you very soon! Below is the video I posted when I returned to Instagram. I look forward to sharing more about the opening and the paintings in a couple of weeks, in the meantime, here is a little piccie of me before the opening in front of my curated display of works. So, today, I also wanted to invite you along to a wonderful FREE weekend of Art Lessons that I am part of. I am excited to be 1 of the 26 artists offering a free class for the Tasters Lessons to be broadcast on the weekend of 12 & 13th of July. I will be sharing my beautiful practice of gathering, observing and capturing nature's beauty through line drawing, capturing colors and pulling everything together into a journal page. This is a FREE showcase of all the fabulous artists that are part of Make Create Express 2025/2026! I have added a little sneak peek of my FREE session below and I’ll talk more about what I am offering in a moment. The whole weekend is going to be AMAZING! When Galia (who hosts the weekend) invited me to join again, I talked about my ongoing love affair with observing nature's beauty and then recording the lines, shapes and colors as part of a practice that then leads me to create Botanical Mandala designs. We thought this would be a beautiful session to include in the full program, so this is what I am presenting.What I love, is that you can gather SO MUCH INSPIRATION from ONE single flower and this can then be used for inspiration for more art making and of course....botanical mandala artwork. What is Make Create Express? Make Create Express is a year long offering - 26 artists from around the world (you can see their lovely faces below), 78 lessons, community, inspiration and more. * The FREE Taster Retreat Weekend runs July 12 & 13. * The FULL One Year Make Create Express begins July 14. (Early bird price is only $120 here!) It all starts with the FREE Creative Retreat Weekend Tempter Sessions (a lesson from each artist available in a jam packed weekend of Inspiration) and then another 2 lessons from each artist over the year when you sign up to the full Make Create Express 2025. Even if you just want to join for the FREE weekend, it will be FABULOUS! A Peek into my Lessons! As part of the FREE Weekend, I am offering a lovely lesson on sketching and creating motifs from a single flower. The in the full program, we will be drawing the beautiful frangipani (using my grid system for drawing flowers), creating gorgeous mixed media cards and then creating a Botanical Mandala inspired by this gorgeous flower. 🌸 FREE: Join me to be inspired by a single flower where we will sketch motifs, capture color palettes and add these to our journal. 🌸 Inside the main paid program: My 2 lessons are all about the beautiful frangipani flower, inspired by my trip to Thailand. You will learn to draw this flower from many different perspectives (using my grid frameworks), create inspiration cards and then create your very own Botanical Mandala. Here is a little peak into the free lesson: Then a little peek into the 2 lessons that are included in the full program that runs for one year with 78 lessons in total. One of the reoccurring themes of the Make Create Express workshop is how important creativity is to our well being, how our creativity is a way that we show up for ourselves, how we listen to ourselves, express ourselves, take care of ourselves. I strongly believe in the healing energy of nature and I am answering that call to return to this work, so this creative weekend and program is a perfect way to connect back to this beautiful practice. So if you are looking to reinvigorate or kick start your creative practice be sure to join us for the jam packed weekend of creativity, community and inspiration. This is the 4th year I have offered FREE lessons on the Creative Weekend and brand new full lessons for the main online program. I love taking part in this online retreat. I look forward to seeing you there. Please let me know if you have any questions or comments by adding your comment below. P.S. I’ll be back in a couple of weeks with the next episode - all about my gallery show and showcasing the art with you! If you’ve read this far, I want to let you know how grateful I am that you make space inside your inbox and day for my newsletters. Thank you again for being a subscriber. Wishing you so much love and feel free to ask me any creative questions at all! Thank you for supporting the work I do by subscribing. I hope I can continue to inspire. Thanks for reading Creative Connection with Nature - by Artist Louise Gale! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit louisegale.substack.com

    18 min
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About

Join me on this creative journey here on Substack to slow down, spend time in nature and be creatively inspired by the beauty that surrounds us in the natural world. This podcast page will include audio versions of my posts, poems and more! Thanks for listening and joining me. Lots of love Louise xx louisegale.substack.com

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