Happy Friday Reader

Welcome back to The 5 Things Friday Coffee Break! This is my weekly roundup of fun, creative, and personal growth-inspired finds that I think you’ll love.

In Each Issue:

☕ The Weekly Brew: A more personal note from me each week
​📝 Journaling prompts inspired by my weekly brew
🎨 Five creative, thought-provoking, or just fun things I’m loving
🖼️ A spotlight on one of my artworks (often with a special discount!)
📅 Upcoming events and offerings
✨ And who knows—maybe some surprises!

This guy has been sticking by my side through my healing. True Blue!

Today's Project.

Happy Friday Reader
It’s been four days since my lumpectomy, and I’m happy to say all went well.
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If you’re curious about more of what that’s been like, you can check out this Substack post I shared yesterday.

What I want to focus on here today are the canvas stretcher bars and the fresh roll of linen sitting on my dining room table—waiting for me to stretch them.

This is new territory for me, and… it’s a little intimidating.
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I know the next evolution in my artwork is happening—I’m in the middle of it—and a key part of that growth is learning to stretch my own canvas. I want my work to have that extra layer of texture and intention, a little je ne sais quoi.

I’ve watched the YouTube videos. I have all the tools. But it’s the putting the frame together part that has me stalled. It’s not sliding together easily, and since the frame is bigger—30x30—I probably just need to go get my mallet from the shed and give it a few taps.

But I haven’t.
And the truth is: I’m resisting.

Part of it is physical—I’m still recovering from surgery and feeling a little weak.
But mostly? It’s emotional. I don’t like feeling like I can’t do something.

When was the last time you really wanted to do something, had everything you needed… and still resisted doing it?
Maybe it was a project, something fun, or something for work.

In my case, the problem isn’t not knowing what to do. I know the steps:

1. Get my mallet from the shed
2. Revisit a few YouTube videos on building/stretching frames
3. Just do it

The problem is the resistance.
All I want right now is to paint. But I can’t paint until I have these canvases ready.

So if I know what to do and I’m not doing it… what’s really getting in the way?

It’s fear.

Let me break it down:​
I like being good at things.
I like feeling confident—like I can take on anything if I put my mind to it.
But I’ve never done this before.
And chances are, I won’t be great at it the first time.
The linen and stretcher bars were expensive.
I’m afraid of messing up—breaking something, wasting materials, looking or feeling foolish.

Now that I have named the fear, I can work with it.​
Here’s the pep talk I just gave myself (and maybe you need to hear it too):

Whew. I needed that.
And now that I’ve talked myself through it, I know I’ll follow those steps—right after I send this note to you.

So let me ask you:

Where are you encountering resistance?​
​What are the fears underneath it?​
​What pep talk do you need to hear from yourself today?

If this helped you uncover something, I’d love to hear about it. Just hit reply and tell me.
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Together We Float,

• Where in your life are you feeling resistance right now, even though you want to move forward?​
  Name the project, decision, or desire you’re avoiding. What’s pulling at you—and what’s holding you back?
• What are the fears beneath your resistance?​
  Go beyond the surface. Are you afraid of failure, judgment, wasting time or resources, not being “good enough”? What part of you needs reassurance right now?
• What would your inner wise self say to you if she were giving you a pep talk?​
  Let her speak. Write a compassionate, grounded message to yourself from the version of you who knows you’re capable, resilient, and allowed to make mistakes while learning.

1) This week I read a lot! A few brain candy books and a heavier book. The heavier book I read was Conscious Uncoupling, the fun books, Atmosphere (really good), Great Big Beautiful Life (good) and Seven Summer Weekends (a great distraction from my life). This year, I’m keeping a running list of every book I read and what I thought — You can access it here, there are already lots of goodies on it and all of the books I read while I was away are listed!
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2) I ordered these really cool foam mats for my art room so that I will protect the floors even more from paint. I do have paint all over my hardwood floors despite my drop cloth so I'm brining in re-enforcements.

3) Did you miss this week's Free Journaling week? You can still access all of the videos and prompts by registering here and then following the prompts. They will be up through next Friday!

4) This week a friend came to stay with me and I made this focaccia bread for her and it was so yummy! Unrelated to Focaccia, she and I were talking about Pickled eggs and how good they are and I wanted to share this recipe that I love with all of you! They are Korean Marinated Eggs. I can make a batch and it's gone in just a few days.
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5) My splurge of the week, were these set of three tops. They've surprisingly come in handy post surgery.

Together We Float,
-Alisha

Semi-Private In-Person Watercolor Class 1 spot available for the upcoming July/August watercolor class. Learn More and Claim Your Spot!