Balance motherhood and creative pursuits! Women and new mothers are constantly encountering the message that they can never do anything for themselves once they have children. This conversational book is like brunch with girlfriends, offering you friendly advice, community encouragement, and tips on carving time out for creative endeavors.

Meet women who not only defied the "no more time to be an artist" stereotype but found motherhood gave them focus, confidence, and efficiency in their art and creative endeavors. Becoming mothers renewed a sense of purpose in their creative pursuits, and by prioritizing this need to create, they became more patient and better mothers to their children. Interview questions cover a range of topics, including early days and creative work, community and vulnerability, and tactics for regular creative practice.

Whether you read it front to back or pick it up for a 5-minute dose of encouragement, this is the encouragement you can lean on for balancing family life and art in your own way.

About the Authors

Marissa Huber is a painter and surface pattern designer who started taking her art more seriously after her son was born. Frustrated with being told she'd never have time for herself after children, surprisingly she found herself more confident and focused in her art. This fueled a passion to connect with and help others. She carves out time for art in the free time between her career in interior design and spending high-quality time with her two children, and husband in South Florida.

Heather Kirtland, an artist, received a BFA in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art. Heather currently teaches encaustic workshops and is focused on her own studio practice. She was awarded the Maryland State Arts Council Grant and was a resident artist at the Holt Center. Most recently she works with West Elm as one of their Local Artists. Her work has been exhibited throughout the Mid-Atlantic region and abroad in Italy and Wales and has appeared in Modern Rustic magazine and Country Living UK. The Make-A-Wish Foundation and Montessori school have commissioned her work, as well as many private collectors. Heather recently moved from Baltimore to a more rural part of Maryland, where she lives with her husband and two children and their dog. When she is not painting she loves to read, run, and encourage other mothers to find a creative outlet through a project she cofounded with Marissa Huber: Carve Out Time for Art.

Visit the authors and learn more about the book at www.themotherhoodofart.com.