Painting Happiness

This is a beautiful book, one which goes out of its way to help you feel happier. Mindfulness is such a huge hot topic these days, and quite rightly so, as it has such an enormous impact on wellbeing. Creativity is a perfect example of a mindfulness, as it is a ‘flow activity’. This book combines the two; ensuring you carve out the time to do something purely for yourself, that you can get lost in, and be truly present. Being in the here and now can be invaluable for mental health, and what better way to spend the now than by painting.
Not only does this gem of a book guide through being mindful and tackling perfection, it teaches you how to create beautiful watercolour paintings. It covers all sorts, from colour theory and equipment, to getting stuck in and having a go. Not only are there very clear step by step written instructions, but they are coupled with extremely helpful photographs to show you exactly what you’re aiming for at each stage in the process. Couldn’t recommend this book highly enough.

Thank you to Quarto Publishing Group –Leaping Hare and Netgalley for an eARC of this book to read and review.

A great book for people who want to start painting with watercolours (but any type of material really) and are scared to. I think Terry Runyan challenges all the fears that one might have when starting or even getting back to painting. Fears of wasting supplies, of creating something ugly, or disappointing oneself. All of which is not great for a creative brain, even though it's sometimes unavoidable, but painting as any other creative craft should be fun. And this is what the book is trying to capture. Enjoying the fun of it and not fearing to be silly with it.

The book is very minimal, it doesn't go too deep (though there is definitely enough) into different supplies or techniques but it serves more as a jumping point and a motivation to start painting. Because crossing the line of putting the brush to a stark white page is sometimes the most difficult thing about it.

Painting Happiness
Creativity with Watercolors
by Terry Runyan
Quarto Publishing Group-Leaping Hare Press
Pub Date: Apr 5

I was just congratulating myself on how I had not requested any new NetGalley ARCs recently, when BOOM, "Painting Happiness" showed up. It's a "READ NOW" title for me, so I downloaded it ASAP and read it hungrily in one sitting.

I adore Terry Runyan's work; she's a favorite artist who never fails to make me smile. Just seeing this cover and reading the synopsis made me supremely happy:

"Combat stress and anxiety and release your own inner creative with this beautiful mindful watercolour book.

"In this simple and vibrant guide, hugely popular Instagram muse @TerryRunyan explores the art of watercolour through the lens of mindfulness, presenting activities and projects which you can paint along with as you allow your creative side to flourish."

My Thoughts:
"Painting Happiness" is everything I hoped for and more. It has stirred my interest in trying watercolor, and applying mindfulness to every aspect of creativity. Terry's personal story of how she healed her self-concept as an artist -- even after 30 years as a working artist -- gave me hope that I could apply her wisdom to a writing project I've hesitated to complete for feeling "not good enough."

Highly recommended for new AND seasoned artists and creatives, for the legions of Terry's fans, and for anyone interested in boosting contentedness by doing art mindfully.

Thanks to Terry, Quarto Publishing Group –Leaping Hare Press, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are all mine.

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#NetGalley #paintingandmindfulness #paintingandhappiness #mindfulartguide #bookstagramcommunity

I found the cover of this book to be so lively that I knew that I wanted to see more. Indeed, the pages inside are so vibrant and engaging. Anyone who has ever thought about taking up watercolors or who thinks about mindfulness would do well to give this title a look. It is packed with good information. A chapter that I found especially helpful was the one entitled “What Stops Us.” I also like the chapter on “Mindfulness and Being Present.” There is also the bonus of seeing the author’s work; I found it so cheerful.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

This book will be published on April 05 2022

Thank you to NetGalley and to Quarto Publishing Group and Leaping Hare Press for this ARC.

This is a lovely little inspirational workbook for artists, focusing on mindfulness while painting with watercolour, but also sharing skills. I worked on the included projects as I went through the book, and found them quite delightful, and the tips useful.

This is a great book to keep for reference, to jumpstart your creativity when you feel a little stuck, and to help with that perfectionism that so many artists struggle with.

Rated: 10/10. A little on the short side, but very sweet.

More talk than technique. Uses doodles and blobs to create art, making it seem as though with a little imagination anyone can create art. Mostly cats, birds, and flowers.

Painting Happiness is a beautiful book for new watercolor artists who want to learn and experiment since that is what creating art is about. The book provides encouragement and practical advice to help adults who have creative energy but are not sure how to transfer it to paper or canvas. Runyan emphasizes daily practice and provides simple lessons in understanding color, line, and design. Runyan also provides helpful lists of the few supplies needed to begin watercolor painting. This is an exceptional introduction from an experienced artist who wants beginners to realize it is not intimidating to draw and paint for relaxation and fun. Highly recommended.

Awesome creative ways to inspire your own style with minimal instruction - perhaps wish it could be a little more in depth on some of the techniques. How she can turn blobs into cuteness, I still have no idea!

I've never thought of "cat hair" in such a way before.

Fantastic book! Full of great advice for a beginner in watercolor (me) and I imagine it would be an additional resource for those already in their enjoyment of painting.

There are many watercolor paintings throughout the book and they made me smile and chuckle so often! Also, there are many fun projects to do, to experiment with techniques. I actually worked on many as I read the book, which was a good introduction to understand the processes. I will be continuing using the book as I pursue my new hobby of painting. I know this will become a much used reference book.

I especially loved the section of the book on "inner critic". I believe everyone can benefit from reading this. It does not apply just to painting or creative arts. It can be applied to life!

I want to thank Leaping Hare Press and NetGalley for giving me the pleasure of reading the advance reader copy, with no obligation to write a review. My review is written freely as a hobby, and is totally my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.

This was a lovely read. It had a light and airy feel to it that I really enjoyed; and that I thought really encouraged creativity in a relaxed mindful way, which was ultimately the goal of the book. The illustration style isn’t one of my favorites, but I was able to appreciate the page compositions and color choices just the same. Contrary to many other art books for beginners that I’ve read I found this one had just the right amount of information and the way it was presented was spaced out enough that it didn’t become info-dumpy nor did it fell potentially overwhelming. The prompts were simple enough and were followed by plenty of examples. Overall, I really enjoyed this and if you like mindfulness and would enjoy more art in your life I believe this would be a good book for you.

I received a digital copy of this book to review on Netgalley, and want to thank them, the author and the publisher for allowing me to review. I enjoyed this book on watercolor so much that I pre-ordered the print version to have a copy for myself. I'm a total beginner with watercolor, but the projects in this book will suit anyone from beginner to advanced. Not only that, but the author digs into the mindset of creativity, which I enjoyed. It was a fun book full of projects and a 30 day kickstart of projects and ideas. The author delves into lines, styles, and colors and keeps it informative and so much fun. Every page is filled with creativity. Loved this book.

I love to watercolor and was very happy to get an arc of this book. This book has simple to understand instructions and a lot of beautiful artwork. I particularly love all of her paintings and drawings of cats. This is a great book for both watercolor artists and as an coffee table book because it has such beautiful illustrations.

Terry Runyan makes painting with watercolors super accessable through this book, her techniques are clear and very satisfying to follow. It is beautiful to browse through and makes me want to grab my paints and some friends to make some art!
I have ordered this book for the library and I am looking forward to recommending it to our patrons,
What sets this book apart is the lovely paintings and effects which can be achieved by beginners as well as more experienced painters looking for inspiration.

I used to love painting with watercolors, well into my twenties. It’s been about twenty years since I last picked up paints and brushes for myself. This book reminded me to do that.

This a joy to look through with wonderful photos of Runyan’s own charming and whimsical watercolors and I am once again excited to paint.

This book was tone of fun and very entertaining! I really enjoyed going through it and applying what I learned. Great book.

Fabulous book - really loved it.
Let go of your fear of paint and let's go. The book is divided into 6 chapters - Why we Create, About Watercolor, What stop us, Mindfulness and Being Present, Lets Paint, When its Done and Final Thoughts.
A very practical book both on project, watercolor painting skills and allowing the mind/self take over and enjoy the process without being afraid of the end result.
The projects are such fun and the practical information is relevant - love the book.

I'm not sure which is the proper title, the one this is shelved under on Goodreads (Watercolor Wellbeing (working): Exploring art for the fun of it) or the one on the cover of my ARC and the Goodreads listing-- Painting Happiness.

In either case, I absolutely adore this book and may purchase a copy for myself and the free community arts center our family runs. The illustrations are so happy and cheerful, the art is easy to follow along with, the colors are vibrant, it's encouraging and full of tips.... I just love, love, love it in every way.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book via NetGalley.

Painting Happiness: Creativity with Watercolours is an encouraging and playful guide for hesitant beginners wanting to give watercolour painting a try. It is full of high level introductory advice and bursting with playful paintings and projects. The illustrations will make you smile and are simple enough to encourage you to give it a go. There is plenty of opportunities to experiment with different techniques and lots of short chapters to help you beat your inner critic and other mental stumbling blocks. Overall an excellent book full of fun.

I love this unique book! I have seen lots of books out there showing how to draw step by step, but this is the first time I have come across painting step by step! The watercolour paintings are gorgeous, and the methods shown make replicating them less intimidating than might otherwise be the case.

The images in the book are contemporary and inspiring, which is great as I feel getting started with ideas can be one of the hardest things about initiating a painting session.

Techniques are covered, making this book a learning experience in addition to enabling the instant gratification that comes with getting straight into a project.

The '30 day kickstart' is a fantastic idea! to encouraging painting to be a way of life, increase skill and all in a simple easy to follow plan. This is a very well thought out book.

Overall I enjoyed this book and was delighted with the the paintings I created as a result!

My thanks to NetGalley, author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an advance copy.

Oh.. I am always dream to learning painting. But the tutorial in YouTube and other seem intimidating. This book make this skill look approachable. Kinda complicate but still easy enough to follow. The author informing us with step by step training. Simple, cute and adorable illustration project that feature animals, flowers and small things we can found around us. The author provide us with technics and couraging us to trying. I can imagine using the results painting for decorate my diary or personal journal. I will try some of the project for sure.

Thanks Netgalley for providing me with this book. I am learning something new today

This is a joyful book that encourages mindfulness through creativity and in particular, watercolour.
The author encourages you to let go of perfection and enjoy playing with your art. There are technical details for using watercolour but the overall message is one of enjoyment and creative freedom rather than detailed instructions. A lovely book with an inspiring message that can be enjoyed by both beginners and more experienced artists.
Thank you to Quarto Publishing Group –Leaping Hare and Netgalley for an eARC of this book to read and review.

Absolutely loved this book. It looks gorgeous and has techniques to get your creativity flowing. I definitely recommend it. Thank you #netgalley

Beautiful book. Lots of prompts, tips, encouragement.

The book starts with what most art books start with - information on supplies, color theory, etc.

From there it moves into some encouragement and tips. There’s a discussion about imposter syndrome and feeling your art is never good enough and how to overcome those thoughts.

Then it moves into actual projects. And it really just dives right in as project 1 is actually a 30 day project. The first 5 days you are taking just one of the prompts from the including list of prompts and turning that into a painting, dog for example. Days 6-10 you choose two prompts and put them together in one painting. Days 11-15 you combine three prompts in your painting. Days 16-30 are you just mixing and matching whatever jumps out at you. That may be my fave single practice challenge of those I’ve seen so far.

There are many other projects that encourage you to observe the world around you, s=to scribble, to play with shapes, etc.

There’s a strong focus on painting cats, birds, and faces.

Lovely book for those wanting to try watercolors or who are just struggling dealing with creative blocks or how to get started with painting when you have no experience.

Painting Happiness is the perfect name for this book on creative watercolor painting, because just looking a author/artist Terry Runyan's work made me extremely happy! Her paintings are joyful, whimsical, colorful, creative, yet simple at heart.

This is the perfect book for one wanting to push their artistic creativity, or just to practice creativity in general. Watercolor is such a beautiful and fun medium to paint in. The author breaks it down into bite size chapters, awash with beautiful paintings. First she talks about conquering the Inner Critic, that one that tells you you're not good enough and you're certainly no artist. Next is a chapter on learning the basics, what you will need to buy in order to create.

Following chapters include "what stops us", more encouragement for the new artist. Then an exercise on mindfulness and being present. Years ago when I practiced art, I was amazed at how painting a cloud made me so much more aware of the clouds in the skies, and their color shading and nuances. The author tells you how to notice more in the world around you. Eventually there are painting projects and ideas. My favorite was how she took a blob of paint and turned it into a cute animal,

This book certainly made me want to pull out my old paints and brushes and try my hand at some of these painting exercises. It's very inspirational!

Thank you to NetGalley, Terry Runyan, and Quarto Publishing Group for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have been following Terry Runyon on Instagram for a while now and love her quirky paintings and her bold use of colour so I was really pleased to have the opportunity to read her new book.
I love how the book begins with your basic painting necessities and is suitable for beginners as well as experienced painters. Terry takes a down to earth mindful approach to painting and starts with simple shapes and colour and moves on to more complicated painting. Nothing is too complicated though and I feel confident that even my minimal art ability can paint something resembling a cat! I would definitely recommend this book and I’m going to buy my own copy I loved it so much

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read and give an honest review of this book.

I would consider this bright and cheerful book a watercolor book for beginners.
It briefly discuses paints, paper, brushes, watercolor pencils, and palettes. Then, it moves on quickly, to the painting part.

The author is very encouraging and it feels good to have a cheerleader
pulling for you as you practice dabbling with your art supplies. Various techniques are explained and demonstrated. There are lists of prompts to get you going when you can’t think of anything to paint. The suggestion to paint everyday for thirty days, no matter how briefly, is a great one. It develops a good habit. Discouraging the beginning artist from being too judgmental of themselves and their work is also helpful.

If you are toying with the idea of beginning with watercolor painting, this is a good book to begin with. It can be very positive and affirming as watercolor can be a tricky medium to start with.