How to Add Practice Routines to Improve Your Performances?

As humans, we're creatures of habit. We tend to fall into the same routines day in and day out, whether we realize it or not. We can let this ruin our performances, if we form bad habits, or we can use it to greatly improve our stage presence by building a routine of good habits.

Think about how many people fail at keeping up with their New Year's Resolutions (have you kept yours?). The predominant reason for that is most people make their resolutions too vague. They say something like "I'm going to practice guitar five times a week." That's bound for failure due to lack of specificity.

Someone much more likely to succeed would be the person who says "I'll practice guitar Mondays - Fridays from 8pm to 9pm. And If I have to miss one of those practices, Saturday will be my back-up day from 8pm to 9pm." THAT person is bound to make that his practice routine happen. He has a plan. He worked a routine into his day. He played into the fact that we're creatures of habit and used it in a positive way.

As far as rehearsing for your shows, you should be very specific about when you'll do it, and what you'll be doing. You'll be much more likely to succeed with a rehearsal schedule by doing it that way.

It may be difficult to stick to the schedules you set for yourself when you first add them into your daily or weekly routine. That's why if you're vague about adding a new routine to your life, you're much more likely to stop doing it. Force yourself to stick with your new routine for a month. The first few days will be easy, since you'll be excited about it. After that it'll get tougher, but once you get to the end of the month it'll be old hat.

I wouldn't recommend adding more that one new routine a month. Focus all of your will power on that one routine for the entire month. By the time it's routine for you a month later, you can add a new one and focus all of your will power on that. Just remember to be specific each time you add a new routine.

For example, on July 1 you might start doing a vocal exercise routine every morning, from Monday through Saturday for twenty minutes when you first wake up. Stay with this and focus your will power on that.

Once you've powered through that and made it routine, you can add a new one. On August 1, in addition to your morning vocal exercises, you might add a performance practice. Every Monday, Wednesday & Friday, from 6pm to 7:30 pm. During those practices, you'll roll through your set list, practicing each song in a varied form of the original version, as mentioned in Part 1.

Keep building on new routines until you've added all the pieces you need to practice to be a great performer.

How Find Your Interior Paint Color Ideas?

Are you having difficulty coming up with paint color ideas for your home? Choosing the right colors for the rooms in your home is one of the most important decorating decisions we are often confused about how to find the right colors. That's why it can be helpful to bounce off some color ideas to jumpstart the process and get some creative ideas!

Your Favorite Colors

Your home should be a reflection of your personality, and it does not matter whether it is a brand new home or an old colonial. The colors you choose should have your signature and that is why you should always begin with your favorite colors. Most people tend to have preferred color combinations or a single favorite color, and that should be used as the basic to draw your palette from.

However, it doesn't mean that if your favorite color is red, every room in the house should also be red. The concept is to begin with your favorite colors. There will also be colors that you dislike and these should be avoided within your home. The last thing you want is to be surrounded by something that you do not feel good about.

Popular Paint Colors

Paint color ideas are more varied today than ever. Visiting a paint supply store, you can get to view what are the most popular colors are for homes and keep up with trends on what people are doing for their various living spaces. Some colors such as neutrals tend to retain their popularity over the years, and may be a good option for those who only intend to paint once in a long time.

Current Color Trends

Along the same line as understanding what the popular colors are at the moment, paying attention to the current color trends for different types of homes can set your imagination on fire.

Color trends for homes evolve on a regular basis, just like those that set the color and look for fashion houses. Color trends reflect the moods and emotions of the year, and can be used to create a home that is in synonymous with the times.

The Best Combination of Colors

There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to the best combination of colors for your home. Your personality is just as important to the decision making process as the architecture of the home. When you have paint color ideas, do not limit yourself by ruling out any permutations; just try out the colors with the help of our experts before making that final decision. The right color combination can make every room in your home stand out yet feel inviting.

4 Tips to Attract People to Your Paintings

When you look at a painting, your eyes naturally dart about but quickly come to rest on a place in the painting that makes you focus and think. That is, if it is a good painting created by an artist that has a workable technique and understanding of the area of interest. Some artist refer to this as the focal point. It is the starting point for the viewer of the painting. More than likely, it is probably what inspired the title of the painting. Whether you are a new artist, or an experienced artist, you should spend an adequate amount of time planning this small area in your painting. I say small, because it seldom should be more than a fraction of the entire work (some say no more than a sixteenth), but it should be the most intriguing part.

Imagine this, you want to paint a landscape scene where the light is filtering through trees creating a sun dappled patch in a small clearing of grass. The clearing is near a babbling brook from which a young fawn drinks. The fawn's mother stands off to the side, but nearby. She keenly stares in the direction of your assumed viewer with a look of anticipation, as if sensing danger. As an artist, you see the anticipation of the deer's expression in your mind's eye, and you imagine the emotion of the viewer, hoping they will be concerned that the deer may mistake them for a hunter.

Can it be? Can you really pull this off? You can if you have a clear understanding of color, chroma, contrasting values, directional shapes, and hard and soft edges. You have an artist license and you can create anything you can imagine. Whether this is true, or not, this you must believe before you attempt the work of art.

Imagine the difference of the scene being photographed instead of painted. In a photograph, the deer will still be the focal point, but in many cases the focal point of a photograph isn't near as captivating as a good painting. Why is this? It is because a photograph has details all throughout the picture. These details dull the center of interest. If you have any doubt about this, paint details equally throughout the painting and see how you confuse the viewer and dilute the main focal point. A painting should emphasize details only when necessary.

For example, painting details of tree trunks, leaves, or grass may be important in the area surrounding the deer, but the remaining trees and foliage in your painting works best if left more vague. The sun dappled patch around the stream should be more brilliant. An occasional directional shape of a limb or tree may help direct the viewers eyes to the area.

Here are 4 tips to help you attract people to your paintings.

Use contrasting values in the area of interest. They will immediately grab the viewers attention. This is especially true if you use a real dark hue next to a real light one.

How to use color in the area of interest is most important. Select a special color you only intend to use here. No matter how much, or how little you use it, do not use it anywhere else in the painting. Also, always use more brilliance in the focal point. Remember, colors that have their complements placed next to them are compelling to the eye, so use adjacent complements whenever possible.

Directional shapes work well, but always use them with moderation. Give this plenty of thought in advance in the planning stage. if directional shapes are overused, your painting will become a ho-hum instead of a masterpiece. An example of directional shapes are trees, limbs, stems, rivers, roads, houses, rooftops, buildings, signs,fences, and almost any angle or line that can indicate direction.

Use less detail and softer edges in the area outside of the focal point. Paint crisper edges and more detail within it.

In conclusion, pay particular attention to how you paint your focal area. This should be the most intriguing area of the entire painting. If you concentrate on the use of color, crisp and soft edges, contrasting values, and directional shapes, then you will have a more compelling painting. Challenge yourself to study and learn, and you will create your masterpiece. The main thing, keep painting.