My Journey

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In the last couple of decades, I feel being creative has been my anchor. It has been therapy, respite, learning and an outlet. I usually have a few unfinished/WIPs and they are what I can let my mind drift to when I can’t sleep or it all gets a bit too overwhelming. 

Looking back, I can’t remember when I started “being creative”. All I can think of is that it wasn’t just me, it was the whole family that was creative and artistic. Mama, an Artist and Daddy, an Engineer meant we were exposed to art, DIY and tinkering from an early age. They would always think out of the box and that meant we didn’t rush to the shops for every school project or play. We would use whatever supplies we had at home and end up with great stuff.

We always celebrated every special occasion and back when themed parties were not a thing, our parents always made sure the parties represented who we were or what we liked at that particular age. Organising events and parties just became a part of me - so gradual I didn't realise until friends and family started asking me to help out. 

After a decade and half of working in IT (with a Finance degree), I realised I had to take some time out for myself and pursue something that would make me happy. I started the planning process during my maternity leave with our second baby and after some sleepless months knew I was ready to give up the day job. It was a leap of faith but it worked out. 

I started a craft & food venture with the intention of organising and hosting craft parties.  A couple of months into that, I had the opportunity to run outreach workshops for women in the local community. Since I had a baby in tow, I found an amazing place with a space for babies and toddlers to play in the same room. This was a breath of fresh air for women who didn't have to think about childcare while taking out a couple of ours for themselves. And with the morning art sessions 'Breathe Art' was born.

We moved across the world in 2019 so I had to put the venture on hold. I have since found local projects to keep me connected to arts & craft and have hosted informal creative meetups and made wonderful friends. 

Over time I incorporated mindfulness into these few hours of art & craft knowing how essential good mental health is. In recent years, that has slowly become my focus. I am working on building art workshop programs that incorporate mental health well-being at its core. At the moment,  I'm focusing on studies and research on art, ageing, mental health and well-being. This intent has realised into what I call being 'Artful' - my next project.

- Arouj