An honest confession

It’s been a while since I’ve written here. To be honest, I even archived my blog for a while.

So far, I’ve been running Hands-on Art all by myself. It’s been a wild ride. The dream of designing my own life and choosing my own hours as an entrepreneur once felt so far away — now I’m living it.

But here’s the thing: once you’re in that dream, doing what you love with all your heart, it’s easy to lose yourself in it too. I often find myself working day and night — way more than I ever did when I had an employer.

The upside? I get to choose what I do and when I do it — which is priceless when you’re raising kids abroad. My support network is back in Belgium, and building a life here with more flexibility has become essential.

At the beginning of the year, the universe sent me Grace — a university student in Canada studying education. She wanted to do her internship abroad and reached out to ask if I needed help. After a few video calls (and confirming she wasn’t AI 😉), we sealed the deal. In May, I got the joyful news: she was flying to Switzerland to support Hands-on Art.

I still can’t believe it happened!For the first time, I had real support — and what a difference it made. May and June were my best Hands-on Art months ever — full of joy, connection, and yes, even financially the most rewarding so far.

It taught me one thing: if you want to grow, you need like-minded people on your side.

Grace is already back in Canada (and yes, I miss her!). But life kept weaving its magic: during one of my Kreativzeit workshops at Langhuus, I met Bruna — a UX specialist from Brazil who recently moved here with her husband. She asked, “Do you need help?”

Yes, I do!

Today we had our first meeting and already made a full to-do list. One of them? Reactivating this blog.

There are many exciting new projects in the pipeline. So stay tuned. My aim is simple but strong: to share how art can support your mental health, your wellbeing, and help you find direction in life.

So excited for the future ahead! Laura