When was the last time you coloured or doodled?  As children, we are encouraged to colour to improve our hand-eye coordination and motor skills.  But did you know that colouring is a soothing activity as well?  It relaxes the senses and allows creativity to flow.  The other beautiful fact is the benefits it has for children are the same for adults!  As an artist, I can vouch for these daily benefits.

I am both an author and illustrator of the Bella Lucia Children’s Book Series and have been an artist all my life.  My first dreams were to become a Disney Artist and a Children’s Book Illustrator.  I began taking art training at the age of seven and although I was very young, I was blessed with an amazing teacher. While teaching me fundamentals and techniques, she also gave me the space to play as colouring and doodling does.  In all my years working with her, she allowed me to choose all my subjects and never pushed me into a new medium unless I said I was ready.   It was a wonderful experience to have a supportive teacher and a space to grow my roots.

Although I have never been far from my drawing pencils, I struggled in my early adult years because I did not see a way that I could create a career with my art.  I lived a double life for a long time where I worked in corporate/ Wall Street during the day and was drawing and dancing in the evening.  In 2018, I had an injury that made me pause and rethink my life.  I realised I could not keep hiding my creativity.  This initial step brought me to the moment in 2019 where I declared myself an entrepreneur and started my company.  Curiously Curated Creations of Kristina Lucia is a collection of storybooks and accompanying crocheted toys designed to ignite the child’s imagination and bring parents and children together.  Spending time together brings more opportunities for communication between loved ones and with communication we are able to identify and respect each other’s feelings.

A year into starting my company I realised that I was called not only to illustrate but to write a children’s book series.  I found that through my art and words I had an opportunity to share with the world my mission to improve communication between children and parents while also developing tools like colouring to help parents in their daily routines. Through each story, the characters in my books demonstrate how feelings can be expressed and worked through with space and understanding.  We all work from the same feelings list and when we listen to each other and communicate effectively, beautiful things happen in the world.

In illustrating my book series, I chose the characters to be animals because I wanted  every child who reads my books and looks at my illustrations to feel safe and know that they belong to Bella Elephant’s world.  Ironically, all I drew for the first five years of art lessons were animals!  At the same time, I also realised that I have a responsibility to both the child and parent.  There are a lot of kiddos in my life who love art and I wanted to demonstrate that there is always space for creativity in the world.  As an aunt and godmother, I choose every day to be the best version of myself and I am best when I am creating. Colouring is a great way to start!

I write for the parents too because we all need support at any age.  My parents are/ were not creatives and I threw them for quite a loop!  I realise now that my mother did not know how to advise me toward a career in the arts and tried her best not to worry about where I was going to land.  On many occasions I have talked to peers that have a child with a lot of creativity but are unsure of how to nurture these aspirations.  When I speak about this journey, I pray I can provide inspiration to those who are looking for guidance whether it is helping their child or even pivoting themselves.  We are never too old to colour or doodle and it is never too late to make a change in our lives!

Love Always,

Kristina Lucia xoxo

Kristina Lucia is an artist, creator and author who ignites the imagination of children and their parents through her limited edition animals and touching storybooks. Her humble beginnings in a small farm town (with one traffic light) sparked her creativity at a young age and her adopted home of New York City keeps her inspired daily. Curiously Curated Creations of Kristina Lucia features a magical array of warm, cuddly and comforting creatures along with storybooks that help parents and children improve their communication and deepen relationship.

Kristina Lucia’s first book series, Bella Lucia: Tales of a Curious and Thoughtful Elephant, is coming in Spring of 2023!  Through each tale, Bella experiences a range of feelings while learning new skills and handling the transitions of growing up.  With the help of her parents and special adult friends, she overcomes each challenge though communication and patience!

To follow Kristina journey head to: https://cccokl.com/