With the hustle and bustle of city life, we know it can be hard for artists to find uninterrupted time to create. That’s why we created our Artist Fellowship Program, to give creatives a space in nature to work on their projects. We love seeing what our artists come up with and we’re excited to share some of our fellows from this past month.
Illustrator Fabiola Lara is inspired by a combination of pop culture and her own feelings, whether they are obsession, happiness, anxiety, or sadness. Fabiola has been illustrating since she was young, but she began sharing her work with the world in 2013.
“I’ve been creating since I was a kid,” Fabiola said. “I can remember spending hours drawing Spongebob and making elaborate paper Christmas ornaments.”
Fabiola, who recently spent some time working at our New York Outpost, hopes to one day create the illustrations for the next teen Netflix series.
Samantha Testa, who recently took to our DC Outpost, first began painting and drawing as a little girl with her grandfather. It’s a story that particularly resonated with us, as all of our cabins are named for grandparents.
“He was a phenomenal artist who taught me how to be patient with my work and find joy in creating things,” Samantha explains. “I still have a set of his old rickety brushes that I pull out from time to time.”
Since then, Samantha has drawn her inspiration largely from architecture and vast landscapes. Her dream would be to travel to different cities and paint the structures that represents their history, culture, and vibrancy.
“I love searching for symmetry, angles, ornate details, and color palettes that make me feel inspired to get them down on paper,” Samantha notes. “Aside from the tangible inspiration, there is sometimes just an abstract feeling that compels me to make something with my hands.”
Interested in tapping into your own creativity in nature? Escape today.
With the constant hustle and bustle around us, we know it can be hard for artists to find quiet time to create. That’s why we created our Artist Fellowship Program, to give creatives a space in nature for uninterrupted time to work. We love seeing what our artists come up with and we’re excited to share with you some of our fellows from the past month.
This Month’s Artist Fellows
It’s been a little over two years since Samantha Reuter decided to paint full-time. She says she’s been an “art-room kid” from the time she was little and she fell in love with studying the female form during her time in college.
Samantha recently took to our New York Outpost to spend some time painting. As someone who loves to see the world, Samantha says travel is imperative to her process.
“The world is the greatest form of inspiration,” Samantha said. “My sketchbooks go with me everywhere. I often record whatever stands out on the trip- just recording little moments for fun. I’ve recently found that I love traveling solo as well, and plan to push myself to do more of that.”
Photographer James Corbett rarely goes a full day with taking a picture. His love of photography began in 2014 when he began shooting mountain bike races.
He finds inspiration in pursuing technical excellence, as well as the search for a unique angle or a special moment to capture. Recently, James says he’s been finding more inspiration in portrait photography as well.
“I am working on a project concept around challenging gender norms and stereotypes,” James said. “I plan to explore in portraiture how individuals would express their true self without restrictions.”
Stephanie Harvey has dabbled in everything from photography to print making to graphic design. Now, Stephanie runs her own greeting card and giftware company, exit343design.
“My goal is to create work that is both fun and functional,” Stephanie says. “I draw inspiration from everyday circumstances, a love of color, typography, textile patterns, flora, fauna, and a penchant for junk food.”
The artist, who recently spend some time creating at Getaway DC, says she dreams of one designing packaging for a brewery, a fabric line, or a mural.
Interested in becoming an Artist Fellow? Apply here.
Holistic health consultant and healthy lifestyle designer Paola Atlason doesn’t believe in just taking vacations for balance. She practices self-care every day and incorporates balance into her daily routine. Paola will soon be unplugging and de-stressing in one of our cabins. But in the meantime, Paola is sharing with us her tips for bringing the best parts of Getaway into our daily routines.
Practical and easy self-care tips for staying balanced throughout the day
One of my favorite ways to recalibrate is by being in nature. As a New Yorker for the past 20 years this is not always easy, so I rely on a handful of self-care rituals to keep me grounded throughout the day.
I would first like to demystify what “self-care” means- it simply refers to any practice in which you feel cared for and supported. It doesn’t involve costly products, it doesn’t have to be time consuming, you can do it from the comfort of your home and in your own time. It should be practiced in bite sizes, throughout the day, every day – not saved exclusively for Sundays.
The most important ritual is to begin the day with a focus on yourself. Those few minutes spent in nurturing silence set the tone for the rest of your waking hours. The following is my trusted 3-step morning routine, one that I’ve practiced for years and still brings me joy:
SIMPLY BREATHE
By placing attention on the breath upon awakening, we welcome clean energy into our bodies. Conscious deep breathing oxygenates the blood and ignites internal heat, which is very important during the cold winter months.
The Technique: While laying in bed take a full deep breath in for a count of four, and slowly release for a count of six. Feel free to sigh or open your mouth as you exhale. Repeat for 4 to 6 rounds and as you scan your body, smile, stretch and indulge.
AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE
As you open your eyes, in your mind list three things you’re grateful for. This easy yet highly effective practice changes your brain chemistry and shifts the focus onto the positive. Keep it simple to begin with (I’m often grateful for my hands and sunlight). Once you get going, your list will grow.
WAKE UP!
My favorite hands-on ritual is “dry skin brushing”. This practice promotes circulation and detoxification by stimulating the lymphatic system (aka the body’s washing machine). Using a natural bristle brush – before you shower – with firm yet gentle strokes start at the bottom of your feet and brush up the legs, torso and arms, and back down the neck and chest towards the heart.
For detailed step-by-step instructions and brush recommendations please visit my blog.
We know that with the hustle and bustle of city life, it can be hard for artists to carve out time to create. That’s why we started our Artist Fellowship Program, to give creatives uninterrupted time in nature to work on their projects. We love seeing what our artists make during their time with us, so we’re excited to share with you some of our fellows from this season.
Photographer Albert Groshenko knows how difficult it can be to find balance in his life. As an economics student at Columbia, Albert says he is lucky enough to draw inspiration from every street corner of New York City. He believes the sidewalk has become our culture’s “runway,” and loves seeing how artfully people choose to present themselves to the world.
Despite his love for the city, Albert still enjoys escaping to the woods. During his Getaway in Epsom, N.H., Albert took photos, cooked on an open fire, and slept amid the trees. While he loves working with his camera, Albert says he would love to one day create his own line of menswear, in addition to the finance career he aspires to.
Sophie Calhoun has been drawing for most of her life, but she had to take a hiatus from her art when life got too crazy. Once she graduated college though, Sophie rededicated time to her work and says she’s happy creating visual art again.
Sophie says she loves escaping into nature and gaining a fresh perspective, so she was able to spend some time creating illustrations while at Getaway Boston. Sophie says she usually gets her inspiration from a desire to visually represent complex concepts, like emotions. She loves storytelling and world-building and dreams of one day using her skills to create a graphic novel or video game.
Interested in becoming an Artist Fellow? Apply here.
Jeri Choi has stayed at Getaway DC a number of times and we love how she’s made a new tradition for her family of four (soon to be five). We asked Jeri to share more about her experience with Getaway, as well as her favorite family-friendly places to stop along the way.
“Are we there yet?! Are we there yet?!”
Only 15 mins into our estimated 2-hour drive and we were already hearing the chants and giggles get louder from our 2 kids in the backseat.
The kids were so excited. We were on our way to the Getaway.
My husband and I try our best to catch up and talk to our kids at dinner each night and then pick up the conversation as part of their bedtime routine. We listen to them talk about their day, read them a book, and pray for them. But that time is never enough—there are always more stories from what happened at school and more jokes they want to share.
Especially during certain seasons of busyness, we find that we can lose ourselves crossing off to-do lists, following a strict schedule, and living by our Google Calendar all while making sure that the kids are fed, clean, and generally doing well.
It was one winter, during a particularly busy time, that my husband suggested we go away for a few days as a family. A getaway to the Getaway, to retreat as a family of four.
Our very first trip actually took us close to 4 hours to get there. We stopped multiple times for bathroom breaks, for coffee, for gas, to change a diaper, and eventually got stuck in traffic because of the rain.
It was horrible. It’s not what I had planned or imagined. I wanted the two days away to be the best—about us, disconnecting from our busy lives and reconnecting as a family. But here we were, in traffic, spending the majority of it in a parked car on the highway.
The last stretch of traffic made our kids really antsy so we decided to take just one more stop before heading to our cabin. We stumbled upon a shopping center with a Target, about 35 minutes from the Getaway.
The kids ran down the aisles, getting out all their wiggles, following us as we looked around for diapers and milk. Moving through the aisles, our kids got a hold of different snacks and toys and continued to ask me if we could buy it. Annoyed from the rain and the cold, I didn’t even hear what they were asking, just responded with, “No. We have to go.”
Our daughter grabbed a box of cereal, tugged on my jacket and asked, “Can we get this for breakfast? I’ve always wanted to try unicorn marshmallows!” I quickly snapped back, “No! I planned to make pancakes so we’re having pancakes for breakfast.”
I saw her put it back on the shelf and she hopped back onto the cart as my husband pushed it. He turned around and smiled at me. I walked towards him and he put his arm around me and said to our kids, “Hey guys, let’s hurry up here so we can go!”
As we were checking out, our son started to cry. He was hungry. We were all hungry and we needed to eat dinner. In the same shopping center was Panera. We made our way over and sat down in the booth. Our daughter at this point was tired and started to wind down, putting her head on the table. Trying to revive her excitement and also to remind myself of why we came, I kept telling her, “Just wait! As soon as we get there, we are going to have so much fun!” She looked up at me and said, “Mama, but this is already fun!” Her face brightened up as she looked at me and continued to tell me stories of what happened at school—right where we left off the other night before bed.
I tried to hold back my tears as I was trying to eat my broccoli cheddar soup. The idea of wanting rest and connecting with my family looked effortless in my perfect schedule. I wanted to cross off my to-do list of our trip to find rest when really that would never give me peace.
Obviously, not following it made me unhappy—living like this would never make me happy. I needed to lay down my selfish and unreasonable expectations for myself, as a mom, as a wife, and for our family. There will always be a to-do list but only one moment in time when our kids are little. I just needed to be present for my daughter, for my family.
I apologized to my daughter for my crabby attitude. And my very keen daughter responded, “It’s ok mom. I forgive you. I get like that when I’m hungry too!” We left Panera with full stomachs and a new sense of excitement. Our last 30 minutes in the car were filled with singing, guessing games, and laughter. We were enjoying each others company and even decided to make one more stop at Sheetz to grab ice-cream for dessert!
We pulled up to our cabin and unloaded our bags. The kids had so much fun holding up flashlights for us to see the path from the car to the door. We were all wet and cold, but our cabin was warm inside and greeted us with a pleasant smell of wood and fresh bedsheets. We washed up, put the kids in their pajamas, and talked some more in bed. Right before falling asleep, our two-year-old son said, “this is the best ever.” And it was. It was the best ever.
Since then, our family has gone two more times. We book our trips when we know we’ll have a busier season coming up for us. It’s become our new tradition. On the way to our cabin, we’ll all take turns sharing knock-knock jokes that we’ve been saving up, talk about school and work, share our hopes and dreams. We stop by that same Target from our first trip where our kids will each pick out a snack of their choice along with a box of cereal to eat for breakfast the next day. Then we make our way over to Panera to grab a bite to eat while talking about what we want to do during our stay.
Here are a few places we’ve stumbled upon either by accident, because of a bathroom break, or because one of our kids yelled, “Can we go there?!” We hope you and your family enjoy them as much as we do during your Getaway. We can’t wait to go back again but this time with our new baby!
Culpeper Colonnade (15295 Montanus Dr, Culpeper, VA 22701) The shopping center we always stop by on the way. About 35 mins from the Getaway; has stores from Target, Dicks Sporting Goods to Panera, and Chik-fil-a.
Yoder’s Country Market(2105 S Seminole Trl. Madison, VA 22727) It’s a market, deli, petting zoo, and also has a playground! For lunch, we drive 12 mins from our cabin to Yoder’s Country Market. The deli has great food and we’ll take some time to shop around for some snacks. The kids love the free petting zoo behind the market and when they’re done watching the goats and peacocks, they’ll make their way over to the playground. We’ll also grab Trickling Springs ice cream to enjoy on the rocking chairs in front of the market.
Moo-Thru (11402 James Madison Hwy. Remington, VA 22734) Our family loves ice cream! We try to stop by Moo-Thru either on the way to the Getaway or on the way home from our trip because of the distance- about 45 minutes from the Outposts. If the weather is nice, the kids will run around outside or we will take a break under the pavilion to eat a packed meal and enjoy our ice cream.
Sheetz (7020 Seminole Trl. Ruckersville, VA 22968) I know its just a gas station and convenience store but its open 24 hours! It’s inevitable that you’ll forget to bring something, especially if you have children. We’ve made so many runs to Sheetz for all sorts of things, even in the middle of the night, just 15 minutes drive from the Outposts.
Shenandoah National Park, Skyline Drive (Swift Run Gap Entrance Station at Rt. 33) The kids love to explore around our cabin and take pictures of interesting finds. We also run into other people staying at the Getaway walking their dogs and the kids love greeting them. But if we need to get out, we drive 15 minutes to enjoy the beautiful view at Shenandoah National Park.
S’mores and campfire (at the cabin) One thing we look forward to is the campfire to make s’mores! Getaway is so kind and gifts you a s’mores kit, however, make sure to pack extra graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallows because if you’re anything like our family, we can always eat more s’mores!
I’ve long thought we should have more holidays. Why isn’t there, at least, one holiday every month? If we were to add more holidays, what things would you want us to carve out time for? One of my votes would be for us all to celebrate the National Day of Unplugging, a “24 hour respite from technology.” Read more about the day here.
So on March 1, we’re unplugging. Don’t worry if you’re staying with us that day — our field teams are at the ready to ensure you get your own time to recharge.
It’s a special day that’s about replacing push notifications with a pull towards the outdoors, setting aside our likes and follows for more time with the people we like the most. I appreciate my cell phone and my “connected” world, but it’s about setting a day to acknowledge that the counterbalance is just as important.
To me, National Day of Unplugging comes at the perfect time. Inevitably, at least in the Northeast, we spend a lot of time indoors in February. More time inside often equates to more time on screens, longer work hours, and less opportunity to meaningfully get away. Here’s hoping this special day serves as a reminder to us all about the upside of unplugging.
Our Artist Fellowship program was created to give creatives the space they need for uninterrupted work in the middle of the woods. The hope is that artists can use the quiet and the natural beauty around our cabins to inspire their creative projects. We’re excited to feature several of our fellows from the past few months and the work they have created at Getaway.
Hayley Tanasijevich has been drawing for as long as she can remember and even studied graphic design and illustration at the University of Michigan. After college, she realized her passion for travel drawing and has found a place to sketch everywhere from Scotland to Southeast Asia. Most recently, Hayley escaped to Getaway New York for some creative time. Drawing her inspiration from a treasure trove of children’s books, Hayley says she one day hopes to make her own.
“I hope someday to have a little studio where I can draw animals with eyebrows wearing funny clothes as much as I want,” Hayley said. “For now, I take each day one at a time and keep drawing and improving to never stop creating.”
Ali Williams has been passionate about public art ever since she created her first mural in art school. Her dream would be to create a mural abroad with a mission she’s passionate about. In the meantime, Ali draws her main inspiration from her fellow women artists and celebrating their accomplishments.
She took to Getaway DC this winter to focus her creative energy and work on some sketches. When she’s not on a Getaway, Ali says she likes to escape to the ocean.
“I’m fortunate to live near the ocean, and I work remote, so for a quick get away I walk to the beach as much as I can,” Ali said. “Unplugging is still a challenge, that’s why I like yoga so much! But with good people around it makes it much easier to shut all that down and enjoy the present moment no matter where you are.”
While Joanna Guest has been artistic for most of her life, she says her current work is mostly driven by the deep love of art her parents, who met in art school, have always had. In 2017, Joanna began collecting all the notes her father had written to both her and her brother. Since then, she has been creating collages to pair with her father’s words and has been sorting them into a book set to publish in 2019.
Joanna recently took to Getaway New York to inspire some of her canvases. However, the Brooklyn-based artist tries her best to find ways to disconnect even when she can’t get to the Catskills.
“I like to go to Maine. If that’s not in the cards, I love to cook, with good music in the background and a glass of wine,” Joanna says. “There’s nothing ‘away in nature’ about that, but boy can it make this Brooklyn-born kid feel free.”
We might be in the middle of winter, but don’t let the chilly air keep you from enjoying your Getaway. It’s the perfect time of year to cozy up in a cabin or bundle up and appreciate the natural beauty around you.
We’ve thought of some fun activities, both indoor and outdoor, to keep you occupied during your cold weather escape.
Learn A New Card Game
Ditch your solitaire app and get back to the real thing. Cards are provided in our cabins, so you don’t need to bring anything. If you’re interested in mixing it up, learn a new card game. You can try some of these classics from Bicycle or get creative and make up your own.
Do a Puzzle
Bring a puzzle and bond with your loved ones by doing it together. Puzzles are the perfect indoor activity and are great whether you want a solo escape or to bring people together.
Try a New Recipe
Our busy lives can make it hard to carve out time to cook. Use your time at our cabins to experiment with ingredients and try out new things. Our cabins come with cooking utensils, so all you need are ingredients. We recommend trying out these easy meals or these campfire cocktails.
Lose Yourself in a Book
Disconnect and dive into all the non-required reading you’ve always wanted to tackle. Use our cozy cabins to get back into the reading habit. Bring some books of your own, or choose from the ones we already have waiting for you.
Sketch or Journal
Take advantage of the quiet and let your creative side come out. Express your thoughts through journaling or create all those sketches you’ve been dreaming about making. It will help relax you from the stresses of everyday life and will give you a way to remember your Getaway.
Bundle Up and Head Outside
It might be cold outside, but that doesn’t mean you can’t explore. Bundle up and play in the snow or get out and take a cold-weather hike. Go on an impromptu adventure and breathe some fresh air. Don’t forget your layers, though! We even made a winter packing list so you don’t forget anything.
Cold or not, we believe any day is a good day to disconnect and relax. Don’t forget to make time for yourself and give yourself the break you deserve.
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