I started blogging and had my first website created ten years ago! This series is a sneak peek back into those days (and illustrations).

In this part I’m sharing the art I create for children – with children – as Tarinatäti (aka Storyteller Auntie).

It all started in 2015 when I was working with children in the forest. We spent three hours once or twice a week with each group I lead in the forest in every weather, playing, singing and laughing a lot.

I wrote a little journal note for the parents of all the fun we had together, until…

…I drew these little creatures for the children to mark their own coat rack place. It was a game also, each child needed to come up with an animal, plant, fish, nature’s phenomena or insect that started with their first name to be their name in the group.

And then it didn’t take long before I realized that instead of writing the journal notes for parents to read, I could draw a picture of what we did during our trip in the forest!

It was revolutionary, because now it was the children (ages 3-5 yo) who were in charge of telling the story. The parents could just wonder what had happened, and thus I handed the torch to the kids to tell the story.

The next step was to visit classrooms and draw the pictures live in front of the children.

I asked them what they wanted me to draw,
and then I just drew it.

They got the coloring picture and wrote the story of their group together as they colored it.

After having more than 800 children’s wishes drawn true in my coloring pictures, and having drawn five coloring picture Christmas calendars, and other seasonal coloring pictures that ignite imagination, relax into being present for each other and draw people together by storytelling, I can say that THIS is one of my true passions.

But it didn’t come as a surprise, because the moment I had visited the first group in the classroom I knew it. I had arrived. This is so me.

If you are interested in purchasing the coloring picture Christmas calendar or want to know more about Tarinatäti, visit my other website for more information (It’s all in Finnish though…)