The 7 types of Rest

🌿The 7 Types of Rest (and How Watercolour Can Help You Find Them)🌿

We often think “rest” just means stopping or sleeping. But true rest is deeper, more dimensional. As I’ve learned (and keep re-learning), we need more than just physical rest to feel whole again. There are seven types of rest our bodies, minds, and souls crave—and reconnecting with creative practices like watercolour can gently touch each of them.

Let’s explore the 7 types of rest—see if any of these resonate with you.

1. Physical Rest

This is the most obvious one. It's the stillness, the deep breath, the soft exhale. But it's not just sleep—it's also gentle movement, yoga, stretching, floating in a bath, or simply being still with a paintbrush in hand. In our Calming Art Watercolour Workshops, we move slowly, we sit in softness, we breathe.

Your body remembers how to rest when you stop rushing it.

2. Mental Rest

Ever feel like your brain just won't shut off? The to-do lists, the noise, the tabs open in your mind. Mental rest means allowing space between thoughts—something that happens so naturally when you're mixing colour, watching pigment flow on wet paper, or just... being with the paint.

Watercolour doesn't rush you. There's no pressure to be perfect. It invites you to be present.

3. Sensory Rest

Screens, lights, notifications, noise—it’s constant. Sensory rest asks us to unplug, dim the lights, and reconnect with quieter, slower experiences.

In our workshops, we intentionally create a calming environment—soft light, nature-inspired palettes, soothing sounds. You get to feel again, without all the noise.

4. Creative Rest

Ironically, if you're someone who gives your creativity away all day (to work, to others, to social media), you need creative rest. This is the kind of rest that comes from being inspired—by beauty, by colour, by the joy of creating for you.

Watercolour can be a beautiful reawakening. You don’t have to know what you’re painting. You just follow the flow.

5. Emotional Rest

Emotional rest means being able to express your feelings honestly, without needing to perform or please. In our space, you don’t need to be “fine.” You don’t need to say the right thing. You can just be.

Painting becomes a release. The colours can carry what words cannot.

6. Social Rest

Some relationships restore you; others drain you. Social rest is about finding safe, nourishing connections—or simply time alone without guilt.

Our workshops are intentionally small and gentle. Whether you're seeking solitude or kind company, you'll find a space that honours both.

7. Spiritual Rest

This one is deeper—it’s about purpose, connection, meaning. Feeling held by something bigger than yourself.

There’s something almost sacred in watching colour bloom across paper, in creating beauty from stillness. Art becomes a quiet inner moment. A reminder that you’re connected—to nature, to others, to yourself.

You are worthy of deep rest. Not just sleep, but restoration.
If your soul is tired, your senses overwhelmed, or your creativity burnt out—I invite you to join me in a Calming Art Watercolour Workshop.

No experience needed. Just bring yourself, as you are.

Together, we’ll explore colour, stillness, and soft joy.

With kindness and creativity,

Em
@empowermooreart