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Enrollment ends January 7, 2027.
What if you painted something every day for 100 days?
Imagine the ideas you'd find, the skills you'd build and the doors that could open. The 100-Day Painting Challenge begins January 11. Come paint with me, one small painting at a time.
Starts January 11 · 100 days · Paint at your own pace · Oil, acrylic or gouache · Small paintings, any size · Join by January 7
JOIN THE WAITLIST →I created this challenge to share a clear, approachable framework for staying in the creative flow. Small paintings keep the stakes low and the habit high. You make work that feels personal, and you end with a body of art you can keep and share.
Day 100
Imagine where you'll be on Day 100
- A studio habit that feels as natural as your morning coffee.
- Painting skills that grew because you kept showing up.
- A wall of ideas for the larger paintings you've been dreaming about.
- A collection of small, affordable paintings to share, show or sell.
- One epic thing you finished, with your name on every painting.
The benefits of a 100-day challenge
What 100 small paintings give you
Build a routine you love
Small paintings make it easy to show up. Day by day, painting stops being something you hope to do and becomes something you do.
Fall into your studio flow
When you paint most days, you stop warming up and start painting. Your hands know what to do and your ideas arrive faster.
Watch your skills grow
Every painting teaches you something, and a hundred of them teach you a lot. Your color, your brushwork and your confidence grow with each one.
Find ideas for bigger paintings
A small painting is the perfect place to test a composition, a palette or a subject. Some will become the larger, more developed paintings you've been dreaming about.
The big one
Build a collection to sell from
Small paintings are affordable, which makes them easy to offer from your studio, at events, exhibitions, art markets and fairs, or with a gallery. A hundred paintings give you plenty to choose from.
Make time for yourself
This is your time. Painting is self-care you can look forward to every day.
Do more of what you love
You've been meaning to paint more. This is your plan, and your permission.
Complete something epic
A hundred days is a big, beautiful finish line. Stand in front of 100 paintings you made and see what you're capable of.
Never paint alone
A community space to share, and weekly encouragement from me by email.
and so much more
Why 100 days
Why a hundred small paintings?
Big goals can feel heavy. A small painting never does. It's small enough to start on a busy day and big enough to teach you something. Stack up a hundred of them and something shifts. You become someone who paints.
The paintings
A peek at the paintings from my last challenge
One painting at a time. Day 1 to Day 100.
How it works
Four simple steps
Pick a size and materials
Paint on a small canvas or panel, like 5x7 or 3x5, or choose your own size. Use any materials that work for you. I demonstrate in oil.
Jot down ideas
Write a few things you'd love to create.
Show up
A few minutes or more, every day, or as consistently as you can. Miss a day or a week? Pick up where you left off.
Share if you like
Post in the community or online. It's optional.
Make it yours: paint for yourself, or build a collection to sell. Progress over perfection.
What's inside
Everything you need to keep going
- 30+ oil painting demos, recorded during a past challenge. Watch me paint from start to finish, then follow along in any medium.
- Lessons on keeping momentum, for the days you don't feel like it.
- A gentle, beginner-friendly overview of oil painting.
- A community space to share your work.
- Weekly check-ins and encouragement from me, by email and in the community.
- An optional printable workbook.
- Bonus: a live Zoom graduation celebration in May 2027, where we showcase our work.
Is this for you?
This is for you if you want to
- Build a daily or near-daily studio habit that fuels your creativity and confidence.
- Improve your painting skills with steady practice.
- Do more of what you love, on your own schedule, with no live calls to attend.
- Strengthen your unique voice and style.
- Finish something you can be proud of.
Inside the course
Every lesson, step by step
Introduction: Welcome! Start Here
- Materials and Setup
- Artist Inspiration from Daily Painters
Painting Foundations
- Composition and Values
- Alla Prima Basics (Direct Painting)
Falling in Love with Painting
- Following What Inspires You
- Making the Process Pleasurable, Silencing the Inner Critic, and Manifesting the Art We Love
Mediums, Mixing and Paint Handling
- Oil Painting Mediums and Paint Consistency
- Mixing Paint and Value Scales
- Avoiding Muddy Colors: Fresh and Confident Brushstrokes
- Palette Cleanup & Safe Studio Practices
Strong Photo References
- Taking and Organizing High-Quality References
Sharing Your Work
- Confident and Thoughtful Sharing: Protecting Your Voice Online
- Two painting demos on working into dry paintings
From Experiments to a Body of Work
- Next Steps: Transforming Experiments Into a Body of Work
Painting Demos
- 30+ painting demos, from a coffee cup to a rainbow on a stormy sky
Included
An optional workbook to go with it
A printable workbook to support your journey: a materials list, a chapter on each topic, a tracker, a log of every painting and room to write.
Community
You won't be painting alone
Share your paintings in the community space whenever you like. Once a week, I check in with encouragement to keep you moving. Cheer each other on, and watch the collection grow.
About Ekaterina
Meet Kat
Ekaterina Popova is an internationally exhibited painter known for her emotive interiors, expressive brushwork and bold use of color. Her work has been shown in galleries across the United States and internationally, including France, Spain and the United Kingdom.
She is the founder of Create! Magazine and a trusted educator with multiple coaching certifications. Her challenges help artists build confident, consistent creative practices.
Client love
From past painters
“The 100 days of painting challenge was life changing! I went from zero knowledge about the required supplies to having people BEG to buy my art by the end of it!? The best part is just how much it brings meaning into my everyday life. I feel more present, observant and grateful of the world around me.”
– Abbie“Kat is a fantastic teacher because she is working her own practice constantly therefore her knowledge comes from her own easel. I have learned so much from watching her painting videos and also helped me gain the confidence to apply paint to canvas. Highly recommended!”
– Joy Liu“I was honestly blown away by this course. Kat went above and beyond with her demos, tutorials, one-on-one feedback, and group support. I don’t know how she found the time to do so much, but the effort she put into this course exceeded my expectations. She modeled good art practices in her own studio and deeply inspired us all.”
– HannahDay 1 is January 11. Your first painting is waiting.
JOIN THE WAITLIST →
Join the challenge
Join the 100-Day Painting Challenge
$299
one payment
Price goes to $399 after December 25.
12 months of access from the day you join. Everything inside is yours to return to.
30+ oil painting demos · Momentum lessons · Beginner-friendly oil painting overview · Community space · Weekly check-ins from Kat · Optional printable workbook · Bonus: a live Zoom graduation celebration in May 2027, where we showcase our work
or 2 payments of $155 $310 total
Join by January 7 to start with us on January 11.
All sales are final. Read the page, and email with questions before you join.
Questions
Got questions?
When does it start, and how long do I have access?
Do I have to paint in oil?
What if I'm brand new to oil painting?
Do I need a full studio?
How much time will this take each day?
Will there be feedback or live support?
What if I can't start right away?
What if I fall behind?
Can I sell the work I make?
What if I'm sensitive to oil paint or pregnant?
When is the deadline to join?
Does the price change?
Can I pay in installments?
What is your refund policy?
Email info@createmagazine.com for support.
A hundred days from now, you'll be glad you started on January 11.
Come paint with me, one small painting at a time.
Doors close January 7.
JOIN THE WAITLIST →
