Hi, my name is Nelli and I am the founder of Happy Cloud Creative Circle.

I’m a self-taught artist with a passion for creating original paintings inspired by landscapes, seascapes, and all things nature. I absolutely love sharing what I’ve learned—my skills, experiences, and creative process—but most importantly, I love helping others discover that they, too, can create art they’re proud to display and enjoy the process along the way!

My painting journey began back in 2015 at a paint party where an instructor guided us step-by-step through a painting. I was amazed at what I created—especially considering I had never painted before! That experience opened up a whole new world for me—one filled with art, creativity, and a sense of accomplishment I didn’t know I was missing.

 I started watching all kinds of instructional videos and painting along. One of my friends joked that Bob Ross would be proud of me. Being from a different country, Bob Ross was not part of my life growing up, so I had to look him up. That’s when I discovered the Joy of Painting and fell in love with that show. I have painted dozens of paintings listening to Bob Ross’ hypnotizing voice. My paintings were even featured by PBS as I won a Bob Ross challenge!

All of this was happening while we were stationed in Japan and that unique situation provided me with an opportunity to teach a painting event to my friends. I was super excited to share the techniques and tricks that I had learned. I had the best time teaching that class and my friends absolutely loved it, and they kept asking for more.

Since then, I’ve created countless paintings and taught thousands of people through my in-person paint parties and online classes at every location our military life would bring us: Japan, Hawaii, California, and now North Carolina. And now, I’m thrilled to offer carefully crafted, step-by-step video tutorials designed to take you from “I’ve never painted before” to “Look what I made!”

I’m here to cheer you on every step of the way! 🎨✨